Kyla debuted as a member of Pristin on March 21st, 2017. Then the band was officially disbanded on May 24th, 2019. When appearing with other Pristin members, Kyla always received blasphemies and bad comments about her appearance. Because being a K-Pop idol does not only require to have a good voice, singing and dancing skills, but as a member of a girl group or a boy band you are also ‘forced’ to meet the visual standards set in South Korea. For example, for female idols, they are required to have a slim body, white skin, and long legs, or rather appear perfect to meet the standards of beauty set in the community. Kyla had always been a target of netizens in South Korea because she was considered to have a too fat body and she did not meet the standards of beauty set for a K-Pop idol. In this article, Channel-Korea will provide you with a detailed rundown of everything about the youngest former member of Pristin, Kyla’s weight loss, and her transformations throughout the years. So, stay tuned!
Former Pristin Member Kyla Being Body-Shamed by Netizens
Appearance is important if you want a career as an artist in South Korea. Most members of the girl groups have a slim and slender body. As you know, Koreans adore the perfection of the body. Especially if it is related to the body of an artist and an idol. Not infrequently because Korean netizens’ comments are indeed very outrageous, an artist is willing to go on an all-out diet in order to form an ideal body. Ideally of a thin and slim body. This made a former Pristin member named Kyla to be considered fat by netizens. Previously, Kyla had been a target of netizens because she weighed more than other K-Pop stars. Kyla was considered fat to be an idol. In fact, the youngest former member of Pristin felt quite depressed as a result. When Pristin made a comeback with the song “We Like,” apparently, the spotlight of Korean fans and netizens was still not far from the body postures of its members, especially Kyla. Looking at this Pristin youngest member, Kyla, netizens debated matters related to the ideal size for an idol. Netizens pointed out that Kyla still feels “bigger” than other members and claimed, “she is ruining the group’s visual balance.” Netizens on the Pann site claimed that Kyla needs a diet because an idol is considered to be “selling visuals.” “She makes the same money as other kids who work hard to lose weight, isn’t that unfair?” “Stop with the excuse that she is still small ㅋ ㅋㅋㅋ There are many people younger than her who take better care of their bodies, why do you consider them underage? Do you think that Korean idols are not thin? They do that to get money well; don’t you know what it means to be an idol? ^^” “It’s true she doesn’t look good.” “I’m not asking you to stay thin. Lose weight to the point where you will look better,” and many more. On the other hand, some believed it is time to break the idols’ stereotypes and ideal size. These netizens claimed there is nothing wrong with Kyla’s figure, because an idol’s main job is singing and dancing, and because of that, they shouldn’t be judged too much based on their physical appearance. “Idols are also human, why do you nag about someone else’s weight?” “Why are you worried about celebrities? Worry about your own weight!” “Our country is too focused on appearance. So what if the idols are a little fat? It’s okay as long as they have talent.” “I mean, how thin do you want to be?” Ignored when doing fan meetings
Kyla was ignored by the mastermind fan-site when it was her turn for individual poses! At the PRISTIN fan signing event held on September 10th, 2017, Kyla was ignored by several fans who came. When it was Kyla’s turn to do individual poses, some fan-site masterminds (fans of idol fan-site) actually directed their cameras to other PRISTIN members. Kyla long-running bad criticism Since PRISTIN’s debut in March 2017, Kyla has been quite often criticized for the proportion of her body that is considered not to meet the beauty standards for an idol. Not just dropping negative comments, but some fans even uploaded photos showing the comparison of Kyla’s body shape with other PRISTIN members, especially during PRISTIN’s comeback, SCHXXL OUT. “She is destroying the visual balance of PRISTIN,” commented one netizen. Other fans suggested Kyla to run a diet program. “As an idol, you sell your visuals. If you can’t take good care of your body, you don’t have the right to be an idol.”
Netizens Comments
Pann: What’s so fat about Kyla? “I’m posting this because I really have no idea. Isn’t Kyla considered average?… I feel like Korea is a country that puts way too much pressure on women. Will there ever be a day where thin is the only standard? Kyla’s only 16 or 17, what more do you expect from her at that age? Her job is literally to sing and dance on stage, why does she need to be thin for that? I’m just worried for her because I wonder how hard these hate comments must be.” –
- [+303, -60] She’d be considered big even among non-celebrities; are there only fatties on Pann or something?
- [+255, -36] Kyla would be considered average if she was a non-celebrity but she’s considered fat among idols. People always argue that idols are people too and yeah they’re people but they’re not like the average person. Idols are products that are showcased to people and if they’re no different from the average person, then why doesn’t everyone just become an idol too? Kyla doesn’t manage herself compared to her other members and I think she’s doing more harm for the group than good. I remember seeing a fan-cam where Kyla’s trying to act cute but the camera was shooting the other members. She needs to realize her situation. And Wendy’s situation is different from Kyla’s ㅋㅋㅋ Wendy got a ton of hate from antis whereas even Kyla’s fans are showing concern about her weight. Kyla needs someone to give it to her harsh so that she can start managing herself. It’s just the way idol culture is. Instead of changing the way idol culture has been, Kyla has a lot more to gain by just changing herself… Stop blindly shielding her and give her some words of advice instead.
- [+190, -11] She’s chubby yeah but she gets way too much hate than what it’s worth.
- [+89, -1] Kyla wouldn’t be considered thin even among non-celebrities… and the reason she gets hate is that she doesn’t show any effort. Wendy and Joy and even Twice’s Jihyo, A Pink’s Eunji, and AOA’s Seolhyun are losing more and more weight whereas Kyla is gaining more and more.
- [+60, -3] Am I the only one who prefers thinner bodies? I think Joy and Wendy look better after losing the weight than a body like Kyla’s.
- [+49, -13] Didn’t she gain weight because she got sick? Her body wouldn’t be able to handle dieting on top of a girl group schedule on top of her illness. She injured her brain. I understand the comments telling her to manage herself since she’s an idol but it’s unfair to blame the weight gain on her when it’s because she got sick.
- [+47, -3] How many of you are pigs to think this is normal? She’d be considered fat even among non-celebrities.
- [+41, -1] She’s definitely not average.
- [+40, -4] Stop shielding her. Her fans have already turned their backs on her. It doesn’t matter how hard the other Pristin members try to get fans when all their efforts are always buried under topics about Kyla’s weight. At this point, Kyla needs to lose weight. She can’t promote like this for the rest of her life. She needs to do it for herself.
- [+25, -0] I’ve seen several of Pristin’s fan-cams so what exactly is Kyla good at then? Can’t manage her body, has no singing talents, has no visuals, what is she?
