Crafted for the Male Gaze: Gender Discrimination in the K-Pop Industry

Journal of International Women's Studies Journal of International Women's Studies

Volume 22

Issue 7

Gendering the Labor Market: Women’s

Struggles in the Global Labor Force

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July 2021

Crafted for the Male Gaze: Gender Discrimination in the K-Pop Crafted for the Male Gaze: Gender Discrimination in the K-Pop

Industry Industry

Liz Jonas

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Journal of International Women’s Studies Vol. 22, No. 7 July 2021

Crafted for the Male Gaze: Gender Discrimination in the K-Pop Industry

By Liz Jonas

Abstract

This paper explores the ways in which the idol industry portrays male and female bodies

through the comparison of idol groups and the dominant ways in which they are marketed to the

public. A key difference is the absence or presence of agency. Whereas boy group content may

market towards the female gaze, their content is crafted by a largely male creative staff or the idols

themselves, affording the idols agency over their choices or placing them in power holding

positions. Contrasted, girl groups are marketed towards the male gaze, by a largely male creative

staff and with less idols participating. The most dominant feature of their content is the women’s

lack of agency, be it in lyrics, body movements or public interaction. Thus, it is important to

highlight the need for women to gain agency over their occupation as many of their male

counterparts are afforded. There are positive examples of women with agency in their creative

processes, but girl group idols typically do not have the chance to portray lived female experiences

or stories.

This discrimination happens when the market is feminized, and employers feel they can

justify their actions with incorrect arguments such as that women’s labor is casual and thus not as

serious as man’s. This labor market is divided based on the gender roles Korean society assigns to

either sex, giving men more freedom to operate in society whereas women are restricted to

systemic patriarchal standards. In the idol industry, this appears through the infantilization of

women in order to appeal to the male gaze. To de-age them to an age when they are sexually

available and attractive makes them a desirable commodity to consumers. This is evident when

girl group idols age or experience other life events as they exit the workforce. Contrasted, male

idols are expected to continue their career, even as they age. This paper seeks to shed light on the

discrimination that exists in a market currently emerging in the world outside Korea and the

Korean diaspora, highlighting the need for a conversation in feminist academia.

Key Words: K-pop, gender discrimination, gender roles, Korean culture, infantilization,

hypersexualization, agency

Introduction

Following World War two and the 1970’s, the world has seen what American economist

Karl Polanyi (1944) coined a Great Transformation in economic ideology, mainly to that of a free

market economy. This has brought with it key changes such as globalization and financialization,

but it is important to note that because the shift has mainly been sourced in ideology, several

consequences have fallen to members of the labor market. In particular this shift has enhanced

gender gaps and reinforced faulty reasoning behind this discrimination. The Korean popular music

Graduate students of Miami University of Ohio. Her work focuses on intersectional feminism and more specifically

the Korean Pop music industry. She is now working towards a PhD in Health Psychology at the University of Stirling,

UK. Email: lizjonas98@gmail.com ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3218-6597

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(K-pop) industry is a workplace influenced by this ideological shift and the gendered consequences

culminate from both ideological assumptions and traditional South Korean (hereafter referred to

as Korean) gender roles. As pointed out by economist Seeraj Mohammed in his 2008 paper,

women’s labor is seen as less valuable than men’s and where a workplace becomes feminized-

either through a higher percentage of women employed or a general association of the labor with

femininity- the value of the labor decreases (p. 29). In the K-pop industry, members of girl groups

experience this through a triple shift, a valuation fluctuation from their voices to their bodies,

expectation to cater to the male gaze, decreased agency in their profession on top of facing a

shortened career timeline due to social pressure to exit the workforce. As a result, girl group idols

are exploited more, as companies swap priority to nurture young artists for profit maximization.

While K-pop represents a possible pathway for many young Asian women to successfully pursue

a dream of success and sharing their artistry with others, they can become trapped in a difficult to

break cycle of discrimination due to a rigid set of gender mores- hyper valued for their bodies

without the agency to dictate what is done with them (Hong, 2014b, 120).

Traditional Gender Roles

Historical interpretation of Korean gender roles is androcentric and traditionally place

women outside the locus of public culture (Ruhlen, 1998, p. 40). For Korean women, these gender

roles are rooted in the creation of the country itself, in both the country’s origin myth of Tan’Gun,

and the widespread adoption of Confucianism as a national philosophy in the 2nd century (Ruhlen,

1998, p.41). The core of these ideologies place women in inferior positions to men in culture. In

Confucianism, the concept of the five central relationships relocates women to one relationship,

man and wife. Additionally, codified norms such as the pressure to be married at a young age, to

a spouse approved or chosen by your family, and to enter motherhood early are also tenants of this

philosophy (Lee, 2012).

The Confucian expectations for women are best expressed by the title of

Helen Lee’s (2012) article, “I’m my mother’s daughter, I’m my husband’s wife, I’m my child’s

mother, I’m nothing else”. This statement can be interpreted to mean that these women find it

difficult to establish a personal identity within Korean society and that the identity they have is

directly dependent on the relationship of the males around them.

