Jo Kwon, a South Korean pop star and leader singer of the boy band 2AM, has just released his first solo album—and accompanying single, “I’m Da One.”
Like Disney stars stateside, Jo, 22 has also become a popular TV personality, appearing on shows like We Got Married, a reality series that shows audiences what it would be like if certain celebrities were a couple. (Jo was paired with Ga-In of girl group Brown Eyed Girls.)
We’re stumped: Is Jo pinging our gaydar or is the whole manufactured Asian pop-star vibe just giving us a false read? Either way, the whole thing looks like a story clip from Kingdom Hearts.
Daez
He seems to have all it takes to be a future Madonna or future Lady Gaga. God, pop music is really scraping the barrel of “talent.”
Se Kyung
Jo Kwon has repeatedly said he’s not gay. Even though I find it hard to believe, he’s eevven been in publicized relationships with women. Not following for that trick this time, ehh Jo Kwon ;).
unclemike
I love K-Pop. And not for the obvious reasons.
I also miss H.O.T.
steve euastace
great music good to see happy old fashioned pop loved it
RayJacksonMS
Asian are like Pentecostals. All the men are gay.
Honey
Asian pop is like having unprotected sex but with your ears D:
Bambinoitaliano
Asian imitation of western pop culture is like kabuki theatre. Lots of makes up and exaggerated expression. They are in it to make profit. There’s no artistic merit.
mds
the guys in big bang are way cuter
Aquarelle
@Bambinoitaliano: You’re an idiot. Please refrain from discussing the “artistic merit” of anything.
shannon
WOW…..ANOTHER ORIENTAL TRYING TO BE WHITE………..LOLOL…..LIKE THEY LOOK SOOOO MUCH LIKE US….
estrada
Yup, he pinged my gaydar too. This isn’t my sort of thing, but the video was surprisingly watchable.
LVgay
FUCKING AWFUL
ousslander
nothing racist there Shannon
janson
@shannon: @shannon:
I was thinking the exact same thing
What is it with Asians?? I think they truly hate themselves and want to be whites.
Justin Rivera
@shannon @janson
Asian pop stars dying their hair blonde, red, blue, etc aren’t trying to be white. It’s a fashion statement and an exploration of expression. To say all asians hate themselves and try to be white because they dye their hair and wear colored contacts for an over produced music video is stupid – you sound full of yourself.
And for future reference – what you think doesn’t really matter. So don’t speak for an entire race of people, that may fly in whatever back country you’re from, but in the parts of the world that matter, you sound like a moron.
Justin
@janson: @shannon:
Korean Pop Music is a translation of Western pop music. The way they dye their hair, the color contacts they wear, the clothes – it’s not trying to be white. It’s a fashion expression. When they prefer pale skin colors – it’s because it differentiates from “lower classes” working in the field – nothing being white.
If a white person dyes their hair red – are they trying to be Irish? If a white person dyes their hair black, are they trying to be Asian? It’s just how Beyonce dyes her hair or Nicki Minaj dyes her hair – are you saying they want to be white?
You guys sound like morons. The double standard of judgement among you people is like a joke.
Spike
It would appear that Bobby Trendy’s love child is all grown up.
darkorient
God, so many misconceptions on Asian culture. Thank goodness for people like Justin.
On the boy: He freaks the hell outta me and I’m an Asian!
realgay
East Asians are trying to look white. There are many East Asians who will desperately deny it but it’s obvious. Eyelid surgery is common in East Asia. Other surgeries used to give East Asians a white-like appearance include rhinoplasty, chin implants, shaving down cheeks bones, and shaving down jaw bones. Skin bleaching is very common.
The song is a mismash of Western songs including “Moves Like Jagger.”
Jeremy
I used to wondering if the concept of beauty has really been “westernized” and minority has lost touch about our own beauty. But I was talking to my mom the other day and she told me how back in the day, the idea of a pretty girl a 1000 years ago is probably the same as today. There are no lack of source citing how feudal people judge women’s beauty: they must have porcelain skin, long black hair with expressive black eyes. Having “white” skin is not something Asian people adapted after the Western colonization, well maybe except the “baby bucket hips” thing. And neither is dying our hair. I love my natural black hair, it’s just sometimes I want to change for my own amusement. If I dye my hair blue or silver, would you people say I’m trying to be white? Some of you are still in the 1800s thinking all minorities are trying to be white. Guess what, seeing some idiots like you make me want to be “gook” rather than being a white, racist dicks.
Hastings
You can be as feminine as you want in Korea as long as you constantly deny being gay.
asians wanna be white
@realgay:
THANK YOU
Jeremy
Since my comment’d not likely get posted (even it’s self-deprecating), I re-wrote this: I used to wondering if the concept of beauty has really been “westernized” and minority has lost touch about our own beauty. But I was talking to my mom the other day and she told me how back in the day, the idea of a pretty girl a 1000 years ago is probably the same as today. There are no lack of source citing how feudal people judge women’s beauty: they must have porcelain skin, long black hair with expressive black eyes. Having “white” skin is not something Asian people adapted after the Western colonization, well maybe except the “baby bucket hips” thing. And neither is dying our hair. I love my natural black hair, it’s just sometimes I want to change for my own amusement. If I dye my hair blue or silver, would you people say I’m trying to be white? Some of you are still in the 1800s thinking all minorities are trying to be white. Guess what, seeing some idiots like you make me want to be “g00k” rather than being a white, racist douches.
GC
@realgay @asians wanna be white
You ignorant ethnocentric pieces of shit.
1. East Asia has an ancient history where pale = beauty due to the master-peasant dichotomy where subjects worked the fields while the rich stayed indoors.
Compare and contrast: tans seen as beautiful in the west due the European elite that owned summer retreats at the beach hundreds of years ago.
2. Double-eyelid surgery is not about “trying to look white” but about trying to look “innocent” and “childlike,” both qualities that are considered highly attractive.
Compare and contrast: breast augmentation, lip augmentation, etc…
Jeremy
@GC: I was trying to say the same thing but since my comment was: “I rather be an Asian [explicit “G” word] than some dumb, ignorant, ethnocentric white idiots who still thinks there’s still some western colonization to east Asian”, so Queerty blocked my it. My content is purely self-deprecating and it got censored? For real, Queerty? So thank you, CG, for saying it eloquently yet also fiercely, like a gracious Kung-fu kick in the faces of these morons. You really made my day.
asians wanna be white
@GC:
“innocent and childlike” LMAO!!!!!
NO, they are trying to be white
get over it. they hate themselves
realgay
GC, no, it’s about trying to look white. You can try to pick apart all those radical surgeries, hair dying, contact wearing, and other things individually and say it’s because of this or that however when you look at the whole picture the objective is to look white. East Asian children don’t have big, round eyes, they have slanty eyes like adult East Asians. The objective of eyelid surgery is to get eyes that look like white people’s eyes.
JT
Shannon yet again you open your mouth and RAC!ST filth spews out. You don’t like white people and now you hate Asian people calling them “Oriental”. You’re no better than people who are rac!st against black people or who are in the KKK.
K
allkpop.com/2010/02/soohyun-of-u-kiss-responds-to-rumors-about-gay-relationship-with-jo-kwon
static.allkpop.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/20100216_ukisssoohyunjokwongay_03.jpg
dannyal
@realgay:
you know just a little too much about Asian plastic surgeries, dude. Just sayin’.
By the way, about the eyelid surgery, you do realize it’s not only white people who have non-slanty eyes, don’t you?
Do you have any Black, Arabic, or Indian friends? Go take a look at their eyes some time.
“Eyelid surgery is common in East Asia. Other surgeries used to give East Asians a white-like appearance include rhinoplasty, chin implants, shaving down cheeks bones, and shaving down jaw bones. Skin bleaching is very common.”
Your statement is fricking laughable. By the same token:
– people who shaved their nose down: were they trying to look less white?
– chin implant surgery: I’m pretty sure it is quite common among white people. Did they think they weren’t ‘white’ enough?
Don’t even get me started on the numbers of White people who got cheek and jaw implants or tan their skin. They must be trying to look Asian! omg! lol.
This should at least get your brains thinking. Although it might be too complicated for you – judging by your comments.
HanryuFan
He’s 100% pinging, don’t worry. Even for Asian social standards, he’s veeeery gay. I just hope he’ll be accepted someday and not have to hide it ;-;
joey
kpop or jpop, whatever, are just inherently flamboyant and somewhat effeminate. not a big deal, don’t understand why there’s an article on this but not the rest of kpop or jpop celebrities.
soyeon
Since Asians dying their hair blonde and making their eyes bigger are apparently attempts at looking white, by the same token, all you white people going for tans and getting lip implants are just trying to be black. It’s your white guilt kicking in.
liz
Ya know Asians own America so stop hating cud they have everything I guess you one direction and Justin bieber have 10000000000000000000plus fangirls in Korea and in other countries and they look good without surgery typical white people so close minded have you seen Jo know dancing…. he is a awesome vibrator and is not gay he is married to beg s gain a girl so shut your trap
BlackRockRitual
The irony that Westerners tend to demeaning people of Asian heritage for their Asian heritage, by saying they’re gross for wanting to look Western.
You know, even if they clearly don’t. Because it’s clearly just a way for Westerners to demeaning Asians as lesser than them.
Because if they actually thought that was the case, and would be sad and empathic about people who don’t want to be themselves as much as they want to be like you. Instead of calling them gross and reacting negatively to them. And that’s exactly what’s happening. It’s not because Asians want to be white, it’s because these Asians remind people of themselves too closely and it shakes up their ability to other and dehumanize others.