K-Pop's Tiring Obsession With Sexualizing Barely Legal Idols
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- čas přidán 10. 06. 2024
- Hi! I hope everyone enjoyed the video! Let me know your opinion down below!
TIMESTAMPS:
Intro - 0:00 - 1:39
Discussion 1 - 1:39 - 2:12
Discussion 2 - 2:12 - 4:04
Discussion 3 - 4:04 - 5:45
Discussion 4 - 5:45 - 7:30
Discussions 5 - 7:30 - 9:54
Conclusion - 9:54
Video Credits :
JMxchi95
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K-POP WORLD 60FPS
Black Hive Studio
cotton candy
astrww - Zábava
I forgot to point out the sad reality that a lot of these people, we’re pushing for idols to be protected from, are in the industry working along side them. Whether it’s a staff member, a CEO, or even another idol.
I do still have hope that things will change, just wanted to discuss all the other aspects that causes these issues to be worse. Thank you so much for watching! What are your opinions?
something i really hate about hybe's approach to sexy concepts with groups who have minors is that they will have a concept that's clearly too mature for them but 'get away' with it because they give the raunchiest scenes/lyrics to the older members who are over 18. enhypen's fever and lsfm's fearless comes to mind where they made heeseung and jay to the bed and shower scene respectively and unnie line do the floor-humping move in their debut. it's just so insidious and though there's some calling out since the concepts are clearly not for the groups, they get away with it bc of this loophole.
Fearless and fever aren’t sexual the lyrics aren’t and the dance isn’t really
@@brennathecatlover4360 you must be living in lalaland if you think fever isn’t a sexy concept
Me with LSF's Easy and Smart (and honestly, you could maybe stretch it to their last comeback or two as well, it feels like they are getting worse the closer the youngest is to being 18 ._.)
@@brennathecatlover4360youre downright delusional if you dont think fever is sexual 😭
@@brennathecatlover4360 you must think Fever is an advertisement for cough medicine.
For YEARS, when a Maknae turned 18 or 19 (20 years Korean age), they'd perform a rendition of the song "Adult Ceremony" by Park Jiyoon for fans. It blows my mind that nobody talks about this. Male or female. It was so weird! It's public knowledge that the song ruined the original singers life for years, and JYP had to apologize to her for having her sing that and not revealing what it meant. It's the earliest example that I can think of of a minor being sexualized in Kpop, because if I'm remembering correctly, she recorded the song and video when she was underage and it was released when she was freshly 18. It messed up her relationship with her family and she had self-deleting thoughts due to the rumors it caused about her. JYP Entertainment wanted to give her a sexy image the moment she turned 20 knowing that she came from a highly religious family, and for years idols sang that song the moment they turned 20 (Korean age) as basically fan service. That just... not right!
From what I got jiyoon never said she was uncomfortable with it she just didn’t understand how sexy it was but I’m sure she had an idea it was more mature as clearly the outfit dance and the lyrics portray slight sexyness. And maybe if her parents didn’t shame her for it she probably would’ve been more relaxed
@@brennathecatlover4360 She wasn't uncomfortable with it initially because she didn't catch the innuendo in the lyrics. She did NOT want to be a sexy singer though. Direct quote:
"Although I gained much popularity, personally, it was also a time when I was very hurt. Due to the sexy image, many weird rumors came out and I also received a lot of malicious comments. Such as one where I had a secret relationship with a high-ranking executive."
Regarding her wanting to keep a pure image:
"As Park Jiyoon was raised in a highly religious family, she wanted to keep a pure image rather than a sexy one. The rumors about her after the song and her image change tortured her rather badly. In Strong Heart, she shared how she hated the sexy image that the company created for her and how it caused her relationship with her family to be strained."
In 1st and 2nd Gen, it unfortunately wasn't uncommon for Kpop companies to make their female singers have a sexy image, often against their personal wishes. Many iconic songs that people love to claim they miss because they're "grown woman anthems" were actually released without informing the singer of how racy they were, as well as scenes in MVs or photoshoots the singers were uncomfortable with that they asked not to be released but got released anyway.
Korea was and is highly conservative, so even if Jiyoon was comfortable with the concept (she was not), she'd still have to deal with the backlash from it because her personally being comfortable with being sexualized would not have changed the culture she's in. And that takes a toll on anyone!
@@goldyd144 makes me think of nine muses debut ‘playboy’ and many of the members were underage or just legal and were crying on set as they were surprised and shocked with the direction of the music video
And the song is about grooming
Nowadays in kpop, 25+ years old is considered old. Annoyingly enough, so companies would be more inclined to debut minors for longevity in the industry, especially a male minor as they have to enlist in the military in the future, obviously this isn't discreding how bad debuting minors is and how we should protect the minors in the industry right now, this is just something I've noticed
I wonder if companies are going to be more inclined to debut non-Korean men (by nationality) so they don't have to deal with the issue of military service.
@@crystalsnow1138 most definitely, that’s why we’ve seen an increase of foreign idols and foreign groups debuting as well (NCT wish, &team, all the new global groups)
not even nowadays. there hasn't been a single day where nayeon isn't called old by kpop stans since twice debuted 🙄 mind you she debuted at 21 year old
@lemonblossom. I know that but ty, I am a once, but it's so annoying like let my girl sing !!
Korea JUST increased the age of consent in Korea
In 2020. From 13 to 16. 16.
18 doesn’t mean shit to Koreans.
If you want sexualization in pop to change, you have to change the society.
Yes that's true I watched a video in regards to that. And it's because of a few sickening cases that have happened in casesof child Ra.... One of the criminals who leaded the biggest child Po... Website in history on the dark web only got 1.5 years for that. And 2 years for gambling that money he made on it. Just that alone shows you how theyview stuff like that. The us wanted him and would have put him for at least life in prison. But the didn't hand him over. And his dad was saying that such a harsh sentence wouldn't be fair. Since no one was hurt?? And that he can just let his son stay away from the internet.
Wow I had no idea about this. I inferred that their age of consent was younger than that of my country (U.S.A., generally 18 but some states have exceptions I think) but I had no idea it was THIRTEEN just a few years ago. I feel like that explains a lot...
13 to 16!?! And only 4 years ago is insane!
I honestly don't think that's a reason. The age of consent is very low in a lot of countries. Here in Germany it's 14 years and we don't really have such issues. It's not really a societal issue, more of a legal issue. I think in this case the US is more an exception rather than a rule.
