The glorification of eating disorders in K-pop

Hey all welcome to my channel , I’m your host #itzkeisha join me as we sit down to chat all things #kpop and eds. Trugger warning the video does get quite…intense.
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Comment your thoughts below
Time stamp :
00:53 -intro
02:25 -makeup inspo for today + ramble
03:52 -highest cases of Ed’s
04:55 - how I got into Kpop
07:45 -why I left kpop
09:01 - what are Eds
11:56 - kpop idols shocking diets
21:40 - my personal story
23:07- kpop fans share how kpop idols have effected them
27:13 -outro

[@analeelee]

It annoys me when fans say their bodies are naturally thin and it's just their metabolism. Yes, people are naturally thin, but seeing an idol's bones in places you're not supposed to isn't natural.

[@Itzkeisha]

Most deff

[@DumiNihi]

Exactly like the difference between naturally skinny idols and underweight idols is very obvious

[@mitchiecarey4013]

@Louis Kingsta right my bones stick out regardless and I don’t do rigorous training that they do sometimes people don’t get that naturally skinny is a real thing

[@ITSMETHESHEEP]

@Louis Kingsta Everyone who is fairly thin will have visible bones when they move a certain way, it becomes a problem when you’re bones are protruding through your skin 24/7 and their is practically no fat surrounding them. Very stark difference

[@lallygamer4062]

I mean my sister is naturally skinny and her bones come out. She’s healthy. Obviously I meant as in they don’t look too clear but you know how Lisa’s bones are? Exactly like that.

[@Remember_the_Time]

It's not only their diets though. It's also the fact that they train and perform a lot so they're constantly exercising/dancing and losing weight. That's another factor, it's not healthy to eat a little and then exert yourself. That's why some kpop artists end up fainting.

[@h0rriphic]

There’s entire hour long compilations of K-pop singers eating the floor. They faint like it’s going out of style. It’s awful.

[@lemonaidebey6190]

Also they start training them as KIDS. Alot are used to the abuse and starving

[@choerrybomb]

this actually means a lot. especially with the current situations of mistreatments among artists. recently, chuu from loona has been kicked out for alleged "abuse of power" and "verbal assault" of a staff in her agency, which is so funny because first of all, nobody believes the agency's bullshit, and second of all, the staff she "cussed" at are the same people who made her and the other members of her group starve and go on extreme diets. it's sad because it's a problem among so many companies today. and it's showing by the way jihyo was treated predebut, how wendy was treated with her yoyo diet, how kyla massie from pristin was getting a terrifying amount of hate comments, and even jeongyeon. i could state more names. and the web drama mimicus also depicts this problem quite well too.

[@Ara-fy7ml]

we dont know id what was said is true because we werent there of course there was mis treatment but the verbal abuse you couldve been true as well because we dont know our idols

[@choerrybomb]

@@Ara-fy7ml listen. i don’t really care if chuu yelled at that person or insulted them. because she kept being patient for 7 entire years after being abused and mistreated by her agency. you she was 16. 16 and forced to be starved, overworking, unpaid, making side gigs to get some money for her agency. she couldn’t even afford buying food. she was not treated fairly. and she just wanted justice. so yeah, she defended herself just as she should have. her agency stole money from the staff and from the members, from everybody who worked with loona for their comebacks. and last year when staff asked about being paid, they got fired. blockberry has been constantly lying about everything, how is it legitimate to believe what they’re saying right now? ever since chuu demanded an injunction to suspend her contract to finally get paid, rest enough and deal with her eating disorder, the company has been putting her aside. they threw her out of the dorms, left her roaming in the streets of seoul with her luggages in broad daylight. that’s how much blockberry cares for her. she had to take taxis to go to her schedules with loona, because the agency didn’t want to get the manager to drive her to the places she had to go to. and the agency even stopped informing her about loona’s schedules and forbid her to go to the group’s appointments without their permission. they even deactivated her company key card to enter the building. and despite working hard, overworking, she never complained. i’m not trying to yell at you, but i’m just trying to make you realize that despite her action being negative, and bad, idols are human beings. she was sick of it. exhausted. just because she said one thing to the public ; her agency judged that it was “abuse of power”. let’s not forget what happened at ISAC in 2019 when a staff member literally pulled her by the hair to tell her to come to him. wasn’t that physical assault and misuse of power either? it’s deeper than just a company stating things to justify their actions. they’re defaming a person who has been loyal to their agency for 5 years and making them look evil.

[@nela_]

@@Ara-fy7ml Even hyunjin from loona wrote some lines that indicate that chuu is wrongly accused. Hyunjin risks to be kicked out, just to tell her truth.

[@alliexcx5576]

Yeah its insane you cant even be a normal human being and get pissed in these groups.

[@choerrybomb]

@@alliexcx5576 literally, you're just a money making cow to these agencies

[@CA-bw9vw]

My favorite part is when stans actually have the gall to say "YOU'RE the ones body shaming her, thin bodies are normal too!" Like nah girl don't jump on that reverse racism train. You CANNOT tell me these thousands of idols and trainees are bone-baringly thin✨naturally✨ You can call us bitter and jealous all you want but that doesn't change the fact that these people, many of them *literal children* are being psychologically abused and deprived of food.

[@DrBitchcraft.]

Ikr.. like what are you guys doing? What are you fighting for here?? For this effed up standard to exist? For the abuse to exist? Im sure that 99.9% of idols arent naturally skinny but are forced to be thin because of these delusional stupid fans and psycho companies.

[@riamalia9966]

especially when you see that they used to be fuller. you don't become naturally skinny just like that..

[@compulsiverambler1352]

It is just the coersion element that is bad though, it is not inherently bad to have underweight bodies represented. Neither thin nor fat is healthy but only thin gets petitioned to be censored and banned from platforms. Cancer and AIDS and anorexia nervosa and famine and hunger strike and wasting disease and other causes of underweight bodies deserve representation just as much as Prada Willi bodies, binge eating disorder bodies, Temple Syndrome bodies, and compulsively overeating due to bad gut flora caused by the ultra processed fake food industry sweeping the world (the vast majority of overweight people in the world post 1960s fall into this category) bodies. If it is OK to have fat idols it should be OK to have underweight idols, and the medical problem shouldn't matter either I.e it shouldn't be discriminated against when the medical problem is a compulsive neuropsychological disorder like anorexia nervosa yet be allowed when the medical cause is cancer, such as how those petitioning to censor Eugenia Cooney have not petitioned to censor any of the emaciated cancer sufferers with medium to large audiences. That is discrimination against neuropsychological medical problems. They are fine with anorexics getting a thrill from imagining looking like an emaciated cancer or AIDS or Marfan Syndrome patient, so they don't try to kick those people off the Internet, but are desperate and unrelenting to kick off an emaciated anorexia nervosa patient. That shows it is actually just about punishing famous people for having a mental illness and/or empty virtue signalling about a hot topic, it is not really about what they say, which is preventing anorexics from fantasising about losing more weight. If it were really about preventing anorexics from fantasising about being thinner (a spectacularly ignorant idea anyway), they would petition to get rid of all emaciated bodies, instead of just those they believe are caused by AN.

[@mapybermeo]

As a person that has battled ed's and a kpop stan as well, I get so sad when I get to know the extreme diet and exercise habits idols are pressured to have because of their management and the fan's criticism and it's even sadder to see young people on social media doing these challenges following those regimens even knowing how dangerous most of those methods can be. The amount of body shaming by the audience and also between band mates and staff is incredible and triggering. I wish society stopped setting unhealthy beauty standards and also trying to replicate them because it only perpetuates mental and physical illnesses ☹️

[@xyn4300]

Ily for this people normalize this so much and they call wonyoung the it girl when she’s literally starving herself to fit a standard and isn’t mentally stable leaders are stable and she isn’t no hate to her ofc I love their music but that’s besides the point

[@Ara-fy7ml]

we dont know if she starving herself tho I hope not

[@xyn4300]

@@Ara-fy7ml she is have u not seen or kept up with it

[@Ara-fy7ml]

@@xyn4300 I have but you can't just bodly assume that she is

[@tiffannii]

I know I feel so bad

[@xyn4300]

@@Ara-fy7ml yes I can she’s alarmingly skinny don’t telll me what I can or not do as idk u so humble urself sir or mam

[@kurohime2000]

Dude this weight/diet thing is so crazy, I live in China and they have the same beauty standards as SK all my underweight Chinese friends literally starve themselves, both male and females. It’s not easy to change their mindset it’s so heartbreaking, this one time we got our friend fruits and he said no coz it would “make him fat” we tried and tried and he just straight up said no, even my ex used to starve himself and exercise all the time no matter how much I reassured him. They literally get bullied for having normal weight it’s fucking insane coz I’m African and I got skinny shamed by my relatives coz being thicc is the standard back home but here??? Oh god it’s sooo bad, if you watch Chinese dramas, there’s a Chinese series called ‘love 020’ and the main girl’s body is a beauty standard that almost the whole country wants to achieve. It’s deep rooted in their minds, some people even fat shame normal foreign bodies coz that’s literally how everyone thinks. I’m small and I get so sad every time my Chinese friends say they wanna have my body like no bro, the most important thing is your BMI, so for your height and weight you’re already underweight. Every morning or evening you’ll see girls and boys running in the football pitch for hours on end coz they wanna lose more weight even though they’re already underweight according to their BMI. It’s not healthy but it’s literally the “norm” here, I’m constantly reassuring my friends coz I wouldn’t want my friends to have that toxic mindset but it’s not easy. So Kpop idols aren’t gonna stop, at least not anytime soon because most of them don’t think anything’s wrong with being underweight, but it’s disheartening to see so many countries enslaved by something so outrageous. So don’t base your body goals on people you see on social media coz even most of your “idols” also have Body dysmorphia, take care of your bodies and minds alike, if you wanna focus on your weight at least do it according to your BMI, everyone’s bodies aren’t the same so please learn to love your own bodies, don’t let toxic beauty standards determine how you look.

[@namu4380]

I sometimes watch Chinese tik tok videos and those girl's legs are like chop sticks and belly like a thin sheet of paper . I don't care about others physical appearance but this is too much .

[@kurohime2000]

@@namu4380 right? It’s seriously concerning how they all want to be 45-50kg no matter their height, and to think that’s the norm here🤦🏽‍♀️

[@caribbeankpoplover]

I was living in China for a few years and was really shocked by this. It’s so sad 😭

[@violetblossom7]

This is insane, I knew about East Asian beauty standards but I had no idea it was this extreme. Thank you for sharing this 🫶🏾

[@p1nk1e63]

I wouldn't recommend using bmi though, because it doesn't account for muscle mass

[@nyasha7721]

Chile I admire kpop fans for their ability of deluding not only themselves but others around them.. the amount of times tbey be out here saying "omg crush me with your thiqq thighs" and the thighs be sticks...i- or "omg his melanin!" And he be giving casper... i-..

[@kookiesmj01]

LMAO

[@mq6845]

HAHAHAHAHA SO TRU

[@Terroroki]

a great example of this is wonyoung from iz*one/ive. every time i see her i wanna cry. she’s extremely extremely thin for her height and it genuinely concerning and you can tell how bad its affecting her. she runs out of breath easily and can barely breathe. she an extremely beautiful girl but to be honest if her fans keep encouraging her she won’t be around to see her 30s . she’s been in the spotlight since she was 13 and what i think the problem is that everyone fixated on her beauty so much that she felt as if she needed to maintain it to please her fans and it’s genuinely scary and sad

[@cinnamonstar808]

[@nuclearclarity3778]

The worst part of it is that they share specifics about their diet, imo. I get that there’s pressure for them to look thin, but I did the IU sweet potato diet when I was 12 years old because it was so widespread how she lost weight. And IU came out later and said she didn’t intend for people to copy her and she was just sharing that diet for awareness on how harsh the industry is, but it was too late: people are still widely copying that diet. I ult stray kids but i can’t even watch Felix’s lives anymore bc he casually mentions starving so much.. and I’m not trying to blame the idols for this because the whole culture is toxic and they’re victims of this even more so than the audience is, but it sucks seeing young kids who are just developing ED’s going through the same things I went through bc their faves are still spreading such specific, mimicable details about their weight loss. This is actually why I admire WonYoung because it’s clear she’s starving, and many girls on edtwt and edtiktok will post her as thinspo and stuff, but when she was asked about diet advice, she said to eat three meals a day. Do I think she eats three meals a day? Of course not. But she lied through her teeth and now all the twelve year olds who would do anything to look like her, might be a little bit safer.