To briefly contrast with Korean male’s gender roles, according to the country’s Origin

Myth of Tan’Gun, men are descended from heavenly beings, making them not only above the

human race, but dominant over women, who are descended from animals (Ruhlen, 1998 p. 41).

Additionally, men are further afforded flexibility through the philosophy of the hwarang, or flower

boy (Rhulen, 1998, p. 42). This philosophy, which was adopted during the 10th century in the

Kingdom of Silla, urges young men to combine traditional masculine and feminine concepts, to

be both a lover of poetry but a skilled martial artist (Ruhlen, 1998, p. 42). This flexibility has

evolved with Korean society, reinforced today in part thanks to the adoption and implementation

of neoliberal ideology. Korean society is starkly a man’s world, as we will see through several

examples later in this paper.

Traditionally, women were also subjected to normalized domestic violence and other forms of violence against

women that was brushed aside as another aspect of ideology and gender roles.

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Contemporary Gender Roles and Neoliberalism

As neoliberal ideology was adopted worldwide “gender discrimination in labor markets,”

sourced “especially [from] the division of labor in the household” saw the systematic justification

to uphold women’s primary role in the domestic sphere (Mohammed, 2008, p. 30). Therefore,

because the role of provider is expected to fall on the male figure, the money earned by “women

who enter the labor market [is] treated as [supplemental for the family]” (Mohammed, 2008, p.

30). To manifest this, companies shift priority away from skill training or long-term career

considerations to deeming the female labor force as temporary or casual. This dismissive mindset

is supplemented by a devaluation of the work women perform, leading to sexist policies. In Korea,

workplace discrimination can first take shape during the hiring process through microaggressions

and aesthetics requirements (Holiday & Elfving-Hwang, 2012).

While aesthetics is an important aspect of Korean culture, for women, the pressure to

appear as what is deemed acceptable is greater due to discriminatory institutions. Some companies

"enforce specific height and weight restrictions for women graduates" and being overweight or

‘not pretty enough’ can result in a resume being passed over (Holiday & Elfving-Hwang 2012;

Lee, 2012). In an interview for sociologist Dr. Helen Lee’s (2012) article, a woman revealed that

her male coworkers admitted that they “definitely ask for pictures” on resumes so they could only

hire “hot girls” at companies such as Samsung. This reinforces a toxic mindset that women are not

equated to the level of education they have worked for, rather they are reduced to objects for the

selection of the male gaze.

Under fierce competition among several well and overqualified

applicants, applicants can turn to plastic surgery to alter their features in the hopes to increase their

competitiveness.

In the domestic sphere, women continue to face a double standard. The appearance of their

bodies is weaponized against them from grade school (Holiday & Elfving-Hwang, 2012).

In 2015,

during a street interview in Seoul, Korean YouTuber Joo Won interviewed groups of teenage girls,

asking them if they thought they were overweight. The majority of participants responded yes,

despite being visibly healthy weights. When asked for a reasoning, participants responded that

“guys prefer skinny bodies,” thus highlighting the pressure to conform to patriarchal gender roles

that situate a woman’s worth to her relationship with a man (Won, 2015). This pressure, influenced

by expectations from the media and the workplace, creates a popular but unhealthy body image,

one that can be unachievable without plastic surgery and extreme dieting.

Gender Roles and the K-pop Industry

The K-pop industry is a workplace that amplifies discriminating influences of neoliberal

ideology. Polanyi (1944) describes the drive of this phenomenon as an imbedding of the society

in the economy, rather than the economy being suited to the structure of the society. Mohammed

(2008) further elaborates that large corporations swap their concern for labor welfare in favor of a

Another woman Lee interviewed shared that while at a meeting with a male coworker, he asked her to sit in front of

him so he "had something pretty to look at" and was told to pour drinks for everyone, despite being the superior of

some of the men present (2013).

The plastic surgery craze can start among middle school aged girls, who are caught up in a childish one-up game to

prove themselves prettier and can lead to toxic cycles of plastic surgery addiction later in life (Hong, 2014b, 142).

Yet, after a woman marries, these rigid gender expectations do not end. A woman falls into her role as housewife

and is typically expected to halt her other aspirations such as education or career. Family is the central tenet of Korean

culture, it has been since the beginning with no exception today (Ruhlen, 1998 p. 41).

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short-term attitude towards labor due to increased global competition and pressure from financial

markets to enhance profit (p. 4).

The result of this supercharged consumerist culture is the reduction of idols into mere

objects on the market. To meet market demand, the job description of an idol includes embodying

characters nestled in ever changing concepts that are designed to generate sales while sacrificing

their private lives to scrutiny from the public at any time. The job title ‘idol’ becomes more

associated with the definition of deities, removing them from the intention of a performer or artist.