I don't think that's necessarily a problem. In my country (Germany) the age of consent of two people with the same age is 14. Note that its the same age. So 18 and 14 is still illegal. We have sex education from an early age , because at age 14 everyone should know what they are doing if someone decided to do it. But the low age of consent just stems from the fact that we realize that teens are well teens and sex is going to happen for some teens. I mean in current times even 9 year olds have porn addictions. This way teens should have the knowledge to be able to have sex and two teens in love (or just horny teens) don't have to fear any punishment.
But the doesn't mean that we have a culture of sexualizing children.
and then there's the other side of the spectrum of babying or expecting a child like behavior and mindset from grown adults.
Tell me why some delulu in a tiktok comment section said "no hate but it makes me feel uncomfortable when Lisa does that to Mingyu" the video in question is them side by side turning to one another talking and interacting like friends.
Makes my skin crawl
Exactly. Like, some of these idols are kinda cute, but they are adults; they should be treated as adults.
also reminds me of people calling a certain male idol a "cute baby" under one of his videos. Said idol was Taemin, a thirty year old man who's just been to the military. Like bffr
@@whatsyourname9581 Some of the Taemints scare me. Most SHINee fans are actually very chill, but Taemints, oh, they're- they're a..... something else. Gross.
this is still one of the reasons i stopped being a fan because of how obscure these fans are....idk how many times ive tried telling people why babying or shipping grown ass adult humans is gross like i understand the appeal that these companies try to give but use your own brain....... ig at this point fans have stopped seeing idols as grown ass humans and instead they look at them as a bf/gf commodity that they could just control
I’m sorry to break it to the kpop community, but this won’t stop until legislators act up. In a hyper capitalistic country like korea, companies won’t stop doing this because there will always be a market, niche or mainstream, of people who support this behavior and are willing to pay for it. This is a labor issue. Korea needs to tighten up its child labor laws or this will continue to happen. But the best thing kpop fans can do is stop financially supporting this behavior. Like it always strikes me as hypocritical when fans cry about this issue and then proceed to buy albums and attend concerts of companies who do this.
Yeah. If we care about changing the industry we need to stop paying for their content, their merchandise, their activities, etc.
#PROTECTBUSTERS Busters' company is STILL using the members to promote sexual ideas, and has consistently from the debut of Busters used minors to gain creepy male fans who were explicitly sexualizing the members while knowing their ages 😭 There is video proof of male fans or at least male audience members cheering more the younger the members got and cheering for their ages. We need to protect idols. Some of them are actually children and have fans like this.
Just cuz it’s a male fan doesn’t mean they’re automatically creepy tho and all but I think 1 are adults
No they’re mostly kids.
@@brennathecatlover4360 Busters debuted with one of the youngest idols, and the company consistently added young members to the line up after older members left and other members left the group. Just because they are mostly adults now, doesn't mean they weren't ever minor and weren't exploited before lol
There are videos detailing the exact exploitation of the group (Jihoonscarat). I didn't say the fans were creepy because they are guys, they are literally creeps who consistently sexualize idols and young idols. I'm not just saying they are creepy for being fans, I'm talking about a specific creepy audience that Busters company purposefully attracts to the group, even when they were minors.
In the comment, I literally said they cheered at how young the members were, because they are creepy and like younger idols. You should read the whole comment.
I would also like to say that adult idols can be exploited too. Their company allows the members to be harassed while making "innocent" content with sexual innuendos. Which is the same as having a minor do something sexual, it's combining "innocence" with sex for a creepy audience. So, even though some of the members are adults now, they are still being used for their bodies by the company and their image is still being used inappropriately.
Please stop commenting trying to defend actual pedophiles. If you don't know the history of the company, which you obviously do not, then you have no reason to attempt to fact check me. Idols face harassment from creeps all the time, both minor and adult idols. It's not okay, and companies like the one Busters are under who purposefully use creeps to make money should be held accountable.
Sex trafficking really with license. Can't blame for a person for wanting a better life but parents must take responsibility also.
true in any entertainment industry, I'm sure it was a close secret especially after a certain EPst*** case came out after many years. Tho I have not looked too into it for it is way to disturbing for me to stomach but yeah things happen we cant control but I hope we expose it more and make it were govts are forced to care
As a community, although most kpop fans aren't creeps, we should still boycott companies who sexualize minors. Period. I care about all idols, but idols should risk their safety as teens because their company wants to make more money. Hybe knows that the smarter choreo was not appropriate for Eunchae, and they knew Niki was a minor when they did Bite Me and Fever. They really only care about money, because it's not hard to have a concept that doesn't sexualize members.
XG has a cool, complex concept, and they have not once come off as sexualizing a member or doing a sexy concept. Why can't Hybe respect their artists enough to put in that effort?
(Not just Hybe but I am particularly upset when Hybe does it, also sorry for commenting so much, this topic just makes me so mad because it's so easy to avoid😭)
exactly! fans just never stick to boycotts so it doesn't work but if we actually did successfully boycott companies for sexualizing minors they would have to stop doing it to be able to make a profit
Niki helped choreograph bite me and it’s not overly sexy and smarter isn’t supposed to be sexy either it’s inspired by African dance
@@brennathecatlover4360 not you going around to every single comment and defending that clearly predatory behaviour
@@brennathecatlover4360 Bite me had female dancers and I've seen the dance, it is 100 percent a sexy dance. Smarter isn't inherently sexy as a dance but certain choreography choices and the expressions of some of the members are obviously sexy. I don't think all African dance is sexy, I don't even think twerking is always sexy, but the Smarter choreography looks like it was made to be sensual. Eunchae also just plain looks uncomfortable in certain parts, which is just bad choreography at the end of the day.
it's definitely more upsetting when hybe does it yeah like ssera, enha and nwjns (not as obvious as the other two but ador is being Very Weird about them definitely) did not deserve that at ALL. hell, soumu practically did smth similar to gfriend back in the day despite their "innocent" concept (putting them in the skimpiest "school-type" shorts imaginable like i won't forget your sins soumu. this wasn't your first rodeo brother)
A major contributing factor to this is the fact that kpop Stan’s of that group will defend their idols with their life, and make every excuse in the book, and eventually they’ll just say: “we don’t care if they were sexualized, it already happened, 2 years ago, give it up”
It’s always strange seeing how kpop Stan’s are tryna straight up change the meaning of cookie for newjeans. Especially recently.
