NewJeans Danielle Faces Discrimination for Dubbing ‘Little Mermaid’ – Here Are 2 Reasons

Amid rave reviews of NewJeans Danielle for dubbing “Little Mermaid,” the K-pop idol is facing discrimination from international K-pop fans for these reasons.

NewJeans Danielle Suffers Discrimination For Dubbing ‘Ariel’

Although Danielle proved her potential after the impressive dubbing of Ariel in the movie, “The Little Mermaid,” the idol is being discriminated against by overseas fans.

International web users initially complained about how “the Korean singer who dubbed Ariel’s voice by a black actress is not black.”

Some added:

“Korea is a country that prioritizes white-skinned people in all fields. […] White-skinned female idols dubbed it.”

In addition to this, several foreign media outlets reported that Danielle playing Ariel’s voice “reflects Korean colorism, that is, discrimination based on skin color.”

(Photo : Nate) Danielle, Halle Bailey

ALSO READ: NewsJeans Danielle Draws Mixed Reactions After Rumor of Dubbing ‘Little Mermaid’ Ariel

To explain the root of the talk about discrimination, some fans from the U.S. and other international countries take it very seriously that no black actress or singer was responsible for the voice acting of a character played by a black actress.

The media said:

“Danielle has a natural singing ability and talent like Halle Bailey, but the skin color contrast is noticeable. In the East, white skin is too important, which is one of Korea’s racist expressions.”

(Photo : Danielle (@newjiram Twitter))

Upon this report, the controversy reached Koreans; thus, Twitter users expressed their frustrations. One wrote:

“This is not a parody. Feminists are also angry that the actor who dubbed the voice of the Little Mermaid in Korea is not black.”

Disney Promotes NewJeans Danielle More Than ‘Ariel’ Star Halle Bailey?

Although there was initial criticism about Danielle’s voice acting and pronunciation, the “Part of Your World” MV released by Danielle is gaining huge popularity and ranked #1 among the songs’ official versions.

(Photo : Nate)

Just then, overseas fans pointed out that Danielle’s version recorded higher views than Halle Bailey’s, the original “Ariel.”

International web users added that this is because Disney, especially in Korea, focuses more on Danielle’s promotion as Ariel’s Korean voice that the original one.

(Photo : Danielle (SBS PD Note))

Koreans who saw some foreign media and netizens counterattacked, saying:

• “Should we have dubbed black people who can speak Korean?
• “Do you think Korea is a multi-ethnic country?”
• “Is there a black person who speaks Korean and sings well in Korea?”
• “I already thought this would come out when Danielle’s song view count was higher than Halle Bailey’s.”

(Photo : Danielle (SBS PD Note))

The criticism continued and international fans even accused Disney of only selecting Danielle because of her company and popularity.

As a response to these speculations, Disney released a statement saying that Danielle was selected as the Korean voice of the main character Ariel through an audition at the U.S. headquarters, which is famous for strictly using singing and line delivery skills.

It is known that she passed through the process of singing and testing her lines on the spot where only sheet music was given.

READ MORE: Faux Ariel in the Spotlight? Disney Korea Criticized for Prioritizing NewJeans Danielle Over Halle Bailey

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Written by Eunice Dawson.