What Everyone Missed in The Kiss of Life Controversy
NB - saved to drafts for like a week or two and then edited. Blah - I forgot I wrote this! Leave it to the sudden shift into lots of fire energy to help me finally get things done.
There’s something weird about the Kiss of Life (Kpop group) controversy.
It’s been a pattern that the Kpop industry would use negative press to garner hype for a comeback or tour. Headlines would read, “SCANDAL” and make it sound urgent for days or weeks…only for a comeback announcement or world tour announcement to follow not long after.
Then the scandal hype would go quiet, and people would celebrate the positive news instead. The few naysayers who weren’t ready to let go of the obviously serious scandal…….were silenced and called party poopers. There’s millions of fans, right? They can afford to lose a few.
FOMO and group dynamics would keep most fans from actually leaving.
So because that’s a pattern in the industry…it’s possible that this is what Kiss of Life were doing, too. They even appealed to fans ahead of time and asked them not to leave because of what they were about to do (meaning they knew it could have a bad response).
But it’s also possible that their “heads up” means they had no choice in this content.
Idk.
And we might never know because it’s been an industry standard to keep decisions and rationale hidden behind closed doors. It’s part of the illusion that allows for sketchy hierarchies of responsibility which prevents anyone from taking the blame or having to deal with things. And to be honest…some days, it seems like that’s how the entire world has operated for a long time.
But…maybe that’s something that needs to change, and it could start in the entertainment industry.
SK would be a great place for that change to begin because in just the past 8ish months, we learned that Kpop idols are NOT considered employees in SK. AKA? They do not have regular employment laws protecting them. Imagine going to work for a job that could exploit you if it wanted to. You’re young, and impressionable, and think that you’re following your dreams.
Joining a company and signing a contract is the only way to do that.
But as the exploitation becomes obvious to your young, naive mind…when your friends and family start to complain and say that something is weird…would you really want to keep working there? Urged by your social support, you’d likely quit, complain to the labour board, or find a lawyer, wouldn’t you?
Idols can’t do that.
They’re locked into a contract for usually around 7 years, and have virtually no employment laws protecting them. Some don’t even get paid for most of that contract time because the company considers things like dance training/vocal lessons/makeup/travel to be debts that the idol needs to pay back.
AKA, Idols go through hell for their dreams. And it’s the only way to reach their dreams because nothing else has been set up…so how else are they supposed to live the life they want?
So I think that if better laws were created to protect idols as official employees, it might allow for more transparency across issues because idols could then protect themselves if they needed to. If they’re asked to do things they don’t want to do, they could say no…and use their best judgement. They could adapt with the times. Or they could quit, and find work elsewhere that will value their autonomy.
But more importantly…fans know these problems exist. They’ve been discussed in various fandoms across multiple social media platforms over and over. So why do fans conveniently forget these facts every time there’s a scandal? Why do they blame the idol first, and ask them to take personal responsibility?
The issue of “did they even have a choice” never made it into any of the angry videos I saw. The anger was justified - yes - but…it’s possible that it was directed at the wrong people.
Did the idols have a chance to say no, and why is no one asking that question?
And if they couldn’t say no, then what can we do to make sure idols have more rights to choose the content they create? As foreigners, how can we respectfully work towards making that change happen?
NB - I’m not a fan of this group, but the controversy is (was - at the time of editing) ALL OVER my feed on TikTok. People are angry. And rightfully so. But after seeing these patterns over and over, it feels like…this is an industry problem, not an idol problem, and it’s not going to go away unless we find the root and heal it.
Many other idols did the exact same thing that week. When a pattern happens…it’s usually not a coincidence.
And maybe the ideas I’ve written here are wrong - maybe someone else knows things better. But right now, all I see is fans repeatedly expressing their hurt - rightfully so - and fans walking away from art while encouraging others to do the same.
But with all the difficult things in the world…we need art. All of us. Art is part of what keeps us going when times are tough. And times are definitely tough right now. We should be able to make positive change without fighting…but we just have to figure out how.