The Gay and Queer in Kpop Thread

[sol]

Not poor Woongki have to subject himself to a THIRD audition program. Korea, carve a throne for him already.

https://www.soompi.com/article/1694...ague-unveils-all-42-contestants-in-new-teaser

i'm happy to see him again but omg. i hope everything works out this time. he deserves all the good in the world

 

[mimenet]

Not poor Woongki have to subject himself to a THIRD audition program. Korea, carve a throne for him already.

https://www.soompi.com/article/1694...ague-unveils-all-42-contestants-in-new-teaser

Guess I'm resigning myself to voting for Woongki for another 3 months in a row even though all is futile lmao he has been oddly quiet lately but tbh I thought he was going to end up on that other PD101 spin off or was doing another BL or something. I never watched Universe Ticket and it's not Mnet who loves him so I'm not sure what to expect and if they're down for the Woongki Experience.

I also don't have high expectations for the group succeeding regardless but Woongki was definitely born to be an idol and if this is still what he wants for himself then who am I to abandon him?

 

[EphemeralGayz]

Guess I'm resigning myself to voting for Woongki for another 3 months in a row even though all is futile lmao he has been oddly quiet lately but tbh I thought he was going to end up on that other PD101 spin off or was doing another BL or something. I never watched Universe Ticket and it's not Mnet who loves him so I'm not sure what to expect and if they're down for the Woongki Experience.

I also don't have high expectations for the group succeeding regardless but Woongki was definitely born to be an idol and if this is still what he wants for himself then who am I to abandon him?

I'm not sure what to make of the lineup in general. It's kinda awkward that one of fellow contestants is from his first group. Kyungho seems chill though. And Steven from Luminous.

I'm also not sold in the success. At the very least, I hope the show is good exposure and a competent company picks him up even if he doesn't make it. Low key wanna see him in a 5-ish member group that's just as fruity as he is. Haha.

 

[sooat]

good news is that the writer said the drama is going to air no matter what



I love him

 

[mimenet]

How are we feeling about the lyrics for Mantra?

 

[EphemeralGayz]

How are we feeling about the lyrics for Mantra?

I might get flack for this, but it kinda feels like bait? Haha. Like, yeah, we get the bisexual vibes, but she's not really saying anything except that pretty girls (her) turn all the heads, not just men. It feels less committal than I Kissed a Girl and that was... questionable. Did she write it herself? If yes, more points. If not, even fewer points because the intention wasn't hers and likely just for viral potential.

 

[RussianRoulette]

I might get flack for this, but it kinda feels like bait? Haha. Like, yeah, we get the bisexual vibes, but she's not really saying anything except that pretty girls (her) turn all the heads, not just men. It feels less committal than I Kissed a Girl and that was... questionable. Did she write it herself? If yes, more points. If not, even fewer points because the intention wasn't hers and just likely just for viral potential.

I don’t see any queerbait in this, but she is the main writer for the song. It’s like her and 3 other writers credited but she’s the main writer.

 

[EphemeralGayz]

I don’t see any queerbait in this, but she is the main writer for the song. It’s like her and 3 other writers credited but she’s the main writer.

It's a different thing than queerbaiting. The bait, to me, is more about capitalizing on the successes of this wave of queerness like Chappell Roan and Brat without any of the commitment. It's opportunism. I'm not demonizing her for it. Totally get it. I just don't think it means anything. The song only frames her as an object of desire for "both" sexes. It implies nothing about her. It's null with 3 other writers. Who knows who came up with what, honestly. It'd be nice if she was on the team though and I was wrong. Haha.

 

[RussianRoulette]

A lot of people said Lily pinged for them, I never really saw it? But this clip has he like

 

[pink_moonlight]

San Yawn from Balming Tiger starring at Love in The Big City~
He's Namjoon's bestie

 

[Sergel]

Some of you may remember AAA's Shinjiro Atae came out as gay somewhat recently. He just released an MV showcasing some same-sex relationships which is nice to see! My Japanese isn't good enough to figure out the lyrics though sadly.

 

[RussianRoulette]

I wasn't sure where to post this but I thought maybe here would be relevant?

I guess more stuff in the hybe documents came out and apparently Hybe made jabs at Kevin and New from The Boyz.

