Uee on the 'Honey Thighs' nickname: the stardom and scars it left

Singer and actress Uee opened up about her complex feelings regarding the iconic nickname 'Honey Thighs' that defined an era for her, shedding light on the public's gaze toward stars and the hidden side of a culture centered on physical appearance. While the nickname served as a decisive catalyst for gaining public recognition, she confessed that the objectification of her appearance and online ridicule, which she had to endure at a young age, led to significant psychological burdens, drawing empathy from viewers.

Appearing on the tvN variety show 'Table Tales' broadcast on the 20th, Uee candidly shared the backstory behind the 'Honey Thighs' moniker that represented her during her early debut days.

During the broadcast, when MC Lee Young Ja mentioned Uee's representative nickname from the past, Se-ri Pak lightened the mood with her signature witty humor, saying, "Am I not the standard for 'Honey Thighs'? No matter how I look at it, I'm not sure if Uee is quite that much of a 'Honey Thighs.'"

In response, Uee explained the background of how the nickname was born.

She recalled, "There was a girl group ranking around 2009, and I wasn't number one back then. But after performing the Beyoncé dance, I gained the nickname 'Honey Thighs.'"

At the time, Uee built an image that differentiated her from the slim-centered beauty standards of existing girl groups through her toned lower body emphasizing healthy beauty and dynamic performances. The expression 'Honey Thighs' subsequently spread as a buzzword in popular culture symbolizing a healthy and elastic physique, establishing itself as her trademark.

However, the nickname that became a public brand acted as another burden for the individual.

Uee revealed, "While it was a thankful nickname that allowed me to be known to the public, I also suffered wounds at the young age of 20 to 21. Photos with honey pots photoshopped onto my face or thighs were even circulating around."

This is noteworthy in that it aligns with the structure of the entertainment industry, where parts of a star's body are consumed like 'content.' In pop culture studies, the phenomenon of consuming celebrities based on specific body parts is interpreted as an aspect of 'body fragmentation' or 'objectification.' When specific physical characteristics are excessively highlighted over a star's individuality and capability, the person is placed in a dual situation where they gain the positive effect of public recognition while simultaneously having to endure side effects such as continuous evaluation, ridicule, and image fixation.

Uee also stated that as time passed, she tried to accept such experiences more positively.

She said, "If you take it positively, doesn't it also mean having a healthy beauty?" but added, "After I lost weight, I heard the question 'Why did your thighs get so thin?' more than anything else."

She continued, "That's why I end up working out my lower body even harder," conveying the realistic struggles felt between the image formed by the public and the responsibility to manage herself.

These remarks serve as an example of how the public's gaze toward celebrities is changing with the evolution of the times. While in the past, the consumption of provocative nicknames and appearance-centered characters was naturally accepted through variety shows and online culture, recently, social awareness is spreading that one must be wary of excessive evaluation and caricature of body images. In particular, as the evaluation of appearance that young celebrities must endure from their early debut can lead to psychological burdens, the need for a more mature fan culture and media environment is being steadily raised.

Uee debuted in 2009 as a member of the group After School and established herself as one of the key figures leading the second-generation K-pop girl group heyday through consecutive hits such as 'Diva,' 'Because of You,' and 'Bang!'. Since then, she has expanded her field of activity into acting, building her position as a multi-entertainer who moves between being a singer and an actress by showing stable acting skills in various works such as 'Ojakgyo Brothers,' 'Hogu's Love,' 'My Only One,' and 'Hyoseom's Survival.'