f(x) & How K-Pop May Not Be Ready For The Witch House Genre

In a recent Billboard article, f(x) is cited for its appropriation of New York hipster culture. The music video for “Red Light” draws on the imagery and musicality of witch house.

The controversy surrounding 'Red Light' stems from the fact that it transcends hipster culture and borrows from witch house aesthetic.

Witch house generally utilizes sacrilegious iconography such as pentagrams and disconcerting lyrics such as the lyrics from the Purity Ring single “Fineshrine” which implores the listener to “cut open my sternum and pull, my little ribs around you.”

Purity Ring and the aurally disconcerting song 'Fineshrine.'

Over all, the general purpose of witch house is to induce anxiety through music, but not to promote Satanism or reflect outright Bible-burning.

Witch house has grown in popularity and is regularly featured at American music festivals such as Coachella, Bonnaroo, and The Governor’s Ball. Canadian electronic artist Grimes and New York duo Phantogram are often added within the witch house genre.

Deftone’s lead singer Chino Moreno leads one of the most prominent male bands in the witch house genre, Crosses. Chino Moreno was born to a Chinese mother and Mexican father, but raised under the auspices of Catholicism. His life experiences are reflected within the musical work of Crosses.

Although, f(x) is currently under fire for what is considered imagery of Bible burning for “Red Light,” 2NE1 came under fire for their usage of a recording which utilized readings from the Quran for their “MBT” stage.

The interesting aspect of both controversies is that K-Pop male groups have often utilized what could be considered either satanic imagery or sacrilegious iconography with less feedback.

Most recently, VIXX promoted the single “Voodoo Doll” and is now supporting a tour entitled “Hex Sign.” While hexes and voodoo dolls may appear more foreign to Korean viewers, a book that is being burned can be perceived as a Bible from familiarity.

While most viewers were most concerned about the blackface aspect of the G-Dragon music video for “Coup D’Etat,” the perception of a duality of spirit or evil confronting purity could also be derived. However, this video did receive controversy for this particular topic.

There remains a divide within K-Pop in which male artists have been able to use religious iconography with little to no consequence.

Tags
f(x)
SM Entertainment
G-Dragon
VIXX
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