As a certified fandom Old, I wanted to talk about Harisu, South Korea's first openly transgender celebrity.
Born February 17, 1975, Harisu (Lee Kyungeun) was assigned male at birth. She has said that she always knew she was a girl. She loved playing with dolls, and her friends and family even said she looked and acted like a girl. When she was a teen, she dated a boy and the relationship failed, and she knew then that she wanted to transition. She began hormone replacement therapy before finishing high school. During the late 90s, she had several gender-affirming surgeries.
In 2001, she did a commercial for DoDo Cosmetics. The commercial featured Harisu, and zoomed in on a prominent Adam's apple, which was actually digitally added. Later that year, her debut studio album, Temptation, was released.
In 2002, she became only the second person in South Korean history to legally get their gender updated.
Being the first openly trans celebrity, the public's reactions were mixed. She did receive a lot of support and interest. However, she was also ridiculed and even sexually harassed.
Harisu is a trailblazer in not only the industry, but also in the country as a whole. She brought visibility to transgender people in the public eye. She fought through her struggles to live as her true self.