This transformation is achieved through intense training that molds the individual into an

exemplary figure embodying cha khan kid trait, earmarked by innocence and moral upstanding

(Hong, 2014b, p. 124). Deviation is met with intense criticism or negative viral discourse called

scandals. Scandals can happen over something insignificant, or in some cases, nationally shocking

revelations. Though the severity of consequences for having a scandal has been decreasing in

recent years, a double standard for women remains.

The rigorous job training for idols teaches them every aspect of being an idol- from singing,

dancing, and rapping to intense dieting, plastic surgery, and learning how to diplomatically present

themselves in public. Yet, idol hood is precarious as this hard work can result in years of fruitless

effort. No trainee is guaranteed to debut, but even with debut, an idol is not guaranteed success.

The industry is saturated with groups and typically less than ten groups are highlighted as the most

popular. Failure to make the top 10 can equate to missing out on performance stages and awards

until the group can create an eye-catching niche for themselves. Due to this precarity, hopeful idols

must completely devote themselves to the training process and sacrifice personal freedoms.

As previously stated, gender roles are intertwined with workplace management and women

face the brunt of discrimination in the name of ‘maximizing profits’ (Mohammed, 2008, p. 4). Girl

group idols find their labor devalued and their time in the workforce precarious as they are placed

on a timeline that expires much quicker than their boy group counterparts. During their career,

women are expected to satisfy the patriarchal and by extension neoliberal demands of their

company. Often, girl groups are also managed by an androcentric creative team, which manifests

discrimination in the form of extreme body policing, exclusion from the creative process and an

overall lack of agency (Hong, 2014b, p. 109).

The activities of girl groups become formulaic due to the social expiration date imposed

on them. The result is an overwhelming observational feeling that members of large girl groups

are simply pretty faces, given shallow concepts because they will quickly be replaced by a younger

and prettier idol in a few years.

Aspects of this formula include hyper sexualization and

infantilization to manifest the male gaze’s hegemonic sexual fantasy that girls and young women

around 16-25 years of age are the most desirable. Even with great success, girl groups are still not

afforded as much agency in their creative process as boy groups are, and much like the Western

music industry, they rarely receive industry recognition.

See idols with tattoos on public display such as BTS’s Jungkook, or two members of boy group NCT, Lucas and

Jungwoo, who were seen smoking cigarettes and not being cancelled for two previously unimaginable public displays.

Yet, Joy, member of girl group Red Velvet, was also harshly criticised in August of 2020 when a group of her ‘fans’

did not like that she wore a shirt that said “we should all be feminists” (Bhandary, 2020). They filmed and posted

themselves burning Red Velvet merchandise and pictures of her in response.

Or be overshadowed by another member in her own group. Screentime is a precious commodity. In a group larger

than 9 members, such as Blockberry Creative’s LOONA, getting more than two seconds of solo screen time in a music

video is difficult and an idol can see correlation between their popularity among fans and their screen time.

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Triple Shifts and Offstage Standards: Privacy and Scandals

The women of K-pop face a triple shift- on stage, off stage and in their private lives. At

work, their behavior is constantly filmed and packaged for fan consumption.

While one might

expect there to be boundaries to protect the rights of the idol, these lines quickly become blurred

in the pursuit of increasing their popularity. For example, during the filming of BLACKPINK’s

reality show BLACKPINK House, footage showed the idols as they slept through the night,

completely erasing the barrier of privacy (Suh, 2018). In addition, off camera, an idol must be

cautious about their actions, for passersby with mobile phones or Dispatch, a major Korean

paparazzi company, are also watching. Managing their private lives comes in the form of No

Dating clauses in contracts, enforced curfews, and carefully curated social media presences.

By tailoring every aspect of their life to fit under the umbrella of a cha khan kid, idols walk

a constant tight rope of remaining in a good light. For, through social media, fans have the

opportunity to ‘feel like they know the idol,’ a borderline dangerous feeling of familiarity that can

result in toxic interactions between idols and online users.

Consider Suran, a solo musician who formed a friendship with boy group BTS’s Suga.

After the song they collaborated on, Wine, came out in 2017, she posted a photo on her personal

Instagram that contained a word BTS fans thought was a code for Suga’s stage name

(suranelenashin, 2018). They later attempted to connect several of her Instagram photos to a secret

relationship between the singers, culminating paranoia into anger online that prompted Suran to

write an apology and prove she was not dating the other idol (Suran Responds To, 2020). She was

later the victim of more cyber bullying in 2020 when she posted a screenshot of fellow solo artist

IU’s song eight (also featuring Suga), starting the wheels of the dating rumor mill again (Suran

Responds To, 2020). She quickly released another apology trying to explain that she simply wanted

to show support for the song. Yet the consequences of this scandal extend beyond a loss of

followers on Instagram, for Suran, she also lost the opportunity to be public about this friendship,

which is a huge marketing loss and could possibly hold her back from reaching the top of the

charts.