The fact that this keeps happening is just a major L to kpop, and the fact that people wanna defend their idols with their lives over this is crazy.
Imo, they should make idols debut at a minimum age of 17. Remember back in the day when itzy had like 3 of their members not able to attend certain award shows because legally they weren’t allowed to be working past like 10 or something.
It’s so weird that it’s a perpetual cycle of kpop fans allowing this or normalizing this, and companies seeing it and then debuting idols earlier and earlier. It goes back and forth, they see y’all are okay with it, and debut them. Just because you have delusional fantasies of them being similar age.
Stan culture on social media definitely gave too much speaking power in the kpop industry when it comes to this.
I’m assuming 60% of the fans don’t wanna see this shit, but 30-40% are delusional people who wanna see younger idols.
It makes me think of how Hybe stans were defending the sexualisation of Eunchae by saying she enjoys wearing short clothes. Juts because she enjoys wearing short clothes, it doesn't mean she deserves to be sexualised and put front and centre of those concepts. Because we all know that once she becomes an adult, she'll immediately be given the position of the "sexy girl" of her group and it's disgusting
haven’t finished this video yet (really good job btw!)
but i was really annoyed that no one made a big deal about nikki being underage for Bite Me promotions. Meanwhile, eunchae dancing to Smart (which is far less suggestive) has become a huge issue for netizens. they were both the 17 during their respective come backs !! its just wild to think about the double standard
I agree their is a double standard but I don't think it's far less suggestive. They are kind of in the same boat for me at least. But the fact that their was little to no concerns raised for the bite me even fever comeback is concerning
@@LuckyCl0verhonestly I don’t think bite me and fever are as sexual as u guys think it is. Are they more mature yes sexy eh
My personal take is that the reason companies allow this behavior to continue is that by sexualizing minors and infantilizing adults they are not only pushing idols as mere products for fans to consume but also minimizing their control and autonomy. It's pretty evident that the idol system survives off of perpetuating images that make idols seem like a commodity rather than human. They are willing to further these perverse actions towards minors knowing that there will be little to no consequences and accountability. Either way, with both adults and minors in the industry, the company isn't promoting an 'artist' so to say, but rather a culmination of the fandoms' desires and they do this by diminishing control and stripping such idols of their humanity. Sorry for the long rant, but that's generally my perception of the situation.
To me, idols are “heartcatchers”. The term came to me from the premise of the manga Sugar Sugar Rune, where the job of witches is to collect hearts made of crystallized love (usually) from humans. The hearts here are used as an energy source and currency. Companies push idols to capture as many hearts as possible from as many fans as possible for maximized profit, and often ignore talent in favor of factors directly correlating to heartcatching like visuals or personality. Sexualizing minors and infantilizing adults is unfortunately seen by companies as another way of trying to capture every heart available.
@@imagiguard
OMG i watched this entire show when i was younger and youre so right!!
And the crazy part is that there are different types of hearts like friendship, love, and crushes. It reminds me of the different types of kpop fans and the parasocial relationship they have with idols.
2:13 is such a weird "excuse" imo. like, so you're telling me these grown adults that are their producers, creative directors, etc. are waiting for these children, who they see practically every day, to turn 18 so they can *finally* give them/see them in "sexy" concepts and that isn't... weird? to anybody? 😭 like it's sounding very groomer in here
its been like this for many decades in the entertainment industries all around. Best thing is to refuse to support groups and support groups with no minors.
@@markigirl2757 definitely, and unfortunately it'll never change bc p3d0philia is so embedded in these industries it's insane. i try to avoid stanning groups with so many minors (i say as i stan ive, but in my defence i did become a fan of wonyoung and yujin during iz*one and, being the same age as them, as a kid you really don't realise the issue with idols debuting so young until you're an adult yourself) but it's getting more and more difficult with idols seemingly getting younger and younger 😞
My first concert, the girls behind me (they seemed over 20) in the fan sign line kept making sexual comments about the two youngest members (16 and 17 at the time) it’s sad how some people are so open about sexualizing idols even in a public setting.
Plus, 18 isn’t the legal age in korea, it’s 20 (19 internationally), so the fact that these companies don’t care and start making their idols do sexy concept when they’re actually very much still underage in their country is just… wack
Korea's age of adulthood is 20 but their age of consent very recently moved to 16 years old. It used to be just 13.
@@Nonyah123 20 in korean age. Legally they gave up the traditional way of counting age a year ago I think.
If any fan tries to bring up the fact that they've been doing this since 2nd or 1st gen, that's still no excuse as those same idols as adults now still talk about their experiences with it being very uncomfortable.
i feel like this kinda will never go away cause it’s how the industry works since they wanna sell you a fantasy so people kinda get into it and sexualize the idol
people are used to minors being sexualized as they think idols either way do so,so they use it as an excuse which is the wrong way to do so
i still think it’s one of reasons why twice lost their initial fanbase of guys since, they switched sounds and all members went over 18
i also think that we have so many stories of idols not wanting to be doing things companies want but people never learn
great video !!!
All of this is soo true!! Especially about TWICE!!
@@luna_n0va True, especially for TWICE !
Yes! Everyone tries to explain TWICE's decline in popularity on the guise that there music quality has deteriorated. Which is leaving out a part of the truth. TWICE being completely consisted of women between 24-28 has decreased their marketability to their established fanbase of older men (obvs not all twice fans are creepy men). Its not a coincidence that groups like NJs and LSF have exceeded them, where they're all either young women or... minors.
Thank you for this video. I've started feeling like I'm losing my mind about this issue--people will go to any length to insist that an idol isn't being sexualized or that you're the one sexualizing them by pointing out their exploitation. The kpop community is such an echo chamber, and it's really frustrating.
a 17 year old yesterday who turns 18 today is not an adult
I'm sorry to break you to but that is the legal definition of an adult. Hence why you need to be preparing for adulthood through your late teens, because overnight, you are officially an adult, you will be treated like others adults and liable to be arrested as an adult, prosecuted as adult, and pay taxes as an adult, also able to make adult content like another other adult, even if you are 18 and 2 days old. You can deny this fact of life but that's how law works. Just like someone who is 20 yesterday and turns 21 can now vote and drink or someone that's 64 today and 65 tomorrow is now a senior citizen. I wish society would stop infantilizing 16-17, those are the most important years to be developing skills because once 18 is here you can't go back to being a child or being protected like a child.
