This Is How Mukbang Is Changing the Game

Teresa Chia explores the behind-the-scenes of the increasingly popular eating show videos and live-streams are not as glorious and simple as what is shown on screens.

Photo from Zach Choi’s Youtube video on burger and fries Mukbang. Zach Choi enjoys a burger, fries and extra mushroom sides heartily for viewers.

From a survey conducted in July 2020 by youth-run online magazine Hype SG, 80 out of 100 respondents watch mukbang regularly and sixty seven watch mukbangs just because of how satisfying it is. Another 19 respondents felt that watching mukbangers consume their food with gusto has helped to whet and improve their appetite.

The trend started in South Korea when a mukbang segment was broadcasted on national television in 2010. From there, mukbang has been produced on streaming sites, Youtube, television and many reality shows have picked it up, especially food related shows.

Mukbang is derived from two words from the Korean Hangul language, muk-ja which means to eat in English and bang-song that means broadcast. Mukbangers are the people that live-stream or upload videos of themselves eating and drinking while interacting with their viewers.

Charlene Kwan, 19, says: “Mukbang opens up like a new world of food to me and I also love listening to the sound of people eating.” She also shared that her favourite sound is made from eating fried chicken and that it causes ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response) for her occasionally.

Mukbang in Singapore

With millions of viewers and earning upwards of tens of thousands a month, mukbangers are not just changing, but revolutionising the streaming and entertainment industry. Many non-mukbang centred youtubers have started incorporating mukbang-style videos into their content, such as locally beloved entertainment channel, Night owl Cinematics.

ASMR Mukbang video from Night Owl Cinematics Food King series, featuring Ryan, Aiken and Dee Kosh

For many years, these mukbang content creators have been judged and shamed on social media and news platforms have also released countless “expose” articles about how mukbangers actually purge their food after a big meal in front of the camera.

“I really love watching food king from the Ryan Sylvia channel. Even though they are not 100 per cent mukbang, it’s fun to watch them review different type(s) of food(s) and eat it. I prefer mukbangs where people talk to the audience”, Charlene Kwan commented when asked about how she felt on the mukbang scene in Singapore.

Peggie Neo’s In N Out Burgers Mukbang with five hundred and ninety thousand views

With many internationally famous mukbangers on the internet, Singapore also has a few interesting figures in the mukbang scene as well. Peggie Neo, who currently has over a million subscribers on Youtube has been uploading her Mukbang videos very actively since 2015.

PHOTO CREDIT | TERESA CHIA

Ms Sarah Ow, Singaporean online content creator known for speed eating mukbangs, shared that while mukbang has not changed her body, it has affected her emotionally as it made her feel like netizens and viewers not only do not see her as a person but also take to her personal social networking sites and video uploads to throw harsh comments, including words like ‘disgusting’ and ‘pig’ among many others.

Tips from the professionals

Ms Ow also commented that the public has a very ‘one-sided’ and ‘negative’ view on the Mukbang community. Despite the backlash and negative comments, the positive and forward looking Ms Ow finds joy in challenging her limits and her tip to maintaining a great body is to always stay active, walk all the food off, take more public transport and eat consistently.

Zermatt Neo, 31, a competitive eater and Youtube content creator, feels that in terms of the few mukbangers who purge and release their food after filming is not uncommon in the industry and “it is better to get it out, than to hold it down” as it may be easier for them. Mr Neo plans his fasting and exercising before and after his filming to better control his diet.

With great following comes great controversies and mukbangers are no strangers to that as well. Some mukbangers have gone under fire for insensitive acts and harmful content.

One example of a rogue mukbang streamer would be Ssoyoung, with 3.86 million subscribers, who has encountered much backlash from netizens worldwide for promoting animal cruelty on her channel and videos by cruelly playing with and throwing around live animals and seafood such as sharks and eels before cooking and eating it.

Youtube content creator Ssoyoung holds up a live shark and struggles with it on camera while filming to show the audience how it looks like and create dramatic effect.

With the rise of competition for the attention of viewers, it can be hard to find a place in the community but it should never come down to harming other people and animals just for the sake of views and traction.