LE SSERAFIM Sakura’s Live Singing Controversy Sparks Debate On Whether Criticism Should Be Allowed Towards Idols

What are your thoughts?
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Jasmine Turner
Jasmine Turner

LE SSERAFIM’s Sakura recently came under fire for her live singing skills. During an encore stage, she had to sing without any backing track. She looked visibly nervous and frightened.

Many believe that the building pressure of encore stages being put under scrutiny led to Sakura’s aversion towards it. What used to be a fun way to interact with fans became another way for the public to measure one’s talent.

Sakura’s incident sparked an ongoing debate amongst K-Pop fans about the topic of criticism. While many fans of Sakura shielded the star, they coddled her for being nervous and turned against those who dared criticize Sakura. They blamed those who tossed criticism her way, claiming that it only resulted in Sakura being more afraid.

On the other hand, many believed that criticism should be allowed. After all, being an idol is a job. It is not just a way for singers to fuel and fulfil their passion. It is also a job that they must do, and do well. Just like any other job in society, idols may have to bear the weight of grading and judgement if they fail to live up to expectations.

Criticism, when delivered without malice, is not a form of hate. It can help one identify their weak spots and improve. It is also part of the public’s freedom to express themselves and their opinions. About Sakura’s case, many felt that she had failed to improve despite her many years of experience. While fans defend that her time in AKB48 did not include formal training, others did not see fit to excuse her lack of improvement without guidance. After all, she did continue to perform during those years.

The coddling of idols has become a severe phenomenon in the industry with later generations. As K-Pop grows bigger and the number of fans internationally increase, a large proportion of the fans are extremely defensive of their idols and immediately attack anyone who disagrees. Some feel that this has led to a less dynamic industry.

Call it “toxic positivity” if you will, like this netizen did.

Without appropriate criticism and feedback, the industry and the idols will not grow. The dilemma comes when fans themselves blur the line between the idol as an idol, and as a person. It is right to say that idols are indeed humans and people offstage. But onstage, they are part of an ecosystem and industry where they have jobs to do. A part of this job is also becoming a “product” of the company. As much as fans do not wish to hear this, the industry is run on consumerism and the idols are there to provide. They have to fulfil this basic part of their job when they are on the hour. Perhaps it is the fans sometimes, who fail to differentiate between “the idol” and “the person.”

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