What is LG and LB Culture?
Written by Sienna Cag
The first time I saw an LG was on the tram, I saw her walking on with long deep red hair, wispy fake lashes and a Burberry scarf over her private school uniform. At the time I had no clue what an LG was or that she was one, but I later discovered a whole new side of Melbourne, that was exactly like her.
The LB/LG subculture is basically a self-referential stereotype that comes from the American ‘ABG’ (Asian Baby Girl) persona, known colloquially in Sydney and Melbourne as ‘LGs’ (Little Girls) and ‘LBs’ (Little Boys). This culture is not relatively new, but definitely unknown by the rest of Australia, which I find quite surprising as people are exposed to this culture daily but they don’t recognise it. LB and LG culture can be described as Asian people based in Melbourne and Sydney that dress in certain clothing brands and are involved in criminal activity. LG, Amy, claims “LB’s do drugs and bash up other people”, which paints a picture of what type some of these people are. This culture is blatantly defined by being Asian, the way you dress and who you know.
Upon further research I found out that ’Little Girl’ and ‘Little Boy’ refers to the small frame of Asians, but Amy says, “No one says little boy and little girl, it sounds really weird saying the full thing”. Amy explains that although she is a ‘LG’ she doesn’t call herself that, it’s merely a way for other people to categorise who they are, but they still live by the stereotypes of the culture. The few people that are aware of this subculture give it a label to try and understand it, as it is quite hard to define what a LB/LG is, but there are many people oblivious to this culture altogether.
Melbourne is a rapidly growing city filled with people of many backgrounds, a large percentage of the population is Asian and it seems that the people are not exposed to the many Asian subcultures which explains the lack of knowledge on this specific subculture.
If familiar with what LB’s and LG’s look like, it is easy to spot them. Although they can dress and act a certain way, LG, Talisha, says “It’s complicated to describe what they look like because in the end we all have slightly different fashion tastes”. If you were to use stereotypes to describe them, LB Derek says, “They wear like street fashion kind of clothes; trendy but comfortable. They usually wear black, navy and grey”. When asked what the typical LB and LG looks like, Amy and Talisha quickly list the stereotypical features of an LG, “Dyed hair, fake nails, tight clothing, scarfs, Lacoste or Converse shoes, white or black jeans, any designer handbag, sometimes cardigans and always fake lashes”. Very specific items are listed without hesitation and the same is done when describing LB’s. Clothing brands such as SuperDry and G-Star are standard, James, another LB, lists these same brands and the Asics ‘Tiger’ shoes are frequently mentioned. He also states that “They have to look good every time they leave the house”. The consensus is that appearance is quite important to LB’s and LG’s.
Another point to touch into is crime within this culture. Seemingly crime plays a key part in some of these people’s lives, but no more than other groups. When talking to the four sources, they all spoke on the normality of shoplifting. Amy says “you go out, you rack and you sesh”. The commonness of stealing items is somewhat remarkable and I’m surprised as to how few have been caught. Other crimes that have been considered partially normal include fights, attacks (also known as ‘jump’ meaning an attack on an individual) and even robbery’s. Amy was recently involved in a stabbing, she claims “it started as a fight then escalated” she then goes say “we all do bad things, like stealing a chocolate bar” and Talisha continues “then they turn into bigger things like stealing a jumper” they distinct a difference between the severity of these crimes yet still talk so nonchalantly about them.
There is a correlation between where LG’s and LB’s live and high crime rates. Places in Melbourne such as St Albans is affiliated with Asian and Sudanese gangs, but it is also where a lot of LB’s and LG’s live. Amy tells me about how there are specific suburbs such a St Albans, Footscray and Sunshine that tend to be home to many LB’s and LG’s but you can find them generally in most outer city suburbs.
A part of the crime related to this subculture is drugs, specifically drugs in raves. James speaks on how they only use drugs such as MDMA, Nangs, marijuana and alcohol recreationally, such as when they go out clubbing and to raves. Amy and Talisha talk about how every week, they will have at least one “drink up” with their friends. All this information also makes me wonder what reckless behaviour this leads to and what damage these kids do, if any.
Amy describes raves as a hobby for LB’s and LG’s, something they do for fun. There is already a rave culture which involves many different people but LB’s and LG’s have brought something else to it; muzzing. Muzzing is “a movement with your arms” usually danced to electronic music, it’s also known as chopping. Hacking is the other component which is done with your feet. Not all LB’s and LG’s are said to muzz, Amy says “only people who are good at it do it.”
The LB and LG culture is definitely a present lifestyle in Melbourne’s society but I think the young people in this subculture can also be classified as delinquents. These young people are like every other person that is involved with unlawful behaviour, but the difference is they all dress, act and do the same things so it is called a culture. This culture does allow young Asian-Australians to feel connected with people of their own but they need to find ways to eliminate the negative actions to increase positive views on this culture.