Criticism is taken seriously in the idol industry. Scandals have disbanded groups shortly

after debut such as GLAM from Big Hit, and cost companies’ tens of thousands in sponsorships

(Yoon, 2015). In 2015, Tzuyu, Taiwanese member of JYPE’s mega popular girl group Twice, then

16, was handed the Taiwanese flag to hold during a segment of a variety show. In response to this,

she was accused of being a Taiwanese independence activist, resulting in a cancelation of ads and

sponsorships for the group. Tzuyu, though blameless in this scenario, was forced to clear the air

and later released a company mandated apology video where she stated that “There is only one

China and [...] I am proud to be Chinese no matter what” (jypentertainment, 2016).

Cancel Culture has a reputation for the levels of toxicity it can garner. Celebrities and

regular social media users alike have been caught up in the sometimes-perverted intentions and

many have not been given a second chance to be educated and grow. However, when it comes to

idol Cancel Culture, innocent situations carry the potential to explode in controversy spurred by

sexist expectations in Korean society.

Sometimes free on YouTube, sometimes as purchasable content made for streaming platforms such as Netflix and

even K-pop content specific platforms such as V-live and Weverse

Ashley Choi formerly of Ladies Code recently spoke about the 10:30 pm curfew she and her members had as young

idols on her podcast Get Real, which was not lifted for several years (DIVE Studios Podcasts, 2020). Additionally,

some idols are not allowed to maintain or open personal social media accounts under company mandate.

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Take for example, Irene of SM’s girl group, Red Velvet, who was cited in a ‘poor attitude

scandal’ in October 2020 after a former stylist posted on his personal Instagram, accusing her of

acting poorly (Turner, 2020). Though Irene apologized and many members of the industry

immediately came to her character’s defense, this example illuminates the more restricting gender

roles women face (Turner, 2020; Red Velvet’s Irene, 2020).

Dealing with the Male Gaze: Concepts and Marketing

When comparing the content of girl and boy groups, stark lines cut between the images

they portray. Popularly, girl groups portray one of three concepts: cute, hip-hop, or sexy. Following

the hwarang philosophy, boy groups are free to portray a range of concepts, from boyfriend, to

action star, to gangster, men in uniform, youth, superhero, etc. The sky's the limit. With very few

exceptions, girl group songs center on breakups, crushes, relationships, etc. and their concepts

position them in relationship to a man. However, boy groups have noticeably begun to move away

from traditional love songs and adopted social commentary as one of the main themes of their

music. Even though social commentary has been available as a topic since the conception of K-

pop in the 90’s via Seo Taeji and the Boys, since 2013, BTS and, most recently, Stray Kids have

popularized this concept, expounding on personal mental health, intergenerational struggles, social

commentary on Korea’s education system and even social media bullying (Big Hit Ent, 2020;

jypentertainment, 2020).

In contrast, Girl’s Generation (or SNSD), the girl group regarded as the ‘Nation’s Girl

Group’- who helped introduce K-pop to the world through Hallyu/the Korean Wave- has not

adopted the same themes (KBS World, 2015). Upon analysis of SNSD’s most famous songs, Gee

and I Got a Boy, the lyrics disempower women in pursuit of a relationship, orienting them “around

men in order to gain attention” (Sooyoung Kim, 2013). Writer Kim Sooyoung (2013) posits that

Gee suggests that the girls are “utterly clueless children who dumb themselves down to attract a

partner” as they repeat the phrases “What should I do?” “fool” and “I don’t know” (Sooyoung

Kim, 2013).

In addition to content themes, the outfits and choreography that are paired with these

concepts further elucidate the level of autonomy groups have over their profession. While women

are more likely to be dressed in less fabric, men are more likely to be in outfits that convey control.

Analyzing the extension of the choreography between the sexes, one notices the freedom of

expression and style for boy groups and the “traditional” choreography for girl groups. Whereas

boy groups are known for incorporating acrobatics, flips and b-boying (even weapons dances), girl

groups perform routines that resemble an arsenal of synchronized swimming techniques. Their

arms swing and bounce similar to a baby’s, they touch their breasts, waists and buttocks while

shaking their hips towards the camera, they crawl around on the stage and in between each other’s

legs. In essence, they perform either an infantilized or hyper sexualized choreography, but often a

combination of the two concepts.

Consequently, it is also worth mentioning that when female idols have the opportunity to

portray complex concepts it is not without a ‘balance’ of stereotypical disempowered portrayals

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or skewed morality.

On very rare occasions are girl groups freely able to express themselves or

share their lived experiences.

To highlight how the androcentric market orients groups, let’s compare AOA’s

(에이오에이) Miniskirt (2014) and Monsta X’s Trespass (1theK, 2015). In Miniskirt, the idols

don the proverbial garb, paired with a choreography that involves the idols gyrating their hips

while they sink to the floor, dragging their hand along their bodies, grasping their breasts and

buttocks, and pointedly shaking their buttocks towards the camera (AOA (에이오에이), 2014).

At one point they unzip the side of the skirt to reveal garters. In Trespass, the idols wear black

street style outfits and later prison uniforms as the main theme of the video portrays the idols as

criminals who stage a jailbreak (read: bad boy concept) (1theK, 2015). The choreography has the

idols stomping and punching, sneering and lifting their shirts to reveal their abs while they sing

about the lack of manners their love has.

Concepts not centered on hyper sexualization echo the same pattern. Consider ASTRO’s

Baby (2017) and TWICE’s TT (JYP Entertainment, 2016). The boy group maintains power even

as their concept attempts to cater to the female gaze. Rather than being sexualized, the idols portray

“nice guys” with charming smiles as the main point of the choreography. In contrast, even though

TWICE’s music video concept portrays the women in different Halloween costumes, their lyrical

content infantilizes the idols, as they complain about the freedom of making decisions for

themselves now that they’re “all grown up now,” with choreography that echoes a toddler’s

tantrum (ASTRO 아스트로, 2017; JYP Entertainment, 2016).

These concepts result from predominantly male orchestration.

Mohammed (2008) notes

that under neoliberal ideology, companies seek “to keep the people of the financial markets happy”

(p. 31). Thus, the creative team’s object is to portray girl groups as the ‘ideal’ girlfriend, able to

be marketed to a male fanbase and appeal to a female fanbase who can emulate their looks and

actions in order to attract a male partner. Likewise, boy groups follow direction from the male gaze

and its perception of what women think is an ‘ideal’ boyfriend in order to appeal to a female

fanbase and give male fans a model to emulate. However, boy group concepts afford its members

agency in their portrayals, thanks to social mobility. Make no mistake, both groups are routinely

sexualized, however the balance of over sexualization skews sharply towards girl groups as few

boy groups model hypersexualization for longer than one concept.

Given the expectation to perform an idolized fantasy, an idol must first be aesthetically

pleasing. The members of SNSD notably contributed their bodies to their concepts, often donning

outfits that display their legs rather than their chests. The image of such perfect legs resulted in the

popularization of a plastic surgery procedure called “Girl’s Generation Injection” (Oh, 2014, p.

60). Not looking the part has been the reasoning behind many instances of discrimination against

idols. Solar, of 4-member group MAMAMOO, shared on the show Boss in the Mirror in

November of 2020 that the girl group was under constant pressure to perform perfectly during

See Red Velvet’s Peek-a-Boo which shows the women wielding guns, crossbows and hatchets, but for the purpose

of luring and killing delivery boys in their home where they later display their shirts as trophies (SMTown, 2017).

HIP by MAMAMOO features lyrics with surprising self-awareness of the idol industry, supported by members

portraying roles of power, such as president (2019).

As seen in BLACKPINK’s 2020 Netflix documentary, even review panels, those that record and evaluate trainees,

are male majority (and in the case of this all women group, their review panel was entirely male).

VIXX’s Chained Up notably portrays the concept of BDSM, where the idols sing about being controlled by a

woman, even saying that they are her slaves (RealVIXX, 2015). However, what is important to note is that this was a

one-time concept much like a girl group singing about empowerment.

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their debut because they “weren’t visually perfect” and were “too short” (KBS World, 2020). Not

appearing as ‘traditional’ idols, one member, Hwasa, who is curvier than the average female

Korean idol, was regarded as a threat to the group’s success because she ‘looked like she would

cause trouble’ (Lee, 2020).

‘Traditional’ girl group idols are images culminated through overarching patriarchal

expectations; they should be stick thin, have big eyes, and doll-like features and long, thin legs

(Oh, 2016, p. 60). Dehumanizing the idol to the fanbase, she must be impossibly both virgin and

sexually experienced- ready to fulfil her (male) fan’s desires. Yet, the tantamount component of

this agenda is youth. Youth in this case references purity or innocence, two distinct themes of the

cha khan kid. Thus, the purported enemy of the idol is herself. Not looking the part, aging beyond

the short timeframe of desirability, or gaining the title wife or mother causes an idol to enter a

permanent state of sexual unavailability and the fantasy she portrays is broken. To prevent this,

girl group concepts stray from female empowerment and sharing lived experiences because they

don’t sell in a culture still dominated by misogyny (Steger, 2020; Kwon, 2019).

However, looking like a traditional girl group member is not left to genetics. In August of

2020, episode seven of DIVE Studios podcast Get Real, titled Impossible Beauty Standards,

featured idols Ashley Choi formerly of Ladies Code, BM of KARD and Peniel of BTOB

discussing their experiences with Korean aesthetic standards in the idol industry. What poignantly

stands out is the difference between these three idol’s experiences in the industry when it came to

looking the part. While the two men noted a pressure to appear a certain way in the public eye,

Ashley had a mountain of expectations that were presented to her that surprised her co-hosts. She

noted, “They would care about the littlest things [...] for example they would say “oh your knees

aren’t that pretty” [...] [or] they were like “you gotta get plastic surgery to not let your lips roll up

too much because when you smile, and your gums show- that’s unattractive.” [...] It was endless.”

