Kpop makes it so hard to stan just the art and not the artist behind it.

I was never into kpop until I stumbled onto Bigbang’s Haru Haru by accident last summer and fell into a hole that ended with me having watched every variety and award show appearance of theirs since they debuted, and having all their albums on replay everyday. Their music is truly timeless and universally appealing.

But beyond that, whether I liked it or not, I became invested in them as individuals. I wanted them to do good, stay good. I felt like I knew these kids (read: grown ass men) because I’d followed their journey from their debut documentary to their most recent variety show appearance. I watched them ‘grow up’ in front of my eyes and had unwittingly grown attached. It’s not like they didn’t owe me anything special – just the reassurance that I knew everything, EVERYTHING there was about them.

But I didn’t. No one does. And to believe otherwise is not only creepy but also nonsensical because who even are these people? Are we friends? Do they even know my name?

How do we end up garnering so much love for people we’ve never met in our lives? In our actual lives, we begin to love people as a result of positive interactions, deep connections. How does love for someone’s WORK translate into love for that PERSON?

I feel an urge to say, ‘Daesung, I’m disappointed in you’ like I’d say to a friend I cherished and thought better of. And that thought scares me. Because he’s not a friend. He’s someone I don’t even know. So what are these expectations for? Wasn’t it all about….the “music”??

8
3

    I think it’s easy to say it’s just the music but it isn’t that simple if it’s someone that I’ve followed in and out of music. They’re not just singers. Or variety stars. Or in some cases even just actors. I think “idols” are a very apt term for their profession. Someone with an image that we learn to love, befriend, and admire. Someone who has an image and does fanservice. Sometimes these artists and their music or the way they make us smile or laugh during our hard times are the rare bright spots in the day. Once they were the ones that made a difference in how some of us are inspired or motivated to move forward. And I don’t believe any fans should be sideyed for finding strength through kpop and idols. So similarly I don’t think it’s weird that it can swing around to make us feel disappointed. They are idols for a reason.

    2
    0

    A big part of the reason Kpop is so popular is because it’s never been just about the music. The creation of K-pop groups has always been about selling people over selling music. They know that if they get their target audience (normally young school girls) attached to a charming group of people close to their age who they feel like they “know”, then they can rely on them continually opening their wallets and supporting them no matter what kind of music they produce. It’s quite an ingenious tactic but also very sad once you think about it.

    2
    0

    I see it like friends who live far away. Like you’ve known each other from way back when but one of you moved and have never seen each other since. You get updates from time to time but just never see each other.

    It should be okay to say you’re disappointed because you are. Just because other people think it’s crazy for you to care for idols this way, it doesn’t mean they’re right.

    1
    0