K-pop: Why 's hard for stars to be gay South Korea | CNN

Contents:

• IN THE MP WORLD OF K-POP, ’S HARD FOR STARS TO BE GAY
• FIRST OPENLY GAY K-POP IDOL HOLLAND REVEALS HE HAS A BOYIEND THAT HE WANTS TO MARRY
• HOMOSEXUALITY IN KOREA: KOREAN CELEBRI, GAY IDOLS AND MORE
• 11 K-DRAMAS THAT DIDN'T SHY AWAY OM GAY RELATNSHIPS
• KPOP STARS THAT HAS BEEN RUMORED AS GAY [PART 2]
• SOUTH KOREAN GAY UPLE SE URT W AS BREAKTHROUGH FOR EQUALY

IN THE MP WORLD OF K-POP, ’S HARD FOR STARS TO BE GAY

Holland is not the first known LGBT K-pop idol, but you n say that this new generatn of K-pop, he's one of the first idols who admted that he's gay. He ially me out as gay 2015, and upon g Korea, his iends told him to keep his sexualy secret - but he's proud of his inty, makg him the first Korean artist who is openly gay.

FIRST OPENLY GAY K-POP IDOL HOLLAND REVEALS HE HAS A BOYIEND THAT HE WANTS TO MARRY

However, durg an terview, she nfsed she is gay, g her to be kicked out om her agency.

HOMOSEXUALITY IN KOREA: KOREAN CELEBRI, GAY IDOLS AND MORE

" In particular, "LGBT" is an acronym for lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr. Gay is jt gay.

Maman Maman, who origally buted 2007 unr the stage name Magoply, is K-Pop first openly gay idol. Shortly after butg, Maman me out as gay an terview. Holland Holland is well-known as the media’s first openly gay K-Pop idol.

He has been openly gay sce 2015 and buted 2018. Though his gay Korean iends told him would be better to stay the closet, he chose to e out as a way to be his te self. What is like to be gay South Korea?

11 K-DRAMAS THAT DIDN'T SHY AWAY OM GAY RELATNSHIPS

Homophobia is still rife South Korea, where very few mastream mic stars have e out as gay. There, homosexual sex is not banned, but is illegal the ary, where almost all men mt plete a stt of pulsory nscriptn. “It’s kd of sad, ” said Jungm Kwon, an amic who wrote a book lled “Straight Korean Female Fans and Their Gay Fantasi.

“On the one hand looks like the dtry is very open md to shippg culture, ” she told CNN, referrg to the culture among fans of imagg relatnships between their favore stars – cludg gay relatnships. Acrdg to Kwon, fans were spired by “yaoi” – a kd of Japane manga that featur gay relatnships between male upl – and began makg up stori about their favore stars. Even now, K-pop labels sometim cultivate idols’ homoerotic appeal the hop that mak them more popular fanfictn, where Kwon timat 80% of stori volve gay story l.

South Korea’s rerd labels are happy to let fans fantasize about idols beg gay. But they don’t want gay idols be open about their sexualy. But when me time to but, the label was agast him butg as a gay idol.

KPOP STARS THAT HAS BEEN RUMORED AS GAY [PART 2]

“It’s a shame that’s the lim they n go when to showg homosexual teractn – n only be portrayed as funny. After Hong me out publicly as gay 2000, he was fired om his hostg job and lost other work – and thor Kwon believ that harsh rponse has disuraged others om followg su. Holland thks thgs are changg: more artists appear to be ditg that they are alli of the gay muny.

SOUTH KOREAN GAY UPLE SE URT W AS BREAKTHROUGH FOR EQUALY

In the absence of nfirmatn, mentators have ed small, clive clu to speculate on their stance, for example, the time the band’s lear RM tweeted Macklemore’s song “Same Love, ” which promot equal rights for gay people. But ultimately, experts believe a time when gay stars are accepted mastream K-pop uld still be some way off.

“This panel, we’re jt gog to show our gay, ” Lai Franc proclaimed to the packed crowd at KCon’s panel on LGBT fandom Korean pop mic. “I saw that there wasn’t a lot of gay stuff K-Pop media, but I saw the culture that the men are a ltle more open to touchg, ” Eddi said. “There’s not a lot of actual gay reprentatn K-Pop, a lot of men are allowed to be feme.

I remember showg them to some people and they thought their looks were too girly or, other words, ‘gay. ’”One of Eddi’s favore gay K-Pop moments is the song “Party XXO” by the sce-disband girl group Glam.