On December 26th, 2020, a surprising announcement arrived at the world of Korean pop music. As most were on a post-Christmas mood, CLC Chinese member Elkie came over with bombastic news that she decided to sue her agency, Cube Entertainment, on the grounds of not fulfilling payments. Many have suspected this relates to her participation on the drama "The Rich Son" in 2018. However, to fully understand her story, we need to go back a few years.
The year is 2016. Cube Entertainment's new girl group, CLC, had debuted less than a year ago but were already undergoing some changes. The group debuted in March 2015 and was originally a quintet for its first three releases, "Pepe", their debut single, part of their debut extended play "First Love", follow-up standalone single "Eighteen", a synth pop track whose lyrics are about a teenage girl expressing her love to an older man, and finally, "Curious (Like)", for their second extended play, "Question". However, none of them managed to hit, with Pepe being their highest peak at #143 on the Gaon digital chart. That was particularly surprising considering Cube's past record, which included many successful artists such as HyunA, Beast, G.NA, BTOB, Apink (as part of their A Cube sublabel) and CLC's own predecessors 4Minute. Cube was clearly unsatisfied with the group, to a point that in spite of the three said releases coming in a two-month span, CLC wouldn't be seen again until February 2016, with two new members on their lineup: Kwon Eunbin and Chong Ting-Yan, also known as Elkie.
It was a quite messy change to the group dynamics. Member Seunghee, who was CLC's original leader, resigned from her spot, with Seungyeon being named the new leader. Member Yeeun, originally the youngest of the group (which is quite an advantage in Korean idol groups) was suddenly relegated to 3rd youngest, as both Elkie and Eunbin were younger than her, a similar process to the one that happened to Red Velvet in 2015, which added Yeri to the group, making her the youngest member over the original one in Joy. There was also another problem, with the delays on their comeback, Eunbin was already slated to represent Cube on the new competition show "Produce 101", alongside Jeon Soyeon (yes, the current leader of (G)I-DLE), so when she was announced a new CLC member, she was already taking part at the show, with Cube stating that she would join CLC promotions for their upcoming single, "High Heels" in case she was eliminated from "Produce 101". In the end, she did not join the promotions, with the group performing as 6 and many blamed her slide on the "Produce 101" rankings, as she initially ranked in the top 10 for the first couple rounds but finished 32nd, eliminated one episode before the finale, on the announcement from Cube that she would be joining the group. In spite of all these shuffling, "High Heels" remains to this day the most successful CLC song on Korean charts, peaking at #120 at the Gaon digital charts, suggesting that the new lineup gave a small albeit brief boost to the group.
CLC posing for teasers of "High Heels", their first comeback as a 7-member group. Elkie pictured 3rd from the left (the one with the red beret and suspenders)
In the same 2016 that added Elkie to CLC, foreign idols were enjoying a resurgence in popularity among both Korean entertainment companies and the public in general. Gone were the fears of lawsuits such as the ones where three of Exo's chinese members departed the group, as companies started to debut foreign idols en masse. In the previous year, Pledis Entertainment had already debuted boy band Seventeen, featuring two chinese members, Jun and The8. JYP Entertainment debuted Twice, featuring four foreigners out of nine members, three Japanese, Momo, Mina and Sana, and a Chinese in Tzuyu (who happens to be a big friend of Elkie). Then in 2016 the group saw a meteoric rise, with its foreigners role playing a major role, as Sana went viral and Tzuyu rose to most popular member status in Korea, which is rare for a foreigner, propped by her youthful visuals. As the year progressed, many more groups debuted with a lineup featuring foreign members. First it was Cosmic Girls, featuring three Chinese members: Cheng Xiao, Xuanyi and Meiqi. Xiao, just like Tzuyu, also managed to be the most popular member, going viral for her otherworldly flexibility. In the final results of "Produce 101", Chinese idol Zhou Jieqiong, also known as Kyulkyung, finished in 6th place, earning a spot on I.O.I, the group formed from the competition show. YG Entertainment's Blackpink debuted featuring Thai member Lisa. CLC labelmates Pentagon also debuted in 2016 with one Japanese (Yuto) and one Chinese (Yan An) on their lineup. Matter of fact, Elkie herself wasn't even the first foreign member of CLC, as they had Sorn, who is Thai, on their lineup since debut.