@@Nonyah123 this comment is so dumb for assuming i do not know legalities. Legal or not my point is once you turn 18 your mindset/lifestyle does not magically change, likewise to reference your comment, just because you turn 21 you can drink (you sound american because the drinking and voting age varies per country) your mindset suddenly changes or at 65. Its the fact that because you are freshly an “adult” doesnt mean everyone is prepared for the world as an adult, i know plenty of grown adults who are still children.
The point of the video is to day kpop is sexualizing people who are still children, or who are almost legally an adult. My comment is to just highlight the fact that just because someone may be now legal doesnt mean they are mentally prepared or ready to make the life decisions has someone who has been an adult for years and has settled into adulthood at a later stage in life.
@@lilyyyy6662 I assume you know legalities, but whenever people make comments like 'I know an adult that is a child' it's like...very dangerous? Why not just say what you said at the end, which is a logical and true statement? And the reason I find it so dangerous is because its exactly how men in their late 20s that have no business being around 18 year olds justify it, they will claim they are immature or whatever and better suited to date much younger. Adults are adults. some immature, some not, but being stupid or immature doesn't get you being called a child.
Age of consent isn't the same as being of age in other regards and the ages vary widely in different countries. So you would need someone to decide what the "proper" age is and that's not likely to happen or if it does won't please everyone.
I think it's easy to pick an age that fits many legal ages. Korea has a legal age, but the companies don't even follow that lol
I think the most simple solution is to follow the legal age in that country or (because I'm American lol) go for 18 to 21 being the minimum ages. I think most people see the 18 to 21 range as young adults and not as children. I think that would be a safe way to ensure idols also have more time to become their own people as well.
I follow a lot of Chinese idols and many of them are in their 20s and have so much experience personally and professionally without even having an official debut. I think it has to do with taking more time to train and having more time to decide what you want to do as a career. They had time to experiment and figure out their passions. (Not saying this applies to all Chinese idols or that this doesn't apply to any Korean idols, but it's just a general difference I noticed). Also, groups like Aespa who debuted with all adult members are easily one of the more mature new groups since their debut, in terms of their personalities and how they handle things as a group.
You can't stop people from being creepy to idols, but that's literally the bare minimum these companies could do to attempt to keep minors from being harassed and to help the mental health of Kpop idols.
@@Molly-iw1rc It's been increased only recently and to an extreme degree, cultural standards don't catch up to laws that quickly nor vice versa. There's currently a law under discussion that would prohibit minors to debut. And then what if a Korean company wants to debut minors in Japan were the legal age is still much younger and they particularly like youthful idols?
@@aligensa I guess what I mean is, there shouldn't be a law to force companies to stop sexualizing children. It's an easy fix that a company could do on their own, and they choose not to. I hope changes are made throughout the industry though.
@@aligensathen they will have to add more laws and regulations. we cant think hypotheticals in negatives by itself we need to see all sides and possibilities. Don't let fear mongering get to you.
@@markigirl2757 I don't see what "fear mongering" has to do with this. I just stated facts. And it's actually difficult to decide what the "right" age is, because it not only varies among cultures but also individuals.
The Kpop industry has always overs3xualized underage idols and will continue to do so so long as kpop fans turn a blind eye to it as many of them are underage themselves and think that it's okay for underage idols to dance provocatively, sing/rap about s3x, or wear inappropriate clothing because that's all you see from non-celeb minors on social media nowadays. Or if it's a older kpop fan we're talking about here, then we know what they're about. And if another kpop fan shows concern and disgust for underage idols being overs3xualized by their companies, the first thing fans who have no problem with minors being overs3xualized want to say as a counterargument is that they're the one that's s3xualizing them or that they're a hater, essentially shutting up the former by guilt tripping and gaslighting them into silence. There's also the fans who express that they think minors being overs3xualized in kpop is a issue and that minors shouldn't debut, but still proceed to stan and support groups with underage idols in them regardless of if they're being s3xualized or not simply because they "like their music." These people are the problem and why things will never change.
You made lots of really good points, especially the counter arguments! And I definitely admit that I’m guilty of still listening to these groups music when it releases (because I genuinely really love music and I’m curious about what groups and artists are releasing) but you’re very correct that that is still apart of the issue. Any stream lets the company know, that what they’re doing doesn’t matter, because they’re still earning money from it.
@@luna_n0vaI feel like every kpop fan is guilty of that, but the best solution I can think of is to listen to the music/mvs on platforms that won't give the groups/their companies streams.
The amount of fans straight up harassing male idols on tiktok thinking it's ok bcs they're boys is INSANE. If those were girls everybody would be disgusted at the comments so why do we think it's ok to do it with the boys? Don't everybody deserve respect?
I am also worried about the education of the minor members. It is not uncommon for members to drop out of high school or have bad attendance. This in turn causes a lot of idols to be knocked out of going to college. Perhaps this is the strategy of companies to get the members to resign because they have no opportunity outside of the group.
Being sexualized and malnourished causes trauma and health issues that will effect the idol for the rest if their lives.
Also kpop stans really baffle me sometimes. When the show RU next was airing, Wonhee one of the contestants was (still is) 16, and they made her do dream of You by Chungha. Mind You this song has lyrics like « i’ll keep you so turned on » , and the outfits and choreo we’re not helping at all in making this performance any less uncomfortable. Wonhee looked very uneasy and scared the whole performance, but bcs there was already this preconception about her stage presence, instead of pointing out How WEIRD It was that the producers of the show included this song as a choice in a show full of minors, and How not ok It was to make them perform It, they hated on Wonhee bcs she « didn’t fit the song ». Like EXCUSE ME is THIS your concern right now?? 😭
She didnt look uncomforable with the performance.
Also the putfit was nice and I bet she didnt understand the lyrics.
The performance was great and nothihg sexual about it.
Of course she didnt fit the song, its a sexy song written but a grown woman and shes a CHILD!! Children arent sexy! Like! Duh??