[@PennyWenny224]

Wow this takes me back to year 11 when I starved myself to look like an idol - it was not a good time

[@adyaparamitaputripratama2786]

I hope you heal and lives a healthy life now!!

[@sofvpgn]

oh.

[@aestheticcat8976]

I listen to kpop but it's more of an outside perspective, I keep up with the music releases and the news but I'm not a super dedicated fan that being said I am aware of these 'kpop diets'. A diet while restrictive still requires a balanced amount of foods for the body, that way you can still get an adequate amount of nutrients to be healthy and these 'kpop diets' is basically starvation. On top of this certain kpop fans bully these idols about their bodies as they're deemed over weight, which is pure madness to me as they're so clearly not that. 🙃 Another aspect I think of is the health issues that comes from these 'diets', in the long run it cannot be good.

[@nicolalist7258]

I feel like companies are normalizing EDs when the K-pop artist are already skinny. It’s sad to see that some artist are suffering. There’s too many artist who that say their diet almost killed them.

[@nicolalist7258]

When artists are gaining weight because of age and health reasons. Then people (fake fans) send hate messages all the time. It’s tiring and annoying even for me. I can’t fathom what artists are feeling.

[@joonbee]

been an army since 2016 and I agree that, while learning to love yourself from bts’ message is great, it’s important to carry on that mentality without them. and I’m sure they’d agree with that

[@joonbee]

I remember Namjoon (RM), at the end of one of their concerts in 2019, saying “use me to love yourself, use bts to love yourself” and I always interpreted that as “our music will always be a reminder of how we learned self love and we hope we can pass that wisdom onto you” rather than relying on them for just a quick fix of serotonin

[@ilistentoallkindsofmusic]

coming here after BTS released their 10yr anniversary record book. Taehyung mentioned there that "we were telling others to love themselves, but we cant love ourselves" its not the exact same thing but the same thought. it seems that BTS is still struggling a lot personally.

[@nicholasgarrick8855]

I'm so happy you're covering K- pop!!Thank you for all that you do keisha❤ it's so sad how their looks ,and bodies are valued more than their health ,and talent. They are singers ,and Dancers. They need the proper food intake to keep their energy up to be able to handle all these stage performances. I can only praise them for being able to handle this harsh shit.

[@stayville7581]

beyond happy that you’re speaking on this❤️ love u queen

[@Itzkeisha]

Thanks babe

[@khiordior]

I love stays …

[@Palloni]

Kpop fans act like they know their favs is just funny to me. When someone is saying, X idol is worryingly skinny(not hating), they come and attack you saying, "no they are naturally skinny, she loves to eat and she doesn't diet at all, you are just a hater". How do you know they are naturally skinny? They have been training and dieting since they were children. Of course they are skinny. If they eat a piece(?) of fried chicken(as if they haven't eaten the whole day)in a reality show, doesn't mean they eat a lot. Just look at them dropping cakes on purpose👀

[@awilliams7796]

It’s the parasocial relationships for me

[@hnyuq4049]

u can say the same thing for people who claim an idol has an eating disorder. you don’t know them, so don’t assume what they do or don’t have. it’s just hypocritical. and eating disorders aren’t only limited to anorexia, so just cuz an idol is really thin don’t say oh they had anorexia. like no nothing is black and white

[@Palloni]

@@hnyuq4049 for sure, I never claimed that wasn't the case. Maybe I should add not diagnosing to not hating. But saying someone lost a worrying amount of weight in short amount of time is not a diagnosis. And I see those comments usually when young people are applauding rapid weight loss. Of course it would be best not to comment at all, but appearance and weight is sadly a key point of the kpop industry

[@lookbehindyourback6910]

@@hnyuq4049 those kpop idols has eating disorder since they all looks unnaturally thin and have the same body type and (face). They even share their extreme weight loss and toxic diet in the internet for gullible like you. Eating a cube of ice? One cup of food a day? Come on. How can you eat less but expect to release energy more? Whats there to release? This video already made many many points about this but you still stupidly being ignorant little shit, why are you even here then? To white Knighting your jungkook oppa?

[@DumiNihi]

I remember when momo from twice talked about how she ate only ice to loose weight

[@Itzkeisha]

HUUUUUH

[@teehee2011]

@@Itzkeisha Before debuting, Momo was told that she had to lose 7kg in a week. To lose the weight, she ate nothing for a week except 1 ice cube all while going to the gym every day. She was even scared that she'd gain weight from the ice cube. It got so bad that when she went to bed she was afraid that she wouldn't wake up again and started crying. Here's the link: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mqmZn4FjpJKshJI

[@KIgarashi10969]

EXCUSE ME?????? 😰😰😰😬😬😬

[@giaparmer]

My best friend and my dog both passed in the last 7 days and your vids are one of the few things that have been a welcome distraction ❤

[@Itzkeisha]

OMG SO sorry to hear about your losses!! Wishing you all the best babe ! Hang on tight❤️❤️❤️

[@LaguBudakKuching]

So so sorry for your loss. Sending hugs💗

[@ml37856]

you’re spot on. one of my close (ex) friends became distant and it turns out they are now obsessed with kpop (specifically somi, blackpink, wonyoung) and use them as inspiration as they are now starving themselves and are friends with others who also starve themselves. it’s very sad.

[@namu4380]

One of my follower in Twitter is also like this . Her tweets are always about weight .Once she posted her pic and she was so pretty and seem very healthy . Her constant tweets about weight and diet was so disturbing .It went to a point when I started becoming insecure about my body because I was a little chubbier than her and she still felt super fat and wanted lose weight as much as she can and not eat at all .