Hybe was commenting on a situation at their 2022 world tour where a fan tried to hand Kevin a pride flag but he couldn't accept it, doing a hand motion that "his hands were tied" . (I know in the past their company didn't seem to care if they accepted pride flags to hold during the concert. I've seen this happen at other concerts (Sunmi and Yeri are ones off the top of my head) but maybe with the IST merger they stopped allowing it?)

They also were apparently attacking New/Chanhee from The Boyz for wearing Miu Miu (I don't keep tabs on his brand deals, I don't remember if this was a brand deal/endorsement or not), and attacking "his queerness".

I guess i'm not surprised at Hybe being Anti-LGBT, but I am surprised they literally studied and supported ships and fanfiction between their male idols (and definitely push "queer image" stuff on their idols at times) but then go on and attack other idols in the industry with a "queer" image???

 

[mimenet]

I wasn't sure where to post this but I thought maybe here would be relevant?

I guess more stuff in the hybe documents came out and apparently Hybe made jabs at Kevin and New from The Boyz.

Hybe was commenting on a situation at their 2022 world tour where a fan tried to hand Kevin a pride flag but he couldn't accept it, doing a hand motion that "his hands were tied" . (I know in the past their company didn't seem to care if they accepted pride flags to hold during the concert. I've seen this happen at other concerts (Sunmi and Yeri are ones off the top of my head) but maybe with the IST merger they stopped allowing it?)

They also were apparently attacking New/Chanhee from The Boyz for wearing Miu Miu (I don't keep tabs on his brand deals, I don't remember if this was a brand deal/endorsement or not), and attacking "his queerness".

I guess i'm not surprised at Hybe being Anti-LGBT, but I am surprised they literally studied and supported ships and fanfiction between their male idols (and definitely push "queer image" stuff on their idols at times) but then go on and attack other idols in the industry with a "queer" image???

Just a quick Google search tells me that Yeonjun has worn miu miu plenty of times. It'd be a shame if Hybe maybe burned some bridges with a whole corner of the fashion industry wouldn't it?



I don't think New has an official endorsement or deal with miu miu either but if this is what they're referring to then I don't think we're really going far out of the territory of Hybe idols. Tons of male idols wear crop tops these days. Clothes have no gender and Chanhee ate as usual.

IVE's Jang Wonyoung And THE BOYZ's New Wore The Same Miu Miu Outfit, But Served Completely Different Vibes

IVE's Jang Wonyoung and THE BOYZ's New recently gained attention after they both wore the exact same Miu Miu outfit, but served different vibes.

www.koreaboo.com

If Chanhee is too queer for them good lord I can't imagine the sort of things they say about Sunoo in that building.

 

[RussianRoulette]

Just a quick Google search tells me that Yeonjun has worn miu miu plenty of times. It'd be a shame if Hybe maybe burned some bridges with a whole corner of the fashion industry wouldn't it?



I don't think New has an official endorsement or deal with miu miu either but if this is what they're referring to then I don't think we're really going far out of the territory of Hybe idols. Tons of male idols wear crop tops these days. Clothes have no gender and Chanhee ate as usual.

IVE's Jang Wonyoung And THE BOYZ's New Wore The Same Miu Miu Outfit, But Served Completely Different Vibes

IVE's Jang Wonyoung and THE BOYZ's New recently gained attention after they both wore the exact same Miu Miu outfit, but served different vibes.

www.koreaboo.com

If Chanhee is too queer for them good lord I can't imagine the sort of things they say about Sunoo in that building.

So if Yeonjun wears Miumiu that’s ok but if New wears it “he’s too queer”

I’m also now hearing reports they were doing a study on New to “have a new queer member to market” Specifically, “A cute and playful queer member like the protagonist in a BL manga”

Hybe… WTF

New has an androgynous image but he’s not openly queer. I feel like studying him to create a queer kpop member is a bit crossing the line…

They also called Taemin a Shotacon?

 

[mimenet]

So if Yeonjun wears Miumiu that’s ok but if New wears it “he’s too queer”

I’m also now hearing reports they were doing a study on New to “have a new queer member to market” Specifically, “A cute and playful queer member like the protagonist in a BL manga”

Hybe… WTF

New has an androgynous image but he’s not openly queer. I feel like studying him to create a queer kpop member is a bit crossing the line…

They also called Taemin a Shotacon?

I kind of get the Taemin thing at least those first couple rookie years. He really was still a kid and was marketed to noona fans, but we're talking about 16 years ago. Its been over a decade since Taemin's had that image and it's not really liked these days at least with international fans.

 

[EphemeralGayz]

I wasn't sure where to post this but I thought maybe here would be relevant?

I guess more stuff in the hybe documents came out and apparently Hybe made jabs at Kevin and New from The Boyz.

Hybe was commenting on a situation at their 2022 world tour where a fan tried to hand Kevin a pride flag but he couldn't accept it, doing a hand motion that "his hands were tied" . (I know in the past their company didn't seem to care if they accepted pride flags to hold during the concert. I've seen this happen at other concerts (Sunmi and Yeri are ones off the top of my head) but maybe with the IST merger they stopped allowing it?)

They also were apparently attacking New/Chanhee from The Boyz for wearing Miu Miu (I don't keep tabs on his brand deals, I don't remember if this was a brand deal/endorsement or not), and attacking "his queerness".

I guess i'm not surprised at Hybe being Anti-LGBT, but I am surprised they literally studied and supported ships and fanfiction between their male idols (and definitely push "queer image" stuff on their idols at times) but then go on and attack other idols in the industry with a "queer" image???

Every new thing I hear about that leak annoys me more and more.

Hypocrisy and bigotry live holding hands, so I'm not surprised whatsoever at the double standard nor at them being willing to profit off of queerness/the queer aesthetic whilst being homophobic. Money is always the through-line.

 

[geojituseongi]

I kind of get the Taemin thing at least those first couple rookie years. He really was still a kid and was marketed to noona fans, but we're talking about 16 years ago. Its been over a decade since Taemin's had that image and it's not really liked these days at least with international fans.

The shotacon comment wasn't referring to Taemin himself, but to his concept for Guilty. Which does also makes sense, given that it's clearly in part about his own sexualisation in the early part of his career that you mention. But it's in bad faith, as Hybe spends a lot of energy talking about how weird and uncomfortable Guilty is as a concept, obviously insinuating something about Taemin for creating it. Very media illiterate vibes if they're serious and not just hating for the sake of it. What is funny is that they do seem to identify some kind of queerness in it if you read between the lines (see two translations below).

Elsewhere, they also call both Woongki and New from The Boyz the word 끼순이, which some are calling a slur - but from Korean tweets I understand may be more like an in-group term that can be used derogatorily, like "twink" - for femme men.

(I can read Hangul - what this second image has translated as "one who has a more complex persona" in the original is "power 끼순이". I assume they mean that they think fandoms don't want members who seem too much like real-life flamboyant/femme gay men.)

 

[mimenet]

The shotacon comment wasn't referring to Taemin himself, but to his concept for Guilty. Which does also makes sense, given that it's clearly in part about his own sexualisation in the early part of his career that you mention. But it's in bad faith, as Hybe spends a lot of energy talking about how weird and uncomfortable Guilty is as a concept, obviously insinuating something about Taemin for creating it. Very media illiterate vibes if they're serious and not just hating for the sake of it. What is funny is that they do seem to identify some kind of queerness in it if you read between the lines (see two translations below).

Elsewhere, they also call both Woongki and New from The Boyz the word 끼순이, which some are calling a slur - but from Korean tweets I understand may be more like an in-group term that can be used derogatorily, like "twink" - for femme men.

(I can read Hangul - what this second image has translated as "one who has a more complex persona" in the original is "power 끼순이". I assume they mean that they think fandoms don't want members who seem too much like real-life flamboyant/femme gay men.)

I guess I skipped over the Taemin part of the leak. I don't think Guilty is shotacon, he's a thirty year old dude and can express his past traumas/experiences however he wants. There's no children in the video anyway.

Even if the original writer was queer themselves, I think 끼순이 is really not a term that should be used in a business setting like this to my understanding. A little too casual and not normalized so it reads patronizing/derogatory without knowing the writer's intent/queerness.

 

[RussianRoulette]

This has been floating around Twitter, I don’t follow Kep1er too closely but people are like because the member Youngeun wrote the lyrics.

 

[mimenet]

This has been floating around Twitter, I don’t follow Kep1er too closely but people are like because the member Youngeun wrote the lyrics.

If it didn't literally start with the word girl you could argue it might be unintentional but I mean... they literally start this horny ass song with the word girl lmao