how Hwasa reminded me of everything I don't like about the self-love movement 

I feel it's a bit sad and ironic that idols sing about "self-love" and "being yourself" whilst the idols can't be themselves without being hated on by their own "fans".

People forget that "accept yourself the way you are" means to accept your qualities that you can't change about yourself, things you were born with, such as your race, sexuality, etc. But if it's something you have control over and it's a bad thing (your personality, unhealthy habits, etc.), hell yes you should change it.

I don't want to compare this is just to tell confused people what unbothered actually means. Wonyoung is an example of someone who is unbothered. She made ONE statement: "You are you, and I am me" And didn't speak about her getting hate by everyone ever again. She just chose prettier outfits, didn't change her body and kept being her confident self. You're totally allowed to say something against the hate you get. And I am a fan of Hwasa. But you guys need to stop with these labels you don't understand.

I've always loved Hwasa but I do agree with this. I also think we should talk about Jessi with this issue because she sometimes borderline sexually harasses people and her fans are like haha omg go queen so bold. I feel like she doesnt know the line between things that are okay to say to your friends and things that are okay to say to people you do not know but she receives no criticism for making people uncomfortable because her fans will murder you and say well she loves herself and DGAF and your favs are fake unlike bold queen Jessi.

I haven’t liked the self love movement since Megan Trainer came out with all about that bass. Like you can’t make a song about body positivity and call people with slim body types “Skinny Bitches” even if she was “just playing’. Theirs nothing wrong with appreciating a certain body type but putting others down in the process defeats the point.

i think you mentioned it before but the issue with hwasa's stans post festival controversy is that they keep calling her "unbothered" at the haters because of "i love my body", but at the same time, they also say that she's "clapping back at the haters". she can't be doing the same thing at once. being "unbothered" would imply that she doesn't care, but she clearly does if she released a song about it. and that's okay, because she shouldn't have to stay quiet about hate. but her stans can't have it both ways

A negative side to the self love movement is people thinking they are perfect the way they are and do not need to change or use self love as an excuse to treat people badly.

i think for an industry such as kpop where only one body type, skin shade, height, face shape, personality, etc. is considered "apart of the standard," it's definitely important for voices such as hwasa, jessi, soyeon and many more who have been called ugly, fat, or undesirable simply for existing. i think the western industry has definitely gotten to a point where it's less self love/ appreciation and more self settling and not striving to the best of your ability, but i do digress... because east asia is a bit more conservative, it's definitely more important for there to be a movement such as the one discussed!

I've heard that "I Love My Body" was a response to this controversy but I never understood why... I like the song but it had nothing to do with the premise of the issue. If she made a song talking about being sexually open or liberated that would make more sense...

Idk, it feels like you are projecting some twitter users who are moomoos or hwasa stans saying what they (imo wrongly) see her as vs who she actually is. Hwasa has never called herself unbothered, in fact quite the opposite, she has been DEEPLY bothered by comments and media surrounding her image, her body, and her acts. I think people see the surface level and don't intend to delve deeper, probably the more casual stans or younger stans trying to use it to one-up another fandom or whatever. They proclaim she's this idgaf queen when in every interview she says the opposite. ILMB was given to her by Psy right after the incident and the lawsuit was announced, it was the first stop of Mamamoo's US tour and she was standing in a parking lot in NYC crying by herself. Psy sent her the song to cheer her up, and it did. That's the story. I've been a moomoo for years, I stay off twitter because its mostly younger stans who like to pick fights and I don't like how they represent the fandom. I love Mamamoo not because they don't care, but because they do and they aren't afraid of showing cracks in their masks or sharing their worries and being honest about their struggles with their fans. They aren't perfect but they try to be better people. They make mistakes but they learn from them. They work to accept themselves, but are open about the difficulties of that in the society they live in, so they make songs not only to encourage others but to encourage themselves, like Yes I Am. And they don't stand for people defining who they are or who they should be when it comes from a hateful or unfair place. Is ILMB my favorite song? No, but I think calling it everything that is wrong with the self love movement is unfair because Hwasa herself explained clearly what the meaning behind that song was, it wasn't meant to be as personal as something like Maria, at least not lyrically. Hell, she didn't even write it. Some people have warped the intentions of that song, but she has been very clear about what the song meant to her from the start. To you it was shallow, to her it was a gift to lift her spirits at a time she really needed it. I also think it is unfair that this is your third video on the same topic of Hwasa and you still got facts wrong in your video about the event. I had originally trusted things you stated as facts in previous videos on groups I don't know as well, but I will likely take both facts and opinion with a grain of salt from you from now on since I now know the level at which you do your research before forming an opinion. I hope you don't just use twitter to get all of your information because from your comments it really seems like you do.

I heard a youtuber once say confidence is quiet where as ego is fake and loud and i personally think that this quote is applicable in the case of Hwasa and her fandom (im not calling her egotistical) . At first i too was in support of Hwasa but recently her activisim is mostly for show(marketing it to be more precise) . Now in no way am i juding her and calling her fake for simply loving herself but the fine line between being confident and vulgar is being blurred. If Blackpink gets hate for their vulgarity then what exception is Hwasa.

I'm a Mamamoo stan, but I'm also an OG and I feel that the overreacting fans don't really understand what the self-love message means. self-love means to love yourself just as you are but to also respect others choices and opinions. everytime I see those kind of comments I really do think that the person is just a blind fan, and I mean it for every fandom, I'm not talking just about Hwasa fans here. and stating that she's unbothered just makes me think that they don't follow what she says. several times she said she strugled with the bad comments, that the comments hurt her a lot, so how can said fans say she's unbothered? no matter how many international fans she has, her career is in SK, her main goal, and any other kpop group, is the general public in SK. personally, her gesture was not that bad for me cause I'm a westerner and we already fairly used to it, but for korean audiences it is way too much. another thing I wish international fans would take into account: korean culture. I blame more the blind fans for the situation we are now, but I also blame companies for fueling the selfish-love movement cause that way they make more money. as for Hwasa, ILMB was not something I would expect from her, I felt it had more P-Nation viral goals than actually her thoughts. I'm waiting to see what will come next.

To me hwasa's self love,showed best in maria, it talked about the hate and even acknowledged how it affected her,despite others being harsh to her she won't be harsh to herself, to me that screams self love. Lately I'm not feeling her self love, I love me,image its just not doing it for me. Edit. If you're coming here to tell me she didn't write I love my body kindly save it,I already know, it may seem like I'm dunking on it but my comment isn't directed at the song.

Where your whole argument about Hwasa saying she is unbothered but she clearly is because she released I Love My Body falls on it's face because she was bothered and she didn't write the song. It was a gift to her from PSY who saw how the college performance controversy affected her in a negative way. It's a song not only for her but for everyone who has been criticized for the way they look.

Glad to see this topic being discussed.....

I think mainly everyone in these comments strongly lacks media literacy and capacity to understand that a human is able to feel two emotion at the same time. I love My Body is not only a song about body positivity but owning your body and having the right to do with it whatever you want even if it doesnt please other. Why do people always think they have the right to talk about what women do with their body ? Im also seeing a lot of comments about the fact that what she did was too "sexual" but at the same festival a man literally mimicked "sexual intercourse" on stage and got NO BACKLASH at all. So no, this is not just a question of Time and Place. Hwasa has always preached about owning up to how the hate makes her suffer, made her have the worst thoughts, but how she refuse to let it change her. She is not perfect and its okay. No one is. AND THIS IS NOT ABOUT APPEARANCE. Its a very hard path she choose. She shows better than anyone the harshness of really loving yourself in this society. Please get to know more about her guys...

I love this video. Finally someone who is talking about this self-love masked selfishness.

I think it's completely valid for you to feel that the gesture was gross, I did too (as a Hwasa stan), and acknowledge that it was not the right time or place especially since it was an educational institution But the lawsuit was unnecessary, which is expected since these parents are the same type of ones who drove a teacher to suicide As a rebuttal to your point about her song, Psy and Hwasa both stated that he gave the song to her, it was written for her by another songwriter and Hwasa was obviously unaware about the song for her comeback, so I do think your point is a bit unfair, since her persona conveyed through her music has always been the same and it wasn't a move on her part( only song of hers she doesn't have writing credits on if I'm not wrong) Songs like Maria and I'm a B and even Twit showcased her vulnerability outside of her confident shell, and that feels like a genuine expression of love for oneself It may come off as rude, but judging her entire persona based on the track for which she had no personal input makes a lot of your arguments seem cherry-picked, and since you did say that you listen to her music, it should have come across your mind while making the script for this video Anyways, much love! Edit: I forgot to mention this in the comment, but I 100% agree with you on the self love image in the kpop industry, its almost become a concept itself, which does irritate me, since a lot of the times, it's just hypocrisy.

I appreciate tou reminding people that being an adult doesn't necessarily make you a sexual being, or okay with looking at people being sexual. This is especially true for younger people who have maybe not had a chance to explore that side of themselves or aren't ready yet. There are a lot of ways to he sexy and touching yourself doesn't have to be one of them, and certainly doesn't have to be one others are subjected to. Like many of us have said, there's a time and place for certain behaviors, and the university incident was just not the place.

I JUST REALISRD you are kim woojin fan skskskks good taste gurl

I think it’s so important people know their self-concept and check their self-esteem, some people are so unbothered they don’t bother to challenge those ideas for themselves and consider the world around them. Although I’m still learning more about these type of topics this video was very informative thank you 🧡

I love how raw you are😂😂😂 I totally agree as well; sexual gestures are meant to for the bed room and not to be shoved in everyone’s face. With the current state of the world being over sexualized, ppl have gone blind to the lack of respect this action truly is to those who do not wish to take part in that activity. Sex is an intimate thing, and if you are committed to you spouse then you don’t wanna see someone else flaunting their private or making them a prominent feature in your face all the time; yet we wonder why ppl cheat on each other and lack commitment issues. We also live in a world we’re self confidence has come into “I’m so fine I can take your man/woman” and that’s rude and disrespectful too; also showing the lack of self control that ppl embody as well as the lack of respect for that person and their partner; why by so selfish to take what’s not yours?💔 Not saying that all of this applies to Hwasa, but if the shoe is the same size you better hope she don’t wear it 👀

I feel like selfishness disgused as self love has been a trend. Just like the wizardliz said "the selfish ones always wins" (no hate to liz, she helped me to rebuild my self esteem) I'm glad i'm not alone with this opinion, when I first heard about that controversy, I thought it's just another funny and stupid hate against Hwasa but when I analyze it, I realized that they kinda do have a point. I wont do the same gesture as she did in the same event. + I think people who are defending Hwasa is because they see her as their self-insert, they take criticism against her as a personal attack on them because if other idols did the same thing at the same event like Blackpink for example, they'll get dragged through the mud. I'm surprised that people are defending Hwasa but calls Lisa a str*pper for that crazy horse performance.

Hwasa has talent..... yes but we cannot just ignore the fact that she fits the western beauty standard and that helps her to build an audience. If she did not fit the western beauty standards she would probably get torn to shreds. Also stop defending your faves over everything if they are wrong, they are wrong, ya'll need to get over the delusion that your faves are innocent. PLUS I LOVE MY BODY was trash sorry, I just couldn't bring myself to love it. MERRY CHRISTMAS

Finally someone who is not afraid to share this idea publicly...Thank you so much! I totally agree...

Ive noticed how fans especially Momoos like to preach about self love and confidence, they hype up anything Hwasa does then turn around and start bashing a female idol who meets a lot of the k beauty standards. These fans go on and on about loving yourself and being confident, for the sake of their faves because they think their faves are "not like other girls", but in the same breath they will have no problem attacking other female idols like Wonyoung, Jennie and Yuna just because they fit the Korean beauty standard. Self love is not about doing too much or trying to hard to get people to notice you, there's no need to act vulgar or dress vulgar in order to be considered as someone who is confident in themselves and loves themselves because that was never the goal with the self-love movement

My therapist told me this once: "Your self-love starts being selfishness when you start making other ppl bad or uncorfortamble about the way you love yourself" As much as i appreciate Hwasa messages, what she did was wrong, point blank period. And before anyone brings Lisa (bcuz i know someone will) this is why context and timing are important: Lisa was performing AT A CABARET SHOW where the audience IS ONLY ADULTS, Hwasa was performing AT A COLLEGE FESTIVAL. Also can we talk about how every member (and Mamamoo as a whole) have had the message on their title tracks since 2019 and the only member who has deviated from that topic is Wheein? It could that RBW could be pushing the self love image and now has stuck with the members? I'm not syaing that the Mamamoo members don't believe on those messages, but that had me thinking since that incident....

Part of the problem is that I think people don't realize there's more than one part to self love. It isn't always loud and bombastic. Think about the ways you love other people. Sometimes it's quiet. Think about the love languages. Showering doing skincare paying your bills cleaning your house doing your homework cutting out toxic people taking your medication etc could all be considered self love actions but they're not glamorous or glittery like most of the things you see celebrity do in public. This is why I think K-pop, in particular, needs to focus more on authenticity than it does embodying certain values and movements. Make songs about your insecurities and why you hate yourself, but you might also be able to love yourself in spite of it at the same time. Write songs about your fears of the future or how the past haunts you. Produce music about stuff that interests you or your romantic relationship and your relationship with the public and media.

Gone through most of the comments and it seems most of this ‘issue’ stemmed from the song “I love my body” and not her past songs like “Maria” “LMM(loose my mind)” “Be calm” “I’m a B” I think EVERYONE needs to keep in mind that I love my body wasn’t even written by Hwasa for Hwasa it was written by another writer for Hwasa. When Hwasa writes for herself she’s vulnerable she’s flawed and she accepts and sees herself for who she is and tries to be the better version of herself. If you listen to Hwasa you already know this. Now “i love my body” the song which was given to Hwasa is a perfect example to me of how everyone looks at Hwasa from the outside a confident badass who doesn’t give two f*cos what anyone says so I’ll have to rewrite this again . Songs written by Hwasa are 100% vulnerable and show her flaws and her actual self appreciation. NOT COMMENTING ON THE COLLEGE STUFF I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE SITUATION.

