True Life Seek

First, let me point out that I am not well-versed in LGBT issues in Japan (and other countries). If anyone can recommend me anything to read, I’d appreciate it.

This started off as a review for Koda Kumi’s “TABOO” PV. I’ll have to get into that review another day. The focus shifted more towards the prevalence, or lack thereof, of LGBT personalities in the Japanese entertainment world. I can’t think of many LGBT idols/celebrities or situations where the intent wasn’t exploitation, be it fanservice or for comedic effect. The sincerity behind Goto Maki starring in Yubi (2006) was legit, but that movie had plenty of problems (which I’ll save for another day). I’m willing to claim ignorance as I haven’t seen enough or don’t know enough Japanese pop culture history, even after all these years, to fully understand the situation here. I am just reacting to what I have seen so far, perhaps for reference. And for now, I’m saying that it is not “normal,” or acceptable, for idols to be LGBT.

And that doesn’t sit very well with me.

Fanservice and exploitation go hand-in-hand for me. I have nothing against fanservice. Some people may not like it, claiming it is illegitimate or immoral. I can only say that I have a different perspective of this world than these people. I have heard that it takes no talent or it is easy to exploit one’s sex. I find this argument to be completely ridiculous. If it was easy to be good at selling sex, no one would stand out amongst the crowd for it. I think the likes of Koda Kumi prove that there is an art to selling sex.

I need to clarify “selling sex,” as I think there are preconceived notions when one uses that phrase. I don’t think that “selling sex” is simply showing off one’s body. I think celebrities and idols who explicitly say that they are modest and will not show off their body are selling sex. They are selling a conservative sexual identity. To that effect, does everyone sell sex? It all depends on your (the fan) interest in a personality. If you have an interest in whether someone has a free, closed or no sexual identity, they are “selling sex” to you. I consider sexual identity to be an integral part of a person’s, not just celebrities, personality. Again, a sexual identity can be anything - free, closed, none, whatever – but it is something that I find interesting when learning about people. So to me, everyone sells sex.

Back to the fanservice, I have no problem with it. When AKB48 or the Wonder Girls feel up each others’ legs, I find this to be entertaining. When Hey! Say! Jump! members tease at grabbing each others’ private parts, I think it is engaging. That are hinting and teasing at a taboo action. The appeal is not wanting to see them make out with each other – well – but being, or at least hinting at being, deviant.

Let me stop for a moment to talk about Arihara Kanna. I have never gone over why I think it’d be so great for Kanna to be a lesbian. This deviant behavior is exactly why. Uniformity is big in the idol world, so for one to drastically against the grain is very appealing to me. What would be more against the grain than a lesbian idol?

Is being a LGBT idol deviant behavior? You betcha! Sure there is some leeway in the appearance and personalities of idols, but they all fall under very formulaic guidelines. For the most part, they have to look and act a certain way, both on and off the stage. One of the major restrictions regards the idol’s sexual identity. There is a “pure” image that idols are expected to adhere to, and I’m assuming many of these idols have to repress or hide their sexual identities because of it. The consequences of not doing this, even by doing something as harmless as dating, can end up in suspensions or firings. There is an underlining assumption behind all of this, one that I find a little bothersome.

Idols are expected to be straight.

I am basing this on interviews that idols take. After all, my concern here is with idol personalities, not whether or not the idols are actually LGBT. Is this a cultural thing? I guess so, but it’s certainly not limited to Japan if it is. Let’s look an example of this. The questions may seem innocent enough, but I think that often the things that are “innocent” or the things that we take for granted are very telling.

In this interview that I jacked from veoh, Aoki Sayaka and THAT GUY of Music Fighter talk to Sugaya Risako about boys in her school. Please ignore Risako’s stunning lack of personality. Take what you will from this, but notice that the hosts are the ones that bring up boys. The hosts are the ones that ask Risako if she has been been approached by any boys. The hosts are the ones that ask if any boys have asked Risako out. I’m not saying that the hosts were wrong in these assumptions. The problem is that this assumption occurs with both male and female idols and the answers are all expected to be the same. Interviews like this are not uncommon.

Imagine what their reactions would have been had Risako said “no, no boys have asked me out, but a female classmate has asked me out.”

As idols get older, many are questioned about finding a husband, and subsequently get teased if they cannot find one. Nakazawa Yuko gets this treatment a lot. So let’s play this out. Imagine Morning Musume were to visit Utaban for an interview where they get to talk (I know that it is hard to imagine that, but try). Imagine the following scenario play out:

Nakai Masahiro: Takahashi Ai, you are now 22 and pretty old for idol standards. Your career has to be coming to an end soon. What are your plans after you graduate Morning Musume?

Takahashi Ai: I hope to find a husband and settle down to experience family life!

No one would be taken aback if this happened.

Now, imagine this:

Nakai Masahiro: Takahashi Ai, you are now 22 and pretty old for idol standards. Your career has to be coming to an end soon. What are your plans after you graduate Morning Musume?

Takahashi Ai: I hope to find a female partner and settle down to experience family life!

Well, that changes everything. What would the reaction be? Shock? Anger? Acceptance? I’m sure there are some fans who would accept this. How many are there that would though? More importantly, what would be her company’s reaction to this? In the first case, it’d be a regular interview. In the second case, would people not go apeshit?

I have to bring up a dated entry by Vulpi at DEKOBOKO17, one where she talks about the Arihara Kanna lesbian rumors in here. The focus of the entry is more about how Kanna appeals to Vulpi due to these rumors, but a part of it talks about some Interweb reactions that she read. She links to the following video:

http://www.intlwota.com/broomhead/09/24/Kanna-_.flv
What is interesting here is the reaction of her fellow °C-ute members to Kanna saying she “likes girls.” They made a big deal about her comment. Would the reaction have been the same had Kanna said she “likes boys”?

These are all very hypothetical situations and rhetorical questions; I haven’t proven much by bringing them up. We’d have to see them play out to get any real answers from them. Since that is impossible, I can only assume. And I assume that idols are expected to fit the pure idol image, which would mean that they have to be, or pretend to be, straight.

Why does this matter? If idols are supposed to embody, as I’ve learned, “ideal” traits, both in appearance and personality, is this not worrisome? Is it merely a marketability problem? That is to say: the pure image of idols is what sells, so that is why it exists. In that case, I’d ask why is it that the pure idol image sells? I have to learn more to properly answer these questions. But for now, what do you think?

Posted on September 24th, 2008 by broomhead. Filed under Article, Idols.
Tags: AKB48, Aoki Sayaka, Arihara Kanna, Berryz Koubou, DEKOBOKO17, Goto Maki, Hey! Say! Jump!, Koda Kumi, LGBT, Morning Musume, Music Fighter, Nakai Masahiro, Nakazawa Yuko, sex, sexual identity, Suzuki Airi, TABOO, Takahashi Ai, Utaban, Vulpi, Wonder Girls, Yubi, °C-ute