Piggy Dolls was a three-member group that debuted in 2011 with their mini-album Piggy Style. Their original line-up consisted of leader Minsun, vocalist Jiyeon, and maknae Jieun.
Piggy Dolls had a unique concept that went against the grain of everything fans knew about the K-Pop industry. Here was a trio of curvy, talented girls who made a big statement with their music. Their debut single “Trend” featured lyrics like, “My face, it’s unique/look at my performance/look at me, we are the trend,” and sent a powerful message about body positivity and self-love.
After their debut, they received backlash in forums, with netizens criticizing their health, looks, and their entire concept. They were fat-shamed to no end.
A few months later, the girls had a big comeback for their album Hakuna Matata… And the distinct change in their visuals led to criticism from even their most ardent fans, who felt let down over their dramatic weight loss. Minsun lost 25kg (55lbs), Jiyeon lost 13kg (28lbs), and Jieun lost 14kg (30lbs). Even with their combined weight loss of 113lbs wasn’t enough to win the hearts of netizens, who still considered the group fat.
During an appearance on Yoo Hee Yeol’s Sketchbook, the MC asked about their weight loss, to which they replied, “The three of us were determined to lose weight and exercised a lot. We lost enough weight to make up an average-sized female.”
They also acknowledged alienating their fanbase with what was allegedly their decision to diet and exercise.
We gained a lot of confidence after our diet, but we also gained a lot of anti-fans, and hateful replies. We had a lot of fans that were overweight, and they felt that we had betrayed them. They turned into our antis.
—Piggy Dolls
Despite their hard work on their image and vocals, after a year-long hiatus, Piggy Dolls returned with their “Ordinary Girl” comeback. The single was reminiscent of their debut track, with lyrics that the average person could find relatable, however, there was a big change that fans could not get over…
The agency, Winning InSight, replaced the whole group with a new line-up. The new line-up consisted of Kang Eunyoung and Lee Eunyoung as vocalists and Lee Jiyoung as the group’s maknae.
Although the new members were more conventionally attractive, fans were appalled by the agency’s decision to completely change the line-up while keeping the Piggy Dolls name instead of debuting a new group or creating a sub-unit. It seems that this decision from the agency was enough to be the straw that broke the camel’s back, and the group has since disbanded, as long-time fans of the group miss the group’s original line-up and message.
How do you feel about what happened to Piggy Dolls?
Watch the MV for their debut song “Trend” below:
