Star’s Suicide Shines a Harsh Light on South Korea’s K-Pop Industry
It’s not just the music, it’s the system surrounding it.
I remember waking up on a weekend morning in November at around 7:30 a.m., about a half- hour before I had to get myself ready to head to the mall. Pulling out my phone, I noticed a notification that Goo Ha-ra, known as Hara from the K-Pop girl group KARA, had passed away from what seemed like an attempted suicide. I logged into Twitter and Instagram only to be flooded with remembrance posts of Goo Ha-ra and calls to the Korean entertainment industry.
Suicide is not anything new in the entertainment industry, let alone in South Korea. The country dealt with 13,670 people who took their own life. in 2018. Asking for help is seen as weak in the country, something that is still taboo, prohibited, or restricted by social norms in the country. The stigma that comes with being unstable as a human being keeps many young adults from getting help.
Korean pop, K-Pop, is a music genre of popular music that has seen an increase and spark of interest in the United States and around the world. Groups like BTS, GOT7, Red Velvet, and other groups and solo artists come from South Korea.
From the outside in, the K-pop industry looks all simple and squeaky-clean, but is filled with dark secrets. They are subject to hateful comments and cyberbullying on everything from looks to singing skills to their private lives. It begs the question of whether the companies are doing enough to protect the health and well-being of their artists.
Tight schedules and multiple shows back to back, leaves many groups without adequate time to rest properly. Consistent rehearsals for music shows, music videos, and promotions leave many groups run down without a chance to catch their breath before they rush to another event. We see this happen with many artists fainting on stage or getting sent to the hospital after performances due to exhaustion.
Add that to the constant need to be a perfect public figure with online bullying, and you have got a recipe for a young adult suffering from mental health issues in front of the public eye.
Growing up a dancer from a young age, the need to be perfect is draining. In January, dance was considered the most physically demanding job in the United States. Not far below in the №3 spot were athletes and sports competitors.
These aspiring “idols,” as they are called in South Korea, are signed to contracts with entertainment companies in their earlier teens, throughout different audition processes. Companies will scout them out in various cities around the world, including the United States, Thailand, and Japan. After a successful audition, they are signed to the company and placed into dorms, if they are not from the city of Seoul, South Korea. From there, they are put through a rigorous system of dance and vocal training for many years until they eventually debut or leave the company.
In the case of Goo-Hara, she dealt with more than just hateful comments; she fell victim to misogynistic attacks, strong prejudice against women. Rumors about her started when haters said she owned her looks by having done plastic surgery. Later, those rumors about her only worsened when she broke up with her boyfriend, who is a hair-designer.
When she broke up with her hair-designer boyfriend, he threatened to release their sex tape.
In 2018, Goo-Hara had filed a lawsuit against her boyfriend due to his threat. A legal battle engulfed after that, which left her dealing with intense media attention. Her boyfriend was later found guilty with four charges-intimidation, assault, coercion, and property damage. Before her tragic suicide attempt, Goo-Hara had already tried to end her life various times.
Goo-Hara, at the time, was dealing with the loss of a fellow friend-Sulli, from the K-pop girl group f(x).
Sulli, like Goo-Hara, fell victim to misogynistic attacks from haters and cyberbullying for her appearance and conduct.
A scandal played out in the media due to the age gap of Sulli and her boyfriend and led to Sulli getting harassed due to her boyfriend’s stage name.
She also was harassed due to her “controversial” behavior of posting pictures without wearing a bra. In South Korea, it is untidy and shameful for a woman to be without a bra. Not only in public but also online.
After both Goo-Hara and Sulli took their own lives, an actor soon after ended their life. It further raised the issue of suicide of the stigma not only in these South Korean entertainment industries but in South Korea as a whole.
Reformation within the entertainment industry is far from done in K-pop. Many more “idols” will suffer if the treatment of Korean idols is not brought to a common ground.