However, on the geopolitical arena, something started to change that ended up halting such favorable situation for foreign idols, particularly those from China: the development of the Terminal High Altitude Arena Defense (THAAD), an anti-missile system, agreed in July of 2016 between military officials of Korea and the United States. China deemed the development of the system as a threat to its national security, slapping sanctions on many Korean imports, including entertainment-related ones. This had a major impact on such companies, which saw their combined balance of payment surplus cut in half, going from $520 million in 2016 to $270 million in 2017, after China shut them the door. Lotte Group, the Korean multinational who rented its land to be used for THAAD activites, suffered major boycotts in China.
Meanwhile, on the idol front, the increased tensions between the two countries were the final straw for many Chinese idols to depart Korea for good. The two who highlight this trend the best, which would become commonplace in the following years, come from Korea's biggest label, SM Entertainment: Lay Zhang, from boy band Exo, and Victoria Song, from girl group f(x). In 2015, SM opened individual studios in China for both, as Lay got his in April and Victoria hers in October. The studios were a reaction from SM following the previously mentioned Exo lawsuit, which left Lay as the sole Chinese member of the group, allowing their Chinese idols still under contract to have more control of their solo activities in chinese soil while also getting a share of their earnings in China. Later some labels would repeat the strategy, such as JYP Entertainment with Chinese GOT7 member Jackson Wang. Lay had already been focused on solo activities in China since 2014, but in 2016 finally decided to debut as a soloist, with the album "Lose Control" and has become one of the top entertainers in China since. His last participation on an Exo release was in December of that year, for their winter album "For Life" with a brief cameo for the Chinese version of "Tempo" in 2018. Victoria did not miss many f(x) activities, as the group's hibernation into an indefinite hiatus coincided with her departure, albeit she was absent from what was probably the group's last concert, and has since established a successful career as an actress and soloist in China. They wouldn't leave without a final controversy, as they were two of many Chinese idols who opposed a court ruling regarding China's territorial claims in the South China Sea, alongside Miss A members Fei and Jia, Fiestar's Cao Lu and Super Junior-M Zhou Mi.
f(x) member Victoria (Song Qian) and Exo member Lay (Zhang Yixing) attending an event in 2015. Albeit still officially members of their respective groups, both Chinese idols haven't promoted with them since 2016, as the relations between China and Korea have worsened.
Although the labeling of departing Chinese idols as traitors was not something new, hence the fact that many label the three former Exo Chinese members who filed lawsuits against SM Entertainment as "traitor line", it started skyrocketing since then. The dynamic has also affected other foreign idols such as those from Japan and Thailand, with eventual slips from idols of such countries gaining attention as if they were akin to diplomatic incidents, with the increasing xenophobia inside the Korean society wiping out most of the support towards foreign idols, with Chinese idols taking the worst of it, to a point that the "traitor" narrative has even been applied to newly debuted idols such as Aespa's Ningning. In 2020, COVID-19 added an extra layer to the witch hunt towards them, as the narrative in Korea about the virus is similar to the one peddled in much of Western media, treating the coronavirus as a "Chinese virus". As a result, any news regarding China and its people in Korea gets strong reactions from local netizens. As an example, look no further than the petition to ban Chinese idols from working in Korea, citing once again the likes of Victoria, Cheng Xiao, Kyulkyung and Lay, many of them who used to be popular on a not so distant past in the country, as shown above. Even idols from places in China Koreans are sympathetic to such as Taiwan and Hong Kong, are not getting good reactions. Tzuyu, the once popular Taiwanese visual from Twice, has slid from 3rd most popular idol in the country in 2016, to 9th in 2017, to 12th in 2018 to out of the top 20 in 2019, that was despite the fact that her group had an increase in popularity during most of those years. Elkie, who is from Hong Kong, also got many accusations of being a liar over her lack of payments and another Chinese idol seeking to break her contract just so she can return home, with many bringing the example of Lai Guanlin, former Wanna One member and also under Cube Entertainment, who sought to break the contract with the company in 2019 but ultimately lost.