Always a joy to hear what your take is on topics even if I don't completely agree. Edit: I completely agreed with everything in this video. 😅

I really appreciate how you say everything I’m thinking but just in a more concise and eloquent fashion. I have a lot of respect for you, and what you do on this channel. It’s really nice to hear a kpop stan’s opinion from someone who’s in my age range and not a literal 13 year old. Thanks again ❤️

You're so real throughout this video omg

This is a very deep video. I’m blown away by your takes (in a good way). I agree so much! Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this touchy topic ❤

For BTS, it's not just a concept because RM still mentioned it on his live recently. He still hasn't learned to love himself, but he's trying every day. What I love about BTS's love yourself concept is that they told you their stories without straight out saying I love myself like other songs. Also, it wasn't just a one time thing because it was like a trilogy with 3 albums. "Loving myself is my whole life goal until my death. Who can define their own way method and the way of loving myself? It's our mission to define our way to love ourselves." Kim Namjun I have always liked Hwasa, but this time I think she was in the wrong. You are right because it's inappropriate at this kind of event.

You can be confident and have self-love in many ways with boundaries.

✨️ CONTEXT MATTERS ✨️

😅they compare to Meghan thee Stallion but on Butter she was appropriate despite having a sexual image

The way her stans love to talk about "loving yourself" and "being proud of your body" only to drag k-nets by saying, "You're just jealous of hwasa because she's thick and your man doesn't want to f*** a skeleton" 😑😑 Notice how all the fandoms that are "Feminist" have the most misogynist fans? 🤔🤔

i love how this and the last video have been holiday themed :) happy holidays cheryl!!

its honestly wild to me that you read the comments on your unpopular opinions video and yet still didn't take the time to research the hwasa situation further and made the same false statement you did in the last video. The parents association was NOT comprised of parents of the students. It's an extremely conservative lobbyist group in SK and the rep who reported the incident not only has no connections to the school, as a parent or alumni, she also didn't even attend the event. She saw a video of it online (not in a broadcast because the broadcast censored the action before airing) and recognized Hwasa from Dancing Queens and decided to report it. If you're going to continue to drag hwasa's name into your videos, get your facts right. To think I used to respect this channel for coming from a rather unbiased standpoint.

I will continue to believe that you are the wisest kpoper out there.

Didn't PSY give Hwasa the song, and that's why she signed with him/P-nation? Isn't the two events a little too close to each other to actually be considered connected? Like for all we know, PSY made a song. It's reflects a lot with her time in the industry, so she accepted it and prepared for her comeback, and in the middle of it all, this happened?? I do think the setting made the moves inappropriate, but I also find it wild how they tried to sue her.

?? All the stuff for which you said you love BTS are the same done by Hwasa in twit, maria, lmm, i am *** but all she needed to do was release " i love my body" for everyone to call her self love shallow ( like have you guys really listened to her songs?). And lets be honest songs like ' i love my body' might be shallow but that doesn't mean it's not empowering. Like lets be honest when you are out and about with your friends in a club this kinda songs are good to throw it back sometimes and it can be empowering ( because sexy is also empowering). I dont like the " but she is beautiful for westen standards" argument. All of mamamoo's career they have not been promoted well let alone to the west. Just because she is loved by westerners does not mean she gets same treatment from her home market. So i think this point is irrelevant. Nobody can stay unbothered by the amount of hate this women gets lets be honest. But that doesn't mean she can't overcome it, now does it?. So i don't think its hypocritical at all. I do think there is certain amount of misogyny attached to this situation because i have never seen or atleast remember this amount of backlash for any male idol ( like see enhypen the only reason they got hate for bite me choreo was because female dancers were included while looking at onlyonof they even got praised and called daring for their concept)

Another problem is that people take self love to mean they don't know how to dress or behave for an occasion. I'm all for dressing or acting slutty but time and place please. You can challenge the norms without being disrespectful. 😊

I still can't get over how when you talked about the thing with Hwasa originally and I explained my feelings on it, I had people calling me a prude and acting like I didn't need to be respected because I had different values and levels of comfort to them. When I explained that to them, their brains practically broke and they were desperate to invalidate my opinion, saying I must be religious. As if being religious is a reason to not respect someone 🙃 I'm not religious, but I'm still capable of respecting and understanding people that are. You're absolutely right about saying self-love has made people selfish, cause they seriously couldn't comprehend living in a world where they should respect my opinion and me as a human being. And don't even get me started on how they wanted to argue that consent only applies to physical sexual acts... On sexy vs sexual, something my mum taught me when I was younger is that there's a fine line between sexy and slutty. She wasn't using slutty as an insult, wasn't saying its necessarily a bad thing to be. But whether you present yourself as sexy or slutty will effect the kind of attention you get and what people think of you. The reason she wanted me to understand this was mainly just that the kinds of guys that are interested in girls that present themselves as slutty are generally not good guys that you want to have anything to do with, so if you want to be slutty, stay away from those kinds of guys. But i think her point is relevant here, too. Hwasa has a sexy image. The gesture she did was not sexy, it was slutty. That's fine, but not appropriate for the venue, and not in line with her typical image.

Damn you literally went for all points

8:43 wait the comment on Hwasa fitting into the western beauty standards? FOR WHO? In a respectful way. Only K-pop fans. Only you me and other K-pop fans. I think we need to talk about WESTERN KPOP FANS BEAUTY STANDARDS, and actual WESTERN BEAUTY STANDARDS are so different. Kpop fans western beauty standards is basically I-fans loving anyone that doesn’t fit the K-fans beauty ideal no more no less. But the actual western beauty standards is and has been white/light skinned/ambiguous women and Hwasa is not an ambiguous woman at all.

