Skimlinks is enabled
kot-headerlogo-01 A U

See Games Differently

Subscribe

How K-Pop Revived Black Sickness Masks In Japan

Brian Ashcraft Avatar
Brian Ashcraft
How K-Pop Revived Black Sickness Masks In Japan

It might be hot as hell in Australia, but for Japan it’s cold and flu season. That means people in Japan are wearing sickness masks in public. Either they are sick or are trying to avoid a cold.

The default is still the white sickness mask, but recently, black ones are becoming more popular among the country’s youth.

This recent trend in Japan appears to be K-pop powered.

https://twitter.com/a/status/1092335081639665664

During the past few years, when K-pop idols like boy band Shinee arrived in Japan, the popstars wore black sickness masks at the airport. (It’s unclear if Michael Jackson, who frequently travelled while wearing black sickness masks, was an inspiration.)

Black masks became popular because they could be a fashion accessory. White masks looked like something for patients or hospital staff. Other reasons for black masks’ popularity include that they make your face look smaller (a desirable trait in Japan and South Korea) than white ones do.

Another reason is that some masks have charcoal filters and claim to better protect against airborne illnesses. Then there is the way black masks can suit certain outfits.

The dark masks first started to catch on with K-pop fans in Japan as well as visual-kei types around 2014 and 2015.

https://twitter.com/a/status/691542944197664769

The promotional campaigns targeted visual-kei and goth types.

Some Japanese pop stars, like Tsuyoshi from Kinki Kids, also started wearing black masks, much to the delight of fans. Members of the Japanese boy band Kis-My-Ft2 also ditched their plain old white masks for the sleeker black ones.

Now, black masks are slowly starting to reach a wider audience. Within the past few months, Japanese TV programs have introduced the trend. Josei Seven, one of Japan’s most popular and longest-running women’s magazine, recently did an article on the “black mask boom,” drawing a direct line to K-pop fashion.

During the past few decades, black sickness masks have been seen as unseemly. In Japan, the stereotype was the bikers and hoodlums wore black masks to cover their faces while raising hell. These masks weren’t for illnesses, but rabble-rousing.

This could be why that until K-pop stars started wearing black masks, people in Japan mostly stuck to white masks. Korean pop stars helped soften the image black masks had in Japan.

Now, these masks for fashionable Japanese youth, who are now wearing black masks to coordinate their outfits.

While the black mask boom might be a relatively recent, originally, masks in Japan were black.

For example, here is a pre-World War II “Banzai” branded black mask. This is not the oldest one.

In 1879, a black mask was released in Japan and its packaging featured the curious English language brand name “Respiraltll.”

https://twitter.com/a/status/1092302432204451840

Black masks might not be new to Japan, but thanks to the influence of Korean pop culture, they have definitely become more visible in youth areas like Tokyo’s Shibuya and Osaka’s Amemura as well as in online illustrations.

https://twitter.com/a/status/1089558168634441728

https://twitter.com/a/status/1092046508772319232

https://twitter.com/a/status/1089554575923720192

https://twitter.com/a/status/1082795600473554944

https://twitter.com/a/status/1015124737930870784

https://twitter.com/a/status/978650104897814529

https://twitter.com/a/status/1077413062850703361

https://twitter.com/a/status/1076260994685358081

The Cheapest NBN 1000 Plans

Looking to bump up your internet connection and save a few bucks? Here are the cheapest plans available.

At Kotaku, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.

Comments

6 responses to “How K-Pop Revived Black Sickness Masks In Japan”

READ THE COMMENTS