[@SleepyOnline1]

THANK YOU for talking about this. people don’t make the connection enough that it’s not just the industry, it’s the entire culture and society as a whole. the beauty standards are insane whether you’re an idol or just a regular person, plastic surgery is pushed from middle school ages, diet culture is so extreme. but it’s because society reinforces all of this - the difference between getting a job and not getting a job could quite literally be your looks (and this goes for regular desk jobs too). bullying is a huge problem there so looking at all different could cause huge problems just going to school, etc. parents worry their kid won’t get their dream job or will get tormented if they don’t fit the beauty standard so they push surgeries on diets on their own children too… it’s a vicious cycle that i don’t think many westerners take the time to understand or refuse to admit

[@Palloni]

It really bothered me, when somi posted her drastic weight loss on instagram(why would you even do that, if you don't have an unhealthy relationship with your body) and I kept seeing young girls saying she is body goals now. The thing is, she literally starved herself, which she kind of admitted to by sharing her banana diet.

[@coollittlebinch4689]

Did she do before and after photos or just post pictures of herself? If it's the latter I don't really see the problem.

[@hnyuq4049]

@@coollittlebinch4689 no pictures of herself, i think just a picture of the scale and her weight? or just her weight. it was on her ig story a long time ago

[@ismekido6182]

@@coollittlebinch4689 she did that las year , v did the same even rm

[@coollittlebinch4689]

@@ismekido6182 Ahh right, thanks

[@coollittlebinch4689]

@@hnyuq4049 thanks

[@mimijae9154]

I feel like these days female idols are getting skinner and skinner at an alarming rate… It’s to the point where I can’t even watch a live video of my favorite gg cause of how uncomfortable I feel seeing how unhealthy it’s getting. I really thought K-pop was changing and becoming more body positive and inclusive but that’s not the case anymore…

[@sara.othman]

Thank you Keisha, sis!!! As someone who has gone through this and sees all this stuff happen to others, it saddens me and I hope we can do something to stop it one day

[@SugaKookieMon]

Kim Taeyung (V) was talking about dieting recently. He’s 139 lb @ 5’10”. That is scary for a grown man. SMH. I’m glad you said it affects both sexes.

[@multifan6679]

Hmm... I might have used to wrong bmi calculators (I tried 10, 5in kg and 5 in lbs) but all of them said that he has a BMI of 19.9 which is pretty much within the healthy range (some say it is close to underweight as 63kg is actually the limit according to one of those sites). While I do think that shouldn't have shared he was dieting due to his influence, I don't see how this is a scary weight for a grown men?

[@moccisimo]

@@multifan6679 bmi is outdated and is meant more for white people; poc don’t fit the ranges they have

[@gretaa8135]

I just thought about Taehyung from bts when i saw this video as a few days ago, he posted on instagram story a picture of his current weight (63kg) and i was shocked. Jungkook also constantly diets and has been looking super skinny lately. Jin is also known to have a very low weight. In a recent bts live, i remember namjoon and suga mentioned Jin’s weight and jk’s diet and seemed impressed by them. Theres nothing impressive. Its alarming if anything. Its really scary i just want them to be at a healthy weight and stop glamorizing something so damaging

[@kookiesmj01]

@@gretaa8135 thank you!! I mentioned tae posting his weight on a scale in my comment, and I was extremely shocked too and the first thing I thought was how many people he probably triggered with posting that. They talk about dieting so much and always mentioning it Everytime they do a vlive (I feel like jk, joon, and jimin talk about the most but I could be wrong) That they are “not eating as much these days” because their on diets and it always makes me extremely uncomfortable and worry about their health. And the fact that they praise each-other for it is also extremely concerning too. As you said, it’s not impressive and it doesn’t mean your any less of a fan for calling them out for having toxic narratives and saying harmful things. Because it negatively impacts them and their fans.

[@lolaland_]

@@kookiesmj01 true!! i don’t think it’s entirely their fault tho. i mean their culture doesn’t have the best mindset when it comes to these things and the idol industry is even worse so i imagine being apart of all that has conditioned them to have a really unhealthy outlook on such things. i hope in the future they are able to unlearn these things and have a much healthier outlook

[@violetv714]

This is one of the topics that I've only heard about recently but has gone on for so long... thank you for continuing to raise awareness (and also just for being the absolute baddest 😘😘)

[@ANYHOO0]

When you watch documentaries about kpop it's not surprising that a lot of them end up with disordered eating, they're treated like robots who can be replaced at any time if they aren't perfect.

[@mirandapillsbury7885]

tbh I am an asian of a darker skin complexion and I was OBSESSED with becoming lighter because growing up all I saw was light skin idols. I even started bleaching for one week and then I just decied to stop. I will always remember the day I decided to stop...it was when I saw Hwasa looking tanned and performing. She was i think the FIRST darker skin tone female idol being celebrated to that level. That was when i told myself I need to STOP and slowly I also stopped stanning k-pop in general. The music is fun and good but the stanning phase is really dangerous. The idols are next level PERFECT and we will never reach that and we need to accept it.

[@tj-s6328]

And its wild because old school kpop Lee hyori had tan skin, and Boa had tan skin. And alot of actors in kdramas in the 2000s had tan skin. Wth is going on in S.K cause after 2010 everyone is whitewashed and there is rarely a tan actor on my TV and I don't like it 😕

[@cosmiccrush22]

Skin whitening, culture of fearing the tan, girls don't sun bathe they hide themselves in umbrella, lighter makeup, most Koreans are pale and the ones that aren't get the hate.

[@taehyungoppa7208]

OMFG YESSS! I'm so glad you are talking about this because there is just too much to unwrap and talk about

[@laurenc35]

I was a kpop fan from 2013-2018 I had to step away from it because after a few years you realize how toxic the KPOP industry is. So many groups are literally abused. Strict contracts that control how members diet, date, dress..down to what personality you will present to the world. Once I realized how manufactured the industry was I could no longer support it.. I feel for the talented artists who give their lives to these money hungry companies, just to be tossed away and left in debt 🥺

[@sx1275]

I was a kpop fan back in 2012. I was 7 when I began stanning Girls Generation. Seeing them with “perfect bodies”, them using low rise colorful jeans was pressuring me to be like that. I began dieting at the age of 7. I would save my lunch money instead of eating and do a lot of exercise. It was driving me crazy and I felt disgusted by myself. My goal was to look like Yuri or Sooyoung who were highly praised back in the day.

[@SpookyGhostHippy]

I’m not a fan but seeing videos online of some of them fainting on stage has been scary they’re human they need breaks their bodies need breaks it’s sad

[@shueeshers3223]

Thank you Keisha for speaking on this❤

[@taejgaul5991]

As INT kpop fans we do our best to make our artists feel beautiful regardless. But they were raised in an environment that was like that before they even enter companies. Like it’s engrained in Asian culture since ages past before kpop was even a thing and it’s not only kpop, cpop jpop you name it, thai dramas... And since idols are meant to be the “perfect non-human” pinnacles of society they get the harshest end of the stick. They are picked apart daily and the pressure unfortunately ends up making them give in to these awful diets.

[@gato4756]

at 4:26 you mentioned how the kpop stans are very protective over their idols and keep babying them (probably yh because they look very youthful and are considered adorable) but anyways I watched a video of jisoo being shown a dior bag and she said she wanted that bag and it was given to her , somebody commented that the bag was actually worn by Princess Diana and her fans were a saying "omg yes slay queen, she deserves it,she's the definition of I want it I got it" it's funny because those people are the same ones who where shitting on Kim for wearing Marilyn Monroe's dress

[@namjoonsbonsai3817]

Omg finally someone said it

[@jeffreyh271]

I’ve never been able to get into KPop because the fact that they pretty much seem to be in modern slavery, just doesn’t sit well with me . I can’t support that

[@myownsunshine3570]

Hii, I don't usually leave comments, but I just wanted to say that I've watched several videos on this topic and that you were the only one (as far as I can remember) who also gave examples of male idols struggling with an e.d./excessive dieting. I applaud you for that

[@menzinosimilokhoza5306]

Thank you so much for touching on such a serious yet relevant topic, that's honestly affecting most of GenZ's lives. ❤

[@pinkyhc4130]

Nice top! Love it with the hair!!! The normalization of disordered eating isn't anything new, but I feel like this is next level. I don't know how they are performing at this level without calories.

[@ashby.abroad]

I live in South Korea and let’s just say… the diet culture here is insane. I was obese and got the recommendation to visit a weight loss clinic. They pass out pills like candy if you tell them you want to lose any amount of weight. There were some already small girls there and I kept thinking “where else can you possibly lose weight?!” To their credit… those pills work. I finally got to a healthy and normal body weight, BMI, and body fat % for the first time in my life since I was probably 7 years old.

[@gayathri9740]

I think this is a vicious cycle for between the artist themselves and the fans. While some fans watch their idols go on a diet and basically starve themselves to fit in a certain standards thus pushing young fans to also think that it is the beauty standard and pressure them to go into extreme dieting, the flip side is that if an idol is not skinny enough according to these standards, they are body shamed and basically bullied by the fans to get into these types of diets. It is not only the idols that promote eds but sometimes it is the fans themselves

[@deejohnson4793]

Thanks for this video. This acknowledgement is so needed. Hope there is a change in the culture for the artists!

[@mangojelly23]

thank you for this video Keisha, I've been listening to kpop since 2009 in my teen years and I fell victim of the IU diet because I'm a huge fan (I still listen to her she's an amazing songwriter and person overall) and I guess I just really wanted to be like her, plus it didn't helped that I was already starting to enter into an ed that will last till my 20s (I'm still in rehabilitation) I still listen to kpop, specially BTS and IU, but objectively and maturely way, but yeah, when you're young and impressionable it can fvck up you

[@jessicaalarcon7944]

I love your voice omg how amazing!!

[@soledesertion]

WOOOW the singing?? Absolutely beautiful omg 😳😳

[@sophietessier8998]

the thin craz in asia also is influenced by western view on masculinity. Since asian men are " less" masculin than western men , they get female to be "smaller/thinner than them to keep a clear difference between gender. Kinda like: " i may be small, but female are even smaller, so there's no way you can see me as effeminate " That and also many evolution from chinese taoism and boudishm because they view intellectual as a masculinity value. We can also acknowledge the japanese's 3rd sex that might influence the view of men role and their "visual". Also during the world war the beauty standards changed to big head and big body. But once the war ended it changed, as we see in nowadays with the Y2K style, bodies have trends mostly a 20 years circle trends, so the slender body before the war came back . In the 2000's in korea , the rip body was all, watch shinwha's videos, tvxq even rain, that was the standards, but there was a change during the early 2010's Idol stopped tanning, wear less revealing clothes, got "whiter skin" and dating and friendship got looked upon. there are many factors to it : between policital and social event but also in the industry world like, The idole formula getting tighter, the rise of snsd, the debut of shinee, the uee and iu scandal and the rise of internet of course. During the 2nd gen , they was an archetype of idols named honey thigh. that was very popular and praised, but slowly it got bashed. Even colorism gotten bigger. Look at boa, hyoyeon, lee hyori, yoona,iu. All these girl were tan to "dark skin" and changed their skin over the years/ got whiter. to the point where now when an idol is "dark skin" they get teased... Among many factor for the rise of colorism, i might "blame" snsd because they copied japanes idole who had catch phrase to introduced themself and yuri introduce herself as the black perle, since debut. this put a light on her skin color and from then on, there always were a " darker skin colored member" even a member casted as such, and most of the time they were the sexy member. Exemple : hyuna, for her bubble pop era she gotten tan , she wasn't before and after neither. kai exo, sistar hyolin, aoa seolhyun. Even nowa days tan idole get more popular if they are "sexy" exemple : jennie, hwasa ect.. even idol who aren't sexy get more sexualised because of it. look at tzuyu who since debut got sexualised , when she was so "innocent" it's internelized. Over all korea is still very conservatif, and there is a big association with curve and sex. If you are curvy you are "easy", so better not be thick or you have to expect to be sexualised. the best exemple is sunmi. During her tail era, she put on weight and had a sexier concept and it flopped in korea. Because she had a "elgent" image, she "cheapen" herself to the public. then she lost a bunch of weight and changed her concept to something more feminine, less openly sexual but alluring and it was a hit. there are many many factor to why idols are put under huge stress to be thin, for their savety, image, religion, culture and socity. The issue is deeply rooten and it will take a long time to change, at least it's getting better

[@jiabewon]

edit: TW food/ed I used to be a chubby kid and then I started losing weight rapidly and I couldn’t gain weight whatsoever no matter what I tried to gain I couldn’t and my mum would make fun of me and call me anorexic so yh idk why I brought this up tbh just felt like sharing 😭

[@simonjoy2991]

Oh my gosh!! That's awful! That's absolutely mot okay for your mom to say shxt like that you. That's something you can't help, and she shouldn't make fun of it. I'm sorry you have to endure that

[@priscilla8068]

I'm currently a chubby girl and I'm trying to lose a few pounds in a healthy way and my biggest fear is becoming too small because where I come from, if you suddenly lose weight people accuse you of being sick and sleeping around. But those same people will bully you for being big at the same time, I really empathize with what you're going through and the fact that your own mother is going this to you makes it even worse.

