the curse of the 'cool mysterious guy' persona in kpop
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- Опубликовано: 27 май 2024
- Hey guys! I wanted to discuss some of the different personality types that some idols seem to be 'assigned' in kpop over the course of a few videos, so in today's video we will be focusing in particular on the 'cool mysterious guy' persona.
I really hope you enjoy this one! If so, please give it a thumbs up and let me know your thoughts in the comments (and perhaps any other personas you would like us to look at in the future).
If you're new here, please hit that subscribe button and turn on the notification bell to be the first to hear whenever I upload!
Thank you so much for watching, and I'll see you in the next one!
- dearyoongi 💖
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TIME STAMPS:
0:00 Intro
0:39 Video contents
0:52 What is the 'cool mysterious guy' persona?
1:40 Who we will NOT be discussing...
2:02 Example 1
2:40 Example 2
3:04 Example 3
3:49 Examples 4 & 5
4:20 Why do labels use this image? Let's look to the West...
6:23 Why do labels use this image? Another idea...
7:20 The detrimental effects of this image - cool vs cold & 'bad behavior'
9:49 The detrimental effects of this image - who am I?
10:50 Here's who these 'cold guys' really are...
11:42 Conclusion
12:49 Outro
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vixx leo,infinite L,myungsoo,Jin,Suga,BTS,TVXQ,JYJ,Jaejoong,Jaejoong & Friends,One Direction,Harry Styles,Zayn Malik 
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1 like and I'll write a 1000000 word essay about why min yoongi is not a cold guy x
please do our tangerine loving meow meow justice
please ! he's a fluff ball cutie pattootie cinnamon roll apple pie honey warm cuddly sweetheart 😔
If I'm being honest, these days, it's Taehyung who's more misunderstood compared to Yoongi. Everyone always defend Yoongi, and for good reason, and no one really calls him cold anymore (from what I've seen on twt and tiktok) but people do for Taehyung for some reason.
Ill read it
The way riize wonbin was supposed to have this image but it cracked 1 month into his debut because he was too cute.
FR thats so cute
apparently he wanted to portray that image not the company lolll (revealed by chanyoung)
Honestly, I am glad he can be himself!
I really think this assigned image is not that strict anymore just because of the changing trend in kpop. In Wonbin case it really looks like he was just new to the public camera aka rookie nervousness and he just get warmed up with it with time
Honestly I'm just glad because like, a lot of those kpop idols with that label are only recognized for their looks. Nobody really sees anything beyond that which sucks
I also want to note that Zayn's mysterious persona slso had some undertones of racism to it, since he was also portrayed as the 'exotic' one bc he was the only poc member in 1D. (which is obvs not cool & I tjink he has mentioned struggling with that)
oh yes you're 100% right. I remember so often him getting the 'tall, dark and handsome' tag, but it didnt quite feel like the compliment it was supposed to if that makes sense? like they were just trying to point out his 'differences', rather than appreciating and celebrating how much he brought to the group
I thought he was just tan I didn’t know he’s not white 😭
@@brennathecatlover4360 his mom is white (english/irish) and his dad is pakistani
Lol that's not racism lol
@@yeyosilver7067calling non white people ‘exotic’ and fetishising them is racist.
SHINee's Minho was assigned this persona at debut as well, which is ridiculous, because it's the absolute opposite of his personality. He managed to maintain it for a very short while but he broke it pretty fast.
I think after Hello Baby he started losing it...
Nu'est's Ren talked about this last year. He mentioned that Pledis basically banned him from speaking & laughing for this reason (& the image his long blonde hair gives), and how it made him depressed. (Ren is very similar to SVT Seungkwan)
Ren looks so good in long blonde hair tho😭
I remember seungkwan saying pledis tried to do something similar to mingyu
SM and their government assigned personalities 😭 ik Minho from SHINee has talked about how they always told him not to speak in their early years, and I saw someone say Wonbin from Riize is supposed to have this kind of persona too
You can also tell that they tried it on Taeyong but after he was on Weekly Idol he dropped that persona quick
@@blackroseinbloom lmao that's true as well
@@blackroseinbloomi guess sm knows smt bcs i liked his cold image more 😂
i think about the jaejoong one a lot because i just don't understand who tf else was supposed to be funny in tvxq if not jaejoong 😭 he easily had the most comedic potential out of all of them, he was the og 4D idol too. we lost so much because of sm's obsession with cold and unapproachable visuals. i'm so glad that at least now he has his own talk show where he can be himself and people can finally see what a cutiepie he is
Same goes for Junsu. He had to be the charismatic guy of Dbsk but it broke down in a month because he was too cute. Then he stole Changmin's cute maknae image 😄
What?
It was very telling when JYJ left SM, Jaejoong was smiling way more often and got more talkative compared to their previous agency. SM Jaejoong was a sim, current Jaejoong is a real person full of emotions!
The opposite of this is also wild, Renjun from NCT Dream was told to keep up a completely innocent image, which just feels weird for a bunch of adults to tell a kid to do. I believe Renjun was 16 when NCT Dream debuted (and was definitely told this pre-debut as well). Telling idols what persona they should keep up makes the fact a lot of trainees and idols are under 18 even weirder.