See, the thing is, if you want to invite someone to YOUR event, YOU have to make sure you do your research on who you invite. You can't expect to invite someone as controvertial as Madonna and then be appaled at what she does, which is why i believe the whole issue with Hwasa is stupid, especially considering that it was the parents and not the students that SUED her (over something so insignificant) and nobody spoke on how stupid of an overreaction it was. As for the whole "unbothered" thing, i'm pretty sure i heard Hwasa talked about what happened and how she felt about it (which wasn't positive), so i don't know who came up with the "unbothered" label, but in any case, i personally believe there's levels to it, and in the aftermath i can see she decided to go with the "it bothered me but i didn't let it dictate who i am" route, which in her industry is basically telling all the haters that she does in fact not care when you compare her attitude to the one of whatever other idols being cancelled who crumble under the delusional criticism and negativity. Unbothered for all intent and purpose may be the wrong word, but it's the one that comes to mind the easiest for us regular people who are no expert with the vocabulary, in this day and age anyone who is can easily come up and let us know what the best word is to apply here.

Anyways you spilled facts as usual we need to rent all the mics in the world at this point and still think won’t be enough because you keep on saying what needs to be said . K-pop fans just don’t want to admit that the main reason why they’re letting hwasa slide is because they lowkey pity her because if any other idol did that … sorry conventionally attractive idol did what she did they will be calling her actions out for what it is tacky .

say what you want about the "self love movement" but for my part, i'm sick of people misrepresenting hwasa/ILMB. she's told the story already herself. regardless of your feelings on hwasa's performance, the controversy resulted in such hate that on the first stop of mmm's US tour she cried by herself in a hotel parking lot, with random new yorkers pausing to ask if she needed help. knowing how difficult this was for her, psy sent her the song as a gift to cheer her up, with no obligation between them. at that time, she didn't have any intention to sign with pnation, so it was just a kind gesture to make her happy. and it did make her happy--it was so bold and straightforward that it made her laugh, and she decided to release the song because it had had such a personal impact when she needed it most. it's a song that makes her happy, and a gift from somebody who cared enough to give it. so for that reason, i'll always like and defend it.

omgg cant waitt

The whole Self love does not even exist at this point It's just a thing made up thing by people with low self esteem to feel good about themselves. Everyone says that they love themselves but they can't stop complaining about everything. If they truly loved themselves then why would they ever look for validation from others?Just like how how Hwasa who is considered an unbothered queen almost all her songs are about "idc who you are I love myself" (lmao spare the cringe lyrics) Self love is a product of the delusional. The self love movement is all about boosting the self confidence of the weak. If you need to convince yourself that you are perfect just the way you are then you are probably far from perfect. In the end self love is b*llsh*t asf especially the concept the kpop industry tries to promote Scam

I like self love as a private practice in terms of mental health but it always feels very hollow and disingenuous when a pop star uses it as an aesthetic for their art.

I love the editing bro its amazing

Something I’d like to know about the university festival is whether or not she was giving a performance that not all students were required to attend or if it was a required event for all students to go to, because those to me are two very different ideas. Gestures such as this are pretty on-brand for Hwasa and it wouldn’t be too difficult for students to make themselves aware of that possibility before seeing her perform, in which case I might say what she did was okay. However if it were a required event, that is a different situation. I’m not sure if I think one gesture warrants something as drastic as a lawsuit (then again I am American and Korean culture probably has a different idea of what warrants a lawsuit) but I understand people being upset more if the event was required for all students. (And great video as always btw)

I’m really happy you talked about this because as a low vision Kpop stan I knew about this but I couldn’t see what she did so now knowing what happen and you explaining it in your point of view was very helpful to understand. I kept quiet among my friends who mention what happen cause once again I couldn’t see literally the problem but now that I know I can form an opinion among my friends. I love hwasa so much regardless but I can understand the problem now. So once again thank you for your videos cause it does help people like me who are fans with low vision to understand what’s happening at times.

I aspire to articulate my thoughts like you💗

This reminds me of my comment on your video on your shorts channel, I will copy and paste my comment here for the people who have no working braincells: I wish people will understand sexy and sexual AREN'T the same thing, Hwasa has a sexy image but she did not have to gesture licking her you-know-what. Sexy means sexually attractive and desirable, sexual means "the process of physical intimacy between consenting adults." KEEP READING!! "Physical manifestations of sexual desire in humans include licking, sucking etc. I hope the weird people get the idea. (There's no hate to Hwasa❤, I still like her.)

