The Failure of Fantasy

Tamar Herman

06 Apr 2025 — 5 min read

Over the past few weeks, a few big major Korean entertainment-oriented stories have broken:

The five member group that debuted under Hybe subsidiary ADOR as NewJeans, then claimed they could go on their own to fulfill their dreams and potential while becoming NJZ, lost the right to go by the alternative name NJZ and are now officially NewJeans or nothing, at least until the end of lawsuits. They are now on hiatus, and public opinion is increasingly turning against them, with many people feeling that if the court has decided there is no case this is just mess for the sake of ego and money rather than personal rights.
Kim Soo-hyun, acclaimed K-drama heartthrob, became known as a potential groomer of K-drama actress Kim Sae-ron, who he dated perhaps when she was a minor, and has been accused by her family of having an impact leading her to suicide. He cried at a press conference claiming he never dated her as a minor, which hit a bit less on the empathy-inducing scale after becoming famous for crying in a recent hit K-drama, 2024's Queen of Tears.
Videos of K-pop stars like BLACKPINK and CL surfaced showing them using racist slurs in pre-debut videos, particularly the n word. Then, girl group Kiss of Life put on what one fansite, run by a Black fan, dubbed a minstrel show as they declared their disavowal of the group and closed the account. The group apologized, but KIOF's reputation as a seemingly authentically presenting group particularly inspired by R&B has been tarnished (especially since one member asked people not to leave the fandom even before they actually published the apology, which many people interpreted as callous and uncaring).

At this point of reading, you're probably asking yourself, "Tamar, what is the connection here? Legal battles, pedophilia, and insensitivity seemingly have nothing bringing them together?" And that's a good question! But I think there is one tie: each of these situations reflect a fantasy that has been sold to audiences. And it's a terrible business model ultimately, even as lucrative as it may be before shit hits the fan.

Edit April 10: A few commenters had really good insight around the differences of these situations, so want to amend this to reflect I'm not trying to compare these three situations directly, which vary wildly between actions, intent, criminality, victims, and societal expectations, but rather the failing of the fantasy of the perfect human performers.

The fantasy that NewJeans can do their own thing despite legal ramifications; the fantasy that there is actually a K-drama actor out there who may represent the beautiful, soulful man that typically features in romance K-dramas; the idea that authenticity can ever be true. None of these are holding up. All happening around the same time, it's a reminder that fantasy will always fail because reality simply is not that neat.

K-pop, and all entertainment, sells ideals. And in 2025 (and also 2024) we are constantly seeing chips into that idealism, which is one of the reasons that I believe "scandals" are such a major, career-wrecking thing in K-pop (and K-dramas): once the shiny veneer of fantasy has been ruined, whether because of a behavioral or criminal issue,

But fantasy is just that: fake. Selling it as the basis of identity-oriented entertainment, as is expected of K-pop, will inevitably always disappoint. This is, personally, one reason that I think the lifespan of K-pop groups, especially female ones are getting shorter: you cannot possibly live a life without disappointing others, and so the industry is moving on with newer, sparkly, younger acts before the gloss fades too far.

But the thing is... it will always fail. There is no human whom never disappoints, who never fails. But we expect it everytime, for the fantasy to one day, for someone, to hold eternally; for someone to be that good. I for one would prefer to cheer on people who have messed up and recovered for it, and come out stronger. IAs much as I enjoy the shine of K-pop, and K-dramas, at a certain point that is all fake, and untenable. Give me performances that are perfect, not people.

What I'm working on

I blurbed NCT 127's "Limitless" for That Side of K-pop (Flipped) #3: Too Bad, an absolutely iconic newsletter.

And I forgot to share this earlier, but I recently spoke with the brilliant professr Crystal S. Anderson about her upcoming book, The Music Eclectic: A Genealogy of K-pop. Dr. Anderson's work is always important, and I suggest all Notes on K-pop readers read her previous book Soul in Seoul: African American Popular Music and K-pop, especially in light of the last few days.

What I'm reading

These were some random reads that I had open in tabs for a while this year that I meant to share in a long reading list. Some are fairly recent, some are considerably older. Would love to hear Notes on K-pop readers' thoughts on these stories.

Inside the fight between popular K-pop group NewJeans and their label (Washington Post)

K-Pop Paradox: Why Some Acts Find Global Success But Face a Disconnect Back Home (Billboard)

K-pop’s seemingly unstoppable rise shows signs of slowing (The Korea Herald)

China likely to lift ban on South Korea’s K-wave as early as May (The Korea Economic Daily)