[PC stories/KPOP takes] I CAN'T SUPPORT (NEWJEANS)

bypannchoa July 26, 2022

(T/N: PC reader wanted us to repost this comment as a post after the Min Heejin post)

This is the last post I will be making: it is long and personal, but after it is posted, I will no longer be checking this account and then deleting it shortly after. I apologize for it being a bit scattered or repetitive. I have already written my thoughts on separate posts, so I just cut and paste them together. The different sections are separate by lines.

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These girls are talented, but I can't support them. I can no longer financially support children this young in the industry, especially by people who should fucking know better by now. It literally repulses me to think of HYBE and MHJ being responsible for these girls (and that goes for any agency!!!). I have not once, not ever, in all of my years working either in or adjacent to the entertainment industry or in my friend or social network, have come across a SINGLE, SOLITARY person who has NOT regretted being famous or put into the spotlight at a young age. I have seen the toll it takes. And I am DONE. And I also can't believe people are jumping on this shit after how abominably HYBE treated Garam (regardless of what she did, she was a kid, and they should not have debuted her when the rumors were already spreading prior o her debut knowing that it would be a risk only to profit from her and toss her out) as well as the minors behind the scenes who they unilaterally threatened with lawsuits. And now people are like Yay! A new group with even younger kids for them to destroy! What an aesthetic! IT IS SICK.
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(I hate having to link to that trash site, but it was the first one to come up with the English translations and I am done searching for more).

Look at this interview. MHJ talks about how stressful HER job was. HERS. Behind the scenes. Yes, she had a difficult job. She was also an adult while doing it too. You know what's more difficult? Being the person who has to follow through with all of the things she is unilaterally deciding as a child in the spotlight for the entire world to watch and criticize. She would also know that HYBE could launch any group to at least comfortable stardom. If she knows how difficult it is behind the scenes as an adult, you can bet damn well that she knows how much harder it is it be a celebrity child that is contractually obligated and can't even escape that spotlight if they want to without ruining themselves or their family financially. The people that do get out of contract? They tend to buy themselves out or have hired a legal team to find loopholes to get them out, and even then if the agency has done nothing contractually wrong and doesn't want to let you go? You have to stay or you get to fight a nasty legal battle which will still result in a settlement of some sort. If you are the breadwinner for your family, that's not an option. And a lot of the kids that become celebrities so young are doing it for precisely that reason. It may be their dream too, but do you think a 10 - 15 year old fully comprehends the ins and outs and the absolute rock bottom garbage that is behind the scenes in EVERY entertainment industry? Of course not! Do you think they realize that even the most innocent and well meaning concepts can be twisted and sexualized by others? Clearly that is not their fault, but it occurs so young and before you have developed your self-identity or even your BRAIN enough anatomically to fully comprehend that. Adults do, though. And agencies know EXACTLY what audience they are targeting other than young teens. Do you know how many communities are already spreading these girls picture and the Hurt MV as, in the words of the infamous creator or PD101's first season, "healthy p*rn*graphy?" And what do you think happens when these teens finally realize that the people they thought they could trust were actually just exploiting them for profit, especially when they are removed from any other external support system?
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I was getting optimistic since look at how well Nayeon, Jennie, Lisa, Wendy, Solar, Rosé, Moonbyul, Taeyeon, etc. have all done in their solo careers. Do you know what they all have in common? They debuted as fucking adults. Look how well the 3rd gen groups and still doing! There isn't a reason to debut kids this young anymore now that people are supporting idols far past the ages they once were! And the best selling groups of the 3rd and 4th Gen, BP and Aespa, all debuted as adults too! The fact that HYBE AND MHJ both have the POWER, KNOWLEDGE, and creativity to make a real difference. They know they can launch any group into comfortable stardom AND they know how hard this industry is on kids!! But what did they do? Did they try to implement any forward change? Did they say, hey, we have the opportunity not to mot have to risk kids' lives and their development to make money while also making a difference. What did they do? Revert back to debuting groups as young as K-Pop did in 2nd Gen.

This is just fucking disgusting. I'm sorry for the language but the thought of what these girls will go through over the next few years actually makes me physically sick to my stomach. The fact that actual criminals, predators, and bullies get more privacy than these girls will is gross. Or did no one EVER put together why some idols didn't leave the industry even though were so miserable... because they have a contract to fulfill and will get stuck in a financial sinkhole if they try to leave early. Unless they can buy themselves out, they are STUCK. If they are the breadwinner for their family, STUCK. But if you leave the industry? The Korean media has to stop reporting on you because you are no longer considered a public figure UNLESS it is newsworthy and would be for any citizen. So, yes, even the sick fucks who have left the industry because they preyed or beat children get more privacy and dignity than a young female celebrity who has done NOTHING but try to fulfill their dreams. They just don't know what the reality of working in the industry is versus seeing it from the prettily packages exterior.

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Want to know exactly what the rep at the PR company I hire for my business said when I showed her the video for Hurt? "Japan cracking down on k*d d p*rn was always a foreign image issue they needed to correct before the Olympics. Are you surprised they would start leaning back into it now that the Games are over and economies are trying to recover from Covid losses? That is a lucrative business."

Next message:
"Wickedly genius though. The main demos that supported than industry is one of the very few I can think of that would probably would have saved more spending money during the pandemic than spent it. Businesses want that back and even economies needs it to be recovered.."

Next message
"****** (someone's name) said I don't understand the most devious part. Rebranding it to also target the big spending (censored) (censored) teenagers! If this works; they will make a killing! (Same name as above) is pissed he didn't think of it first for (censored). Wow."

She didn't know it was Korean, and to be fair and clear, she specializes in the health, wellness, and beauty sectors of the market, not individuals or entertainment. The other person whose name I censored is a literary agent specializing in marketing the rights to adapt books into movies and whatnot, or at least that is my best understanding of his role.

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I know people will disagree with me. Whatever. You do your own thing. And before someone tries the phrase "age appropriate" for their concept, know that people in very bad online communities are already spreading their video and picturess like wildfire, especially Hurt, and treating it like they would an OnlyFans account. That innocent imagery? That's a huge dog whistle concept.. because who do you think the primary consumers of it are outside of teens? Men who want to see young girls AS young girls because they can't do that in real life without consequences (and the ones that don't care about those consequences too), which is why there is such an emphasis on making adults appear younger (ie. Infantilizing them). Is this their fault? Absolutely not!!! But do you think a label like HYBE isn't aware of this? Of course they are! They know that framing a child like that is exactly what the producer of PD101 called the first season of his show: "healthy p*rn*graphy." It's disgusting. The sad thing is, at the age these girls are at, they won't be aware of this. Even people older than then in the K-pop community aren't: They will only figure it out once they do get older and see the inner workings of the entertainment industry. And then they will realize that the people they thought they could trust have actually been exploiting them since they were barely out of their preteens. I just hope all of them have healthy support systems at home, because they will need it when that realization comes crashing in some day. It is as heart breaking as it is inevitable.

I can't condone this an adult who knows better and has watched this pattern happen over and over. I would be no better than the people I am criticizing.

So that's it for me. I can no longer justify the "well, I know no one else will follow through with actually boycotting this" thought process any longer. It has to start somewhere, and right now, that includes me. This is the final moral line I have as a consumer and I will not cross it. I will no longer hand over my wallet when it goes against my conscience, and that means not financially supporting any agency that debuts someone younger than 18. Not anymore. Not this time. Not ever again.

I wish you all well in the future and it has been my pleasure interacting with you all over the past years. Love and well wishes to all.


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