I Love Hwasa but I agree with you completely, this was a very good and informative video

Is it me or do you always have migraines? Hoping you feel better soon! I’m writing this off as proof of you using your brain more than most people. Couldn’t be happier that this video finally is up! As always, it was absolutely worth the wait! Maybe you have a career in optometry cuz you’re always opening my eyes (to new opinions/perspectives)

god i missed your videos!!🎉🎉

Love the Christmas intro❄️🎄

The argument about the school being a problem I don’t agree with because there is literally a video a student humping the floor and twerking and everyone is laughing and that was at the same event.

Tbh kpop is shallow as a whole? Like I don't really expect any of those idols to be saying a message that they truly are representing? It's like an industry with too much flaws and too much control to ever expect something that big znd genuine from it. And I don't think it's bad. They are capitalizing over self-love concept? Yeah. We live in a capitalist world with shady businesses. Hwasa is just one part of the industry like a lot of idols and i don't particularly expect from her to define to me what's selflove. We just need to be aware that a whole part is fake and a persona like how lesserafim Yunjin say she wants to change the industry, or itzy using selflove concept as well, or any other song talking about it. It has no point expecting from an idol something that genuine, even if a part of it is true. Selflove is something personal anyway 🤷

We’re so glad too have you back, queen ❤❤❤❤

hey cheryl i love your videos so much and especially your voice to the point i can fall asleep peacefully to it (not mean btw) cuz i do it with old videos i have already viewed! i love your content so much and thanks for trying to ring some sense into some kpop fans :)

I feel like idols in general act as manufactured entities. The kpop industry lacks any real intelligence and personality to it but somehow it is expected to have these things? People are only interested in favourable "controversial" opinions. Ones that are not explicitly in disregard of something are only allowed. Hwasa is the perfect example for this. She does not fit kpop body standards but her body by no means is ugly. It still fits western beauty standards. Her face isn't korean-esque pretty but she is still very attractive. I would like to see an ordinary woman with an ordinary body preach self-love. That takes a lot of courage and true self-love to do. It is very easy to put down one standard when you still reside in the safety of another. This safety net somehow allows people to stupidly and blindly defend the artists they like simply because they do not conform to one standard. The very concept of self-love is ironically very non-exclusive. If you're this you can't be this and if you're like that you can't be like this. Kpop stans need to learn critical thinking and get a life.

While I definitely think it’s an important conversation that being adult doesn’t mean you want to be constantly exposed to sexual things, I can’t help but think parents being upset by a sexual gesture at a University event is pretty pearl clutching. I think part of it is that women in Asian countries are often very sexually repressed due to misogyny. And her being openly sexual as an Asian woman is a statement in itself. I agree it was gross though.

Respectfully disagree with mint choc ice cream 😂

Y'all talk more about Hwasa than she talks about herself. I promise you it ain't that serious fr let her sing whatever she wants

It's weird how Cheryl releases content defending some idols getting too much hate, and then proceed to release videos encouraging people to hate even more on another idol (generally for tiny mistakes like with Hwasa and Bangchan, or just because with Tsuki). I kind of have a love-dislike relationship with this channel lol

I think you were a little bit harsh. Not everyone has the same opinion on what constitutes decent behavior. Even though South Korea is a conservative country, the youth seem to be somewhat fed up (in my opinion). It seems that this type of behavior (not from everyone) triggers a positive reaction from them.They won't do it, but they enjoy seeing it. It's probably a trend that may fade away, but who knows? Hwasa's tendency to challenge conservative views made it inevitable that she would go that far. I won't be surprised if she persists in doing "worse" until she reaches a point that everyone is uncomfortable with.But until then, she will view herself as a victim of her critics and won't question her actions. However, I enjoyed your analysis even though I don't agree with everything.😊

The issue is where hwasa did it which is quite disrespectful and shows how people lack consideration. I hate when kpop stans use the agreement that she is 'grown women' just shows how dumb they sound nobody is taking away her adulthood, however when you're adult you make choices and so therefore you are going to have consequences for your actions.

I agree. Becuz of thise self love songs with a more aggressive approach and a subjective thinking. I developed a corrupt idea about self love. Now I am open to accepting my short comings and work on myself🥰

another banger

the concept just made bts solidify themselves from all other kpop groups and the industry musically. what made the love yourself series intrinsically beautiful is that they focus on personal growth that resonate not only the young individuals and fans like myself but also the members themselves. namjoon's songwriting is indeed deep and poetic that he was able to use clever korean wordplay, book references, and personifications to dive on what it truly means on loving oneself (singularity and trivia: love are his best ones). i specifically mentioned him because he shared on his vlives to weverse lives to armys on his personal struggles and insecurities about himself that reflect on his works. other members also took parts in their solos lyrically that relate to them. their music throughout the years was a narrative about teenage boyhood (no more dream and dark and wild) navigating toward adulthood (wings and love yourself: series) so it was what made their love yourself concept genuine. i agree with everything on this video. i have yet to see that from other kpop groups, but it's all the redundant "i love myself" "don't care what other people say" catchphrase and shallow messages. it's not the idols' fault though but their fanbases that made the idols themselves the pinnacle of self-love revolution (mamamoo and g-idle stans lmaoo). "self-love" become their entire image that's hard to achieve in actuality from the patriarchal knetizens and toxic industry. nevertheless, i like some g-idle barbie feminism music and itzy's confident aura and it's okay to love unserious music. I also think that hwasa's older music is much better than her recent songs.

