It's not high, it's insanely high.
Let's say there are 4 thousand idols actively promoting in Korea (I believe the number is actually much lower than this). 1 death per thousand people is an absolute disaster.
The country with highest suicide rate in the world is Lesotho, with 0,87 deaths for every 1 thousand people. Heck, Korea itself has a rate of 0,21
kpop idol suicide rate is not that much different that hollywood celebrity suicide rate.
Display MoreK-pop has a pretty high suicide rate…
The fact that we lost Jonghyun, Sulli, Goo Hara and now Moonbin does make me look at the industry in a much more different light.
It’s obvious that a lot of idols are struggling deeply but it’s all packaged with a shiny bow and glitter wrapping paper.
Sometimes it does scare me, I love Jennie for instance and the amount of hate she gets is staggering. I actually see some parallels with her and Sulli a lot and it terrifies me.
Probably not healthy to think this way, but I do think it has made me more aware and more empathetic to idols (even if I don’t stan them)
Does it scare me? Yes and no. Why because as a Korean myself we have become desensitized to it. Why? Because of how stressful and hard mode life is in Korea that suicide is just Tuesday for most as we have the highest suicide rates of any Asian country and nearly the highest suicide rates world wide. This isn't just a idol problem its a national crisis problem. Being an idol just adds all the bs of being korean 100x i often wonder why they do it, knowing the risks.
It's not disproportionately higher than that of other industries in Korea. We just don't hear about it because idols are famous and everyone else isn't.
It scares me in the sense that these are idols we've come to learn about and love. As expected, the thought of losing them is hard.
But no, I don't think the rate is somehow disproportionately higher. It just seems that way due to the shock factor, as K-pop is portrayed as euphoria and perfection much of the time. Any incident that's out of the norm will get more attention.
We're likelier to lose someone we personally know due to suicide.
It's easy to blame tangible things like industry practices and cyberbullying, but we don't know what a person is struggling with mentally. If we want the best for idols, I think it's much more effective to normalize talking about mental health so that this encourages them to seek help if needed. It also encourages their companies to have mental health professionals readily available. Not only would this change the landscape of the K-pop industry, but it would also shift things on a societal scale.
it's the social culture of SK that scares me
Hmm suicide has always plagued the entertainment scene. Even if we consider Korea’s suicide rate is high when it comes to the entertainment scene of itself the suicide rate is high all over the world. When chester bennington from Linkin Park passed away I was so shocked because he was the first star whom I “stanned” and followed along since I was a kid.
I think the chances of suicide in Entertainment is always high because it’s the nature of the job. I cannot say I’m particularly “scared” because it’s kpop.
I, in general, worry about the toxic nature of entertainment and hope for better times. But beyond that I don’t let it mess with me because it’s how entertainment works and we have to be cognizant of that and not get too involved with famous people that it would affect us on a personal level.
kpop idol suicide rate is not that much different that hollywood celebrity suicide rate.
Then we have a social problem with the entertainment industry, which also must be properly addressed
Display MoreK-pop has a pretty high suicide rate…
The fact that we lost Jonghyun, Sulli, Goo Hara and now Moonbin does make me look at the industry in a much more different light.
It’s obvious that a lot of idols are struggling deeply but it’s all packaged with a shiny bow and glitter wrapping paper.
Sometimes it does scare me, I love Jennie for instance and the amount of hate she gets is staggering. I actually see some parallels with her and Sulli a lot and it terrifies me.
Probably not healthy to think this way, but I do think it has made me more aware and more empathetic to idols (even if I don’t stan them)
she has parents that loves her.
and i think Jennie is smart enough to know that she can get out without leaving this world. Or at least i hope so.
Suicide rates are going up among younger generations, like 15-29 year olds, I think it's the fourth most common cause of death as of 2023. (Older generations have other kind of triggers.) In my country there are a lot of factors but within younger generations social media causes higher peer pressure than within former generations. So I would say I am worried more about the factors and this is why I get incredibly dissapointed for example with internet trolls and self-made people-critics who think they have to "put everyone in their places" on the internet "because they know better" and "because they have OPINIONS with caps". They are part of the problem as psychological studies prove that the stress they cause online filter trought 100% to real life. I do feel bad for kpop idols and I do feel bad for general population too. I think the cause of suicide for an idol and for other peers are mostly the same, we just only see the idols. And their suicide shocks us because we don't see their true selves.
Then we have a social problem with the entertainment industry, which also must be properly addressed
not everyone is built to handle the limelight.
It's the whole social structure that contributes to SK high suicide rate. Those four names just happens to be idols.
Does the company or country care about it? Are there counseling, programs, or even healthy discussion regarding it? Is mental health being taken seriously over there? I don't know, but I don't think so.
What worst are those behind keyboards and electronic screens, keep spouting in hates. Contributing to this factor. Their movies and kdramas of bullying are representation of their society. What more ironic is that, some of us audiences watches those movies and dramas, cheered for the 'hero' or 'heroin' to stop the bullies or get revenge on them, AND THEN we go back out in the real world and starts cyberbullying other celebrity. It is just so tone deaf.
There's a difference between bantering with people on forum and directly going into celebrity social media, news articles, or starting untrue rumors (youtube). SK has their own problem, but as international fans, can't we at least help them out a little by not being a shitty person to other idols/entertainers? Or actually, just don't be a shitty person altogether?
It doesn't scare me as such, but it does concern me. That country seems to have a lot of issues and the high rate of suicides particularly in the K pop and entertainment industry is worrying. Mental health in Korea like everywhere is never taken seriously until somebody does take their own life. I do know as I suffer from it myself. People tend to trivialise it and suggest to just go and get some counselling. Well, here's the thing, I've had counselling all my life and it's never done a scrap of good. I do much better in coping on my own than waste my time on amateurs. There is too much pressure placed on idols to perform well and with the long hours and gruelling schedule, it's no wonder they get depressed. Something needs to be done or else the suicide rate will continue to climb. I'm saddened more than scared.
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