IS PRETTY PRIVILEGE IN THE INDUSTRY A THING?

MBABANE- In the entertainment industry, having a memorable face, character and work ethic is key for survival.

A common concern among people in the entertainment industry is if, and to what extent looks matter in their sector. While looks may not directly impact the quality of content that an entertainer puts out or music an artist creates, there’s no denying that many successful people in the entertainment industry are very good looking. To be frank: the more attractive society perceives you to be, the more social and economic opportunities you will have. There are many names for this: the beauty premium, beauty bias or just pretty privilege. Conversations around pretty privilege are not new.

While we know that life is far from being fair and that the list of evidence for that is endless, one bias many of us might struggle to accept or care to admit, let alone talk about, is ‘pretty privilege’ in the entertainment industry. According to beautybox.com, pretty privilege works on the principle that people who are deemed more attractive based on societal beauty standards and trends at that particular time have an upper hand in the world and are afforded many opportunities than any other regular person don’t have.

Privilege

This is why it’s difficult to understand how something like pretty privilege can be a thing. White privilege or male privilege, for example, is easier to understand because it relates to the way certain elements of the identity that seem to be more easily ‘measured’. But it’s not as simple to quantify or define ‘pretty’. Who even gets to decide who and what pretty is anyway? In broader speak, its society. Beauty standards are set and maintained by the faces we see splashed on the covers of magazines, on television, and billboards.

For the longest time beauty was white, skinny, and with long hair. The people we choose to celebrate often reflect who we see as beautiful. And those who possess celebrated physical characteristics benefit from pretty privilege. At the end of the day, in the entertainment industry, yes, looks do matter this is because they represent the cultural and personable traits of an artist, while also serving as a lead magnet. However, looking appropriate is almost always more important than simply looking attractive.

The truth is that your followers as an industry player connect to visual identity just as much as sonic identity. Visual identity includes (but is not limited to) member personalities and lifestyles, fashion sense, geographical location, artwork, branding and physical appearance.

attractive

If you look appropriate and/or attractive, potential fans are far more likely to stop and take notice of your project. This comes into significant play when marketing your work online as you’re often in competition with other ‘good-looking’ celebrities and social media personalities. Often times, looking either appropriate or attractive can be enough to entice people to stop scrolling through their social media feeds. The whole industry is based on the strictest beauty standards. Being a ‘visual’ is what most try to attain.

If someone has the talent, yet does not meet these traditional beauty standards it is much harder for them to debut whereas, if someone fits these beauty standards and is less naturally talented they are more likely to debut simply by being ‘beautiful’. This is why you would find it difficult to find any idol/celebrity that could be considered ugly. For example, think of how it’s almost one and the same people gracing billboards and getting gigs left, right and centre. If you study these people closely, you will notice that they put in a lot of work towards their appearances, whether online or physically. These have a huge following and they are mostly considered as influencers because most of the time they will influence how their followers look, where they eat and what they wear, among other things.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: