K-pop singer Karina has been the target of constant online and offline criticism and has been accused of “betraying” her followers. She just sent a heartfelt, handwritten apology. What was her crime? dating an actor from South Korea.
Experts claim that her situation is similar to that of many K-pop artists who came before her, such the late singer Sulli, who lamented rigid behavioral regulations and being held to unachievably high standards as record labels tried to market her as the bxft. Fttdn bj bnn c fg ideal idol.
Karina’s admirers said that dating “ruined” her career. One especially irate fan sent her agency a truck with an electronic billboard that said, “Do you not receive enough love from your fans?” and “Apologize, or you will see empty concert seats and declining album sales.”
Karina, an aespa member, posted a handwritten statement “to convey my sincere apologies to the fans” in response to the attacks.
“An idol’s persona is expected to be romantically available,” states Stephanie Choi, a K-pop specialist affiliated with the Asia Research Institute at the University at Buffalo.
The “promotional emphasis on innocence and chastity” is prevalent, especially for young women who frequently enter the industry as teenagers, and Choi told AFP that it is difficult for them to get past this.
Although blowback has also been experienced by Western celebrities like Miley Cyrus and Britney Spears when they transition from girls to women in the public eye, it is especially severe for local idols in South Korea due to the K-pop industry’s commercial strategy.
According to AFP, Keung Yoon Bae, a Korean studies professor at Georgia Institute of Technology, “crucial unpaid labor” is performed by ardent super fans, who are exemplified by boyband BTS’s ARMY of worldwide admirers, in promoting music and casting ballots in contests.
However, Bae stated that in exchange, fans would anticipate that their heroes would be held to “gruelling professional standards” that spill over into their private lives, with young female stars being especially susceptible.
“Purity and ‘girliness’ have remained important images, and unfortunately this can really backfire on the idols when they are discovered to be dating, drinking and smoking,” she stated.
