Male Kpop idols and America’s love for a stereotype
- The Creator
- Aug 9, 2019
- 7 min read
Updated: Sep 8, 2021
How the K-pop music industry failed to break through the American firewall
South Korean pop music, or K-pop, has been gaining audiences from across the globe. The idol groups are easy to appeal to with different genres, attractive idols and great choreography. Despite this, K-pop hasn't infiltrated the United States market.
The rejection of the K-pop industry in the United States isn't due to a language barrier. Justin Bieber's latin hit Despactio ft. Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee gained 20 million views on YouTube in its first 24 hours posted and ran number one on Billboard's Hot 100 for 16 weeks; a true feat for a song without one ounce of English.
It's not the language difference; the K-pop industry hasn't jumped the American firewall due to how masculinity is portrayed differently in South Korea and the United States.
Korean Masculinity and K-pop
Media in the United States portrays masculinity as being strong, powerful, unemotional, independent and anything but “feminine.” In Korea, masculinity is defined very differently.
While some idol groups portray cultures outside of their own; usually an “Americanized” style, idols have strong Korean cultural aspects shown through their clothes, performances and relationships with their group members. Despite some groups harboring the "Americanized" styling with common western masculinity tropes, K-pop is still widely rejected by American culture due to the slight differences in masculinity.
There are various archetypes of male idol groups, but here are a few key types. Many idol groups mix and match these archetypes.
Manly Man: groups with strong bodied and masculine performers
Pretty Boy: groups with members experimenting with makeup and fashion
Swag: groups that often have black American culture influences (Dizon, Pancho).
Two of these styles exclusively disregard all American stereotypes of Asian men and fit into American masculinity expectations, however most westerners overlook these styles and instead focus on the pretty boy archetype. The pretty boy style is almost exclusive to Korean culture and is often difficult for Americans to accept. Many American non-Kpop fans criticize male idols for often looking gay and feminine.
“K-pop’s male stars tend to elicit two opposite reactions: Squeals of delight and excitement from fans, and scorn from those outside that circle. It’s the silent majority generation’s criticism of the hippies: Their hair is too long, and they look like girls” (Bennett, Colette).
Korean masculinity standards have deep roots in the nation's history. Before the 10th century in South Korea, the concept of flower boy or pretty boy originated from Hwarang or flowering knights. They were an elite group of young nobles who studied culture along with their use of makeup and accessories.
The meaning has evolved over time but the main concepts still remain and Korean men remain free from Western masculinity scripts. Many Korean men utilize makeup and take interest in skincare. There is no pressure to work out and it’s not uncommon for men to have longer hair and wear flowy sweaters and scoop neck t-shirts (Bennett, Colette).
While the United States has accepted some Korean music promotion through concerts and music festivals; K-Con LA and NY, the west remains mostly untouched by Korean culture. Recently there have been a few hits with Korean and western artists in collaboration; Boy with Luv by BTS ft. Halsey and Kiss and Makeup by Dua Lipa ft. Blackpink, however, there hasn't been a large scale introduction of Korean songs without English lyrics or western artist influences...since PSY.
PSY
PSY is a K-pop artist whose songs Gangnam Style and Gentleman became instant hits in America in 2012, only a few months after their debut in South Korea. While the tunes are catchy, and the dances are easy to learn, it’s not the main reason why PSY was so easily accepted into American pop culture. The short lived phenomenon started because PSY portrays American stereotypes of male Asians, thus making it comfortable for Americans to consume his content without challenging their predetermined views of Asian men.
American stereotypes of Asian men stem from how whites viewed Asian immigrants in the 19th and 20th centuries. Chinese men specifically were viewed as sexual threats to white women, possessing an “undisciplined and dangerous libido,” alike to how white America views Black Americans today. Chinese men were denied professional, high paying jobs in America, forcing them to take traditionally feminine jobs such as laundry worker, cooks and as domestic workers (Merskin, Debra L.).
This assignment of gender roles since has infiltrated all aspects of being an Asian man, forever stamping them as feminine among other connotations. This developed into the stereotyping of Asian men that is used in modern media and advertising.
“The list of stereotypes given to all Asian American men include nerdy, weak, unassertive, sneaky, smelly, sexist and short.” (Wu, Jean).
In his video for Gangnam Style, PSY displays several aspects of American stereotypes for Asian men.
Physical appearance
PSY’s physical appearance feeds into the white male view of Asian men. PSY is not conventionally attractive, he’s unfit, shorter than the average American male and his face is always covered by sunglasses, thus immediately eliminating all sexual appeal. He wears sunglasses or swimming goggles throughout the video; severing any personal connection with PSY which leaves more room to dehumanize him.
Femininity
PSY is depicted as “feminine.” In a sauna scene, he’s wearing a brightly colored towel around his torso (like a woman generally would) and is leaning on another man’s shoulder while crossing his legs. In an elevator, he has a brightly dressed man hip-thrusting over him. In a dance scene, he also has a woman hip-thrusting over him while he lays on the floor.
Lack of power
PSY is portrayed as weak and unassertive from an American point of view. Throughout the video, PSY’s lack of power is displayed through several scenes that confirms PSY's presence as purely comedic. While in a tunnel next to two beautiful women, there’s trash blowing about and in his face. He’s shown in a swimming pool, thrashing about. His choreography is meant to be laughable with exaggerated hip thrusts and wild arm movements. Towards the end of the video, PSY’s even shown rapping on a toilet.
Sex appeal
PSY’s sex appeal is used as a joke throughout the video. This combines two stereotypes: Asian men being asexual with no sex life and Asian men having an uncontrollable libido. PSY is shown constantly thinking of beautiful women and is constantly surrounded by them, however he can’t act on his obsession due to his lack of sex appeal.
Sexism
To be honest, this aspect of the video seems the most "American." The video is chock full of women in tight outfits who at no point hold an important role in the video other than sex appeal. At one point in the video, PSY is shown screaming into a woman’s buttocks while she performs a yoga pose. However, Americans seem to think it's only acceptable when white males are sexist, not Asian men.
PSY is not meant to be taken seriously and is purely a comedic performer with his other music videos having the same themes. In the K-pop world, PSY isn't popular. He’s simply a comedic entertainer in the Korean music world. Koreans were surprised and bewildered at PSY’s popularity in the United States after trying to gain American attention through more talented idols. Nevertheless, Korea seemed somewhat satisfied with the attention (Yang, Jeff).
However, when PSY’s material is the only widespread media connection from South Korea to the United States, there are serious consequences on how Americans view Asian men and Asian American men.
Asian and Asian American Men in American Media
Asian masculinity is already considered less than that of other cultures. Asian and American Asian men are passionate and angry about the prejudice they are confronted with in business and romance. In Bennett’s article on masculinity in Korea and the K-pop industry, she notes in a survey, American women admitted that Asian men were the race the majority was least attracted to (Bennett, Colette).
In a recent interaction between Eddie Huang, author of Fresh Off The Boat, and Steve Harvey, Asian masculinity was directly questioned on daytime television. Harvey, laughed hysterically at the thought of being attracted to Asian men (Yam, Kimberly). Huang responded to Harvey on how his statement directly reflected American stereotypes of Asian men.
“I told myself that it was all a lie, but the structural emasculation of Asian men in all forms of media became a self-fulfilling prophecy that produced an actual abhorrence to Asian men in the real world.” - Eddie Huang.
Many other media influencers freely take cracks at Asians and Asian men. In the 2016 Oscars, host Chris Rock made offensive jokes about Asian men. Sacha Baron Cohen commented “hard-working yellow people with tiny dongs” (Yam, Kimberly).
The Conclusion
The American stereotypes which PSY unknowingly depicted in his music video Gangnam Style has only reaffirmed America's views of Asian and Asian American men.
Perhaps if America broke down its firewall and accepted the K-pop industry, stereotypes against Asian men would start to lessen. Exposure to various types of male groups in the K-pop industry would prove not all Asian celebrities fit American stereotypes; thus making it easier for Asian men to exist in Western culture without prejudice.
This piece was written in April 2017 as a college research and analysis paper for a media stereotyping class. Updates were made regarding current music trends.
Works Cited
Bennett, Colette. "How Male K-Pop Idols Are Redefining Masculinity." The Daily Dot. N.p., 24 Feb. 2017. Web. 12 Apr. 2017.
Dizon, Pancho. "7 Main Male Archetypes In K-Pop." Thought Catalog. The Thought & Expression Company, LLC., 24 Mar. 2014. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.
Merskin, Debra L. Media, Minorities, and Meaning: A Critical Introduction. New York: Peter Lang, 2011. Print.
Yam, Kimberly. "Eddie Huang Opens Up About Why Asian Male Stereotypes Are So Painful."Huffington Post. Huffington Post, 16 Jan. 2017. Web. 12 Apr. 2017
Yang, Jeff. "Gangnam Style’s U.S. Popularity Has Koreans Puzzled, Gratified." The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, 29 Aug. 2012. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.
Wu, Jean Yu-Wen Shen. Asian American Studies: A Reader. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers U, 2009. Print.
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