Some people really be acting like these companies are good or ethical like it s a fact that most idol companies (not just kpop) are just money hungry corporates all they ever care about is how much money they make out of these idols they really don't care about sexualizing a minor they don't care about the hate their idols get they don't care about the mental and physical trauma they put their talents through they only ever care about money
Always support the talents and their hardwork but at the end of the day don't forget that their being controlled by these massive companies and the biggest hypocrisy of these so called "fans" is that they'll be the first one to comment or hate on an idol they'll be the first ones to sexualize an idol and the complain about it so as long as there's a demand for these kinds of things these companies will keep doing the same so it is for a fact something the fans should be against
This video is AMAZING. You summarized every idea i had about this topic, thank you. I follow hyein since a kid show (don't remember the name) and i was so upset with the release of cookie. When i see that the woman who came up with these ideas is now treated like a genius and the mother of NJ... I boycott this gg, i can't give my money to the company and i think everyone should do the same until the producer quit
10:15 ah... i wonder if getting sexualized so heavily since he was a teenager affected jungkook's decision to release such sexual songs as an adult... i mean his self perception probably definitely got f cked up by having people wait for him to be of legal age
I don't think so. Attractive people are lusted after by other people no matter if they're famous or not. He was much more aware of the swarms of young teenage fans that said extremely sexual things about him than older women.
i believe the turnover rate for kpop performers will increase soon 7- year contracts will recede to 3-5 years contracts. people in their early 20s will feel the ageism breathing down their neck, telling them to quit. 2nd-3rd gen had plenty of kpop perfomermers in their 30s. These will cease to be a possible reality
I really wish we could go back to debuting mostly or all adult groups again. People are real weird and unhinged and now people look weirdly at normal-minded adults who enjoy songs of a group that has the slightest minor in it and we all feel like we're all walking on eggshells due to that witch hunt due to other weird people being so unhinged. I want to just focus on music again, not ages 😭
But it wasn't like that back then if you think about it. Take three examples. F(x) debuted with three underage members and SM made them do the "sexy" version of Chocolate love when they had SNSD who were all legal at that moment (or at least, older than fx). Then, we had Wonder girls, for what I know, Sunmi and Sohee weren't legal adults when they released "So hot". Another one was 2NE1, they had an alternative style, but Minzy had the "sexy" member aura when she literally debuted at 14 years old. There were a lot of underage idols back then. That's why sometimes people are shocked when they realised that Irene from RV and Seohyun from SNSD are the same age, but Seohyun is her senior and has 16 years under her arm.
This was a great summary of this topic, thank you for this video! I really dislike how most kpop fans don't seem to care though and will make excuses forever and even blaming concerned fans being the fault for making something "weird". It reminds me when I first got into kpop around 2019, Itzy was one of the first 4th gen groups I watched debuting and followed because I liked them a lot. But I got uncomfortable really fast because how they often would portray and dress Yuna in the most revealing outfits like bustiers with cleavage, weird leather materials and others. Same with some performances or choreos, it was just not okay. Yet most people would tell me I should stop babying her because being 16 doesn't mean being 10. Umm... wtf she was still a child??
Remember when bdsm straps were a fashion item in kpop
Barely? Girl they don't even have to be 14 years old these days to get weird treatment!
I talk about this as well in the video
between 2001 - 2004. A website was put up to countdown the days that Mary Kate and Ashely Olsen were considered legal for exx. A map was also drawn up, for every states consent age. Although the korean government is very good at handling their internet, its just sad to imagine that people wait for an idol to 18. But also the double standard that the idol themselves has to “wait” and still get sexualised just because of their legality
i've always been SOO uncomfortable with fever by enhypen. as cool of a song as it is, there was no reason hybe couldn't have locked it in their music vault for a few years until niki was AT LEAST 18
For kpop stans who say it's not that deep or thos has always been the case or why is it a problem now.
Do keep in my mind many kpop stans were kids during 1st, 2nd and 3rd gen eras of kpop. Barely exposed to the harm of kpop industry and beyond. Not knowing this dark reality. Now that those same stans are older and mature (being late teens, 20s and so on) they know better.
Many east asian cultures have frustratingly loose laws of SA and such crimes where victims are traumatized not only by the prepetuator but by the police and society as well. Burning sun is one example that we all kpop stans know where victims were told horrendous from everyone around.
Right now its been reported that CP distribution and creation has been increasing in number even in 2024. The amount has been doubled. Most of the consumers of this horrendous content are men from around the world. This content is expensive as well and has a ring that runs around and distributes kids and their content to these vile people. Also kpop is no exception knowing how the old farts in authority in these agencies and stuff make their trainees and idols go through for them to be able to achieve their dreams. Their desperation and dignity is exploited. Minors are at a big danger. In east asian modern culture, nobody cares about things like age difference, pedophiles, pedophilic or sexually exploitative content in media. Women and young kids are at risk. People value their reputation too much to report such crimes if they happen so they just end up becoming someone's trauma and justice is barely served due to misogynistic and outdated laws. Simply useless laws taht do not protect the victims no matter how much evidence is their plus the system is vulnerable to rich poeple's hush money and stuff pretty much liek in any corrupted country or gov.
Minors being exploited in kpop industry today is different from many years ago. No one openly sexualizes minor because people are becoming wiser as day goes by. So everything happens in secret. Companies know what type of fans their group will get and there will always be a certain amount of fans who will enjoy minors fantasy displayed by the companies. Companies don't give a single fuck about safety. All they want is a happy customer even if they have to put their minors on stage with inappropriate fits and songs etc. They don't even have any sense of whats appropriate and whats not in case of minors bc money is the atmost priority. Lots of old idosl have come out speaking about the dark reality of the industry and how it treats minors. Its sickening. And here we justify our favs bc someelse fav was a minor debuting as well. Its just if you can do it so can i. Morals are thrown off the window apparently. Then complain of sexualization comes from fans of these idols because theu are exposed as a secual desirable products by the companies and their fans inappropriately consuming that content. (Making sexual comments, edits and so on)
This has happened right beneath our noses many times especially on idol survival shows and yet we still haven't learned a lesson. Debuting toddlers left and right. The younger you are, the easiest it is to exploit you to a wider demographic, hence more money for longer time. We kpop stans have zero morals when it comes to kpop. We are supposed to demand better from these companies now that consumers opinion does make a difference for them especially in 4 and 5th gen. Hope i got my point across with my broken English and i hope you all protect minors around you and explain them to be safe than traumatized. Tell them to be mindful of what tehy put out on their on the internet and who they hang out with.
hopefully the koreans at least understand that but they glamorize hiearchy and those above are always right. Its like how there used to be ugly laws in my country where if your unattractive your not allowed to be viewed in public and that was in the 20th century! We still got a long way to go tbh so buckle up buttercup and go out there and do what u must to not support this industry.
