‘Are you ‘open mindeu’?’: When the Hongdae guy meme stops being funny

SEOUL - A Korean guy in a black leather jacket walks up to a foreign woman in Hongdae.

In a thick accent, he asks, “Are you open-minded?” The meme version renders it as “Are you open mindeu?” to match his pronunciation.

Sometimes he follows up with an equally blunt question: “Do you libe alone?”, his version of “Do you live alone?” with a Korean accent.

A string of viral clips by content creator Sean Solo repeats this familiar script. The woman’s nationality changes from Italian to Middle Eastern to Indonesian and more, but the formula stays the same. A man with broken English and bold confidence approaches a foreign woman, looking for a possible one-night stand.

And the internet loves it. One video titled “POV: You’re a Black Girl in Hongdae” has racked up more than 47 million views, spawning imitators, parodies, and inside jokes across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.

What makes the Hongdae guy meme funny, many say, is how real it feels. Sean’s lines have long been highlighted as cliches Korean men use when approaching foreign women. Many foreigners here say they have encountered a version of him in real life, usually on a night out in Hongdae or other nightlife hot spots.

Real-life Hongdae guys

When The Korea Herald visited Hongdae on Nov 20 to ask foreigners whether they had ever encountered a Hongdae guy, the stories came quickly.

Most people laughed, describing the interactions as awkward but funny, something to joke about later with friends, rather than take too seriously.

“I have met a lot of them. Just one night is enough to meet them,” said Ms Ofek Polity, 25, from Israel. She said she had visited Korea three times and lived here for more than a year. She shared one of her encounters.

“One guy came up to me and said, ‘You look like a famous American.’ I was like, ‘Kim Kardashian?’ And he said, ‘Taylor Swift.’ And I was like, ‘Have you ever seen Taylor Swift?’” she recalled. “They just keep using the same lines.”

Ms Polity has long, straight, dark hair; dark eyes; and a straight nose – features that bear little resemblance to the American singer.

Two friends, Ms Georgia Hanley and Ms Aislinn Smart, shared similar experiences.

“They try to be a little subtle these days, but it is obvious,” said Ms Hanley, 22, from Australia.

“Their opener is always, ‘Where are you from?’” added Ms Smart, 30, from the United Kingdom.

“Sometimes, they give you really weird compliments like, ‘Your dance moves are so cool.’ I know I cannot dance, so it is really funny,” Ms Hanley said. “The new thing they say now is that they have a cat, and then they ask, ‘Do you want to come see my cat?’”

Hongdae’s shift from arts district

Locals say Hongdae has been this way for years. Hongdae, named for the nearby Hongik University, which is best known for its art departments, was once known for its indie art and music culture.

But by the early 2010s, locals say, the area was already changing.

“When I was in school, Hongdae had already shifted from an artsy street to a fully commercial hot spot,” said a Hongik University student from 2011 to 2016. “The stretch from Hongdae Station to Sangsu Station was packed with clubs, bars, and ‘hunting pochas’ — pick-up pubs. Foreigners and Koreans in their 20s mixed, and flirting, or ‘hunting’, felt natural, no matter your nationality.”

Another graduate, Ms Park Min-young, recalled the weekend crowds.

“Lines outside clubs were ridiculously long,” she said. “Guys and girls came hoping to meet someone. Many foreigners and US soldiers also came to enjoy the scene.”

The nightlife was lively, but not always carefree.

“There were performances in Hongdae Playground,” she said. “But people also drank on the streets, fought, and sometimes got caught with drugs. It caused a lot of problems.”

Local business owners also said Hongdae guys pre-date today’s meme culture.

“Hongdae guys have existed for ages,” said Mr Eric Wright, who owns a pizza shop, Spill Out, near Hongdae and has lived in Korea for more than 15 years.

“Whenever I was in a club with a girl, a Korean guy would come up and try to take her attention. The line was always, ‘Don’t you want a Korean guy?’”

But he said the meme does not concern him.

“People know it refers to a certain type of person – and not only in Hongdae.”

Nearby in Yeonnam-dong, bar owner Jeong Hyo-won said he sees such behaviour often, but does not view it negatively.

“When we travel abroad, we enjoy interacting with locals, don’t we? Foreigners are doing the same thing here,” he said.

When the joke turns serious

The light-heartedness surrounding the meme dimmed in September after a Taiwanese YouTuber described being attacked in Hongdae by a group of men she said fit the Hongdae guy stereotype.

According to her account, the men approached her and her friends, suggested spending the night together, and became increasingly physical. When her group rejected their advances, she said, the men assaulted them, leaving bruises.

The incident drew swift public anger, not only towards the alleged perpetrators but also towards the police. The Mapo Police Station initially misidentified the suspect as Chinese before later confirming he was Korean. The YouTuber also said officers “did not even check the CCTV footage and just sent me home”.

The case also prompted widespread concern about South Korea’s global image.

“I’m fine with guys asking girls out on the street – there’s nothing wrong with that,” said Ms Kim, a woman in her 20s who works at a bar in Hongdae. “But when they use the same pick-up lines and go around hitting on tons of girls, that feels sketchy. And even embarrassing.”

Safety has long been one of South Korea’s strongest selling points for foreign visitors, experts say, especially young women, who make up a significant share of inbound tourists drawn by K-pop, K-beauty, and other aspects of the Korean Wave.

“Public safety ranks very high among factors that foreign tourists find satisfying about Korea,” said adjunct professor of tourism at Hanyang University Jeong Ran-soo. “Many visitors are amazed they can walk around comfortably at night without worrying about crime.”

But as stories about “Hongdae guys” spread online, the professor warned, perceptions can shift quickly.

“The idea that areas like Hongdae might not feel entirely safe can easily grow,” he said. “That could negatively affect how South Korea is viewed as a tourist destination.”

The professor also urged a more objective understanding of the issue.

“We need to examine the actual extent of these incidents, whether they are being exaggerated on social media or reflect widespread experiences.”

He noted that the suspension of the tourism police – a unit once dedicated to assisting foreign visitors – has left a gap.

“Before Covid-19, we had a tourism police force with investigative authority,” he said. “After the pandemic, it was merged into the general police, and tourism-related problems are no longer a focused area.”

Hanyang University professor Lee Hoon also said individual cases can quickly take on outsized meaning online and urged the creation of a special police unit for foreign visitors.

With more than 18.5 million foreign nationals expected to travel to Korea in 2025 – possibly reaching 20 million, the highest in the nation’s history – Prof Lee said maintaining visitor safety is critical.

“A single incident can be misunderstood as a general trend,” he said. “That’s why thorough investigation, enforcement, and transparent disclosure of results are necessary.” THE KOREA HERALD/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK