Singer Jung Hongran’s “bowl cut” hairstyle has recently become a hot topic among North Koreans, with her unusually distinctive hairstyle meeting an enthusiastic response especially among young North Koreans.
“When Jung Hongran appeared at the festivities for the 74th anniversary of the DPRK’s founding with that unusual hairstyle, people were shocked,” a source in Nampo told Daily NK last Wednesday. “There’s a lot of talk about how the style is a great fit for women with long faces and large foreheads, and that it’s nice because it’s so unique.”
According to the source, Jung had previously aroused curiosity when she appeared with a bowl cut hairstyle for her 7.27 Victory Day performance, but it was her repeat appearance with the bowl cut at the 9.9 holiday festivities that triggered a surge in interest among young North Koreans.
This in turn has reportedly led to a dramatic increase in the number of college students and young people referencing Jung’s hair and requesting copycat styles at home-run barber shops.
In response to this trend, many stylists at private barber shops are advising their clientele that, “from an expert’s point of view, Jung’s bowl cut doesn’t look good on just anyone. It best suits young women with long faces and wide foreheads.”
This short hairstyle with bangs, often referred to in South Korea as a “mushroom cut” or “Chocoboy cut” (referencing a mushroom-shaped chocolate candy), is now called “the Jung Hongran bowl cut” in North Korea.
However, Daily NK understands that the government agency charged with curbing “anti-socialist and non-socialist activity” is cracking down on young people, college students, and housewives copying Jung’s hairstyle.
“After the 7.27 performance, there actually wasn’t much of a reaction to her hairstyle. But when she came out with the same look for the 9.9 Day performance, people started saying that her hairstyle was truly one-of-a-kind north of the 38th Parallel,” the source said. “Jung has been gaining popularity after appearing with her unique hairstyle, and now female college students and young working women in Nampo are copying the look one after another.”
“Nampo’s Unified Command [the group policing anti-socialist and non-socialist activity] is strictly cracking down on people copying Jung Hongran’s hairstyle and are camping out to catch offenders on the street and in front of universities. Officials say the look is a ‘capitalistic delinquent style’ and point out that, ‘A performer’s hair is approved as part of her national attire for her performance, how is [copying her hair] the same?’”
Regarding moves to suppress the bowl cut trend among young people, the source said that people see the government’s double standard as absurd. They ask: “[Why] is it fine that when Jung Hongran stands in front of the whole nation with that hairstyle and sings, but when we do the same thing, we’re delinquents?”
Translated by Rose Adams.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
