The Most Infuriating K-Pop Group Ever?

This post brought to you by the sponsor of caffeine and the college practice of staying up late at night.

This onslaught was instigated by the Japanese version that was recently released.  However, I found the Korean original with English subtitles which was also upsetting (for the same reasons but with different details).  Therefore I am posting both for you to enjoy.

JAPANESE VER.

KOREAN W/ (not the best) ENG SUBS


I despise their first Japanese single, Bo Peep Bo Peep, because of the annoying cat girl scenes coupled with the Mean Girl-esque dance shot.  We again, with Yayaya, see a single with egyo girls with an incoherent title and lyrics.  So, why does this one get a whole post?  First of all it is insensitive and racist and ridiculous.  Let me just say now that the song itself is catchy, so I put most of the blame of the video and choreography.

I've yet to see the girls outside of being egyo.  Plus, none of the girls seem to break out of the mode.  They characterize themselves, and women in general, in a negative light.  In both singles they are superficial and lacking brain cells and individuality.  No wonder they always have guy issues they are annoying!  Read the lyrics of Bo Peep or watch the Korean version of Yayaya.  The only reason you would want to date them is because of their looks!

The storyline is ridiculous, then again at least there is one in the Korean version.  They kidnap this poor guy and tie him to a pole.  They leave him there and then one by one they try to seduce him while he is clearly not into it.  He thinks you are annoying too, so back off.  Can T-ara take a hint?

Finally, there is the depiction of Native Americans.  In the Japanese version they are viewed as violent.  In the Korean version. . . they keep the poor guy tied to a pole!  Even if we look past the actions, the fact that they dressed up makes me uncomfortable.  What if they did black face?  Here is a quote that I thought put it nicely:

"I will say this flatly - please do not dress yourself or your kids up like 'Indians'!  Although it should not be necessary for me to have to explain why this is a no-no, I will elaborate briefly....  I have an African American friend who told me that on several occasions on halloween night he came to his door to find a white child who was dressed up like a 'black' person, complete with painted face and fake afro.  He was never upset with the child, but did say he thought the parents needed a swift kick in the rear!  I also have, as you can imagine with all the 'Poca-haunt-us' hoopla, endured countless cute little kids dressed up like 'Indians' by their folks. There are many problems with this.  One big problem is that it trivializes the American Indian race.  Our traditional regalia is much more than clothing.  It is a sacred and personal spiritual expression of our most holy ways.  When we paint our face a certain way, wear eagle feathers and design our incredibly complex patterns of bead, quill, leather, shell and so on, these are all very holy and sacred interpretations of our spirituality. To dress an innocent child in silly colored chicken feathers, a brown paper sack and paint their face with mock 'Indian' designs is an insult to the sacred spiritual expressions of American Indian people.  That having been said, I think it is important to say that no one should ever 'dress up' like an 'Indian', an 'Asian', an 'African', or any other race.  It is simple common sense.  To do this is to make a game of somebody's ethnicity, to trivialize a race for the sake of 'fun'.  (By the way, a 'pilgrim' is not a race)  So, it is my hope that people will learn that it is insensitive and just plain morally wrong to dress up like someone else's race.  May we all learn to be considerate of others......."  

Now I will remind you the reason why I say these things, besides bringing awareness about insensitivity, but because I can like T-ara and they can be better than this.