The best video of the year is finally hereeee!!

I don’t know what she is about to say, but if it is what I think it going to be then I agree, a lot of people think over-sexualization is self-love or/and empowering but is actually the opposite, so I completely would agree if that’s what she going to talk about. And one more thing NO YOU DON’T LOVE YOURSELF IF YOU WEAR CLOSE TO NOTHING, SHAKE YOUR ASS AND THEN SELL TO WHOMEVER WILL BUY IT, no matter the reason you are failing into the same trap this time one put by yourself and free will intentionally to get attention, literally you are becoming everything that you supposedly say are against.

The video was uploaded on my birthday 😭😭😭😭

This brought up points about this situation that I hadn’t thought of before. I don’t personally agree with her action but I didn’t believe she should’ve been called out for it due to it being a college environment. But now I see the issue. Regarding the recent cb, yeah it’s hollow compared to I’m b and Maria.

Also around 7:30 the cry about idols who profit and lie... Uh, that's like people going after Taylor Swift for things on her first album - misplaced. And I still would argue later on that idols signing and being faces of the movement are mostly good and genuine, but they conform to things behind the scenes as they need to survive. The message needs to be louder, more widespread, and shake the system that is the whole Korean business. We owe it to the likes of Jonghyun and Sulli... Not sure what the 2ne1 comment was doing there, 2ne1, while also adding to the evolution of K-pop and one of my faves at the time, was heavily role-playing (Bommie always in dresses? She was so boring XD) and first primarily relying on "crazy' and graphic motifs - literal alien costumes, hair palms and punk jackets, while Hwasa's biggest strenght is those moments when she's just in a tee and jeans. And as for the last part talking about Hwasa at the event - if the parents (of university students, lolololol) were unhappy they should take it up with those who signed Hwasa for this. There's some general adjustment I'd expect when you are in different places, but I wouldn't invite Hwasa to perform at a church, or I would make sure the content was agreed upon. Still, it's mostly because I was raised to have too much decorum for my own good - I loved seeing how open e.g. a mediterranean or a US protestant church can be and if I had the money, time and patience then I would probably hire Hwasa to do a gig on every mass in this country xD Terrorizing the youth into "being proper" is exactly what removes any concern for their feelings about it from the itinerary. Booyah. And the fact that you're just too used to the oversexualized black rappers that stick to one schtick to realize that Hwasa's image is actually very sexual, open and unashamed by Korean standards. Oh well. "It only exposes the level of stupidity you posess". Also "unbothered queen" isn't really given to people who don't feel nothing, or don't respond in any way - it's a female idol that may have moments of such emotion, but refuse to dwell on it and cry about it a lot, like Hwasa, Lee Hyori or Jessi. They can give you the finger, they can cry one time in a bathroom, they can use it as an inspo for another opposite action - but they refuse to change their ways if they weren't really that bad, or to get on their knees and apologize to those who were theoretically hurt - I say theoretically, cause I find the thought of Korean boomers and GenXers panicking because their abusive control and imposition of standards onto the youth was shaken a bit in that moment. And to that I say yass! And the finishing touch of praising BTS and slamming Hwasa again is just a cherry on top :D It's not that I don't agree with some parts of the video - the overemphasis on looks and shallowness of kpop is a thing, as always was the craziness of some kpop stans and netizens in general...but that's 99% not any of these female idols' fault and most of what was argued was really narrowly considered or informed. Just made me stand on Hwasa's side and type some stuff first time since that incident happened, and definitely not supporting your message. Oops ^^;

Oohh SPICY

If you are educated, the point of critisizing those who sued Hwasa was not to tell them they are rude or old fashioned its about misogyny and just pure hate against her. This is because its a known fact that Hwasa is not the only artist that would perform in front of minors and do these "suggestive moves". But they called her out and sued her while turning a blind eye on other artists that do. It is clear that those who went after her had some malicious intent when they sued her. As for the song I love my body, shallow minded people really just stop and dismiss the message the writer of the song and possibly even hwasa was trying to convey. They just settle with the idea of it being a "self-love anthem". Obviously you need to do more literary analysis because the song is clearly not a "short hair I don't care mentality". I really hate "unpopular opinion" centered youtube channels because they really don't know how to do proper analysis. They say its unpopular opinion but creates a narrative trying to urge people to see the same thing. Like seriously, if you want to critisize someone do it properly. Go deeper and not just on your opinions. It's a shame that you would waste so much energy to share your thoughts and not really intented to make a proper impact with your content. Please grow up and look for a better way to spend your time. Or better yet if you really want to make a better point cover more than just your own thought process... Well...what can we expect from these types of channels? It's just petty clickbaitting sugar coated with the misuse of their right or freedom of speech. From one internet persona to another don't pretend that these contents are not just for clout/ attention grab/ or just unconscious hate train. Again please effen grow up!

Lots of love from Kenya🇰🇪

It's kinda sad to see how women sexualizing themselves is considered self-love nowdays.

Since you brought up BTS anyway, "Mic Drop" immediately came to mind as one of those incredible songs written to respond to haters.

This!! I hate the fact that those self love movements always hating on people who don’t agree with them such as lizzo type of supporters smh

I havent watched the video yet but i got to say that i had a very different understanding of self love which was not right. I beleved to love myself how i am and i needed to do it cause i loved self confidence bit i started getting very rigid. When my mom told me that i had to change myslef i felt bad i thought "i was good the way i was " And i felt bad about what my mom said but shes right i wasnt. Self love is about loving things u cannot change but true self love comes when u love ur self so much that u would work to better yourself. Its hard for me idk it sounds easy to say but idk how to start 😢😮

First time at your channel and I have to say this sounds like you are fighting with immature kids with immature defensive opinions. Very petty. No on cares. Self love has nothing to do about your outside appearance. It means the physical you on the ourmtside does not define who you are on the inside. You love who you are, period. The reality of consciously changing yourself to a severe extent is hating yourself especially if you are doing so to fit a mold. Nothing wrong about doing losing weight for your "health", but the industry makes you do many physical alterations that make you lose the person you recognized in the mirror. Being rail thin, but your body fights you at every step. This choice is hate of self to go to an extreme to a point of starvation, not having normal menstrual cycles as most female idols suffer from on the diets they are put on by their companies. To do something intentionally sexual is a regular thing every year used to get free press. She won the moment. You talking about her was the whole point. Her mentions are up. She is getting access to all the music shows. It's men behind that, and they want what she is dishing, so this college stunt is always a stepping stone. The reality is all about business.

But the fans pay for Blackpink's concert as well. Based on your logic, if the kid's mother paid for the ticket, Blackpink should do what she wants as well? Besides, tuition could be paid by the students themselves as well, not their parents (in case of the university). At no concert/event can you expect that everything will be to your liking, unless one person paid for all of it themselves. The university invited Hwasa so she should have her artistic freedom, unless they signed a contract with her and she violated it - then she should be held accountable. If the parents wanted her to behave a certain way, they should have put it in the contract. She's an artist.

So glad I watched this whole video and kept an open mind. I originally assumed the "problem" you had was with Hwasa's song because I did not know about the university incident. I totally agree with you that it was inappropriate although I'm not personally bothered by the gesture. However, I love Hwasa and I love her new song because it's something I can relate to. Glad you pointed out that you can like something and still criticize it at the same time.

I haven't watched the video yet but i'd like to state my opinion first which is i really really really hate self-love concepts it's okay if it's a song every once in a while but making it your whole personality is NOT, in my opinion it's a very strong sign of insecurity. I've always thought of Hwasa as "Baddie" and "Slay unbothered queen" till Maria but then she kept repeating herself to the point of disrespecting her audience in a collage festival. Also she seems to be the kind of women who believe self-sexualization =empowerment ..... I don't know what's going on with Hwasa exactly but to me her actions don't speak neither self love nor confidence

There are something funny about people who got preaching "self-love" or "unbothered" motto at the same time release a song about "loving yourself" or posting a vent about how people bringing them down because of this? I meant yeah, it's obvious you are bothered and indeed insecure by it right? Why i must tell everyone in the world that their mean comments affected me that much when i can just roll with it and call it a day? Though, no hate to Hwasa because "I Love My Body" was a pretty fun song. But, yeah. This is just a piece of my mind.

Agree. If something doesn't bother you it is forgotten about within seconds. A man once commented on my outfit on a hot day. My response ... "Do I look like a child to you?" "Get the f*** out of my face" and "Your dealer's good". I actually thought it was funny. I'm not particularly the most confident person on earth, but even I am perplexed by why a stranger's view on my body should be my business.

I wished self love for women meant looking people in the eyes, speaking clearly, not using self-blaming language like "I'm sorry for asking, but...", and being efficient at whatever one does be it working, sports, studying, volunteering etc. But instead of that the "self love" that gets promoted to us is always either about our bodies or sexual acts...

About RV, in my social media world, I didn't see throwing hate at them. Their whole career now is on the individual side and they deserve the praise they get in terms of group activities because the company does not promote them now(at least they did justice with the music)

Cheryl! This was so good! Absolutely blew my mind! Like, your content always amazes me. But this really made me think about the topic in a way I never thought was possible! I’m so proud of you! And congrats on finally uploading this! I know it’s been weighing on you! Now you can just focus on the award show and call it a year! But I will be bothering you about the next stage presence ranking video 😇💙

People are still talking about this "scandal"? Kpop really must have become super boring lately if this is the most interesting topic, I almost forgot about that already😂

You avoided the word narcissism so well

Why do I always see like 5 comments in a row accusing you of something on every aespa short😭