[@priscilla8068]

I'm currently a chubby girl and I'm trying to lose a few pounds in a healthy way and my biggest fear is becoming too small because where I come from, if you suddenly lose weight people accuse you of being sick and sleeping around. But those same people will bully you for being big at the same time, I really empathize with what you're going through and the fact that your own mother is going this to you makes it even worse.

[@bhavya5692]

Did u go to a doctor? U should get a blood test especially a thyroxin level check

[@amalalmutairi4875]

I remember watching her vids when she had 10k now she have 480k wow and nothing changed about her personality :)

[@ms.wilson6439]

From my experience, Caribbean/African(American) families are also REALLY damaging to their kids in their weight

[@nooneinparticularlol]

always the happiest when you upload🙏💗

[@lulubrown2746]

This needs to be talked about because people are basing their lives around these kpop artists. The obsession is so unhealthy. Kids are seeing these idols and are going to the extreme just to look like them. Some of these idols are literally skin and bones and whenever it gets pointed out the person gets dragged and called jealous. And on the flip side, idols that look normal are fatshamed. It's a whole mess

[@ms.wilson6439]

I need people to mention how over eating is also ED. Not just over eating and purging but JUST over eating from emotions.

[@gnomehomeneeds]

Less then 5 seconds in to this video and I ALREADY KNOW this gonna be good🍄💞 love a singing queen

[@Angi3_6]

Improper nourishment not only affects the body, but the mind as well.

[@shiko906]

I completely checked out of K-pop after Jonghyun from SHINEE took his life. Then add on the army of fans that not only dehumanize the artists but also establish vendettas against people who have opinions with their faves that don't correspond with their own. Watching the deterioration of both artists and their fanbase since 2009, it has become increasingly hard to enjoy the genre knowing how their industry commodifies them.

[@Vydiastar]

PREACH!!!!

[@MissyRichmond]

I’ve had restrictive anorexia since I was 14. I’m 49 now. It’s caused me to have seizures, a mini stroke, hair fell out, skin changed colors, boils, osteoporosis, fainting, passing out, heart rhythm problems, among other things. PLEASE get help if you think you might be developing or have an ED. It’s so hard to fight and so easy to slip into it. I have a therapist, psychiatrist, and family doctor all in the know about my ED and try to help me. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be here. In the states, you can go online to NEDA (National Eating Disorder Association). They have a quiz to determine if you’re at risk of having an ED. They have great information. And you can livechat with them.

[@jenjoestar.]

This isn’t anything knew. So the amount of times this topic comes up is necessary, because of how many young fans these idols have that literally idolize then. Then again when you’re signed to a label your free will isn’t always a given sadly.

[@naominegron5769]

Thank you for making a video on such an important topic. I would really like to touch on a comment you made at the end of the video. I am Army and find it a tad insensitive for you to say that learning to love yourself is something that you should do on your own. The way you learn to love yourself may not come natural to some. Why is it bad that your favorite artist made you aware of loving yourself as important? I really just would like this narrative of being co-dependent be realized as the outlier more than the norm. Thank you!

[@momoisbae2515]

Momo Hirai from twice was forced by her company to have an ice cube diet where she would only eat ice nothing else

[@WellDressedGypsy]

If anyone is curious about kpop idols that have struggled with diets and disorders check out the channel AMFG Videos. It’s most females but there are some male videos like Xiumin from EXO ( pronounced like Shoe -min), BTS’s Jimin and Monsta X’s Kihyun. Honestly I think the public (mainly SK) affects the idols since they never seem to be satisfied with how idols look. Plus the demands of most companies training systems.

[@iamyou3080]

Your voice gives me the chills!!! So good.

[@rosecanpunchmeandIwouldsaysorr]

don't worry, your video was really good! especially when it comes to such a sensitive topic like this, love u

[@alishac5096]

We’re here for the chaos and the T ❤

[@JenCruz.]

as a blk woman, we can’t say what their company, fandom and THAT group did to us… so yeah i just listen to other artists and stay away from twitter

[@veloure]

basing your physical goals on someone else will never be fulfilling. it will never be enough.

[@SchweetCookie]

As someone that listened to K-Pop for roughly 10 years, it amazes me that some fans are still oblivious to the diet culture and slave contracts. I mean, female K-pop diets actually trend. Anyone remember the IU or Suzy diet? It's fucked.

[@honey.615]

It’s all about their own society. Their society impulse them to do these type of diets and loose a lot of weight because between their “beauty standards” is being really skinny. One of the cases I wanna pop up is wonyoung from the girl group “ive” that has been getting criticized because of how much weight she has loose and how skinny unhealthy she looks, adding that weeks ago she was recorded drinking a type of “drink” that helps losing weight and it’s a supplement for every food in a day, you only drink that and eat nothing more on the day to lose weight. That is alarming not only by the fact that at such a young age she is drink those type of products but the fact that these products EXISTS! How is it possible to exist a drink that recommends you “eat nothing but these to lose weight”? That says a lot about the Korean society and how hard is for people to reach the standards naturally that they have to appeal to these products.

[@BabvBlues]

THE SINGING AT THE BEGINNiNG

[@d.unnie5108]

They be posting their weight like we give a fuck. Respectfully

[@DD-po2hh]

😂 nah because you could’ve been dropping anything else.

