Black Happiness: Colorism and Body Image K-pop and Korean Society Have you ever looked in the mirror and found things you are not happy about within your appearance? Now imagine you are a celebrity in South Korea and every one of your imperfections are pointed out by the public. Often times the pressure to fit the standard ‘westernized ' look becomes too much and idols cave and undergo the knife to look youthful and western with milky skin, double eyelids, and a sharp jawline. However, Korea 's standard of beauty was always followed a westernized version of beauty about what is considered beautiful. These days it is through K-pop and Korean media that these beauty notions are made recognizable to the world. K-pop has a negative effect on body image within South Korea as millions of boys and girls alter their appearance to follow the lead/ example of their K-pop idols. Similarly, this negativity effects the already existent colorist ideas within South Korean society as the need to have paler and "milky"
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Take this example between two members, Hongbin and N, from the boy group VIXX. N is known throughout the K-pop world for having a naturally darker complexion and often gets teased about it by his own members. This, in turn, has caused N to loose confidence in himself and his complexion. And although he has told his members multiple times that he feels uncomfortable about talking about skin color, they still tease him and make fun of his complexion. Within the K-pop world "Light skin" is associated with purity, innocence, and femininity. Dark skin is associated strength, sex appeal and a more masculine vitality" (Gabriel). That being said often times this puts pressure on the darker members to show off their "sexy chocolate abs" or "honey thighs" which often garners the role of being the sexy member of the
Take this example between two members, Hongbin and N, from the boy group VIXX. N is known throughout the K-pop world for having a naturally darker complexion and often gets teased about it by his own members. This, in turn, has caused N to loose confidence in himself and his complexion. And although he has told his members multiple times that he feels uncomfortable about talking about skin color, they still tease him and make fun of his complexion. Within the K-pop world "Light skin" is associated with purity, innocence, and femininity. Dark skin is associated strength, sex appeal and a more masculine vitality" (Gabriel). That being said often times this puts pressure on the darker members to show off their "sexy chocolate abs" or "honey thighs" which often garners the role of being the sexy member of the