There's a new magazine in Japan called CELE-BICH. Is it a magazine for bitchy celebrities?
Not quite. The words "Celeb" and "Bitch" have slightly different connotations in Japan. The Japanese interpretation of "Celeb" has expanded over the years to refer to a woman who is simply rich and/or wears brand-name apparel and leads an elegant, upper-class lifestyle. "Bitch," meanwhile, refers more to a loose, slutty woman than to "a malicious, unpleasant and selfish woman" as it's more commonly used in the Western world (though it's certainly a versatile word that's used in many different ways).
The publisher reportedly considered a concept surrounding the new "koakuma" (little devil) craze, in which women have embraced an unabashedly deceptive and manipulative approach to winning the hearts of men, as opposed to being innocent and angelic. The problem was, there was already a magazine catering to this market, called Koakuma Ageha. So they decided to create a magazine that can appeal to a wider demographic, "from adults to teens, rich to poor," and came up with---Cele-bich. Because, in the words of the publisher, sometimes celebs want to be bitches, and bitches want to be celebs.
The content features mostly fashion items and tips on how to dominate a party and such. Most of the fashion, perhaps not surprisingly, is essentially the kind that's worn only by hostesses and other women of the night. The term "Celebitch" was actually first coined in Japan by Nameko Shinsan, a female media activist/columnist who published a book and used the term sarcastically to poke fun at a society that celebrates people like Paris Hilton. It's unclear whether the publishers are aware of the sarcasm inherent in the term.
The magazine has been met with derision by online denizens and indifference by the general public. The inaugural issue is not selling well at all, and a second issue looks unlikely to hit the stores anytime soon.
Comments