(DIVE Studios Podcasts, 2020). BM was good-naturedly shocked. He’d never even considered

being told his knees weren’t attractive. As well, he shouldn’t, but to Ashley, this harsh aesthetic

critique was just another obstacle to overcome in the workplace.

A Lack of Agency; Songwriting and Decision Making

Mohammed (2008) points out that “Where women are active outside of households, they

face discrimination” typically in the form of less power and reduced access to information

networks and powerful positions (p. 28). The gender gap between involvement of male and female

idols in their own music elucidates this workplace discrimination. Since 2018, the idol profession

has become more serious, and the participation of idols in their music making process has sharply

risen to even be considered expected. Yet, this expectation has almost exclusively fallen to male

idols. While groups such as BTS and GOT7 have boasted heavy direction over their albums in

recent years, Stray Kids has taken it a step further, retaining almost all decision making ability

over their music, noting the importance of their unmitigated storytelling to their profession (Singh,

2020; Bell, 2019).

In contrast, if a girl group idol is not a solo act, the likelihood of her

participating in the group’s production process is much lower and thus she must rely on her creative

team to create impactful content.

This was confirmed by their parent company, JYPE. Whereas companies are notorious for their extreme oversight

of group material, the CEO and staff were recorded admitting they do not touch StrayKids’ music because the members

asked them not to.

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However, it is often the case that the overwhelming majority of opinions and direction for

girl group content come from androcentric sources, including producers, mixers, video directors,

visual directors, etc. As mentioned previously, given the task to portray girl groups as the male

gaze’s ideal girlfriend, the result is inaccurate ideas of what love, relationships and desired traits

in a partner are to women and girls.

It is true that some girl group idols participate in production. Notably, three of

MAMAMOO’s five members are ranked among the highest female idol producers in Korea

(KOMCA, n.d., Kpop Idols Who, 2020).

However, only 12 total female idol producers are found

on KOMCA’s, Korea’s official copyright association, top 100 idol producers (Kpop Idols Who,

2020). Likewise, separate charts published by KOMCA, show a list of the top 80 male idol

producers, whereas the female idol producers only earn top 30 (Kpop Idols Who, 2020).

Thus

highlighting the lack of involvement of women idols, despite the abundance of these artists.

In the world of idol production, sexism also overshadows product recognition. In 2017,

Suran’s single, Wine, received the Hot Trend Award during the Melon Music Awards (Mathew,

2017). Suran was seen second guessing whether to accept the award as Suga of BTS, who helped

produce the song, immediately made his way to the stage among wild cheers (nleeshaz, 2017).

Regardless of whether he was told previously that he would be able to join Suran on stage, this

symbolic microaggression is clear. The artist was unsure if she should receive the award for her

song.

So too does sexism extend into offstage content creation. As exemplified in BLACKPINK

House, the women are forced to move from their dorm for the duration of the show to one specially

constructed with a hot pink roofed house in the heart of a busy Seoul neighborhood (BLACKPINK,

2018). Their house consisted of areas that company CEO YG himself chose as areas he thought

every girl would need, including an area specifically to take Instagram photos, but not separate

bedrooms (BLACKPINK, 2018). This example demonstrates how the women of K-pop are more

often told what they like and prefer rather than having the agency to do it themselves.

In the K-pop industry, consumer’s socialized androcentric desires place female bodies as

symbols of “desire within Korean consumer capitalism” (Holiday & Elfving-Hwang 2012). In

order to maximize their usability, girl groups swap dreams of growing to become singer

songwriters or producers to be marketable objects. As of December 2020, BLACKPINK is the

bestselling girl group in the world (KOREAN SALES, 2020). They have been active since 2016,

yet only just released their first full length album in late 2020.

Instead of spending time in the

studio, the girls have primarily become models, with each of the four idols representing multiple

Unsurprisingly, this increased involvement correlates with concepts of empowerment and increased popularity

overseas.

The average credits for girl groups are around 25 whereas boy groups are around 50 (Kpop Idols Who, 2020).

In addition to making his way to the stage first, he accepts the award first, speaks first and for twice as long as

Suran. Meanwhile, Suran’s head is blocked by the microphone in front of her until she speaks and physically lowers

it herself (nleeshaz, 2017). This disappointing oversight highlights the industry’s placement of the perspective on

celebrating men without question.

At the beginning of the series, the then CEO of YG entertainment, YG, told the idols the news, to which they were

confused. YG then prompted them by asking why they weren't thanking him since he was allowing them to “live like

princesses” (BLACKPINK, 2018). They dutifully replied how grateful they were despite the apparent discomfort.

This is highly unusual, as typical groups release one to two half- or full-length albums a year.

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Journal of International Women’s Studies Vol. 22, No. 7 July 2021

brands, including luxury brands such as Chanel and Dior (admin, 2020).

