Inside Japanese idol scene in Hong Kong: short skirts, anime costumes, devoted male fans – but it’s not about sex, they say
- The young female performers might speak little Japanese but their keen Hong Kong male fans don’t care as they dance along with moves learned online
- The scene still faces the same suspicions as its Japanese counterpart – that idols sell sex and mainly perform for socially awkward boys and men
In a live music venue hidden in a basement in Fortress Hill, a mainly residential area on Hong Kong Island, a group of schoolboys and a few middle-aged men have gathered in the dark. With glow sticks in their hands, they are waiting for young Hong Kong women who have styled themselves as Japanese idols to come on stage, as a violet spotlight sweeps across the modest venue.
Even before the music begins, the idol fans – often referred to as wotaku – are jostling for position near the front of the stage so they can be close as possible to their favourite performers. Others, perhaps less dedicated or more shy, have moved to the sides to make room for the wotaku’s wotagei, a ritualistic dance the most devoted wotaku perform in support of their idols.
The underground idol scene in Hong Kong emerged around seven to eight years ago and is much smaller than similar scenes in Taiwan and Japan, says Kana Cheung, manager of idol trio Cotton Candy. Hong Kong’s idol movement was more of an “underground” scene, she explains, as the performers did not publicise their shows and each only had a few dozen exuberant fans.
Apart from their costumes and the culture they have adopted, there is nothing Japanese about the Hong Kong idols. Most don’t even speak much Japanese. But they still face the same suspicions as their Japanese counterparts – that idols sell sex and mainly perform for socially awkward boys and men.
