Harisu
Harisu (Hangul: 하리수; Chinese: 河莉秀) is the stage name of Lee Kyung-eun originally Lee Kyung-yeop (born February 17, 1975), a transsexual pop singer, model and actress from South Korea. Born biologically male, Harisu identified as female from early childhood, and underwent sex reassignment surgery in the 1990s. She is noted for being South Korea’s first transgender entertainer, and in 2002 became only the second person in Korea to legally change their gender. Her stage name is an adaptation of the English phrase “hot issue”.
Harisu first gained public attention in 2001, after appearing in a television commercial for DoDo cosmetics. The commercial was a big success and ended up launching her career, allowing her to branch out into other fields such as music and acting. As of 2011 she has recorded five Korean musical albums, switching genres between techno and R&B, and her overseas releases have featured songs recorded in Mandarin. Her first major acting role was in the 2001 film Yellow Hair 2, and since then her credits have included Hi! Honey, a Taiwanese drama series, and Colour Blossoms, an erotic drama by Hong Kong filmmaker Yonfan. On May 19, 2007, Harisu married boyfriend Micky Jung, whom she had been dating for two years previously.
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| Harisu |
| Born: February 17th, 1975 Aquarius |
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Harisu was born Lee Kyung-yeop in Seongnam, South Korea, and is one of five children. Although born male, she identified as female from an early age, recalling, “I was always a girl who loved playing with dolls.” This did not go unnoticed by her family or school friends, who often remarked that she looked and acted like a girl. A failed relationship with a boy during her teenage years convinced Harisu of the need to change her sex, and by the time she graduated from the all-boys Naksaeng High School, she was already undergoing hormone replacement therapy. It was for this reason that she was exempted from the military service usually required of males in South Korea, being rejected on the grounds of “mental illness”. By the end of the 1990s, Harisu had undergone breast augmentation, sex reassignment surgery, rhinoplasty, and increase of hips, having had surgery performed in South Korea and Japan.
Harisu lived in Japan for several years, where she studied to be a hair stylist. It was while working as a nightclub singer that she was discovered by a talent agency, and soon after she began her career as a model. After returning to South Korea in 2000, she signed with management company TTM Entertainment, and first began using the stage name “Harisu”, derived from the English phrase “hot issue”.
Harisu made her acting debut in 1991—while still a boy—as a supporting actor in a high school TV drama series, and this was followed by other minor film and TV roles as an extra during the 1990s.
Her big break came in early 2001, when she appeared in a TV commercial for DoDo cosmetics. The commercial hinted at the fact she is a transsexual, zooming in to reveal her Adam’s apple (although this was added digitally, since Harisu herself does not have a prominent Adam’s apple). DoDo were initially cautious about using the commercial, and had been prepared to withdraw it if the response was negative, but it turned out to be a big success and quickly established her as a celebrity. As South Korea’s first transgender entertainer, there was a great deal of media interest in Harisu, and she was routinely described as being “more beautiful than a woman”. Explaining her reasons for “coming out”, she said, “I don’t want to face people dishonestly. I won’t be able to hide it after all. It’s better to make it clear from the start.” In June 2001, Harisu was the subject of a television documentary produced by KBS, which covered her childhood, family relationships, and debut as an entertainer.
Later that year she was cast in the film Yellow Hair 2, her first leading role. In addition to contributing songs for the films soundtrack, Harisu played a transsexual who goes on the run after the apparent death of a convenience store owner. Regarding her decision to appear in the film, she said, “I wanted to break the stereotype of transsexuals — the demureness and extreme weakness with which they are often portrayed.”
Also in 2001, Harisu published her autobiography, Eve from Adam.
In September 2001, she entered the K-pop music scene with her debut album, Temptation, a mix of techno-style pop music and slow ballads, which peaked at number 32 on the MIAK (Music Industry Association of Korea) K-pop albums chart.
In 2004, Harisu began to develop her career overseas, expressing frustration at being “pigeon-holed” as a transsexual in Korea. She starred in the Taiwanese drama series Hi! Honey alongside local celebrity Pace Wu, despite not being fluent in Mandarin (her lines were spoken in Korean and later dubbed). She drew attention by promoting sanitary napkins in a series of advertisements for Taiwanese company UFT, for which she was paid an estimated ₩100 million per ad. Although she had been initially reluctant to take on the project, observers hailed the casting of a transwoman in such a campaign as a sign of progress.
In early 2007, Harisu was cast as the lead actress in Police Line, a Korean drama series produced for cable network On-Media.
Harisu’s decision to undergo sex reassignment surgery placed a strain on the relationship with her family, and she noted that when her parents first found out they “were very upset. They weren’t angry, but very sad.” Her father in particular had great difficulty accepting his child as a daughter, but her family have since accepted her and show great pride in her career.
Harisu has been given credit for raising social awareness of transgenderism in South Korea, and has said in interviews that she hopes to be a role model for other transsexuals. In April 2007, she came to the aid of a Chinese transwoman unable to afford surgery, giving her the financial support needed to complete her transition. Affected by the 2008 suicides of gay actor Kim Ji-hoo and transsexual television personality Jang Chae-won, Harisu opened transgender club “Mix-Trans” in Apgujeong-dong, southern Seoul, in June 2009.
On November 29, 2002, Harisu filed a petition with the Incheon District Court to have her sex changed on her family register, and that her birth name be changed from Lee Kyung-yeop to the more feminine Lee Kyung-eun. The subsequent court ruling went in her favour, and on December 13, 2002, she became only the second person in South Korea to legally change their sex. Speaking of the difficulties she had previously encountered, Harisu has said: “My most embarrassing moments were when I have had to show my personal identification card in public… I couldn’t get a passport, visa or even my own bank accounts because I was legally a man”. -Wikipedia