[@NA22427]

this reminded me of the time somi posted her weight loss on Instagram and i was so confused why would she be proud of that specially when she was already very thin!! like she went from 50kg something to 40kg something like WHY???? she didn't even look that good , she looked why better with more weight

[@d.unnie5108]

@@NA22427 weight obsession needs to stop. Its okay to be 70kg or even 60kg. You can be 70kg and healthy but most of them are literally starving themselves for what? How do you expect to put out a good performance when your body is exhausted and underweight?

[@d.unnie5108]

@@DD-po2hh nah cuz i love sum of them but when i see them posting their weight, im like? 🤨 okay? And? What am i supposed to do with this information

[@diego_fe]

Some people in the comments section say that they themselves are naturally skinny and sometimes the bones are visible. Yes but thats very different to what these idols go through, you are not forced to diet or to skip meals or to work out many hours a day. Big difference, many can be naturally skinny but on top of that, they do alot to keep a low body fat % or scale #. Believe it or not being skinny doesnt equal low body fat.

[@shaniah9322]

We need a full cover…

[@marinetteladybug8244]

I'm quite happy to see people covering these kinda topics, but some kpop idols are naturally skinny and it's normal, for instance I'm skinny and my bones stick out but I am still healthy. I never liked my body and use to get bullied alot when I was young. Everything changed when I got into kpop, I saw people who were just as skinny and as I got into more and more into gg I felt represented, I started to love my body for how it is, I started seeing myself in those kpop idols. At some point i wanted to gain weight so badly but I couldn't because of genetics but now i love my body to bits thanks to kpop. Still that too does not justify how the companies are treating them. But we still have to understand that some kpop idols are genetically skinny and they can't help it.

[@lookbehindyourback6910]

No they are not. Stop lying that just bullshit. Most people and truly even kpop idols is not naturally skinny. They are the exception not the rules. This video talks about most kpop idols literally starving to death just to look like you. And what it cause them? Fainting in stage. Promoting awful diet to people, unrealistic body standard. Thats not normal. Dont use your narcissism of being "represent" to glorified and excuse this toxic diet culture which harm more young people more than it can satisfied your ego. Its not about YOU.

[@marinetteladybug8244]

@@lookbehindyourback6910 Bruh...I'm just stating facts here, some people are born skinny and that's it. I ain't gon waste my time on .

[@misakit2649]

There is this one idol, her knees was almost the same size as her thighs and she has a very boney appearance. Stuff like that arent nature but her fans refused to believe otherwise

[@Michtingz]

The thing about K-Pop is that it’s actually really similar to Musical Theatre in a rehearsal aspect. Hours training at a time. Workouts to practice endurance for these performances. It’s insane but awesome. The problem is if we as performers don’t eat enough, despite how much we weight, it causes major problems like fatigue, hydration issues, short stamina, bad attention span etc. Over summer I had a major show coming up. With only 7 weeks to prepare that meant 8-12 hours of practice 6/7 days per week - warm ups - Physical and vocal training - character -blocking/choreo - scripts/lyrics and more In K-Pop they do all this except with eastern world beauty standards. Maintaining an image only lasts for so long and fans can be so unreasonable the older a performer gets. Im a teenager right now but the entertainment industry is fucking insane. Gotta make sure to take of yourself guys. 🤍

[@audreyhepburn2308]

Your voiceeeeee is amazing 🤩

[@snekgewehr]

What makes me more uncomfortable is the fact that lots of guys fetishize asians to be “small and submissive” like when you look at it into the ed perspective how like starving yourself is normal in a lot of parts in Asia… 💀💀💀 yuck…. Yes I know naturally skinny ppl exist it’s just gross to think that it’s unclear if the “small Asian” stereotype comes from them being naturally skinny or how normalized starving yourself and working out extra on top of that to look like the idols :(

[@Maggiewuvsrufus]

I didn’t have a typical eating disorder but I got sick after my brother died and I could go a week without eating easily just by not noticing. I lost probably 80lbs in maybe 3 months, I couldn’t give a good time frame bc I was in grief and didn’t even notice. I was very sick. It took me a year to heal my stomach id throw up probablt at least 50 times a day. But the scariest thing is one day I blacked out, I was at work. A girl caught me before I splatted my head on the cement floor. And I thought it was just fainting, but now I realize I was extremely dehydrated (from mostly throwing up and not eating+ working in hot kitchens). And was about to die. Thankfully my manager at the time and the girl who caught me helped me get out and made me drink something sugary, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. I went to the dr afterwards and they barely even looked at me. It’s only when I saw a video about people dying from dehydration did I realize what happened that day. And now bc I didn’t realize my weight loss, I still look in the mirror and see the 200lb girl instead of the 120lb girl I’ve been for many years now at this point. Very horrible mind fucky thing to go thru. My body still sees food as a threat, I still have to try hard not to get sick. I lost my hair, have loose skin, and it ate away the enamel on my teeth from throwing up. 10/10 wouldn’t recommend for anyone

[@viviangrace9505]

love you keisha!💗💗💗

[@ildemmiyim]

Can listen you sing all day long 💕

[@retrogirl2498]

I recently got into kpop but I do get worried about their diets and schedules bc it seems like they work everyday and yeah it’s not a normal job but I get burnt out after like 4 hours of work so they should be able to have a week or a few days off

[@FabriciaA]

The guilt you feel from eating “too much” is truly hard. It’s a though proces to get back into a healthy diet after seeing the quick results of what a toxic diet can do. It’s something I still struggle with every day and have to remind myself why it’s not okay 🙃

[@tolulishworld310]

You are what you’re attracted to, I felt that

[@raaychiel_2222]

I don’t think people realize how similar the American music industry is to the kpop industry, both extremely toxic, the kpop industry is a bit too demonized I think

[@moccisimo]

Idols already practice/train for long hours every day; the fact that they’re pressured to starve on top of that is crazy. The standards in Skorea is just unrealistic

[@srey_p]

I think SK as a whole has extremely harsh beauty standards it’s not just K-pop. I think it comes down to how you view yourself and how easily you are influenced by others. I’ve never compared myself to celebrities or anyone really because I just didn’t see the point but I can see how someone who watches K-pop or any other celebrity could feel pressured to look a certain way. I was introduced to K-pop through a friend in HS and as soon as I saw how beautiful and seemingly perfect they look I knew that’s not the norm. As much as I love k-dramas and K-pop I know how hard it is for them and the standard they have to uphold. I don’t think it’s fair to single out K-pop as Asian beauty standards have always been very harsh. I think people should stop consuming content that makes them feel bad about themselves and focus more on how they truly feel about themselves and work from within.

