K-Pop and Gender Perception Among Indian Youth

  • Post author:

Ardra R

Author is a Post-graduate Student at the School of International Relations and Politics, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala. This article was an outcome of the ‘Korea Centre Summer Internship Programme-2023′. 

Korean pop culture is gaining popularity across the globe like a forest fire. In this background, this research study focuses on some positive impacts of the Korean wave. The research aims to deeply analyse how pop culture has been rewriting gender stereotypes among teens. While the male idols are embracing so-called ‘feminine’ attributes such as make-up, piercings, and even gentleness in their personality, the female idols, through their songs and performances, are revolting against the societal expectations of how and what a woman should be like. In short, a total revolution against the hetero-normative and homophobic society has been in the making. Indian teens are among those greatly influenced by the Korean wave, which can be explicitly felt around us. Hence this study intends to look up at the impact of K Pop in breaking gender stereotypes among Indian teens and young adults.The research has employed qualitative data collection methods, with the help of primary and secondary sources. A survey questionnaire method was employed, which was complemented by secondary sources from across the web. A total of 20 respondents were chosen for the study, via snowball sampling method.

Introduction

K Pop/Korean Popular music is a term all of us come across at least at some point, considering the era we live in. As the name suggests, K Pop or Korean Popular music is a kind of popular music that has its roots in South Korea. The history of K Pop can be traced back to the 1950s when the Korean-born siblings trio called ‘Kim Sisters’ gained popularity in the US through their amazing renditions of Korean songs. The Kim sisters thus laid the foundation for the K Pop, though their history is not so known even among people in South Korea.

The popularly known history of K Pop starts with the ‘Seo Tajji and Boys’; a Korean band that merged Korean pop with American pop, and coupled it with hip-hop choreography. However, the first ever ‘true K Pop idol group’ title belongs to the band ‘H.O. T’, because of the systematic and high levels of training the members received. Following H.O.T, several other bands debuted in the industry, some of them being S.E.S, Sechs Kies, G.O.D, Fin. K.L, etc.

K Pop has now become a global phenomenon. The Korean wave/ Hallyu (The cultural phenomenon which has contributed to the rising global popularity of South Korean popular culture) has been spreading across the globe like a forest fire. Thanks to globalization, it has successfully managed to transcend the boundaries of the international world, as a result of which Indian teenagers are celebrating BTS, Black Pink, Twice, and EXO, to name a few of the popular K Pop bands. In this paper, we will be looking at how K Pop has been able to influence Indian teenagers and young adults to identify the gender norms and stereotypes existing in our society.

K-Pop and Changing Gender Perceptions

BTS

The seven-member boy group Bangtan Sonyeondan, popularly known as BTS, has always been on the front lines by breaking gender stereotypes. Flaunting so-called feminine attire or putting on makeup is not new for BTS. The members were spotted wearing corsets, skirts, and fishnets at Singles Magazine Korea’s photoshoot. In most of their performances, they freely embrace their gender-neutral style by wearing makeup and accessories. The words delivered by BTS leader RM at his UN speech are worth mentioning here: “No matter who you are, where you’re from, your skin colour, or gender identity: Speak Yourself.”

BTS member Jimin has specifically been under the limelight for his gender-non-conforming fashion. A few instances include wearing skirts for the promotional shoot of ‘Butter’, wearing earrings on and off-stage, and doing makeup.

In an interview for Vanity Fair, when asked what great style meant to him, BTS member Jungkook said, “It should be everything one likes, regardless of the gender.”

Kim Taehyung or V, is also known for throwing patriarchal norms in the air. He is often spotted rocking pearl necklaces and wearing lipstick. In the Proof Collector’s Edition album, V was seen flaunting bright red lipstick and sending out a strong message against the anti-cyberbullying movement.

The rest of the BTS members are no less when it comes to breaking gender norms and patterns. One can go on listing instances where each of them made a unique statement.

2NE1

2NE1, the disbanded four-girl group is known for challenging the typical girl-group image in K Pop. They went against the popular cute, sexy display of girl groups, and rather brought about their hard-hitting hip-hop style. 2NE1 was called the ‘legendary group’ by ‘Rolling Stone, Korea’. Upon disbanding, they were also honoured in K-Pop’s Hall of Fame, for their unique contribution. They were labelled by various media such as The Independent, Billboard, and South China Morning Post, as the “Queens of K-pop”.

Lee Chae Rin of 2NE1, popularly called CL is specifically known for her bold attitude. CL is called K Pop’s badass female, and her songs ‘The Baddest Female’, and ‘Hello Bitches’ depict her sharp turn from the classic, feminine, K Pop songs. She made headlines when she adorned the 2021 Met Gala carpet in a denim gown with a Korean hanbok knot. It played right into the ‘bad girl attitude’ she is known for.

In an interview with the billboard, she said: “There’s this standard where they’re all calm. I want to break that. I want to tell the world that there are some badass Asian female girls.”

