Differences Between Female Japanese and Korean Idols

I'm doing a little disclaimer right off the bat because this went from one of my normal opinion pieces as a continuation of a topic related to my previous post to something bigger than I expected.  Therefore I decided I'm going to try to make this as manageable as possible for you guys.  I know when there is a lot of text thrown at me I tend to skim or get the gist of it.  I took a lot of time writing this, so I hope people do read it all and enjoy it.  [Let me know in the comments your thoughts on it, including if you would like to see more of these.]  WARNING: the headers for each section aren't concrete so you if you want to skip parts you might want to skim at least the section before.   

~Introduction~

While I was looking for numbers and articles to determine if Kara did in fact surpass SNSD in Japan I was surprised by a couple of articles I found.  Now these weren't from K-Pop focused blogs mind you which made their arguments harder to ignore.  [I'm throwing in pictures to jazz things up and stimulate comparison.]

Before I continue further I would like to clarify that I do not think J-Pop or K-Pop is better.  (Hey, I've been listening to Lovey Dovey basically on repeat for weeks now.)  It was only in the last couple of years that I got into K-Pop, while I started my fascination with J-Pop in middle school.  This blog may look like it is only about J-Pop, but I think my loyal readers have noticed the shift.  Plus, I'm just too lazy to work on a new banner especially since I haven't downloaded photoshop onto my new computer.  (I should start thinking on who to feature because before it was just about both Hello Project and AKB48 now I like Korean and Japanese boy bands and female units.)

~'Biased' Articles Comparing K-Pop and J-Pop Critiques~  

While reading these articles I was frustrated with their narrow view of K-Pop and J-Pop.  Since I just read through them both and am sufficiently pissed off at what was said I'll do this point by point to keep things organized and easy to follow.  Don't fret, quotes will be provides as well as links to the originals.  I don't disagree with all that was stated, and I will get into the flaws of J-Pop.  The majority of the flaws stem from the idol sect of the Japanese industry, which is where I believe there writers were looking at for comparison.  [I will not even read the comment section for this post, but I noticed there is a handful.] 

Anti-Hallyu Wave Protests

The Atlantic on September 13th, 2011 posted How Korean Pop Conquered Japan.  The writer started to set the stage by discussing the protests that were spurred by the firing of Sousuke Takaoka, a famous actor and hottie.  [He is the blonde yankee from the Crows Zero films.]  Fuji TV has come under fire for airing a lot of content from Korea.  I asked my Japanese friends from Tokyo who are studying abroad at my university about K-Pop in Japan.  Neither are really interested in K-Pop but say a lot of women like it.  They brought up Fuji TV on their own in this conversation saying that it seemed like it was pushing Korean culture.  They also thought that the President might be part Korean, or something along those lines.  When I heard about these protests I thought it was a bit of an over-reaction.  I didn't really pay attention to the action which initiated the conflict.  All I was aware of was that some actor tweeted about Fuji TV and protests followed.  Now that I know who the actor is I'm a bit more supportive because he has been in a lot of films that I've enjoyed and I'm apparently an extremely shallow person.  I've also started to reconsider the backlash because when I compare people's dislike of Fox News or MSNBC for being biased but hide under the claim of being news networks.  I don't think foreign media or influences should be barred from Japan, but why is it only one network?  Plus, if people are claiming similar things that are said about Fox News maybe there is a valid argument.  I need to watch Fuji TV on a regular basis to give a final verdict, but I'm now more on the fence.  Another way of thinking about it is the Occupy Movement.  I believe a majority of people, not just in the United States, agree with the main point about money in government and wall street.  It is just we see more radical point of views or actions at the protests because how many people can take the time out of their day to protest.  I know I'm super busy.  When there were the huge recall protests in Madison I could only go to one or two on the weekend during the entire debacle.

I'm just skipping over the whole issue whether Japan rejects foreign influences or not.  I might pick it up at another time, but I want to stay a bit more on topic.  I'm also not going to discuss whether Japan is stuck and bland when it comes to Pop music.  I'm just doing a comparison of mainstream, female, pop artists from Japan and Korea. 

Sex Appeal in both Genres

"Beyond straight-up sex appeal, K-Pop groups look and act like real adults, whereas J-Pop outfits often emphasize adolescent cuteness."

WTF!  Are we talking about the idol genre or POP genre!  And even then have you followed K-Pop?  One of the examples is what happen to T-ara when entering the Japanese market.

"K-Pop unit T-ara's 2009 video for the song "Bo Peep Bo Peep" centered around a member of the girl group going to a club and hooking up with a guy in the bathroom, an elevator, and his apartment. The Japanese clip, in advance of T-ara's official Japanese debut later this month, finds the members wearing cat ears and playing un-erotically with one another: the sexuality of the original replaced with Hello-Kitty-approved cuteness."

If I ignore all other J-Pop artists and look only at Japanese idols, and even then cut out groups like SCANDAL, Fairies, Happiness, Perfume, SDN48, and other idol groups then yes we can make a general rule that Japanese pop is more cutesy and youth-orientated than Korean Pop.  BUT, we would also have to look over the fact that the T-ara was doing the cat girl thing in Korea and it was not introduced in Japan as it suggests.  We would also look over the fact that AKB48's PV which also had cat girl scenes was also sexual.  I've heard both T-ara and AKB48's videos being criticized by foreigners like myself for being too sexual.  Even if we did ignore T-ara's PV versus MV issue, they were promoted pretty much the same.  Their live performances are pretty much identical.  The key differences are that they wear cat ears more frequently in Japan and the clothing tends to be more demure.  However, why is having hyper-sexual presentation a good thing?  Japan does it too.  I bashed SDN48 for it.  It is one of the turn offs to Koda Kumi I have.  I'm saying it is not uncommon for girl groups to be cutesy in Korea, nor is it for them to be sexy in Japan.  It is just more common to see idol groups sporting school uniforms and focusing more on romance than sex.  However the subject of sex is not taboo when in relation to youth and uniforms.  The picture is the cover of a single released in 1985 by an idol group.  [Here is a hint: the song was likely written by someone who had to write the lyrics to about 200 songs this last year.]  The song talks about a girl with a bad reputation but is actually a virgin.  She wants to have sex, but she is fighting off her boyfriend or potential sex partner saying she doesn't want to do it at the moment.  I didn't read all the lyrics so it is either she wants to wait for a good moment to do it or she doesn't like the location.  The whole song is about sex.  (AKB48's Virgin Love is similar but focuses more on reputation and seeing virginity in a certain light.  AKB48 also released a single about wanting to experience sex and be an adult but their uniform symbolizing society gets in the way.)

Sexuality Myth Examples

"Cool and Sexy" / "Innocent and Happy" Myth Examples:






Being Adult vs. Youthful

Let's consider the fact that they spend a lot of time in their school uniforms so it is a symbol of their youth.  I don't think it is absurd to include a major symbol when on the subject.  Just how I would not consider it odd for Americans to have a song which is set or includes school in some manner.  I would think it odd if it wasn't used at all.  K-Pop groups, like T-ara, have worn school uniforms.  Western pop have also included it. . . Britney Spears *cough *cough.

Does Perfume not seem 'real adult' enough for you?  We should also take into perspective what is the age of the members.  Now, SDN48 is planning on doing a single in school uniforms.  I would consider that a valid example because the members are adults.  However, idol groups whom the majority of their members are still in high school or below I consider have a legitimate reason for wearing uniforms.

"The most popular Japanese act of the moment, AKB48, is a collection of 48 singers usually wearing high-school uniforms while behaving like 15-year-old girls."

They are portraying their age.  It is the same thing as 16-year-old Britney Spears wearing a uniform and dancing around a school building singing about young love.  The main controversy was that she showed off her midriff.  There are members of AKB48 who have graduated from high school, so that is where the clarification of 'majority' comes from.  One way they've gotten around it is that Shinoda Mariko, who is in her 20s, portrays a teacher.  The problem with AKB48 is that part of their main concept is that their uniforms are based on school uniforms.  If it makes you feel better they do have a graduation age, but then I've criticized that because it means the girls have a shelf-life.  The reason AKB48 has the school uniforms is because they are suppose to reflect a classroom.  The majority of members are 15 and older, but a lot of them joined at a younger age.  For example, Manami Oku (who has graduated to focus on her studies) joined when she was 10.  Are you suggesting that you would like members under the age of 18, as young as 10, to act, dress, dance, and sing like an adult?  I think a lot of people would feel uncomfortable with watching Manami Oku trying to hook up with guys at a club.  A more relevant example is Matsui Jurina of SKE48 who is 14.  The best way to handle a group with a variety of ages is to round down instead of up so no one accuses you of child pornography.  [I used AKB48 as my main Japanese example because they are the most often picked as a comparison in these types of argument.]