Renjun it's soo cuuuute 🥺
I met VIXX back in 2013. It was around Leo's birthday, so when i did the short little high touch i told him happy birthday in Korean. He lit up like a Christmas tree & was happy & smiley, but still relativel shy when compared to Ken, N, & Ravi who started talking a mile a minute & having shocked 'what, what, you know korean?' type of back & forth while playful poking Leo. The only one who wasnt as engaged at that time was Hyuk, the maknae, who in my opinion, needed to be fed & put to bed. Poor kid was exhausted after the concert & then had to stand there for an hour before being able to be alone again.
But he still acted professionally because at the end of the day it's their job, not their life. Yes, you can enjoy your work, but it doesn't fully define who you truly are. 🥰
I love the way Jin was assigned that role but couldn't help it, he had to be himself, his super chaotic and funny self. And when it comes to Suga, you're so right cause he's not cold. Maybe a bit mysterious and introverted, but not cold. He's extremely sweet and caring, specially when it comes to his members. They are his biggest soft spot and he takes good care of them.
Anyone who knows bts for some time should know suga is definitely like a cat.
He’s reserved and not talkative on first glance and he definitely loves his privacy but he’s also mischievous and can be sarcastic. He’s funny and his dry humor is good to see.
He rlly doesn’t fall into the mysterious cool guy type all that much imo.
I think he’s more of an unapproachable at first but actually pretty easy-going on inside type of person.
@@megumintobuna-4537 well, the fact that he's more reserved and loves his privacy makes him a bit more mysterious I think. But he's the sweetest cat, so he's not the cool/cold type. He's actually a warm person. He's actually my bias, and I only stan BTS.
@@RiotGrrrl10 he’s my bias too😭😭 Tbh i have been stanning them since 2017 so i rlly can’t imagine thinking of suga as mysterious anymore since ive known him for so long. But i can see the mysterious appeal of him if smn is a baby army.
@@megumintobuna-4537 that’s true, for me i feel like out of all the members of bts, taehyung suits the “mysterious” image best because it seems to be the way he naturally is. He has this intriguing / stoic aura about him
Didn't Namjoon say that when the cameras are off, Jin and Yoongi switch personalities? Also, Jin once told someone they had appear on their show (I believe it was the flower arranger) that he acts more bombastic on camera to help the other members to laugh and relax. That makes it clear that Jin is more introverted and reserved than he seems. In general, real life people's personalities are complex and the members of BTS have as many facets to themselves as anyone else.
Every time someone talks about this I have to bring up EXO's skit for Kai's (fake) audition, and how Suho told Jongin that if he wants to join the group he cannot go on variety shows and has to stay on the mysterious quiet side, and Kai was like "So you want me to hide my true personality and be a machine?" 💀💀💀 Last year they really showed how sick they are of SM lmao...
I think Jongin's case wasn't that extreme to act like he's cooler and better than his members or look angry all the time because, as you said, that personality was assigned to Kris when they debuted, but I bet Jongin would've been that character if that guy had never joined EXO. I mean, it's no secret that many kpop fans already see or used to think Jongin was a cold person.
The Rover era when he started making tiktoks with everyone and their mothers, and all the idols expressed how kind he is, has a bittersweet moment of me feeling happy but at the same time heartbroken after I saw the amount of tweets surprised that Kai wasn't that rude and arrogant person they thought he was... I'm glad that little by little he has shown more of his open, cute and giggly side over the years.
Insecure kpop fans will always think that you being confident=being arrogant🙄
@@strangeannie5160 this is so true, sadly
Wait some people found out during Rover? This dude is always laughing and cries very easily. He's so sweet and hard working
SM is a trash company, luckily Kai and other EXO members are just showing their true personality which is more fun!
Those ppl surprised me too because I've always described Kai as that overly adorable giggly member 💀💀💀. Even in SuperM he's such a witty funny guy. @@shawol5253
I literally remember Tablo from Epik High telling L “you’re handsome so you don’t need to speak” lol
That saying is actually quite a popular thing said in Korea. I can't count how many interviews I've seen of ultra handsome idols like Cha Eunwoo, Taeyong Nct, Kai Exo, Dongwook Super Junior etc.... being told "your good-looking, you don't need to speak". The Korean society or just industry in general, is really beauty obsessed. Like how insulting must it be to be told to basically shut up, your looks is all that matter
SM also pushed this for Jaehyun, he's talked about it. He's very much an introvert, but he's a gigantic dork lol.
Omg Yes !!! I love that he's clumsy and dorky despite his looks being the complete opposite. It makes him human 😍
Nice video! I like this new concept of exploring personas. In 4th gen I feel like it's the "goofy cute relatable" persona that is given to idols. Or the "savage maknae" persona.
thank you so much! ooh yes, those are absolutely both ones I've noticed in the industry, I'd love to talk about those too 😁
Can't wait to see those videos then 😄 ! I'm curious about what those personas tell about our generation and how kpop labels adapt personas to gen z and gen alpha expectations.
Agreed. Le Sserafim Eunchae for example most people (sometimes even fans I feel) seem to always default her to 'maknae' or 'manchae' and very rarely anything else.
