On July 2, 2021, the B\u2019AI Global Forum held \u00a0the fourth instalment of talk series on \u201cInequality, Stereotypes, and Stigma in Leisure.\u201d In this meeting, Ms. Mana Kamioka from Keio University, who studies the Japanese idol industry (Japanese often refer to the so-called pop stars as \u201cidols\u201d), talked about the repression that occurs in their labor, and in particular the problems related to \u201cforced heterosexism\u201d that lies behind it.<\/p>\n
First, she explained that Japanese idols, similar to care workers, are oppressed in various norms. According to her, they are easily replaceable because they often pose unskilled labor and encourage their fans to consume the process of their personal growth. Moreover, they need to expose their entire daily lives and therefore prioritize entertainment activities including \u201cunscheduled shootings.\u201d As a result, despite its piece-work system, they cannot freely get income from other part-time jobs, so they cannot help relying on support from their families to make ends meet. Behind this, Kamioka analyzes, there is the structurally imprinted sense of the power relationships such as \u201cmy production company allows me to work.\u201d<\/p>\n
She also pointed out that many fans portray Japanese idols as objects of pseudo-romance. Since this image is supported by heterosexism and gender binary, the female idol groups such as AKB48 are forbidden to have romantic relationships. On the contrary, she introduced the idol group \u201cNichome no Sakigake Coming Out<\/em>,\u201d whose members are all gays. While taking advantage of the needs to consume abstract emotions such as empathy and healing, this group focuses on music rather than pseudo-romance, as it straightforwardly incorporates the anxieties of sexual minorities into their music.<\/p>\n Overall, from her presentation, we could understand that the idol industry packages personalities as entertainment, making the structural repression and distortions behind it invisible. And then, we discussed the way of consumption as well as the norms on the producers\u2019 side. The issue on care workers and their labor in such popular culture needs to be examined more, and this research meeting was an excellent opportunity to recognize how important this issue is.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" On July 2, 2021, the B\u2019AI Global Forum held \u00a0the f<\/p>\n