About the last discussion point: I realized this after the Karina dating news came out. Obviously I somewhat believed all companies were super selfish, but seeing how much she had to apologize and how mainstream the whole thing became for her simply having a boyfriend vs. when Chaeyoung wore a shirt with a literal Nazi Swastika (no, it's wasn't one from a different religion) and released a half-assed Chat GPT apology and everyone moved on as if nothing happened... Like babes, your outrage is in the WRONG thing. I know that doesn't have to do with minors but it's a good example of how little these massive corporations care about hurting certain groups of people over others. Sure, there's a small subsection of fans who are upset about ages, but the majority of them still stream and buy albums/merch/tickets so why even do anything to bring more attention to the issue?
9:49 i also think that the double standard comes from the fact that the vast majority of kpop stans are (teenage) girls, and so its easier for most fans to sympathize and empathize with minors in girl groups doing mature concepts because then they're able to go "oh, i would be uncomfortable doing that" or "oh, i dont think that someone like me should be doing a dance like that".
Then with boy groups, most stans are able to other themselves from the idol because of their different genders, and so its harder to notice how icky the situation is.
May I say, what pulled me in was your thumbnail. Great job editing that phot! It looked so dramatic and intriguing, i clicked without even checking the title or view count.
In regard to the video content, you make a great point highlightinf how minors keep being debuted but little effort seems to be made toward safeguarding them specifically. I hope companies put more thought into that BEFORE something happens, not after. I'm convinced they know better but just roll the dice anyway.
Thank you so much! :)
this also will not change because fans are very tolerant with this. we have a voice, but i feel as if people are in denial that these companies are capable of bad things; so i always see people defending the s*xualization of young idols. like with new jeans cookie - i saw numerous people actually saying that the song was REALLY about a cookie, and that people are overreacting. and while this one is still in the air - a lot of people didn’t mind the choreography with lesserafims smart.
we all brushed past that weird choreography point in fearless, where they were on the ground. there WAS outrage over that so the step was changed. speak up. stop being silent & tolerant. we are also putting these idols in danger by continuing to consume the very media that exploits them.
that reminds me of when this delusional fan told me cookie was "about selling albums" bc hybe said so 💀
im so happy you made this vid!! this is a huge problem that more ppl need to know about!
As a guy, I can confirm that I don't only think about sex and how to get girls and the male minors in the kpop industry probably don't think about that stuff either (bc they're kids).
To excuse sexualizing a guy, but to be outraged when its a girl is flat-out sexist.
Yes, guys are typically known to be sex offenders and take advantage of young girls (sometimes young boys too), however, people need to realize that not all guys are like that.
Uhm, they're not kids, and even if they were, even boys are young as 11 were extremely hypersexual and predatory to girls and young women. Teenage boys are very well known to be extremely hypersexual. I'm not saying teenage girls aren't but pretending that because a guy is a teenager that he doesn't think about girls, is wild. Male idols are notoriously girl crazy behind closed doors
@@Nonyah123 minors = child = kids
to call an 11 year old like you mentioned in your comment “not kids” is wild
its also wild to assume you know what these male idols think about behind closed doors. you dont know what goes on in anyones head but your own.
@@lilyyyy6662 I was referring to minor idols as not simply innocent for being under the age of 18, because I saw the depravity and was treated terribly by much younger when I was as young as 11. Do not stop young girls from putting their guard up, also I'm responding someone else that claims they know how young male idols behave because they are a male too, you do not know what goes on in other males heads simply because of what goes on in your mind, but trust me, the girls that get messages or harassed by them, do, including myself. We are all too aware and it is very common. You seriously need to check in more often on what girls experience at the hands of 13-17 yo male idols. Also I never called 11 not a 'kid' but if you think a 7 year old 11 year old and 17 year old all fall under the same category, you are endangering yourself.
someone else commented this and I honestly agree that hybe has a very specific approach to their mature concepts
When they have mature choreography with a minor in the group the song is pretty normal, but songs w suggestive lyrics will have tame choreos
One of the reasons why I no longer stan lsrfm is because of the inability to give age appropriate concepts and choreographies to a group with a minor. The original fearless choreo, perfect night and now smart
And also the lyrics of perfect night?!?! Other than the chorus’s lyrics the rest of it is soo suggestive, “make it fit real good” like mmh I wonder what that means
Hybe also 100% uses the controversy surrounding their releases to gain attraction, nwjns cookie meant everyone was tuned into see what min heejin would do next. Min heejin reminds me of Sam Levinson in the way they seem to project their fantasies on the big screen, except heejins girls are just that, girls
ur take abt ssera and specifically perfect night is so wrong. the lyrics are not suggestive at all in that song. the song is about them having a girls night out. kauzuha said "make the fit real good". is it rlly that hard to look up the lyrics? and smart isn't weird either. the lyrics are about them being confident and victorious. the choreo part where they are whining (moving their hips) and shaking their hips isn't smth that should even be sexualized in the first place. when eunchae came to front for this chorus they changed the choreo. there is nothing wrong with her doing this choreo. yall are just a bunch of creeps who try to find anything to get mad abt
as for newjeans, I admit that cookie was very weird and not age appropriate for a debut and min heejin definitely did that on purpose. but other than that song, none of their songs are wildly inappropriate in terms of dance or lyrics.
@@summernananaa ah, I guess I’ve been miss reading the perfect night lyrics for a while now lmao, thanks
Thank you for pointing out that they could just not debut minors, at least in groups that are going to have more mature concepts. Kpop's business model relies on parasocial relationships: This perfect person who will stay pretty and single for you. That environment is inherently harmful to put a minor in.
It's sad that young fans don't realize what's happening to these idols/they're blinded by their own innocent attraction (I'll admit I was blinded by the thirst trap they did with male idols when I was very young). And then older 'fans'....well many of them love watching this and will defend it because of that. I don't think this will ever change until we stop obsessing over youth, looks, and sex.
2:03 There won't be as much conversations for a clear reason: People who are most strongly against the sexualization, or exploitation of minors, left NewJeans after the Cookie-scandal. There were like dozens of comments stating they're leaving.
And such a thing happen pretty much after all scandals (even the unfair ones).
This example will be a little exaggerated, but to make a point: Why can the Grand Wizzard (it's the real name of the leader XD) speak to his KKk followers without being interrupted? Because what normal person would wanna go there?
People tend to leave unpleasant places, so the first outrage is the biggest, and then it's near radio-silence: Doesn't mean they changed.
