Visual kei vs. K-Pop

I'll try to be as unbiased in this post as possible, because the comments I saw on this particular Youtube video just freakin' pissed me off. I'll be honest, I like both visual kei and K-pop, but I like visual kei more. I'm basically an anything-goes person, and where music is concerned, as long as I like it, I don't care about language, genre and/or country of origin.


In general, this is my opinion: visual kei music spans a rather wide range of music genres, but their bands are usually made up from a basic form of a drummer, a vocalist, two guitarists and a bassist. Hence, their music are more concentrated to the quality of the guitar and vocal sounds. K-pop is in general more dance-friendly, their groups are usually large and are more centered towards individual vocal ability and dance performances. Their genre is obviously pop, but sometimes interlaced with a few elements of other genres.


I discovered visual kei when I was 13 and got hooked. It was a suddenly blast of inspiration - I liked rock (which many of the bands provided me with), the way their make-up, hairstyles and costumes looked flawless, and just the feeling of being a fan of something so unique was beautiful.


K-pop I discovered later, which was when Sorry Sorry by Super Junior got popular in Malaysia. At first I didn't really catch on to the "trend", but I found the music getting more and more catchy. K-pop slowly grew around the world, especially in Malaysia. I'm no hardcore fan, but I do enjoy their music, their dance moves.


I'm no hardcore fan of both sides - I get occasional cravings for both types of music every now and then. However, if I were asked to choose one I really liked, I would definitely choose visual kei. Why? Because visual kei changed my life - I started learning make-up, took up the guitar (though I haven't touched it for over a year already), and most importantly found the key in striking up a relationship with my current BF.

Here are the songs/artists they compared against each other:

1. Pink Masquerade by SuG vs Heartbreaker by G-Dragon

Completely irrelevant to each other except perhaps the background of the music video.

2. Senkou by Alice Nine vs Man Man Ha Ni? by U-Kiss

I also do not see anything that is worth comparing.

3. Destiny {The Lovers} by Versailles by Raining by FT Island

HOW?! Versailles - neo-classical aristocratic French style. FT Island - K-pop style. Music-wise, also nothing too similar to compare.

4. Love Scream Party by SuG vs BinGeul {Round and Round} by U-Kiss

LSP - catchy pop-y love song. BinGeul - techno-hip hop dance. Why?

5. Horizon by D'espairsRay vs Cry by MBLAQ

Dark VK vs dance pop.

6. You by KAT-TUN vs Love Girl by CNBlue

I have no comment on this one because KAT-TUN is J-pop, and I actually prefer Love Girl on this one.

7. Eve by Vidoll vs Rainism by Rain

I'm beginning to rest my case.

8. Invisible Wall by the GazettE vs 2PM Heartbeat Cover by No Min Woo

HOW THE HELL DID THIS GET COMPARED TO INVISIBLE WALL?! No Min Woo is obviously a talented guy, but really. What was the video creator thinking? Oh right, his username shows his utter devotion to him.

However, this wasn't what pissed me off. The video barely made me feel speechless. It was the comments that made me want to curse and swear. I'm not saying all K-pop fans are the same, but this guy was just offensive to me.

#1.
I know K-pop style and visual kei styles are almost completely different. However, it's called visual kei for a reason.

#2.
Visual kei is more popular than he thinks, though I will admit it's not as widespread as K-pop. K-pop is Korean popular music, it's name is self-explanatory. As I mentioned earlier, visual kei has more rock sounds, and hence is not everyone's cup of tea. K-pop itself is almost suitable for everyone - their music is really catchy and is played all over the place.

#3.
VISUAL KEI IS NOT A !@#$% COPY OF WESTERN GLAM-ROCK STYLE! He could at least make it sound more subtle by saying VK is inspired by Western glam-rock style. And FYI, ignorant Youtuber, there are many different types of visual kei styles, each one different from the other.

#4.
WEARING MAKE-UP AND HAVING ELABORATE HAIRSTYLES DO NOT MAKE THEM GLAM/TRANVESTITE DRAG QUEENS! Ever watched Bambi, ignorant Youtuber? "If you have nothing good to say, don't say anything at all." When have you seen them wearing wigs, wearing drag make-up and faking boobs? Please go Google drag queens and do your research before you even dare think of comparing VK musicians with drag queens.

#5.
Visual kei is a style culture, and different visual kei bands perform different genres. Some bands even play a multiple of genres, ranging from ballads to screamo. They are not limited to "powerpop-rock".


Like I said before, I like K-pop and visual kei. However, insulting visual kei musicians just because they wear more make-up, hairstyles and more elaborate costumes is unacceptable. Some may agree with this person, however to each his own - I prefer visual kei over K-pop, and you don't see me libeling and slandering K-pop fans and musicians.


I will continue loving visual kei, and I will also continue listening to K-pop, no matter how much some of their fans step on visual kei, when they obviously don't know enough about the genre.



DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT INTEND TO TRY TO PERSUADE/CHANGE OTHERS' OPINIONS ON ANY TOPIC. I ALSO DO NOT INTEND TO INSULT ANYONE WHO READS THIS POST. THIS ENTIRE POST IS ENTIRELY MY OPINION.