Recently, a former K-Pop trainee shared their experiences under a company, detailing parts that have not necessarily been as well discussed as others.
The trainee, @naomi.chn on TikTok, shared that her company gave the trainees random lessons in make-up and hairstyling, in addition to many other subjects like vlogging and taking selfies, the latter of which other trainees previously discussed.
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She also shared that trainees were given media training lectures by an instructor who taught at many different K-Pop companies. These lessons took place around once a month and were two to three hours long each time.
These lectures discussed past scandals like AOA’s Seolhyun and Jimin‘s Korean history scandal and when GFRIEND‘s Sowon shared a photo with a Nazi mannequin.
The lecturer instructed the trainees to do their own research, but when she brought up African American culture and asked if they believed anything was missed, the instructor didn’t have “any idea” what she was talking about.
She said that the conclusion was basically, “don’t say it [the N-word],” without going into African American culture any further, which surprised her due to K-Pop finding inspiration in Hip-Hop and R&B. She attributed this to how nuanced cultural appropriation is, and a lack of awareness.
She mentioned that many young idols are more likely to just follow instructions from their instructors without asking questions, leading to issues with cultural appropriation. She recounted a story of another trainee friend under a different company that was learning rap from a rap teacher, who did not want to say the N-word while practicing English songs.
The instructor told her friend to say the N-word in the songs she was practicing, and was confused why she was refusing.
This perspective gives insight into how instances of appropriation happen so often.
You can check out her full video on the subject below.
@naomi.chn Replying to @Irisha R. we also had media training ! here’s my mukbang+storytime & also trying the viral dubai pistachio chocolate at the end (3:46) hehe 🤤 #kpop #trainee #mukbang #storytime
♬ Lofi/Fashionable/Rose Piano/10 minutes(1455693) – nightbird_bgm
