Girl group Rania is on the move to promote overseas, even though it’s only been two months since their debut.
Rania will start with a showcase on July 16th in Bangkok, Thailand, after which, they’ll promote in Cambodia and Singapore for July. In August, they will stop by the Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, Laos, and Vietnam.
Their company said, “Hallyu’s strength is big. Their video had a ton of hits on YouTube. There are over 200 cover videos as well.”
They added, “We already had discussions for a CF contract with a Thai drink and network carriers. The team has a Thai member so they have received a lot of attention from the country.”
After arriving under a flurry of controversy with “Dr. Feel Good“, the Rania girls are back with follow-up promotions with their “Masquerade” track on tonight’s MBC “Music Core“.
“Masquerade” was written and produced by Teddy Riley, who also produced “Dr. Feel Good“.
An official stated, “‘Masquerade’ is a dreamlike song with a strong beat. Rania has prepared choreography that will make a strong impression.”
On June 10th, Rania made their return with their follow-up track, “Masquerade,” on KBS’s “Music Bank.” Following their performance, the girls sat down for an interview with TV Daily and shared their thoughts on their return.
The girls began, “It’s a stage we still feel nervous about, just like our debut. We’re a performance-geared group so we all want to show something amazing. Member T-ae injured her ankle while rehearsing for ‘Masquerade’ so she has to compress it with bandages to perform on stage. It’s really upsetting.”
T-ae revealed, “The choreography for ‘Dr. Feel Good‘ was difficult, but ‘Masquerade’ is even more difficult. I’m receiving treatment at the hospital so I will get better. It’s an injury, but I’m working harder to show that we don’t lack anything as a performance group.”
Rania continued, “We want to show something different from our debut, both in our image and our outfits. There was a sexually suggestive controversy, but we hope that people will take an interest in the concept that we hope to show.”
When asked to describe their style for “Masquerade”, the girls replied, “It’s a lot more detailed than ‘Dr. Feel Good.’ Performing with a mic is definitely harder than before. Through ‘Masquerade’, we hope to show that we have a powerful charm and energize the public as well.”
In her recent interview with Donga News, Rania’s Jooyi revealed that not only had she rejected a casting offer from YG Entertainment, but that she was also a potential member of 2NE1 as well.
Jooyi is a media music major at the Dongah Institute of Media and Art and was previously praised by Teddy Riley for having a “modern and powerful vocal talent.” Jooyi revealed, “I auditioned for YG Entertainment during my third year of junior high and passed up to the third round. Big Bang’s Daesung senior was overseeing the audition cycle, and I had even seen Minzy senior rehearsing in the training room. After I passed the third round, YG’s casting manager said to me, ‘We are making a female Big Bang, would you like to become our trainee?’”
She continued, “I think the group that I was offered to join at the time is the current 2NE1. I don’t regret the fact that I rejected the offer. I will work as hard as our 2NE1 seniors so that Rania can become a great girl group as well.”
Rania undoubtedly created an impact on the K-pop scene with their debut, as they’ve been turning heads with their provocative concept, earning them a lot of fans and a ton of criticism (as evidenced here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here).
The girls, their producer, and their company’s CEO have all been willing to stand by their sexy concept, while griping about regulations that did seemingly little to endear them to fans, both international and domestic. Reflecting over the criticisms though, I’ve found that many of the most common criticisms are rooted in sexism, racism, and xenophobia.
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Usually when we talk about the issue of sexism or misogyny, we refer to males looking down upon females as being the inferior sex; every time the issue comes up on allkpop, the women here take up arms and vehemently defend against any perceived slight, which is obviously understandable.
However, what doesn’t make sense is that the majority of the individuals who are labeling Rania as “sluts”, “whores”, “bitches”, or any other derogatory term used against females, are actually women themselves. The stark difference in treatment and response made me wonder what exactly was going on, because it made little to no logical sense.
What is it that makes women unite against men, but act utterly vile towards each other when it comes to respecting the choices of their fellow women? I just think it’s hypocritical for me to see so many women on this site fight for the rights and freedoms to be fierce and to be strong, but the moment another woman uses that platform to go out on an edge and say, “Here’s my sexual side”, she gets pummeled for it by other women.
Who’s holding who back in that case?
While there are admittedly many reasons that one could criticize a girl group (and believe me, I think I’ve seen them all by now), the level of nationalistic bias and overt racism towards those who back Rania is generally quite shocking, even for me.
While there are Korean girl groups who have used sexy concepts in the past and present, and while they do catch some heat, the level of vitriol that Rania gets just doesn’t match up.
Why?
Teddy Riley. Believe me, I wouldn’t make an issue about this if people didn’t spell it out for me, but with many of the harshest critics specifically mentioning the African American producer’s backing of Rania as a problem, it’s quite clear where their intentions lie.
With comments ranging from calling Teddy a “black rapist” to saying “America ruins everything K-pop stands for”, it’s quite clear that racism and nationalism are firmly in place. Now lest you claim those comments were outliers, they were taken from the top of Rania threads using the “Best Rating” (of which some were deleted, because please read the rules) sort option, so these are obviously not unsupported opinions.
Now I don’t need to tell you why automatically associating an African American with ‘rapist’ and ‘pimp’ is detestable, but what many of you need to realize is that criticizing his hip-hop and r&b background is to criticize K-pop as well, which, like it or not, is highly derivative of those two genres.
The argument about Americans ruining everything, and the disdain for the genres Teddy Riley comes from, is a perfect segue into my next point. There’s accusations abound that Rania’s American influence and seemingly Western stance on sexuality is the beginning of the end for K-pop.
To be frank, I find that stance absolutely ridiculous. For starters, K-pop, especially of late (do many of you even remember K-pop from a decade ago?), is already highly derived from American influences, and it’s not like Korean producers or artists hide that influence either. They openly recruit American choreographers and dance gurus, as well as cite their favorite artists as American performers; the fact that their music is so familiar to the Westernized audience is a big part of what powers K-pop’s international appeal.
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For those claiming that Rania are selling their bodies and selling their looks, well what exactly do you think pop music is? They sell it in a different way, sure, but all pop groups and idols sell their looks in some way as a method to gain popularity and monetary gain. If not, the industry would be full of vocalists, dancers, and rappers who are eons better in terms of pure skill, but not nearly as idol-looking as your favorites. Whether they sell sexuality, their face, their body, or their “innocence”, they are trying to appeal to your sensibilities through the same venue. If Rania are “prostitutes”, then you should re-consider what your favorites are as well.
Now if you want to be the morality police and tell everybody what can or cannot be done in K-pop or anything else, then consider how you would feel if your favorite idols were thrown into the same scenario.
Remember, morality is inherently subjective, so while it’s popular to throw down the gauntlet when the court of popular opinion is with you (as it seems to be with Rania), remember that everybody feels good about it until the hammer comes down on your idol.
That’s the problem with trying to police an inherently subjective topic, isn’t it? The grey area is huge since the facts are sorely lacking, and as such, those in power will use their position to push their own agendas, best interests of K-pop and the fans be damned.
Just because something makes you feel uncomfortable because you may not yet be prepared to deal with it, or because something is different, doesn’t make it inherently wrong, and it certainly doesn’t give you the right to drag down the discourse into misogyny, racism, and outlandish claims of an impending American-led K-pop implosion.
Don’t like it? Turn it off, it’s a free world, but whatever you do, don’t push your morality and your holier-than-thou attitude onto others. It’s obnoxious and unnecessary, and it reveals the ugly side of K-pop: its double standards.
Despite becoming embroiled in a series of controversies for their provocative concept, rookie girl group Rania chooses to stand by their sexiness despite it all. In their recent interview with JoongAng, the girls refer to it as “their weapon” in surviving the girl group rush. Check it out below!
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Q. “From the moment you debuted, you were put on the chopping block for sexually suggestive material.”
Saem: “We received a lot of criticisms for our cleavage and our thighs showing. Still, we don’t think that it’s enough to call it sexually suggestive. We worked so hard on our song and choreography, it filled us with regret to see people accusing us of noise marketing. It couldn’t be helped when we changed up our choreography and our outfits.”
Q. “Is your sexiness a result of effort?”
T-ae: “Our average height is 169 cm, and we’re all very conscious of our bodies (laughter). A while ago, we heard that Tae Kwon Do was good for body management and we all decided to take lessons. One day in the future when we promote overseas, we’d love to introduce Tae Kwon Do to other countries.”
Q. “Teddy Riley, the producer for Michael Jackson, contributed to your debut single.”
Jooyi: “Not only Michael Jackson, but the Spice Girls, Pussycat Dolls, Rihanna, and other pop singers as well. ’Dr. Feel Good‘ is a hip hop and R&B track with an addictive and strong melody that makes it really sexy. Please look forward to poweful performances that contrast against other cute girl groups.”
Q. “You recorded your album in the States.”
Xia: “It took us about two weeks. It was very surprising for us as well because so many popular artists went in and out of the studio. One day, Puff Daddy’s twin daughters would come in with their mother. They were about five years old and had pig tails that were so adorable. They greeted us with shy ‘hellos’.”
Q. “How would you describe the strength of Rania?”
T-ae: “Out of our four years of training, we spent three of them specifically on our vocal training. That’s how focused we were with our vocals. We’re very prepared performance-wise, and of course, we’re confident that our visuals aren’t lacking compared to other girl groups as well (laughter).”
Q. “There are a lot of members with unique backgrounds.”
Riko: “I used to be a child actress and played the younger roles for Kang Soo Yeon, Kim Hee Sun, Bae Doo Na, and Kim Gyuri. During high school, I also taught Korean on Japan’s NHK for three years.”
Joy: “I’m from Thailand. My father’s a general and he was really against me going all the way to Korea to become a singer. After he found out that I was genuine, he finally let me pursue it.”
Q. “Baby V.O.X. is your senior, since you’re under DR Music, right?”
Di: “The day before our debut showcase, we heard that senior Kim EZ had a baby. Such good luck for us, right? Kan Mi Youn senior supports us as well, and Yoon Eun Hye senior said she’d support us aggressively. We’re all very thankful.”
After much buzz and over a year of anticipation, the ladies of Rania made their debut on today’s SBS’s Inkigayo with their debut single, “Dr. Feel Good“.
The group is comprised of Semi, Riko, Jui, Dee, Joy, T-ae, and Xia; Joy is from Thailand, and Riko is a Korean-Japanese. The girls are reportedly fluent in English, Chinese, Thai, Japanese, and Korean.
“Dr. Feel Good” delivers a powerful sound with an addictive melody, a combination that Teddy Riley assures can’t be found in other girl groups. Despite his busy schedule, Teddy Riley also took time to direct everything from their music, stage concept, choreography, and outfits.
Girl group Rania has been headlining for their racy choreography and look, which they were able to deliver in its original form for their “M! Countdown” debut on April 14th. However, they were forced to switch up some parts after KBS announced that they would not allow girl groups to go up on stage if they were deemed as too “provocative”. Raina ended up fixing a total of 10 parts that KBS had problems with, so that they could make their appearance today.
Starting with their outfits, Raina’s garter belts were taken out, and a cloth will be replacing the area that exposes their cleavage. The girls will also be wearing leggings with their skirts/shorts.
In addition, Rania decided to take out the more sexy parts of their dance, and replace it with a 25-second long high note to emphasize their vocal talents.
Their agency, DR Music, explained, “It’s upsetting that we can’t show everything we prepared, but we feel that it’s actually a great opportunity to show that the girls have what it takes to succeed with skill.”
Commenting on the drastic choreography changes, the representatives continued, “Teddy Riley fully believes that choreography and outfit is a major part of a performance. He directed both concepts, and when told of the restrictions the girls were facing in Korea, he said that it could not be helped. He did not, however, agree to the views.”
They continued, “Teddy Riley said that in order for K-Pop to advance more quickly into other parts of the world, such restrictions must be lifted and put in a positive light.”
After much buzz and over a year of anticipation, the ladies of Rania finally make their debut on today’s KBS’s Music Bank with their debut single, “Dr. Feel Good“.
The group is comprised of Semi, Riko, Jui, Dee, Joy, T-ae, and Xia; Joy is from Thailand, and Riko is a Korean-Japanese. The girls are reportedly fluent in English, Chinese, Thai, Japanese, and Korean.
“Dr. Feel Good” delivers a powerful sound with an addictive melody, a combination that Teddy Riley assures can’t be found in other girl groups. Despite his busy schedule, Teddy Riley also took time to direct everything from their music, stage concept, choreography, and outfits. Check out their debut stage below!
Ever since girl group Rania finally unveiled themselves earlier this week, the topic of their provocative choreography and stage outfits became the most debated issue amongst K-Pop fans. Although they debuted on Mnet yesterday, they still have three more public broadcast programs to go, leading many to wonder how they’ll fare with KBS, MBC, and SBS’s strict regulations.
On April 8th, a representative of DR Music responded to the concerns through BNT News by stating, “First of all, thank you for your interest in Rania’s debut. We did not intend for this controversy to occur. As the song itself is composed by a foreign producer, we merely came up with a choreography and wardrobe that best fit to the song’s concept.”
They continued, “Even without such a controversy, Rania is a talented group in terms of vocal skills, so we’re very upset that this is occurring.”
When asked about the girls’ debut on “Music Bank” today, he revealed, “We have already finished the dry rehearsal. The amount of skin exposure is about the same as Mnet yesterday, but we’ve put the focus on a jacket with accessories. We’ve already produced the outfits prior to their debut, so we cannot change anything just for their public broadcast debuts.”
When asked if they would change their choreography or outfits if requested by KBS, he replied, “It’s upsetting, but because Rania is a rookie girl group, we are willing to change it up to a certain point if they become a problem.”
Do check back for their “Dr. Feel Good” Music Bank debut stage on April 8th.