I'm quite sure those didn't start in 4th gen, but I think it began to manifest differently when the 4th gen groups started coming out. Like the roles became more obvious and seemed more purposeful.
"Savage maknae" is definitely a type and one that has been around since the beginning of Kpop, eg Super Junior's Kyuhyun. It has nothing to do with Gen Z, it's popular in Kpop because in Asian culture it's important to be respectful to elders, but the "savage maknae" subverts that, so it has great entertainment value. The complement is the leader being humiliated in some way, like when the boss gets drunk and does Karaoke at after work parties. Humor is often about breaking cultural taboos, and those aren't always universal, but culturally specific. People from other cultures may still understand some of them, but not necessarily all of them. Western fans can recognize some patterns simply because they repeat, but they may not know the full meaning behind it that it has for the culture of origin.
"goofy cute relatable" is more generally accessible, because I think it directly refers more to the idol context: idols are supposed to be perfect, and we can see that obviously without further explanation or context, so when someone is not, it has a comedic effect. The prime example would be Super Junior's Shindong, who completely breaks the idol mold - to many that makes him relatable, but sadly he also got much hate, especially in the beginning, saying that he shouldn't be an idol. While doing something positive for body diversity by sticking with it, somewhat problematically he conforms to the stereotype that "fat is funny".
OK first of all a massive thank you for actualling talking about this and especially mentioning my bias VIXX Leo to a large extent im so happy that there are people doing video essays on him, but I also would like to add to the points that mention him:
1. Leo actually mentioned this in a recent radio show hosted by Infinite's Sunggyu (220614 김성규의 심야아이돌) that he originally was expecting to debut as a singer and was unsure of his identity as an idol (which requires a lot of fan service and outward expression). He said that the environment at the time was also unfamiliar to him, since he did not know any of the staff or hosts working with them at the time, and that made it difficult for him to react to things that he found uninteresting or to laugh at jokes that he genuinely did not find funny. He also said that originally, the company thought it was ok for him to be how he is and keep this image, but later, hosts and MCs start creating segments out of his character, highlighting this character trait which made it more uncomfortable for him, and more difficult for him to change his image. So it seems like he was more like a person misunderstood as a cool guy, rather than being assigned this role. Naturally as he knew more people in the industry and got more practice, his natural character shines
2. the writer that criticised him on weekly idol actually also worked with VIXX in an earlier production, Mydol, which was VIXX's debut survival programme. She mentioned that VIXX as a group overall was hard to work with, and specifically Leo was the most difficult. This was interesting and in my opinion, slightly contradict's your point on "staff should communicate with agencies on the setting of certain members" because the writer already knew VIXX's personality (as well as Leo's). From my observations of VIXX at the time, Jelpi (their company) did not give them a lot of training on appearing at entertainment shows, and frankly speaking all of VIXX are quite genuine in their interactions with people, so naturally they are quite awkward and quiet during those times. It is quite obvious later that Ken (another VIXX member) took the role of being the "entertainer" and later N and Hongbin (also VIXX members) received extensive MC training from being assigned as TV show MCs. So all of VIXX were not "assigned" a cool/aloof role, neither was Leo assigned this role. The writer also knew about their personalities from 2 years ago and was actually commenting on their real character, not an assigned character. Regardless, I found the natural reactions of VIXX immensely entertaining so i dont understand what that writer was complaining about, but obviously, I am biased.
3. as early as 2015, when Leo was on weekly idol along with VIXX, Sunggyu was the MC of that episode and when meeting Leo on set, he was truly shocked by Leo's different on and off camera. This gave a massive hint as to how Leo was like naturally towards his friends and seniors, which was anything but cold and "rude". Also in the filmings of earlier TV shows like Plan V diary, while Leo was very quiet on camera, he could be seen loudly saying "thank you for your hard work" at the last part of episode 5, when all of VIXX and the crew are ready to leave after filiming. These crumbs really display his natural politeness off camera (even though he was filmed saying it, the context was that actual filming as ended).
Thats mostly it!! hope this helps hhhh AND PLEASE STAN MY MAN HE HAS CHANGED SO MUCH AND AGES LIKE FINE WINE
Omg im a huge vixx fan thanks for this analysis. I remember watching vixxtv all the time before going to school and I too noticed how genuine the vixx members came off as. It was so interesting to watch them on camera probably because they werent as trained to act a certain way on camera yet. I loved how real theyre personalities felt even if it was sometimes awkward.
I'm happy too to see ppl including Leo here.
my favorite thing about vixx was/is that they were so obviously shy and out of their depth... btob were the natural entertainers, vixx just stumbled through every interview process when they weren't blatantly scamming their way out of following the script. it was peak rebellious nonsense and they weren't even trying, they just wanted to get the hell out of whatever variety nonsense they were stuck in and go back to vixxtv. i respect that.
