It sounds like a boilerplate answer but in the South Korean entertainment industry, it is a solemn promise. "Best" means never missing a beat when they dance and reaching all the high notes when they sing. For female artists, it also means fulfilling a fantasy: to be pure like a virgin and pretty like a doll.

There's a phrase K-pop artists tell their fans all the time. I hear it whenever I attend a press conference, no fail. "I'm going to put on my best show," they say.

The portrait of late K-pop star Goo Hara is seen surrounded by flowers at a memorial altar at a hospital in Seoul on November 25, 2019. Photo: str / Dong-A Ilbo / AFP

The expectations don't end when they step down from the stage. They must live up to it 24/7, or else risk the devotion of their fans. This "fans first" attitude, coupled with the long standing misogyny in South Korea's patriarchal society, takes a toll on young female celebrities, as seen in the recent deaths of K-pop stars Goo Hara and Sulli.

Hara, 28, was found dead in her home in Seoul after reportedly ending her life last week. About six weeks before that, her friend, Sulli, 25, died under similar circumstances. Both were very popular and well-loved, until their "best" image was shattered.

Pure Like a Virgin

In 2011, Hara was photographed with her then-boyfriend K-pop star Yong Jun-hyung. They were just holding hands and walking through the park, but the photos were controversial for the mere fact that Hara was seen alone with another male celebrity. Her boyfriend emerged from the controversy relatively unscathed, but Hara was bombarded with rumours, vicious comments of jealousy, and blows to her reputation.

Things escalated last year, after Hara sued her ex-boyfriend, hairdresser Choi Jong-bum, for allegedly threatening to circulate their sex video. The public painted her out to be a troublemaker. In August, Choi was found guilty of physical assault and threatening behaviour, but not of illicit filming. Hara died about three months after.

Sulli was also a victim of misogynistic rumours. After her dating life was exposed in 2013, the public started treating her in a different way. Sexual rumours and attacks started to spread. It didn't help that she was dating rapper Choiza, who was 14 years older than her and whose stage name alludes to a big penis.