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Late in 2021 rumors started circulating the internet that HYBE Entertainment wouldl be debuting not one but two girl groups in 2022. Joining the companies only active girl group fromis_9, HYBE debuted LE SSERAFIM in May of 2022 leaving netizens to question who the next group would be. HYBE later revealed that there was still a new girl group underway, but they would be debuting under sub-label ADOR headed by Min Hee-jin, which had fans excited but cautious.
On July 22, 2022 New Jeans dropped their first ever song and music video titled, ‘Attention,’ seemingly out of nowhere. The group and members had no social media presence until the song was revealed and this is where we get to meet the group! New Jeans was shown to be a 5 member girl group including members Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, and Hyein. After the sudden release the members and company began posting more online announcing New Jeans will have a mini album dropping on the 1st August 2022.
Upon release ‘Attention’ received a lot of love from K-Pop fans across the board. The girls are styled in early 2000’s fashion and the music video aesthetics and sound of the song match that nostalgia perfectly. As well as complimenting the member’s vocally, fans took note of the stunning visuals the group have as a whole, but this also led to a debate online about the appropriateness of their concept as all the girls in New Jeans are underaged, their youngest member being 14 years old. Some netizens brought to attention the girls' young ages and the styling and dance style of their debut single being borderline problematic and not age appropriate, but fans gave the group the benefit of the doubt in anticipation of their mini album and official debut.
Unfortunately, once the mini album was released fans took to social media to express more concerns for the group and the culture becoming more common in K-Pop. The album consisted of three songs: debut single ‘Attention’ and b-sides ‘Hype Boy’ and ‘Cookie.’ Fans quickly consumed the much anticipated group's debut album and they were left shocked to say the least. The third track ‘Cookie’ caused concern and confusion to many fans across the world; the song itself is an upbeat Y2K R&B influenced sound, but when you take a minute to listen to the lyrics it becomes clear why fans had less than ideal reactions.
“Take it, Don’t break it. I wanna see you taste it.”
“Looking at my cookie. Yeah, the scent alone will make you see (taste it)”
“Made a little cookie. Come and take a lookie. Baked at my place only, come get some”
After receiving the concerning comments on the lyrics of the song, New Jeans themselves went on to post a video explaining the song is, infact, just about a cookie, and is aimed for a younger audience to consume.
Fans, on the other hand, couldn’t decipher which was more concerning; a song with inappropriate innuendos aimed at an older audience sung by underaged idols, or a song with inappropriate innuendos aimed at an unknowing younger audience. Even if the members themselves genuinely believe this song is just about a cookie, the adults around them should know how the song will be received by the audience, no matter the supposed intentions of the song.
Some netizens also held the strange notion that Korean fans don’t have an issue with the lyrics, and K-Pop is for Korean fans so it shouldn’t matter how fans across the world take the song, however with every company aiming for their groups to hit a global market, this notion is simply unfounded. No matter how you feel personally, fans everywhere agree this is the fault of the company and adults managing New Jeans, and wonder if they planned this as a publicity stunt as they knew it would cause a stir given the girls' young ages; as they say “All publicity is good publicity.”
K-Pop has a long history of provocative dances and costumes on popular idols ever since the past, however with the ages of idols debuting getting younger and younger each generation, one has to ask themselves when does it stop being “just K-Pop” and start becoming the exploitation and sexualisation of minors. There is a time and place for sexy concepts but it is not in a group of young girls like New Jeans who are still too innocent to know better.
The girls of New Jeans are a young, and talented group of girls, and they can still be successful doing age appropriate music. In all aspects you can tell the members enjoy performing and have the talent to back them up, so fans hope they can proceed without the heavy weight of the industry pushing them to be sexy at such a young age.
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Writer: McCayla McClard
Editor: Han (O.L)