I just saw Leo and had to watch the video ngl. I definitely agree he was actually shy and introverted and the company took advantage of that to give him the "cool mysterious guy" label, not to mention he was young and getting used to being an idol, after so many years he definitely left his shell tho. It's sad how quiet people get seen as rude or uninterested when we are just chilling and listening
I've been binge watching Jaejoong's talk show recently and omg ? I can't believe I've been "scared" of him for so long haha when I first got into kpop, he seems like such a nice guy
And you can tell idols, even the ones that know or have promoted around him, that come to the show are taken aback a bit by his real personality on camera. I forgot who said it on one of the episodes but they said they couldn’t imagine him being a host for a show like JaeFriends.
Haha same. Jaejoong 'exposed' this phenomenon to me.
He was my first Kpop bias back in 2010. I remember him being a total goofball in variety shows along with the rest of the group (I became a fan after the lawsuit unfortunately so it was bittersweet to watch it all). I get that he was assigned this cool persona, but he was even more likeable and attractive to me when he had fun! Him and Junsu were the funniest duo ever.
One example of this I find pretty interesting is in the case of shinee. Like Jin and suga, the members minho and taemin were both given this role both intentionally and unintentionally. Sm from the jump wanted minho to be the cold, silent one of the group, which was honestly laughable. From their debut era you could easily tell minho was forcing himself not to scream and participate with the members in activities. Taemin on the other hand, while not being given this role, fit it almost to a tea. He rarely ever spoke in interviews, never showed or expressed his feelings (he was the one who had to give shinees first ever music show acceptance speech because the other members were crying too much), and even dressed in a way that gave off very unapproachable vibes. For a lonnnnnnng time, you could only really see him expressing himself when he was on stage. Of course now in 2024, both members are extremely talkative and expressive with their emotions, but this was always something I found very interesting 💀
I’m confused
@@catchingfeelings2691 Why are you confused? 😭
jaejoong is so lovely 😭
he really is, I really wish more people got to see that 🥺
Leo is so sweet and lovely! Jaejoong is perfect
I've seen the "ice princess" label used for idols like Kristal from f(x) which is the same type of deal. I've also seen it used for Jennie from BP, and with her Chanel deal, it feels even more restrictive, as she's representing a brands image, as well as her group. I think misogyny has an impact, but will how hyper critical "fans" of idols can be it doesn't take much at all for an idol to be labelled rude, accusations of being cold will blow up out of nowhere. People will perceive the smallest action as some kind of proof of an idol being unpleasant. They will take clips out of context, and sometimes careers have been damaged, or even ruined, based on short clips with things being projected onto the idol. A lot of people will see this, not even knowing the full picture, and make a harsh judgement. This can spiral out of control and cause a wave of hate online. I've seen a clip of nervous laughter during a "try not to laugh" challenge taken out of context, to make it look like they were laughing at another member. This was part of a wave of misinformation that ended up with the idol leaving their group.
Whatever the idols gender it is all too easy for people to read way too much into short, even manipulated clips.
These roles have been well established in western groups for decades now. With boy bands having "the pretty boy" who is often seen as soft, often has feminine features, is attractive and un-threatening, "the funny one" who is lively, unserious, makes a lot of jokes, and is perceived as being particularly entertaining, "the bad boy" who is similar to the "cool mysterious guy" but will maybe have piercings, or tattoos, have alternative clothing or be decked out in sportswear, and is often a rapper, and oftentimes there will be a more "down to earth" or "normal" member, who might be very talented, sometimes is the main vocal or songwrity, but isn't the most striking in looks or personality - I've seen some pretty gross comments over the years. Stuff along the lines of a necessity of having an "ugly" member!
Sometimes a member can fit into more than one of these roles but they come together to make a clearly defined role. The bad boy could also be the funny one, the mysterious guy could also be the pretty boy. The result is the same though, a box that the member is supposed to fit in.
If you think about western boy bands, these roles are very clear when you look at some of the most popular groups. The Backstreet Boys, Take That, One Direction.
But these roles often have little or nothing to do with who they are as people. "Sensitive pretty boys" can actually be really unpleasant or even worse.
It's one thing if the role is natural, it might be exaggerated, but it's based on the member's real personality, and what they like. But it's quite another if someone is being made to fit into a box that doesn't fit who they are, just because a company says so.
On the flip side, there are groups who have a concrete concept, and all the members have to fit the same image. Like a group with a tough image, or a cute image, or an elegant image. The members might stand out in different ways but the group as a whole has to fit this rigid concept.
oh clock it!!
ngl as much as i think companies shouldn't force artificial personas on their idols, i find it hilarious whenever they accidentally break character, wonbin is probably the most prominent example of the "cool mysterious guy" nowadays and the clip of him during the queencard performance was one of the most amusing things i've seen from kpop in the past year
am a simple person I see Leo from Vixx I click
I remember when that Weekly Idol thing with Leo happened and that was before I was even a St⭐️rlight (that was amended not even a few months later thank bob). But I remember being like, “Oh, he’s the Myungsoo of this group and they just don’t understand. Lol” but now, as a long-time VIXX fan and Leo bias, the idea of anyone calling him cold is hilarious to me because he literally has a voice recording of him just saying “HYUK-AH” over and over again since their maknae just ignores him and he was tired of having to yell over and over. 😂😂😂
from 4th gen groups i think OnlyOneOf Junji has assigned that role and he used to have a mysterious hair cut too (literally, half of his face was covered)
the main mystery was the other half of his face
Minho from Shinee was also given this role as well. There was one instance where the group was laughing and joking around and they asked Minho why he wasn’t saying much and he just kinda gave up and was like “they told me not to speak so what do you want me to do!” So in the same way as L, Minho also seemed to be given this image because he was the visual. If you see him now he doesn’t act that way at all lol. It honestly feels like it would be so tiring 😭
SHINee in general was such a messs. Hello Baby was so charged with roles that yes, it led to a lot of fans to follow them but then felt so weird. Like his roles where so limited during the show, Minho being the cool dad, Onew being clumsy and fan of chicken, Jonghyun being lazy, Key being the mom, and Taemin the second baby. Until today they act like Taemin is a baby when the poor guy is over 30... luckily other shows, and radio programs let them show their actual personalities. Like Jonghyun was labeled to be such a "bad boy/flirt" and then he was just so sensitive in real life what the hell SM.
Leo was definitely the first person that came to mind. Him, L, Suga and zayn are all people I stan/like in their respective group. I feel like they were more introverted and maybe shy, compared to the typical extroverted and chaotic nature of the entertainment industry. Having that assigned persona definitely restricts them from showing their personalities more, I remember those instances with Leo interviews, I feel like the man was just doing what he had to do and everyone was coming for his face and rbf blank face. Lee know is someone in the 4th gen, he was labeled as mean and rude, which is far from the truth
Only one who can do this is gdragon 😭💀despite him being a dork he’s still known as a cool guy in kbiz and rest of the world
tbh jin is a very shy and timid guy and he actually decided to take upon the funny outgoing public persona later on for the sake fans entertainment
Jin the most extroverted introvert 😭🫶🫶🫶 can't wait to have him back
Taeyong from NCT was assigned this image but it didn't work and you can tell that now, being his weird self, he's much happier 😭
I remember Wonbin from RIIZE. Everyone thought SM assigned that persona but turns out he just wanted to look cool. But he was a scaredy cat so his plan failed lol.
it seemed like Leo seemed rlly shy and unsure how to engage with his environment, but then it became his trait by the public, I'm glad he opened up over time though, he was my ult for a while
Everyone wake up, dearyoongi just dropped.
ahaha hiiiii!🥺🥰
jaejoong is the blue print
Wonbin from riize is next
I actually see what you mean here 🤔 he may be the latest person SM has assigned this idea/image to
One look at the group and you might think that's the case but I've watched a lot of their content and shows and I disagree to an extent. If they were really pushing for the cold guy persona they could've done it a lot better but they literally show him as a goofball in their content. It might just be the fact that he's an introvert people think that way😂. The clip of his reaction to gidle's mama performance is mostly used by everyone to back up their claim but tbh any introvert would do the same if they saw themselves on a giant screen 😂😂
Wonbin broke his cool mysterious persona so quick haha
Actually SM didn't assign him that image! Wonbin's the one who wants to look that way hahahh.
(for context: someone made a TikTok joking about this and Anton commented on it saying that he's the one who wants to look that way)
The first idol that came to mind is B.A.P's Daehyun. If i remember correctly, he was even made to wear a mask most of the time on their "reality" show. Turns out he's actually very friendly and warm, and a bit of a troll. I loved seeing his true personality come out 😊
Daehyun definitely didn't last as a "cool mysterios guy" 😅 He's too bubbly and extroverted for that
XYZ Idol is so SaVaGE. 🤩
No. No they’re not.
Yess exactly this!!
omg i used to be so obsessed with the concept and ideology of this savage image of idols back then 😭😭
Junji from Onlyoneof. He had bangs that covered his whole face
They way now I'm seeing SM putting this image on RIIZE wonbin. but since that haunted house episode, we saw a different side of him. Same as Jin and minho from shinee
HE'S THE FIRST ON MY MIND LMAO
Anton revealed on tiktok that it was actually wonbin who wanted to have that image, which just makes the haunted house even funnier 😂
@@nanjeilquality WHAT.
@@luolique. yeah lol
the tiktok was basically a fan acting out sm giving wonbin this concept, and anton commented "he's the one who wants to look like that" lmaooooo
@@nanjeilquality LMAO HE'S THE ONE WHO WANTS IT HELPPP AND WE BLAME SM LMAOO
ANTON IS BUILD DIFF FR LIKE HE'S NOT SCARED TO SAY WHATEVER COMES TO HIS MOUTH
Thank you so much for mentioning Jaejoong so prominently, and i love your series idea. Jaejoong's true personality was how I fell for him so hard that he's my favorite person in the world since 2011. Back then I consumed as much DB5K (DBSK/TVXQ/Tohoshinki as 5 members) content as i could find, including "They let Jaejoong speak" which you mentioned. My other favorite moments were playing "Of course" on X-Man against savage maknae Changmin, and playing the mouse game on Heroine 6. Also his birthday fan meeting video in January 2011 where he chest-presses his kitty and then realizes he's addressing mostly women / girls, whose chests may not need that type of exercise, and which he shouldn't be thinking about, nevermind talking about. That moment is hilarious! I found him during the starting phase of his non-TVXQ work and he was defacto leader of JYJ due to his age, so he actually got quite a bit more settled and outwardly responsible. He's now a 20 year industry veteran, not counting pre-debut years!
idk if jaehyun from nct counts but the way his personality/concept changed is kinda crazy lol
The Disorganization in SM is so REAL !
