A Quick Lesson on Diversity From K-pop
Nowadays, it’s nearly impossible to ascertain authenticity when companies take a stance on hot button issues and topics such as diversity. However, there is a way to do it where the beauty and seamless quality can, at the very least, lull us into believing the sentiments behind an ad, show, video and so on are more than an opportune money/attention grab. It can have us believing — believing that people genuinely care and that there’s hope for unity.
But too many companies fall short, veering into racism, colorism and/or sexism without any real understanding of how they’ve failed.
When these failures occur the biggest question is, “How did this get through?” Lack of diversity is, in the words of Kim Crayton, “a risk management issue”.
Often times the culprit for these oversights are caused by an organization’s homogeneity. And while homogeneity may be comforting relative to the short-term discomfort a multi-ethnic space can cause, in the long-term, the costs of not diversifying an organization are too high to ignore. And this isn’t only true in the negative sense, as the benefits of a multi-ethnic organization can unlock upside that would not be possible under a homogeneous regime.
That said, the next question most people ask, especially if they’re a part of a homogenous community, is, “what’s an example of doing it right?” Here’s one found K-pop (Korean pop). A female K-Pop group named Loona made a video for their song, “Butterfly”. This video is all female, and diverse in the sense that the women are all, respectively, representing unique traits in this video.
The focus isn’t solely on the singers, but transitions between various females in unique locations in a way that portrays authenticity. There’s a palpable comfort and beauty in how the cinematography and the characters these women play adapt to one another.
What’s a mystery is why similar attempts at diversity in American music videos often feel forced. A good example of this is Miley Cyrus’s all-time cringe worthy debacle of a stage performance with Robin Thicke in 2013 (viewer discretion advised). Perhaps it was the optics. Perhaps it was the reasoning behind the inclusion that made it inauthentic.
Still, the Miley Cyrus’s of the world, the organizations filled with people of no color (PONC) at the top who vie for diversity, don’t understand it’s not just about smattering as many bodies of color as you can in an ad or music video. It has to feel inclusive rather than appropriative. It must be seamless rather than jarring and Loona’s video does this beautifully.
Another video that uses dance and incorporates a variety of people any convincing way is “Let’s Shut Up & Dance” with Jason Derulo, Lay, NCT 127.
The images are colorful, the beat is contagious, the dancers/dancing varied and all are having fun.
While it may have been better if they were all in the same location dancing together at the end, it doesn’t detract from its delivery.
Dancing is universal and this video encapsulates that.
Organizations should begin by hiring people who are from diverse communities, but should commit to creating an environment that encourages those same hires to speak up when they see a problem. This is the inclusion part of diversity. The most important part of drawing out authenticity.
Far too often organizations will hire diverse individuals and expect them to behave in accordance with the status quo. And when a person from a diverse community group doesn’t do this, they may face career limiting consequences as they aren’t making the individuals who represent the status quo “comfortable” .
In college, there are two kinds of students: one searches for the professor who gives out “easy A’s” and the other searches for the professor who will challenge them.
Hiring people from diverse backgrounds is the “easy A”.
But, including them is the challenge and therefore how you receive the real reward: authenticity.
About the author: Darkskylady is a freelance writer who often contributes to Medium. Find more of her stories here.
