Music

Junsu Taran******** m/v review: Part 2

Now onto the actual video, I felt the concept was dark, a tad creepy and very sexualized. I read a comment stating that it was highlighting sadomasochism and different fetishes such as bondage, cross-dressing, etc. Likewise, it was said that he incorporated his character Tod, who just happens to represent death from the musical "Elisabeth" ...hmmm. In my opinion, the video seemed a bit a Lady Ga Ga-ish but I think what makes it more bizarre is that it's a man doing it. I've seen countless music videos with dark, Gothic visuals, symbolism, occultic, overly sexual or spiritualistic imagery and back when I was young and ignorant I enjoyed it but now I'm older and wise enough to understand that none of it is done on accident, there's always some hidden purpose or agenda.

Later on, I found out that the title of his song is a spell in Harry Potter that makes you dance uncontrollably which could be another reason why I felt so uneasy. As if all that wasn't bad enough you add a spell on top of it??? If you must know, I don't mess with Harry P. like that anymore, check out this vid and this article if you want more info but that's a subject for another day.

As much as I dislike the video I will say the choreography is pretty good when everyone isn't feeling on each other. I can't deny that the song is addictive and catchy and not in a good way. I don't recommend watching this video more than once if even at all, I don't know about you but it stayed in my head for what seemed like an eternity. I even had to catch myself a few times because I would hum the chorus or a part of the rap though I would never say the whole title.

All things considered, I really like Junsu but I just can't get with this new image or video and I think that people who are new to Junsu or k-pop period and don't understand or agree with the culture or the movement will be confused and more than slightly turned off as I was. I'm not sure if this was something he personally wanted to do or if it's a product of the industry but whatever the case may be, in my opinion it's definitely sending the wrong message especially seeing that most of his fan base consists of very impressionable teenage girls (and some adults). Many may disagree but I sincerely believe that they are trying to homogenize the masses with trends and  media and they are using people of influence to do it, if you don't agree that's alright but I would advise you to take another look. I have soooo much more to say on this issue but to prevent this from being any longer I'll address it in a separate future post

Thank you all for reading :)

           

Junsu Taran******** m/v Review: Part 1

First off, I would like to state that the media/society has been really pushing this androgynous movement for a while and it’s mostly prevalent in the music and fashion industries.

Now, I am No stranger to music (since it is my passion) especially the Asian media. I've been listening to J-pop and J-rock since I can remember & even with their "Visual K" as a child I couldn't bear to watch it because something just didn't feel right. I just couldn't stand to look at it. The same went for Marilyn Manson, Boy George, and if anyone remembers that character "HIM" from “The Powerpuff Girls.” I always found his character strange because of its womanly appearance yet disguised but clearly manly voice. There are many more but I think you get the point.

When I first started getting into the K-pop scene heavy I noticed that the guys looked effeminate (G-Dragon "Heartbreaker" was the 1st ... lots of make-up, feminine clothing etc) but after a while, I'm not sure if it was because I was blinded by how hot I thought the guys were but I dismissed it as cultural and different. When people I know would rag on how girly the guys looked I thought they were being difficult and just making fun but soon, I began to notice a few a things. It caused me to look at it in a different light which is what brings me to Junsu's latest video.

For those of you who aren't familiar with him or K-pop in general he, along with two other members of his were a part of a 5 man group TVXQ/DBSK, they split and he's now a part of JYJ with two of the former members. Anywho, if I said I didn't see this coming I'd be lying but I didn't think it would be to this extent.

Not even 30 seconds into the video I had this weird feeling as if I shouldn't be watching this, I'm not sure if it was because of the weird visuals or what. I can't necessarily explain it but all I know is that something didn't sit right with my spirit. But, as soon as I saw Junsu sitting on the throne with his legs crossed like a woman (which seems to be a trend amongst men nowadays) my stomach dropped.

Like I stated earlier, androgyny is nothing I haven't already been exposed to but I don't care for it. There were moments in the video where I honestly couldn't tell if he was a female or not. Seeing him, a man that I'm physically attracted to in this form was a HUUUGE turn off. I speak lightly when I say there was nothing masculine about him in this video. Furthermore, speaking from my own experience, after watching the video a few times the initial shock starts to wear off. Not only does one begin to entertain thoughts like "oh he doesn't look that bad" but after a while he starts to become more appealing. Thus, you become desensitized and it becomes more acceptable. Personally, I find this somewhat disturbing because for me to find Junsu attractive in that state I would pretty much be one step away from being a lesbian and in no way am I saying this to be facetious, I'm just being truthful. And ya know, maybe that's the point; get people as close to the edge/line as possible that they finally cross it or they might as well. Moreover, I think I was too flabbergasted about his womanly appearance to even notice that there were NO Asian background dancers, (though on a couple parts I noticed the females were thicker than the standard k-pop back-up dancers) or that the ONE Asian girl that WAS in the video was him. A few people mentioned that it was his female persona. I could go on and on about that alone but the point is Man and Woman were created distinct beings yet they are constantly trying to make them the same.

To be continued…                                                                                                       6/11-7/2/2012