K-Pop also has groups that span a range of ages, like Chocolat.  Chocolat has two members who are 14 then members who are 18, 20, and 22.  They have yet to do a music video like Hyuna or Koda Kumi because they have 14-year olds.  You will also notice them dressing their age, and even the older members dressed a bit younger.  I've read comments from people who think they dance to provocatively considering there are members who are so young.  Personally I get the point because you don't want to sexualize children or force girls who want to become pop-stars feel like they have to be that way to make it.  The other side of me says if those girls are okay with it, so am I.  I danced, and so did my friends, quite provocatively as early as 6th grade (which is middle school).  My main point is that the differences between female pop artists in Japan and Korea aren't really true.  It is kind of like a gut-reaction myth.  On Kids React one of them said SNSD was demure!  When I wasn't into K-Pop I did think that they were just more sexy than J-Pop IDOLS.  I don't think it is anyway true for the J-Pop genre as a whole.

Second Article Critique 
The Diplomat's article, K-Pop versus J-Pop (Nakagawa, 2011), had some similar statements, which I disagreed with.  It is mainly an interview.  Most of the points I made above overlap with my issues with the following opinion.  [I did not read the linked article in the quote.]

"There’s been a big jump in the popularity . . . in Japan over the past year—a trend that’s being attributed to ‘cooler,’ more talented (thanks to a more vigorous training regiment) and more individualistic Korean female pop groups, especially compared to their Japanese counterparts."

I suggest you read it yourself because I could hardly sit through the whole thing.  The points that I can get through, summed up, is that K-Pop groups show real women, J-Pop groups are fake, old-fashioned, and sexist.  K-Pop groups are independent and feisty.  He does say towards the end that the girls themselves are similar because both are controlled by management, that I will get to later.  I do agree that when it comes to solo artists there hasn't been anyone new that challenges that level that is Hamasaki Ayumi, but I don't think K-Pop can fill that void either.  Hamasaki Ayumi wrote and has a major hand in her music.  Again, I'm not going to go any further on the subject about music style on a broad scale in J-Pop.  

~Manufacturing Differences~  

Hamasaki Ayumi started out as a rapper.

I'm a bigger noob when it comes to K-Pop than J-Pop.  I feel like the issue of manufacturing has more to do with the differences between the two.  If you didn't know, Korean idol groups train for years before debuting.  The formation of the group is the same.  Agencies, producers, or record labels audition new talent and form them into a group.  Japanese idols do not spend years training as a group, not that there isn't any.  Both have management watching what they say and do.  BOTH in some way present an ideal for women.  Neither tend to play a major role in writing the music.  Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.  I did hear something about U-Kiss member writing a line for a song, but that is a boy band.  One difference in training is that many idol groups start off as indie artists until they are popular enough to go major.  As far as I know Korean units don't have to go through that process.  My Japanese friends said the major reason why people like the K-Pop groups in Japan is because they are more professional.  [Not that they were more cool or real.] 

The issue of individuality is tricky and is sensitive.  I do think AKB48 is more individualistic and a better role model for women.  This is due to the lack of polish and wide range in members.  We see more members with different heights and weights.  I also think because there are so many they do get a little more freedom when it comes to presentation.  For example, Takahashi Minami doesn't wear bikinis.  She likes to keep things covered.  I'm not saying there isn't variety in members in K-Pop.  From what I've seen there is more consistency when it comes to weight and higher standards for looks.  For example, my Japanese friends don't think Sashihara Rino is super pretty.  Another example is when watching AKB48 the first thing I noticed was a mesh of looks but when I watched SNSD (Sunny is a hottie) I thought they were all thin and had long legs.

I do like the fact that K-Pop is more professional.  I personally wish they spent more time sending Japanese idols to training lessons in singing and dancing.  There are Japanese idols who are already good enough like Tokyo Girls Style and some Hello Project groups, other times there is a range in terms of members.  I think K-Pop groups have a range as well.  However, I'm not saying that their way is necessarily better.  Western music tends not to work like that.  It reflects the indie to major process that Japan has.  I think it helps consumers trust the artists more because you can follow them from the very beginning plus there is less opportunity for the management to 'tamper.'