All the ppl they've assigned this "Cool mysterious" government personality is always such a VIBE deep down and are loved more when they speak. 😂😂😂
The first people who came to mind when reading this title was Eunwoo and taehyung
Enjoyed this and would love to see more Idol archetypes or personas. The one that amuses me is the 'fake maknae', an older member that acts goofy or seems like they could be younger because of their comedic persona. Always enjoys your videos, Fran. 💖🥰✌️
The interesting thing is that I needed so much time to get into Jin because i always had the feeling that he`s faking his persona (in the debut era time) and I started to like him when he felt more "real" to me. Now he`s my third favourite BTS member :) A newer example for this, would say Lee Know of Stray Kids but I`m not sure if this is a persona or his real personality.
lets be hon est why companies do this. theres ahuge market for these cold boys but actually soft underneath. Jaehyun from NCT is such a prime example for this.
My very first thought was Lee Know, he is really doing the cool mysterious and it's possible it's a type that suits shy introverts. I do wonder if Heechul had this at debut? It feels like his debut visuals suit SMs type of tsundere idol.
I believe Heechul was assigned "The pretty boy" image. You know the one girls envy or admire because he could pass for a girl and all guys love him because he gives off feminine energy. Think Androgynous or Gender bender. 🤔
Thank you so much for involving Jaejoong.
no problem at all, he really deserves more appreciation 🥺💖
Has anyone seen the teaser for Taeyong’s second album Tap? I think it’s a commentary on this subject and the desire/struggle to find himself.
i can definitely see this for gunwook from zerobaseone even on boys planet he talked about people viewing him as scary and intimidating because of his larger frame
Taeyong will join military soon, and now Mark seems to be the one getting his center as NCT's leader, he's having a lot more attention as "leader" than Taeyong. Mark always been goofy, innocent, laughing a lot kind of type but the past year he changed to a more serious persona? Like, yeah, he's like himself as always, but seems like he's trying hard to don't look like his goofy silly self anymore and been look as a cool serious person not only on stage but in their daily content and lives. Can this be bcz of Taeyong leaving and the company trying to change his image since he's not seen as the "cute guy" anymore? I mean, Jeno, Jaemin, Haechan keeps with their image like always, so I don't think it's just that he growns up. You can see that he changed way to much last year
there was a time when Mark goofyiness put dream on a big trouble and they almost been hated by industry and gp as a rude group so yeah since he's assigned to be the leader (which I don't understand cause there are more responsible and collected members that are better for the rule ex. Jeno) he should live to his rule and act maturely and collected instead of goofing around he's not that teenager anymore and his acts could sometimes come as turn off and childish
I am pretty sure I saw years ago a video of Leo saying I can't laugh because it's my role but I can't recall the show 😂 anyway. New fans often forget that what we see is so scripted. Sometimes I even doubt the "normal" ones.
The opposite I think is Kyungsoo, at first he was bubbly and he still is from time to time, but he really is naturally cool and I would say reserved more than mysterious. And I get so uncomfortable when they force him to do things because you can really see him enjoy from time to time.
People can be multilayered, Taemin is shy and reserved too, and people tend to make him the bad guy for not crying or being less talkative, but when he laughs and shows his dork side is super adorable. Same with D.O he can be really shy but then get super immerse on games and have lots of fun. You can't expect people to act just one way because as humans we are and act different all the time, according to so many factors, and the first thing we must take in consideration is that they are being filmed and are under scrutiny all the time in public. The littlest bit of their actual personality can led to being cancelled, just by having a normal reaction.
I wonder what would happen if everyone in a group could just… have the personality they have and just go with that. 😅
Maybe the babygirl persona next? 😌👌
lol real
ooh yes I've been seeing this soo much on social media 👀 this is a great idea thank you!
I thought V was cold and introverted.
i'm a new cassiopeia/boss babie so i was so surprised when i learned how friendly and sweet he is
Great video! I think this whole topic is so interesting to be honest. especially since i still see it happen so much. personally i think there are still way too many cases of idols being put into boxes and pigeonholed into "roles" way too much. i think the huge thing i see is, i dont even see the companies doing it so much anymore, instead what i see is actually the fans doing this job for them. i think yeah, roles are great and can be super fun, and yeah often naturally in a group people are gonna have different "roles" even with their natural personalities cause thats kind of how you end up falling into place. i think the problem arises when i see fans who cannot or will not accept that even if an idol excudes a certain energy or fits into a certain role most the time, that doesnt mean at all that they're gonna be like that ALL the time and it doesnt mean it can't change either, especially with a lot of these idols debuting so young, i mean were practically seeing some of them grow up OF COURSE theyre gonna change a bit.
