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Bisexual idol Wa$$up’s Jiae turns to fans to fund solo album as K-pop labels shun her

Fans of Jiae are infuriated as major K-pop companies continue to marginalize sexual minorities due to its clash with Korean culture

While the news of her initially coming out as bisexual may have made a lot of heads turn, Jiae (aka Ji Ae), former member of now-disbanded girl group Wa$$up (Wassup), has now revealed the struggles she is facing as a minority.

It is a well-known fact that K-pop is not the most accepting genre of music due to the strict Korean culture that all fans swear by. This is why, despite K-pop going global, very few K-pop idols have come out as homosexual, bisexual or pansexual among others.

After their disbandment in 2019, members of Mafia Records’ four-member girl group Wa$$up went on with their solo ventures, but Jiae, who came out as bisexual in January of 2020, started facing a lot of backlash in the Korean community due to her sexual orientation. Now as Jiae wishes to make her comeback as a singer, she has revealed the dark side of K-pop agencies that refuse to support her due to her sexual orientation.

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Wa$$up's Jiae asks fans to fund her solo debut

With fans coming to her support when she came out as bisexual, Jiae knows it is them she can rely on. On one hand, Jiae received a lot of support from fans online, but media outlets started calling her out for smoking and posting pictures holding a cigarette. Jiae was also in the news quite often as her photos with her then-girlfriend were scrutinized by media outlets as they tried to expose the identity of her partner. Now, more than a year following the news of her coming out as bisexual, Jiae is finally ready to make a comeback as a soloist.

In an Instagram post from February 11, Jiae announced her struggles in the industry, stating how her sexual orientation has hobbled her professional career.

In her post, she first talked about how she was a vocalist from Wa$$up in the past. She thanked all her fans for their support and patience. Jiae then said, “I have now finally taken the choice to make a solo album through fundings and donations.”

She said because of her sexual orientation she couldn’t get any support from K-pop companies. She then went on to reveal, “Making an album without an agency or entertainment company is close to impossible."

“As for who I am, a bisexual. The society would not give me the same chance as others do,” she said, exposing the marginalization faced by sexual minorities in the K-pop industry.

Jiae asks fans to support her debut

With only music giving her joy, Jiae revealed how it is necessary for her to work as a solo artist and told fans about her sheer will to never give up. Jiae said, “I wish to prepare the album through fundings and donation. I would really appreciate for the care and supports.” She concluded her statement by saying, “Once again, thank you and I promise I will bring good music in return. Your support means a lot to me.”

Jiae has launched her fundraising campaign for her 1st solo album production via the Makestar website. Her current goal is to generate at least 70K Korean Won (5,838 USD), half of which has already been raised due to the support of her fans.

The fundraising project started on February 11, 2022, and will last till March 31, 2022. Looks like, with the support of her dedicated fans, she will be soon able to reach her goal of approximately $6,000. Fans can support Jiae by donating here.

‘You have full support, Jiae’

The LGBTQIA+ community and allies are backing fans to help the idol fund her solo project. One user said, “You have full support!💗🏳️‍🌈” Another fan said, “Automatically supporting her & her solo career. no one should get cast aside for their sexuality.” One K-pop fan said, “Oh my ghad.. calling out all the stans who are out here waving their rainbow flags. we now actually have a kpop act who is publicly 'out', calling for help cause no company wants to support a queer artists!”

One fan pointed out, “And that's how bad are the companies that make their idols do "gays" things but when someone just come out they suddenly became blind.” One fan said, “Companies are real sh*t for hogging money for queerbaits but when someone is part of minority, they won't give support at all.” One user turned into a fan saying, “Her voice is absolutely gorgeous we shall be supporting!”

One fan said, “For anyone who sees this, jiae (former member of wa$$up) is one of the few openly lgbtq+ kpop idols! she has made a makestar for a solo album she wants to release so please support her because companies have been denying her since she’s bisexual.” Another fan said, “Jiae has spoken before how difficult it’s been for her being openly bisexual in the industry and how she hasn’t been accepted. She’s posted throwback content to her idol days so maybe that’s what’s getting her so down.”