[@harpergrayy]

love the opening performance 😌

[@Alicia98s]

The speed at which you speak is perfect for my brain to keep up with 🥰 and I’m sure loads of us feel the same ! 💕

[@danaikaramanoglou6485]

the comments i see under videos of idols passing out on stage are always like "omg look how tired xyz is and how hard they work for us" or "this is so sad :(((" and shit along the lines while they're still a stan of said person, which is honestly kinda concerning. idk how you can admire someone and not sabotage the institution/industry that is literally endangering their wellbeing. but that's just me idk

[@asiaellis2164]

Enjoyed that singing in the beginning though!!!❤

[@Getthecasharizona]

Your voice!!! 😍❤️🥹

[@CorrinaMusic]

WOW YOUR VOICE IS OUT OF THIS WORLD 😭

[@ummm...sylvia]

I literally feel like my stories exactly like yours because watching the award show, I was there for everyone else except BTS and when I first saw them, I just saw behind the scenes and Korean men😂. But I fell in love with them immediately after the performance at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards

[@livinglife2629]

I was so far gone y’all. I am glad that I snapped out of K-pop and also the toxic starving and extreme exercising mindset. At one point I was eating 2 apples for a week to see if I could achieve it. It was a tough time because I was sleeping like crazy and was so dizzy. I would NEVER do that again.

[@JDuece2009]

YOU ARE SO HILARIOUS!

[@Ara-fy7ml]

But things are starting to change a lot I see many body types and shapes and less heavy dieting like with Twice, Nmixx and skz

[@hnyuq4049]

i also noticed that gg’s that debuted under hybe are kind of average weight instead of extremely skinny when u compare to other companies

[@multifan6679]

@@hnyuq4049 are we watching the same people? Especially Chaewon, Sakura and Danielle, but also there other members are very skinny. They have little itty bitty bits of muscle definition, but that is about it. They are still very skinny

[@hnyuq4049]

@@multifan6679 k obviously those members are thin, but for the most part when i look at le sserafim and newjeans, their thighs are pretty full and some of them even have abs, and their skinny but average for their age. im still in school and the average girl in my school is pretty much the same weight as them, including me. there’s nothing wrong with being skinny. i don’t see why u would be concerned right now. and newjeans are teens… their bodies will obviously not look like grown women. what happened to children having “children” bodies? but sakura and chaewon are grown so they shouldn’t really be thinner than their members and newjeans

[@multifan6679]

@@hnyuq4049 yujin is 21, Kazuha is 19, Minji and Hanni are both 18 (mind you, puberty is usually between 12-16 and starts earlier and earlier on average) Minji and Hanni are kind of still excusable, but we will see if they gain weight over time. I personally doubt it due to dieting pressure etc, but yeah... Also, kinda funny how every kpop idol miraculously is supposed to be naturally skinny when we have other idols admitting to only eating 3 bananas a day for example at the age of 15. Or when we have seen 13 year olds on survival shows consuming dieting products. It is very naive of you to think that a total of 5 people just so happened to be all "naturally blessed"

[@hnyuq4049]

@@multifan6679 lmaoo when did i ever say all of them are naturally thin? exactly. stop putting words in my mouth to fit ur insecure narrative. i’m not naive, u just can’t accept that skinny people exist naturally without starving, especially with newjeans being teenagers, why u expecting them to not still have a “teen” body?? not everyone is gonna gain weight during puberty. and even the average teen in high schools in my district are in the same exact weight range as newjeans, with haerin being the average weight i’ve seen. why u acting like it’s abnormal to still be thin at 16-18? and why u acting like being skinny is bad?? newjeans are thin but u can see their weight on ur average high school girl in my area, so it clearly ain’t rare to be thin as a teen

[@ronorleans]

I loved it when you said Gemini is a water sign then proceeded to split screen you looking it up and showing that it's not a water sign 😂 which I wouldn't have even known. But we love accountability. 🤣🙌

[@Beklak]

Tbh performing and practicing is already an exercise. Kpop idols should be able to eat normally and eat the right amount of food. Companies act like as if a burger will make you fat already. I also absolutely hate it when stans say “ YOU’RE SKINNY SHAMING HER STOP IT” like girl no we aren’t we are just caring about your bias health.

[@CelestialSleuth]

You have a very beautiful voice! 🎤🎵🎙🎶

[@alliexcx5576]

I agree such a beautiful voice!

[@WatchtowerPrincess]

Unfortunately I very much relate to Ailee’s response to that reporter who commented on her dieting. As someone who has struggled, and truthfully continues to struggle, with this issue… I want to say that being sensitive when you are concerned for someone’s health is the best bet. the back and forth of never having the right body in the eyes of others is just the most impossible feeling. For me, this thanksgiving holiday my sister-in-law made very similar comments (to that reporter) to me that had me wearing a sweater (despite dressing nice) the rest of the holiday. I just wanted to look nice for everyone and wear something I put thought into, esp since I always wear baggy/comfy stuff. But when I was younger I had the “opposite” problem: they’d tell me I had 3 stomachs and needed to try a diet. Funny how the tables turn. All I wanted to say is that if you are addressing someone’s habits… think of the vulnerable person they are inside. I have had a true friend come to me and express concern, and her words genuinely touched me and made me want to improve. The difference was that she wasn’t commenting to gawk at me, she was commenting out of care. At the end of the day I understand people’s urge to say something or to interject or try fixing someone’s issue, but in my experience it’s more helpful when others don’t actively contribute to making things worse. I’m sure most people reading this can at least understand how uncomfortable it is, and often triggering, to have your body as a topic of conversation/discussion. If it needs to be discussed, be kind.

[@chillj-hope3721]

idk know if i wanna fight you and thank you for posting this video idea😫 i was planning to do this for a school project LMAO but imma use your video for a school project luv so thank you

[@chelseydjaquis]

Girl everytime we see you you got a new tatt 😍 love it