It must be said that, if Elkie indeed wants to and ultimately decides to return to China, that's an entirely comprehensible decision and actually the most rational one. The odds of a foreign idol debuting these days only to become a filler member that many inside the fan base ignore or despise (particularly among Korean fans) get higher each day. And if you are a Chinese idol trying to leave filler member life, there is no better inspiration than Meng Meiqi. As previously mentioned, Meiqi debuted in Korea as a member of Cosmic Girls in 2016. There is a simple rule: the bigger the group, the higher the odds of being a filler member. In a 12 (later 13) member group, that means you have to be quite lucky not to be one. Meiqi wasn't. Koreans picked a Chinese member to pay attention to, but it was Cheng Xiao, as said before. During her stint on Cosmic Girls, it can be easily argued Meiqi was the least popular member. If being under such position is already upsetting under a four-member group, imagine how bad it must be when you're dead last among 13 people.
However, being a "traitor" ended up as Meiqi's best career move. In April 2018 she joined, alongside her Cosmic Girls group mate Wu Xuanyi, the chinese version of "Produce 101", which coincidentally had a mentor who in the past left a Korean group to return to China: former Exo member Huang Zitao. Speaking of mentors, their other Chinese group mate, Cheng Xiao, had joined, three months earlier, a similar show, "Idol Producer", where she played such role alongside other big chinese idols such as Lay, Kyulkyung and Jackson, while Meiqi and Xuanyi were joining their show as contestants, highlighting how the abyss in popularity between Xiao and her fellow countrywomen was just as big in China as it was in Korea. But that wouldn't last for long. The duo quickly dominated the competition, with Xuanyi taking the lead at episode 3. After episode 5, though, it was Meiqi's show. She took the lead and never looked back, finishing first with a whopping 185.2 million votes, with Xuanyi coming in 2nd at 181.5 million. The win made Meiqi the center of the show's debuting group, "Rocket Girls 101". She blossomed as an idol during her time in the group, with her dancing abilities drawing special attention. Her solo debut extended play sold 1 million copies in 20 minutes, to this day, it has sold over 2.3 million copies. She later extended the record, as her 2nd EP sold 1.43 million copies in just 8 minutes. She essentially went from a nondescript member of Cosmic Girls to the biggest female idol in China. To this day, it has sold 1.78 million copies.
Meng Meiqi performing at "Rave Now". February 1st, 2019. Once one of the least popular members from Cosmic Girls, she has become a big star since returning to China, breaking many sales records.
And no, contrary to what some may be thinking, Meiqi is not an exception, just the most successful example alongside Lay. Sally (Liu Xiening), from now-disbanded group Gugudan was a non-factor when she was part of it, but now she has returned to China, placed 6th on reality show "Produce Camp 2020" and debuted for their new group, "Bonbon Girls 303".. Old, more established famous idols aren't doing too bad year. The already mentioned Victoria Song, who was a mentor on the same show Sally took part of, and was mentioned by the contestant as a role model, released her solo album this year and became the fastest Chinese female artist to get a diamond certification. Meanwhile, in Korea, popular Chinese idols have largely disappeared. The few exceptions are (G)I-DLE member and Elkie's labelmate Yuqi and Everglow member and Meiqi's labelmate Yiren, who are both the most popular members of their respective groups, as both of them have bet on their variety personas to get around the unfriendly situation to Chinese idols in Korea. But for every Yuqi and Yiren there are 10 Elkies, and being stuck in a situation where you act in a drama, but don't get paid, you debut solo but no one gives you attention, especially on a group that has been doomed from the start like CLC, is not something you want to endure. May she find success elsewhere, far away from Cube's mismanagement.
No comments:
Post a Comment