[Sunday日Culture] Mom's 'K-Dol Love' Featured in Japanese TV Campaign

Tokyo Gas airs story of a mother captivated by Hallyu
Korean idols and Samgyetang also featured

Do you have a favorite celebrity or character? When I was in school, Japanese idols like Arashi were very popular. Nowadays, the status of Korean idols such as BTS is so high that I often hear about Korean idol groups from my Japanese friends rather than the other way around.

You might be wondering what this is about all of a sudden. The culture I’m introducing today is exactly the idol fandom culture. Recently, Tokyo Gas aired a TV campaign featuring the story of a mother in her 30s who became obsessed with Korean idols. After seeing Yeo Hwanwoong, a member of the Korean idol group ONEUS, she instantly felt “This is the one.” By liking the idol, she regained vitality in her life. She started learning Korean, made new friends of the same age who approached her saying, “Actually, I like this member too,” and prepared to travel to Korea alone to attend a concert. The title of this campaign is “Mom’s Fandom Activities” (母の推し活).

Capture of Tokyo Gas TV campaign scene. (Photo by Tokyo Gas YouTube)

Although I softened the term to “fandom activities,” the word “Oshikatsu” (推し活) introduced in the Tokyo Gas campaign title is the Japanese expression for what is commonly called “fangirling” or “fanboying.” “Oshi” (推し) means “to push” and refers to the member you support the most, i.e., your “favorite.” The member you like second most is called “Nioshi” (二推し), meaning “second push.” There are other terms as well, such as “Zen’oshi” (全推し), meaning “all push,” for fans who like all members of a group, and “DD,” derived from “Daremo Daisuki” (誰も大好き), meaning “I love everyone,” referring to fans who like any idol. This is very similar to Korea. Since idol culture has been popular in Japan for a long time with groups like AKB48, many of the terms used by idol fandoms are common to both countries.

In Korea, it is currently popular to decorate celebrity photo cards with stickers and take 인증 shots while eating. Although a bit of an older trend, in Japan there is the “Oshi Glass,” where fans decorate transparent cups with the names of their favorite celebrities and drink beverages from them. It even ranked in the top trends chosen by teenagers in 2021. Looking at photos of Oshi Glasses posted on social media, many cups printed with Korean idol names can be seen. This really shows the popularity of Korean idols.

BTS Oshiguras featured in a Japanese online entertainment media. (Photo by bis web homepage)

To find out how popular Korean idols actually are, I asked someone working in the domestic entertainment industry. The person said, “There are many times when the number of Japanese viewers for idol survival programs or clip videos surpasses that of Korean viewers.”

So, which groups are popular in Japan? Here is an interesting poll result that gives us a glimpse. A Japanese K-pop specialized media conducted a survey asking, “If you were to debut as a Korean idol in Japan, which agency would you want to join?” HYBE, home to BTS and LE SSERAFIM, took first place with 239 votes (47.51%). Second was JYP Entertainment with 130 votes (25.84%), third was SM Entertainment with 74 votes (14.71%), and fourth was YG Entertainment with 60 votes (11.93%).

Slogan of the Tokyo Gas TV campaign. It says, "We want to support a tomorrow that is true to you." (Photo by Tokyo Gas YouTube)

Returning to the Tokyo Gas advertisement’s ending, the mother who had been eagerly counting down the days to the concert falls ill with COVID-19. Seeing her discouraged, her daughter turns on the gas stove and cooks samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup), comforting her mother to regain strength. This made me once again feel the power of the Korean Wave.

When I’m feeling down, I also gain strength by looking at the face of my favorite idol on my phone’s wallpaper. Just seeing them makes me smile, wondering how such a person can exist on this earth. Whether it’s a celebrity or a character, having someone who transcends nationality and brings energy to the same daily routine is truly a great source of strength.