In the true spirit of Sunmipop, the queen of the LGBT community has, once again, given the gays everything they want in ‘LALALAY’. And she means everything. Not just aesthetics, sick beats or even the killer wardrobe. Hot on the heels of yet another goddess-level comeback, Sunmi proudly reiterates her support for LGBT rights.
When I marked today’s date on my calendar in anticipation of ‘LALALAY’, I was going to publish thinly veiled screaming and crying in some semblance of a semi-coherent textual post. I mean, it’s still going to be questionable on the coherent front, but I’m not just going to talk about ‘LALALAY’. Instead, I’m going to talk about her perfect timing.
Because right now, Sunmi is sitting quite comfortably on top of the charts. Right now, she has Koreans watching her every move and scrutinising her every statement. And right now, that includes positive statements like these:
When asked about her LGBT fans, she said she believes in equality. She also said she disagrees with forcing one's belief and ideas on others when people are morally responsible and not harming anyone.
— KpopHerald (@Kpop_Herald) August 27, 2019
Sunmi herself said that ‘LALALAY’ has “a lot of meaning”. But you won’t even need colour-coded translations to tell that the song is determined to be bold. She’s saying: listen to me right now. Nothing you do is going to stop me from doing or saying what I mean to do or say on my own terms, even if you give me hell for it.
The fact that we got yet another killer track and music video out of it is the cherry on top.
Growing Support for LGBT Community in K-Ent
Sunmi definitely isn’t the only celebrity in the Korean entertainment industry who has done the same thing or even more than that. Musicians such as Holland and Marshall Bang are openly gay in an entertainment industry that regularly sells same-sex fan service but without the same level of genuine support.
I’m not saying that fan service isn’t something that should be done. Neither am I ignoring the possibility that some celebrities are understandably afraid or held back by upper management. Instead, what I’m doing is highlight the bravery of the rising few who won’t allow others to censor them. Chart-topping soloist and main vocalist of one of the biggest girl groups, Taeyeon, has been doing the same thing for years. Of course, it should also be noted that Sunmi has always been a bit of a Taeyeon fan girl. Seventeen’s main rapper Vernon is yet another prime example of a popular celebrity who recently expressed support for the LGBT community, too.
Let’s hope these are signs of greater things ahead, even if it’s unlikely to change laws and popular opinion overnight. We’re going to need all the help and positive energy we can get in a world where hate speech can land you in positions of power.