One of the members,

Rosé, remarked in their 2020 Netflix documentary that modeling dominated their schedules so

much that she only found time to practice music in the forgotten hours of the night (Suh). In the

name of preserving such a formidable and valuable profit resource, YG entertainment has not

allowed the women of BLACKPINK to flourish in the same way other idol groups have. Rather

than continuing to create musical content, BLACKPINK appears to be more valued for their

silence. Thus, women idols have found more success as musicians as solo artists, outside of the

constructs of a girl group.

There, they are much more likely to dictate their own involvement in

their profession.

A Ticking Timeline: Casual Labor and Parenthood

A gendered timeline is an expected facet of the neoliberal workplace. Grown, Elson and

Cagatay (2000) argue that when labor performed by women is considered “casual, irregular,

flexible, [and] precarious,” when compared to what is considered “man’s work” those women who

enter the workforce are more likely to exit it quicker than their male counterparts (as cited in

Mohammed, 2008, p. 29). This can be through microaggressions, active sexist policies and general

societal pressures urging them to exit the workforce.

One such pressure comes when a woman receives the title of mother or wife. In the idol

industry this is a career ending life event, as every girl group member who has gotten married or

become a mom has left her career as an idol (JeonAe, 2020). Typically, her group has disbanded

after as well. However, for male idols, this is not necessarily the case. In fact, there are more idol

fathers than mothers, and the majority of the fathers are still active. Consider the idol couple Yul

Hee of LABOUM and Min Hwan of F.T. Island (JeonAe, 2020). After their marriage and the birth

of their child in 2018, Yul Hee left her group and Min Hwan remained in his.

Referring to the

importance of the family structure in Korea, supplemented by the assumed gender roles falling to

each member of a marriage, the husband is expected to be the primary income bringer. Any income

brought by the wife is supplemental and she is assumed more valuable in the domestic sphere, with

increasing pressure to transition at the advent of a child (Mohammed 2008, p. 30). Furthermore,

this gendered expectation amplifies in the idol industry due in part to the nature of each idol’s

generated fantasy.

The fantasy girl groups portray hinges on their notion of sexual purity. Even though girl

groups can portray oversexualized themes in concepts, it is layered with an air of naivety and

innocence, a beckoning to the male audience to claim her. Due to this gossamer assumption

between idol and audience, when an idol crosses the fantasy line, it can shatter the illusion and end

the idol’s career. This investment risk can motivate companies to implement no dating clauses and

curfews.

The fan viewed mistreatment of BLACKPINK has prompted hashtag trends on Twitter in response to the women

not being invited to awards shows or other public events. As recent as December 27 2020, the hashtag

FREEBLACKPINK trended worldwide (Twitter, 2020).

Yet, as we have seen, solo acts are still caught in the maelstrom of idol criticism.

Two women who have achieved greater creative control and musical success after exiting their girl groups are

Hyuna and CL.

Another example is Chen, member of uber popular boy group, EXO. Despite having an enormous fanbase, he has

remained a member of his group after he and his now wife were married and had a child in early 2020 (Sun-Woo Kim,

2020).

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However, women face another aspect of societal pressure on their career timeline. In

addition to weighing the consequences of making personal life choices, girl groups have been

plagued with what Korean media calls the ‘seven-year curse’ (Ahn, 2019). That is, after seven

years many girl groups either disband or see a member exit the group when their members are

around their late twenties. This has occurred to several prominent groups such as 4Minute and

2NE1 (raith, 2018). Due to omnipresent societal pressures informing them that they will become

irrelevant past the age of 25, girl group idols recognize that they will be replaced by a younger,

prettier group of idols doing the exact same thing as them, and thus choose to leave the industry to

pursue other career opportunities or personal goals.

This comes in contrast with boy groups, who have persisted past this late twenties’ expiry

date, with groups such as Super Junior having members into their 40s and still having wildly

popular comebacks (Haddad, 2019).

In fact, since the conception of K-pop in 1990, of the groups debuted and disbanded, girl

groups outnumber boy groups dramatically. Approximately 237 girl groups are active and 213

have disbanded, while 256 boy groups have debuted and 78 have disbanded (Disbanded Kpop

Girl, n.d.; Disbanded Kpop Boy, n.d.; Kpop Boy Groups, n.d.; Kpop Girl Groups, n.d.). Indeed, it

also shows that the workforce is feminized due to the plethora of women employed and thus

symptomatic of the “unequal treatment of women workers [...] justified by employers who

opportunistically use [...] inaccurate arguments” (Mohammed, 2008, p. 30). In this case, those

arguments are not only the existence of the career timeline, but of the devaluation and flippant

regard the idol industry and fanbase has for girl group idols.