the most "problematic" roles i see most (in my opinion at least) is probably:
- "the innocent cute maknae": Happens a lot with maknaes debuting when they're young, (like literal teenagers), and so they're often more shy, "innocent", cutesie, all that stuff and they're "babied" by their members or other people in the industry cause of their age. i dont think this is inherently bad when they are still young idols and i sure as hell prefer this over seeing young idols being s*exualised but i think the problem really arises when they start growing up... suddenly they're a whole adult. they're not gonna wanna lean into the cute persona as much, they're making suggestive songs, cursing, they aren't as shy but somehow... a lot of the fans dont seem to follow along. still acting like they're literal babies.
classic example: Jungkook
- "the moodmaker": Aka. happy go lucky idols, who are "loud" and "funny" and just the goofy extrovert of their group. again i dont see this as an inherently bad role the problem just comes when fans again can't accept that no matter how happy and funny a person will seem or be at times they are still just a human. they are going to have bad days, and emotions and depth. and i hate to see these "moodmakers" being ignored or out right criticized when they go through periods of not being as loudly extroverted and when speak out about their troubles. example: Beomgyu
- "the sassy idol" (Often the english speaking ones though not always): i dont even know if i can properly explain why sometimes something doesnt sit right with me about this role cause yes again i think there is plenty of fun to be had with having the "sassy" one in the group, i think it just really irks me the wrong way when a member is turned into a meme, and a good little quote and suddenly they're nothign else than that. kidn of losing their depth and their talent much like the moodmaker but to an even more extreme sense. also can we discuss these members often being SOOO like... i dont know if i would call it sexualised but why do we always gotta call them fruity just because they have a little sass, or expresses themselves in a more gender nonconforming way? like guys cmon. and why is that ALL we wanna talk about? i dont know i think im bad at explaining it, hope it makes sense. (Im a part of the lgbtq+ community too and to a certain extent i will just say, i think the jokes can be funny, i think what i wanted to say was that i think its a problem when it turns into their entire personality being sassy and "fruity" and sometimes i find it a little... icky stereotypey. how we have to assume someone is gay as soon as they dont act "straight" or how we think "straight people act") examples: Yeonjun, Yunjin, Keeho, Sunoo
Super long rant, i know, and im sorry, just wanted to get my thoughts out😭
Yessssss a video essay about Min Yoongi not being the cold guy PLEASE.
im sooo glad someone mentioned Leo, he's my bias !!
I would argue that initially the company assigned Jin this "ice prince" personality hust bc it was trendy to give visual members this public persona, but i think Dark&Wild promos started he was shedding off this image. As of Yoongi i think it was more on the fandom's side who assigned him this "cold and rude" personality around HYYH era bc he was often tired and didnt really want to be bothered that much, and ppl took that as if he was like that regurlarly. But around wings/hyyh era this started to go away bc with run bts and his vlives he quickly shed this image ppl had of him and was able to show more of his cute goofball side.
I feel like assigning "cool/cold" images to introverted ppl can be so harmful bc just bc theyre quiet it doesnt mean theyre insensitive and unapproachable.
This was a very interesting video, I didn't know much about this term (and even less that it was already something so common in kpop at a specific time)
1st and 2nd gen were all kinda just made up of idols filling in the roles of these characters in front of the camera. As much as I dislike that aspect, I’m glad those same idols now get to be themselves more and actually have fun. It mostly died down but SM still tries to subtly push for it (Wonbin and Anton most recently).
I’m not super into Seventeen but wasn’t Mingyu supposed to be the silent pretty one? He’s the one I think of with this persona.
Yes but he just couldnt do it😭 we carats are glad he's able to be himself tho
Really? Not Wonwoo
I don't know much about about other groups but bts is my ult group so i know sugaa 😭 he is a cutie . He was took care of the members. Like in the soop he went fishing with jin becomes jin likes fishing.. he cooks for members. He is goofy with jhope and jungkook.
Really good video. ❤
i dont think leo was assigned as the cool mysterious guy he just didnt want to talk lmao
kai was designated this way, but thank god inside the panty 2 syllables existed and finally he could break character. boy is not fond with the pink blood
I was a huge Vixx fan several years back to the point I watched roughly every EP of Vixx TV, and Leo's persona TRULY embodied this to such an extreme that I have never seen before, it's honestly very very fascinating to compare how he acts now versus to during their earlier years, you would never guess they're the same person
ohh this is an interesting topic to talk abt
I played the video thinking of wonbin 😂😂 he's so funny for assigning himself (not the company) to that persona and breaking it himself after like a month
You can’t act like something you’re not 💀🙏
As an introvert, seeing more reserved people "exposing" themselves like that makes me wonder why they ended up in the spotlight. Like I wanna know their motivation to be part of something you don't expect them to be part of.
I was not attracted to the whole kpop aesthetic and found some cutesy, loud things cringey so this appealed to me on a deeper level. "Why would someone like me engage in that?" So I guess what I'm trying to say is that each personality idols portray might appeal to different target audiences reigning in all kinds of people instead of solely focusing on a smaller target.
I feel like Yoongi naturally gave off this vibe by sharing he was promised to be a producer and then was "tricked" into becoming an idol who dances and sings.
We know he loves performing, but you still see how calm/cool he is off-stage and even he's pointed out he's very different and pretty chill.
I remember him mentioning he had to make an effort to be "extra" on the early days to be entertaining to the fans. This is sort of conflicting when you are also supposed to appear cool and mysterious. Thankfully he stopped pretending and relaxed along the way, becoming more like himself, I would assume.
I wonder if the same is for Kyungsoo from EXO. He changed somewhat after he came out of the military. He changed for the better and I love it. I loved him before, but he seems happier now.
I feel like the last bits of people calling yoongi 'cold' was (thankfully) in 2020; I got a bit of it when I was first getting into them, but honestly not nearly as much as the "savage" 🤐 but, when he came back from his surgery, I don't think I even saw cheesy memes or baby army jokes saying he was cold anymore.
But really as a Jin/Suga double ult bias the idea of either of those two being cool and mysterious makes me laugh. those men are goofy, sassy, and kind as hell 😭 Even back then! I do see that because of the introverted-ness that they may come off quieter, especially at first, but if you watch behind the scenes content and/or run bts you really see them comfortable and a bit more "loud" in that way that introverts are when they feel 'safe' :)
I'm 99% sure that SM started pushing the "chic and handsome" persona on Jaemin for NCT Resonance in 2020 when he used to be a bubbly and lovely teenager, which resulted in fans believing that he was depressed or sick of being an idol. I realized that when Jisung recently told him "do it cooly/chicly" and Jaemin instantly said "don't push that image on me, I don't like it".
I feel like txt yeonjun was given a mix of cool guy and sexy guy. Beomgyu was really naturally cool irl but on tv shows he acts cute and nerdy lol
Oooo these types of videos are always a delight to watch from you 💙 for me, I would like to see how the cute/sunny image members like chuu, haechan from nct or even jungwoo from nct to a certain extent (or those who are maknaes or the eldest that get the cute/baby girl (quoted by me lol) persona) as I found there are so many effects that can be talked about in big detail 💙
You also see this in J-Pop boy groups, but thank God it's not pushed that much. Shiroiwa Ruki from JO1 for example is someone who is naturally very mysterious and ethereal.
I feel like SM still pushes NCT Jaehyun to have this to some degree.
Ateez San and Yeosang
I SWEAR I read cool mysterious gay
Riize's Wonbin would be a perfect example
one of my favorite bg moments is boyfriend's jeongmin talking about his groupmate hyunseong, who is reserved and introverted. "hyunseong's concept nowadays is to be mysterious, which means he's not appearing in the media". what a life hack for introverted idols lmao
Actually, the reason Leo is my bias is because I relate to him so much.
As idols, fanservice is their top priority, but he just cannot act and laugh at something he doesn't find funny or feel comfortable holding hands of hundreds of strangers during fansigns. His "cool" persona is just as real as his "actual" persona, it's just that he acts as he feels during certain situations; towards his members, his nephew and Xiumin for example, he's the softest ball of yarn because he feels comfortable, but because he felt uncomfortable during Weekly Idol, he was most likely nervous and therefore was more distanced and reserved.
Just because you act according to your feelings in certain situations, doesn't mean you are two separate entities.
I'm well aware Taekwoon and Leo are his off and onstage persons, and that he was "assigned" the cool member role, but so many of his "cool" actions feel genuine.
Yea my mouth dropped at Jin because that funny goofball cold damn😂😂 yoongi mskes sense yea
Do it the similar topic, "the innocent" because renjun once said he's given the innocent character.
Are there also "Cool Mysterious Girl" persona in K-Pop?
I saw Leo and clicked immediately 🥹💞
omg hii~ fellow Leo appreciator 🥰
Eunseok from Riize.
Most of them are are born babygirl forced to be emo like wonbin
They be mewing hard
Idk why the company/agency just didn't let the idol just be them self.
The whole idol industry just confusing me, the concept of fabricated image, didn't let the artist get more freedom in their music and art, then using them as propaganda tools instead, forcing/pressuring the idols to look visually perfect all the time (which is led the idols to do plastic surgery), made the idols as perfect doll (manufactured fake god or goddeses) to be worshipped then purposely designed some kind of culty fandom cultured (manufactured faux 'religion'), so the company can sell much more products. It's wild!
While these talented kids actually just want to sing and perform their art, the industry just want their youth
Jay Enhypen?
Wonbin lmao
Thank you for making this video. I'm nctzen (esp 127) and was biased towards L, Leo, Jin, and Suga. I thought I was making it up in my head when I noticed these idols just don't... talk at all. They have basically no "personality" or even interact much with their colleagues.
This government issued personality thing made me to also notice the polar opposite, nowadays there's a forced "cràckhead" image, e.g: Hendery, Haechan, Heoseok, and many more that are labeled to be the comedian of the group. People's thirst for idol's genuine personality has swinged the pendulum the other way too, pushing idols to force themselves to be "on" and be funny 24/7.
While I understand it's a part of their job, I can't bear to look whenever the idols are made fun of online or being portrayed in an image that fits a trope with no wiggle room to be human. So I think it'd be interesting if you talk about that too! Great content as always!
why did u use wonbin for clickbait
there is no mention of Wonbin in this video or thumbnail ☺