Cultural Post #2 Vivian Shon

[Vivian Shon]

For this week’s cultural post, I decided to watch “놀면뭐하니" which is a highly popular Korean variety show hosted by Korea’s most famous M.C. named Yoo Jae Suk. This show arose after the termination of the most popular Korean variety show of all time called “Infinite Challenge.” Many people did not expect “놀면뭐하니" to be very good since the pressure and expectations were so high, however, this show shocked the Korean viewers when it hit #1 on streaming. I chose to watch one of the episodes that had 2 of the most iconic 90s singers, Lee Hyo-ri and Uhm Jung Hwa pair up with this year's hottest singers named Hwasa and Jesse. Together, they formed a band called “Refund Sisters.” Before, it was unthinkable to see such old icons come together with the recent pop stars. In equivalence, it would almost be seeing Beyonce banding up with Fifth Harmony and performing together as one unit. When I was young, I remember seeing Lee Hyo Ri and absolutely fangirling over her and her dancing skills. She was the greatest icon in Korea’s girl group history and her humor just put her on another level. I didn’t know Uhm Jung Hwa too much since she was more popular before my time, but I remember listening to her song “DISCO” and jamming out to it during karaoke nights with my family. It was not only very cool, but nostalgic to see them come back out on variety shows and dance once again. Just watching these nearly 50-year old women dance to very demanding music and choreography made me grow a lot of respect for both of them. Another reason why I liked Hyo Ri is that she defied Korea’s beauty standards of having to look white and pale and she was always tan and careless. Even on “놀면뭐하니" she once again came out on the show looking very tan, and it made me feel more confident seeing an icon defy traditional Korean beauty standards. After their performance, they actually won #1 in the music charts, and it just once again proved how much of an influence they still have on the Korean public and the viewers. I really enjoyed seeing my old nostalgic performers pair up with some of my new favorite performers and this is something I hope to see often in the future, even outside of variety shows.