2:08 That's a large component of the group that's left.
4:42 They should absolutely, and without a single BUT be responsible and accountable. If they are not, there is no place in hell to have them be adults. Scammers will utterly eat you up, if you are susceptible to manipulation (they are constantly trying, usually much better at their craft then groomers). And these people are entering the workforce. You better be accountable, and able to hold your grounds as corporations will completely morph you into a puppet, if you let them. Business is overall a pretty ruthless field. 18-year-olds aren't responsible? Fair. They can't be adults then: That's the thing to tackle. They can be adults? To late to be susceptible to scamming.
I agree with the first one, I didn't follow NJ from the start because I thought it strange, and I only casually listen or hear their songs, but I don't financially support them and I don't pay close attention. I have no idea if the company changed, but I do know they won't get my money lol 😅
@@Molly-iw1rc Well, I got properly into kpop 'bout 7-8 months ago, so I discovered them late (with Ditto).
The biggest thing is about all the dozen wallpapers seen inside Min Heejin's apartment. Her only answer was irritation towards the backlash, and stating those pics were gifted to her.
It is fair not to financially support, until we get at least a sort of promise that such stuff won't be promoted again (or some sort of acknowledgment that it was wrong).
@@Thins_Are_SUS I personally wasn't supporting in the first place because I don't trust the intentions behind groups with mostly younger members. But yeah, I agree. I also think the cookie song didn't help and I personally found it strange, especially because kpop companies will give subtly suggestive songs to minor groups to attract a certain audience.
2nd gen K-pop fan here🖐 the sexualization of younger idols has been going on forever, and it's disappointing how nothing notable has been done about it. I am a Bigbang VIP, and I remember when Seungri had his solo debut "strong baby," it was highly sexualized and he had barely turned 18. Snsd also had so many creepy fans.
Everything you said is so true
the kpop industry is dystopian
It's not only about sexualisation from fans but another thing that people forget is that k-pop is a dark industry. Sponsorships are a very real concept. Even if we don't like to think about it, minors are being put into positions that are uncomfortable. And nobody should be sponsored in any way but it's very real in kpop. Along with that, companies do force trainees to get plastic surgery. And obviously these unethical money hungry companies are forcing them on minors. On young trainees. Kids are debuting at 13 just imagine what age these companies start telling them to get ps. And alot of people don't like to admit but alot of the times, minors are pushed into industry by their parents. Like any other buisness, kpop gives idols money. And not every parent is a saint.
Thinking about all this stuff makes me realize that minors debuting in k-pop shouldn't be a thing at all. Minors deserve to be in school, not in an exploitative industry like k-pop.
Great video I fully agree with u !!! 👏👏
well spoken!
I'm quite late, but do you ever wonder how the sexualisation of kpop idols comes not only companies, fans but also probably other older kpop idols. Like we know in the American music industry mostly young female artists (but also young male artists) are preyed upon by other older musical artists- take for example the commonality of age gap relationships. I also constantly think of, I think apink? or AOA? telling rookie IOI to be careful of predatory male kpop idols.
Also, I'd like to know where the f are those kids parents??? Like did Ni-Kis mom watch him perform fever at the age of 16 and went "oh that looks appropriate 😀"???? Why aren't the parents protecting their kids?!!
This is always an issue, especially when it comes to kids in any industry all over the world. It doesn’t help that Kpop companies don’t really allow parents or family around during the training period. They’re pretty much cut off from the world. And then when they debut, they barely have time to see their family
Great video. It's getting sickening
also another thing the backlash that NJ recived for cookie ADOR really fixed their way their next OMG and GETUP album were very age appropiate and it showed their growth and that our voices do affect the industry .cus now NJ are probably one of the best treated kpop group out their. ppl need to speak up and be vocal about these things.
ETA and Cool With You💀
In the statement regarding "Cookie", ADOR lied about the obvious double meanings in the song and then proceeded to say that fans are apart of the problem for thinking that the lyrics are s3xual even though we all know that the lyrics to the song are. At the end of the "OMG" video, shade was literally thrown at fans who complained about "Cookie", trying to paint them out to be antis when that was never the case. The "Cool With You" mv was very...questionable, to say the least? ADOR hasn't fixed anything. They're just more subtle about the way they overs3xualize NJs to avoid further backlash.
yeah ETA is related to Spanish Terrorism & Cool With You has them staring at a naked woman.@@PinkiePies_Pie
No, the statement the company released felt very defective tbh. Also in the end of omg mv showed Mhj/ador making fun of people who showed concerned to newjeans being minors and are labeled as “mentally I’ll”. Hybe has a very common history of sexualising all of their girl group even if they have minors such as moonchild and lesserafim, I feel like they’re very disingenuous.
@@bop4158 Not just their female idols. Their male idols as well! In the early days of BTS's career, Jimin was underage and routinely took off his shirt on stage. When the Maknae line were still minors, there was a move in their choreography where all the members lifted their shirts to show their abs. Jimin struggled with eating disorders and body image issues for _years_ because he was always pressured to look a certain way and maintain his muscles or he would get called names by staff, fans, and even Bang PD (he got called out by the members, and stopped doing so a long time ago though).
Enhypen's concept is also just blatantly too mature for their Maknae, and he remains the most sexualized member of the group (by fans, mostly).
I feel the only reason it hasn't happened with TXT or Boynextdoor yet is probably because of their debut concepts tbh...
So sick of kpop fans defending this behavior by saying stuff like "but they worked hard to debut🥺🥺" whenever theyre asked to boycott a group that's mainly made up of children
this !!! lit a group (unis) debuted with a 12-13 yr old seowon & ppl wanna get mad at others for not supporting it??
@@neptuniantreasure I was actually mortified when I saw their ages. Most of the members are 15/16 years old. There is a literal 13 year old and only 1 member isn't a minor. Even worse than New jeans.
@@amethyst034 ONE 01 liner, 3 07 liners, 3 09 liners, and her…it’s giving daycare 😭 there were so many good adults on universe ticket yet we still got a kid lineup
What i find more astonishing is when these group of delusional fans found offensive about Enhypen dancing with female members which was not at all inappropriate were most likely the same group of fans who loved it when they were performing fever (the choreo which i actually find sexy when it comes to the chorus part) in those leather pants... Double standards
I remember when the female employees harassed enhypen's Ni-ki in the philippines airport
don’t debut your group if the groups average age is under 20. basta! there’s literally no reason to hurry that much with debut!
Teens in the public eye sadly get sexualised no matter where they are based geographically. But I do think that people have double standards when it comes to teens in kpop vs teens in the west. It's almost like an over-reaction vs under-reaction. It's really normal to see teen girls wearing deep cut tank tops + short shorts where I'm from, and no one bats an eye. But when a teen kpop idol wears something similar, kpop stans from my area will still get outraged. While yes, it's definitely a good thing to be concerned about, some kpop stans care more about pointing fingers and giving reasons 'not to support a group' rather than actually care about underage teens being sexualised. And then this comes back to the fact that kpop stans LOVE performative activism.
This is really evident in the way some kpop stans will condemn a company/group for something, stating moral and ethical reasons as to why that company/group is problematic. But then they'll proceed to turn a blind eye when their fave does the same thing, claiming their fave did nothing wrong. It's very frustrating to see.
yup. I remember the fifth harmony craze and how they were sexualized too.
Many of them have saviour complexes
It’s really irritates me how a lot of people don’t talk about how much Niki is sexualized. It’s been that way pretty much since he debuted in the Fever era. The bite me choreo was a little weird to watch since he’s so young dancing like that with grown women.
I really hate that companies are debuting these children when they know the concept of the group won’t be appropriate for them. I’ve given up on Hybe and honestly they’re becoming the worse company out there big3
The more I think about it, kpop needs to stop being about sex, full stop. Which is never going to happen. The entire industry is based on physical attraction, very thinly veiled. It's not about skills or talents, its about giving fans 'tingles'. Debuting only older male idols in their 20s would also be VERY weird considering the majority of female fans are minors. Same for debuting older female idols. Why does music have to be about sex and skimpy outfits anyways?
I don't follow gg so no comment. I have followed Enhypen since Iland, and while I hate the overage guys doing schoolboy concept, it's cringe watching young idols do 'sexy' concepts and sometimes Niki is doing dances and songs that are too mature. I also think Bite Me was too much even if I like En- songs.
100% agree
Leeseo
I dont like the part about agism and talking about them being minor im a 35 going on 36 year old black gay male but just on presumption if I perceived to loom older could be taken as I'm a predo because I'm at a new jeans fan meets becasue I love the girls but I don't look at what is it kprofiles that shows details on them I'm not that kinda kpop lover I love dance which is why but all in all people could just assume I'm that type being older I hate shaming the community due to angencies wrong doings the outside looking in methods being used in a way to weed out or approve an opinion is not right which is why this stuff will never change
sumchamgo love dive
OMG ;_; why...
6:35 K-pop Stan’s where so over exaggerative about that …They have security behind them for a reason 💀
True, the staff were definitely observing everything and trying to make sure the girls weren’t harmed or touched. I do think (maybe, because I’m not in their heads lol) the exaggeration came from, people being upset that older men were at the fansign and trying to touch and talk to them
@@luna_n0va One single older man was trying to put a sticker on their wrist. (Any competent security would kick out anyone attempting a fingering). I think the biggest reason for that hate train, was that people assume the worst (well understandable, things have gone foul), and teens not understanding why someone would wanna talk to an idol, they neither dream to date, or relate to (obvious effect of age-gap). Wanting to meet an artist isn't as simple: Though I find it hard to imagine to go to the length one has to go to actually take part in such a fanmeet. First, I thought it's like: *pay 20 bucks, and you can have convo.* That would explain a lot, but apparently one has to be sorta obsessive.
@@Thins_Are_SUSI don't think it's even assuming the worst. Korean male kpop stans specifically have openly sexualized and been creepy towards female minors with no consequences. This has been somewhat consistent behavior ever since the beginning of kpop as a genre. I think it's fair to assume the worst when grown men go to a fan sign for teenagers.
We should also remember that this isn't just a Korean thing, but it's more common and normal there. I remember when Taylor Swift was a teen, she held a raffle for spending a day with a fan. The "fan" who won was an older man, and they had to cancel the event because it was uncomfortable to have a teen spend the day with an adult like that. And other young American celebrities have had adult stalkers as well who sexualized them. I think it's fair to assume bad things when older people show too much interest in young celebrities.
@@Molly-iw1rcbut people assume adult male fan equals creepy and adult female fan harmless when I’ve seen some normal male fans and the female fans being loud af. If the genders were flipped Ik no one would label it as creepy since adults can be fans of idols too. I’m a fan of nj and boy story who are on the younger side but I don’t talk sexual about the minor members
@@brennathecatlover4360 They can both be equally creepy but male fans are the ones who do the most harm. And this comes from the fact female fans are less respected by the industry, especially when they start dating. I remember when a male fan literally tried to kidnap Taeyeon from SNSD off the stage during a concert and it took so long for security to respond. And instead of people being on her side, a lot of them in the comments were asking why she didn't fight back?? Like what? She was probably in shock. And since most kpop fans are young teenage girls, they'll be quick to defend "their oppas" if something bad was to happen to them. I just wish both male and female idols had the same amount of protection and respect
Theres some sad facts about basic human behaviour you cannot change. Don't get me wrong, I'm totally against any physical exploitation or coercion. But as for 'sexualised imagery'? men find images of girls/women in revealing clothes attractive. If a 16 year old girl dresses in a pretty costume and dances suggestively, a 16 year old boy will be madly attracted. He would probably still find her attractive when he is 60. At what age does it become unacceptable? If a 16 year old girl wants to be noticed, valued, and achieve fame and financial reward, she knows soon enough one way is to satisfy the male desire for attractive images. She may have other options, or she may not. And she hasn't spend the first 15 years of her life in a mysterious non-sexual vacuum, to suddenly spring on the world after her 16th or 18th birthday as a sexual being. Industries spring up to develop and channel the girls talent and desire, of course they make money off her but its a relationship which should benefit both. Simply banning images this or that age group or this or that style of clothing will only shift focus to other channels and other areas.
My only thought is if 18 is to young for a Idol and people have issues with it, why is 18 not to young for marriage and why doesn't people complain about that? "In South Korea, the legal age of marriage is 18 years with no exceptions. Under Article 807 of the Civil Code 2011 the minimum legal age of marriage is 18". Seems hypocritical
seems like child labor laws are lacking in S.Korea is what i think it boils down to it.
How do you determine that an 18+ year old dancing kpop songs is morally odd? What moral framework is that?