MAMAMMOO

Mamammoo’s member Moonbyul became the topic for debate after she dared to go with a boy-group style choreography for her music video ‘ECLIPSE’. In the music video, she was surrounded by male backup dancers, while all of them followed a masculine-styled choreography. She is also known for dumping the feminine attires on stage, rather switching to suits, that were reserved for men.

MAMAMMOO’S Hwa Sa is another member who is seen as courageous. The k Pop industry is known to accommodate only fair-skinned artists, and Hwasa is one of the very few exceptions. Hence, she is often the target of colourism. She has bravely spoken up against the colourist hatred, making statements like “If I don’t fit into this generation’s standard of beauty, then I will have to become a different standard.”; It’s cooler if you decide those standards on your own. Something that’s really like you. I believe that’s what true beauty is.” She often encourages her fans not to fit into the unhealthy societal beauty standards, and to stick to being confident in one’s skin.

SHINee

When coming to the shattering of gender stereotypes in K Pop, SHINee’s member Taemin is one of the major figures. With his 2017 single ‘Move’, he redefined the masculine/feminine dichotomy existing in the industry. In the MV, he performed along with both male and female dancers, combining both masculine and feminine moves. The male dancers swaying to female rhythm was something uncommon among K-pop groups till then. He used the same style in his other solos such as ‘Advice’ and ‘Famous’. He told Billboard: “My aim was to find a middle ground, mixing both masculine and feminine movements into the choreography together.”

(G)I-DLE

The popular girl group (G)I-DLE has also contributed its fair share towards rewriting gender ideas in society. Their music video ‘Tomboy’, penned by their leader Soyeon, features the main character girl who is reluctant to conform to the traditional gender roles and stereotypes, and rather, loves being a ‘tomboy’. Soeyon’s inspiration to write the song stemmed from her confusion regarding the concepts of femininity and masculinity. She said in a live stream: “I don’t know what femininity means to others, if I didn’t follow this action mode, you can just call me tomboy.”

Tomboy represents a girl who lives her life to her heart’s content, doing things that are not meant for girls or women; hanging out with her friends, having drinks, and doesn’t like being dolled up in the so-called feminine way. It is clear that she is ultimately carefree, and does not mind if her romantic partner would like her attitude.

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K Pop in India and Transforming Gender Stereotypes

It was in 2012 that K-Pop received a pan Indian attention. This was through the record-breaking hit Gangnam Style by Psy. Most of the Indians listened to it without even knowing anything about K Pop. However, North Eastern states of India have set a strong base in initiating the trend of following Korean drama and K Pop. This began in 2000 when the Manipur government banned the screening of Bollywood movies in the state, as a result of the insurgency that was going on. Gradually, people switched to other forms of entertainment, and K Drama and K Pop topped the list ever since.

For this research, responses were collected from 20 respondents belonging to the age group 12-24 years. Among them, only 2 were boys/men, and the rest were girls/women. This can be taken as a reflection of the gender factor of K Pop followers. However, this is not a true representation, since the sampling method chosen (snowball sampling) was a non-probability method of sampling.

Most of the respondents were introduced to K Pop for the first time by their friends, siblings, or cousins, while the other few came to know via social media. Three of them specifically mentioned being introduced to K Pop during the Covid-19 lockdown period.

13 respondents (65%) opined that K Pop has influenced their understanding of gender norms and stereotypes, while 7 of them (35%) disagreed. The remaining respondent was unsure about the same and did not give a clear response.

When asked if K Pop idols are vocal bout LGBTQIA+ communities, 18 participants (90%) responded positively. Among the other 2 participants, 1 disagreed and 1 skipped the question.

To a question which asked the participants to mention any K Pop groups that have specifically helped them in deconstructing the existing gender norms and heteronormativity, there were multiple and varied responses. Except for one respondent, all of them mentioned a variety of bands and songs. BTS was the most-mentioned K Pop group (8 responses), the other groups being Shinee, EXO, 2NE1, Big Bang, Mammamo, SF9, Lady, G-Idle, Red Velvet, Sharp, Lioness, TXT, Black Pink, Stray Kids, Lee Sserafim.

Conclusion

Through analysing K Pop bands, their music videos, and lyrics, according to the responses of the participants of the survey conducted, what we can infer is that there is a clear shift in the way Indian teenagers and young adults perceive gender conceptions these days. The influence the K Pop industry has contributed to this process is tremendous. Apart from the very few bands and artists mentioned here, there are a lot more out there who are actively voicing out their disagreements on gender stereotypes, through their art and statements. However, this doesn’t mean that the whole K Pop industry embraces gender equality. There are practical limitations put upon the artists, since they are being controlled by huge production groups who invest in these bands, merely for their profit motives. Most companies insist their bands and artists follow strict moral codes and codes of conduct, and even pose restrictions on their freedom to give interviews or get into relationships. It is great that despite all these challenges, many artists are voicing out their opinions and positively influencing the younger generation, regardless of global borders.

References