How a sordid sex scandal burst K-pop's clean-cut bubble
K-pop, South Korea's energetic and garish brand of supposedly clean-cut girl and boy band music, has enjoyed a meteoric rise that has seen fresh young singers made into unexpected idols around the world.
But at home teenage fans and parents alike have been gripped more recently not by the heavily choreographed dance routines or bubblegum ballads, but by an unfolding scandal of alleged prostitution, drug distribution and sex crimes at the heart of the multi-billion-dollar industry.
The sordid sex scandal began when Seungri, one of its biggest celebrities, was charged this month on suspicion of supplying prostitutes to foreign investors in night clubs.
The ordeal is now throwing the spotlight on deeply entrenched misogyny that permeates the society of Asia’s fourth largest economy.
Seungri, a member of the world-famous group, Big Bang, and described as the “Great Gatsby of Korea” for his lavish lifestyle, apologised to fans and stepped out of the entertainment world to fight the charges, which he denies.
On Thursday he reportedly faced a new charge over the accusation of distributing a secretly taken obscene photo.
The star is not alone in his fall from grace. In the past month, four major K-pop idols have apologised or announced early retirement after being linked to an online group chat that shared sex videos of women who were allegedly filmed without consent.
One singer, Jung Joon-young, has been arrested, and the evolving scandal has produced ongoing allegations of sexual offences that suggest a vast and complex web of suspects, and possible police collusion and cover-ups.
But the celebrity cases are just the tip of the iceberg in a culture of toxic masculinity that has landed South Korea at the centre of Asia’s #MeToo movement.
The lurid allegations echo a wider epidemic of voyeurism and “spy cam” crimes which largely involve men secretly filming women in public places including schools, offices, trains, toilets, changing rooms and on the street.
South Korea’s #MeToo campaign has been fuelled over the past year by the fury of thousands of women who have taken to the streets in protest over digital sex crimes and deeply engrained chauvinism impacting the workplace and everyday life.
Last week it emerged that about 1,600 people had been filmed by without their knowledge by hidden cameras in the rooms of 30 motels in ten South Korean cities. Police say the footage was livestreamed online to paying viewers.
K-pop has won millions of adoring fans worldwide with its distinctive blend of addictive melodies, slick choreography, and groomed parade of attractive South Korean performers. The music has long been lauded as South Korea’s most successful cultural export and projection of global soft power.
The inclusion of K-pop artists in an alleged salacious sex scandal has delivered a jolt to a country already in the middle of an uncomfortable internal debate about sexist behaviour and lack of respect for women’s rights.
Michael Hurt, a sociologist at the University of Seoul, said that the revelations of sexism within the K-pop industry was a reflection of the “kind of pattern that exists in Korean society” already.
“Basically they have built an industry off of the commodification of women’s bodies,” he said. “You’ve got an industry built on using women as currency.”
The unfolding accusations had not surprised anyone who closely followed K-pop culture, where the “militarised” control over aspiring artists made them vulnerable to exploitation, said Mr Hurt.
“Everybody knows this goes on, everybody looks the other way,” he said. “Now we’re being exposed to the most egregious style of exploitation in K-pop, and because of #MeToo society is paying attention.”
Troubling signs of widespread abuse were already in evidence a decade ago, when Jang Ja-yeon, 26, a popular soap opera actress killed her herself, leaving behind a damning letter that alleged she had been forced to have sex with a string of VIPs including media, business and entertainment executives.
Amid public outrage over this month’s seedy revelations, Moon Jae-in, the South Korean president, ordered several celebrity cases, including Jang’s, to be reinvestigated.
“There are cases where the truth was buried as investigators intentionally covered them up or didn’t do their jobs properly,” claimed Mr Moon, noting that “influential people” were involved.
"If the truth is not revealed, we cannot say this is a just society,” he said of the dark allegations engulfing the entertainment world.
The president’s suggestions of an atmosphere of impunity were compounded by accusations of police corruption in the latest scandal as it unfolded around Seoul’s high-end nightclub scene.
Earlier this month, the commissioner general of the National Police Agency confirmed that an internal investigation was underway.
The depth and complexity of the problem has added to scepticism about meaningful change.
“We’re in the middle of this perfect storm and I don’t know if it is possible to predict the next explosion..or how things will go down,” said Mr Hurt.
“Just because you have an extremely egregious case it’s not going to change the system of production. I think this is just a case where they got caught and it’s really bad and people will be embarrassed and some heads will roll and..next!”