Yet, as mentioned previously, even in this feminized workplace, whereas emerging boy

groups had once faced backlash at engaging in a frivolous industry, due in large part to the

enormous success of BTS, the profession has been put in a new light of important cultural

exchange and international ambassadorship. Not only has BTS been regarded as the nation’s

darlings, they have been internationally recognized as important cultural figures by the UN, the

US government, TIME magazine- they have received Korea’s highest cultural award from the

president himself and the list goes on. Though it should be noted that BTS actively campaigns for

intercultural understanding and genuine kindness, this group once faced backlash and pressure

from a public that saw them as just another group of kids with a silly dream. Now, they have

largely paved the way for other groups to have a platform for their voices and bring important

societal struggles to the public ear. Unfortunately, this cultural shift has largely only been afforded

to boy groups. The industry seems to be budding off a realm of valued “man’s work” and retaining

its attitude of feminized “women’s work” as girl groups still struggle to have the same freedom

with their artistry and gain adequate recognition for their cultural contributions.

However, despite operating in an industry built against them, groups such as MAMAMOO

are fighting to give their voices a prominent place in the argument, and thanks to both Korean and

international fans, their popularity is increasing by the year.

Conclusion

The adoption of neoliberal ideology has seen a systematic devaluation of labor through the

shift from attempting to maximize employment to the goal of maximizing profit. When looking

solely to maximize profit, companies are more likely to see labor as tools or objects, removing

them from their rights as individuals or making it harder for them to rely on one another and

unionize to have more power. In this modern world, with younger generations supporting equity,

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social justice and political and economic reform, it is hard to imagine a workforce composed of

that generation as a market of undervalued labor. Yet, the K-pop industry has a history of deep

gender discrimination and lack of initiative to place women on equal footing with men.

Throughout history, gender relations have been inevitable, and unfortunately, following

the Great Transformation gender norms did not evolve to guarantee women positions of power, or

in the cultural sphere. Women experienced heavier pressure to return or stay in the domestic sphere

and find worth from their relationship to a male figure. Even in modern times, when women have

gained more rights, institutions remain structured to discriminate against them. We see this through

the gender pay gap, the bias to hire men to positions of power and even stereotypical perceptions

that a woman should not fulfil a job because it is a “man’s work”.

The notion that modernity brings with it progression in a linear fashion is a fictional idea

reinforced by hegemonic neoliberal theory. On one hand, the current younger generation might

expect gender roles to be obsolete and for women to have full rights (regardless of skin color or

national origin), but on the other hand, those in charge of maintaining economic theory would

suggest that the way women are discriminated against in the workplace is a positive result of

progress. The truth is that progress is not linear, it is a very wiggly line from its origin. This means

that while the number of women in the workforce increasing may seem like a positive progression,

the advent of the casualization of women’s labor has actually taken us backwards.

In the K-pop industry, the majority of idols are women, the majority of groups are girl

groups and the majority of groups disbanded are girl groups as well. This exemplification of a false

progression summarizes the conception of the idol industry as a workplace that provides dreamers

a place to succeed. While most idols endure the same military like training regimen, women

experience a daunting realization that they are not valued as much as their counterparts and their

careers are more precarious.

Yet, with a love of singing, dancing or even just performing, more young dreamers enter

the industry to be shaped into an idol. This bargain companies take, investing time and money into

an elite few that have made it through their hellish training, is not taken lightly. What results is not

the encouragement of a parental like figure to see talent flourish and thrive, but a rigid

implementation of a series of marketing decisions that have proven to work in the past- thus the

notion of the K-pop idol machine or the K-pop formula. Within this workplace, idols portray only

certain concepts, and girl groups are boxed into just three.

With little room for creativity, girl groups begin to see their agency decline. As innocence

and sex are the bestselling concepts, girl groups find themselves infantilized and hyper sexualized

through the outfits they wear, the choreography they learn and the lyrics they perform. This creates

the illusion of an idol fantasy that tantalizes the public.

Meanwhile, though the industry has seen a recent spike in idol involvement in the music

making process, girl groups remain at the starting line, with only a tenth of the most credited idol

producer’s female. The lack of involvement denotes two detriments to girl group members. One,

that they do not have a significant input on the concepts they portray and thus cannot reliably veto

a concept they are uncomfortable with, and two, that they must rely on an androcentric creative

team to accurately convey what the female experience is.

What results is an inaccurate portrayal of women. Yet, with the knowledge that they as

professional idols are temporary and easily replaced by another eager trainee, girl groups do their

jobs and they do them well. Unfortunately, when they finally receive the agency, they had lost and

make personal decisions such as to become a mother or spouse, the industry no longer has use for

them as they are no longer marketable.

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The notion of the K-pop formula and idol machine is beginning to rust. Groups have begun

to push and tear at the barriers the world has wrapped around the genre of K-pop. This new

generation of musicians are questioning imposed gender roles. They question not only superficial

bubble gum pop but toxic masculinity, and the new challenges their generation face as well.

However, girl groups are far from receiving the same consideration or rights as their counterparts.

It is my hope that with this paper, the conversation of gender equity in the workplace can enter

both the sphere of feminist academia, but also the broader reaches of internet fandoms to encourage

dialogue and conscious consumerism.

Though BLACKPINK and SNSD match and exceed many popular boy groups in numbers, as noted previously, it

is without the agency their male counterparts are afforded.

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