Op-Ed: Fan Wars

 

Hey everyone! Well, its that time of year again. What time you ask? Comeback time! Wait, that happens all year you say? Well… yay! We all love when our idols make a comeback, produce a new song, release a new video, appear in a TV Show or movie, or even just send out a tweet. But sometimes these actions by our idols bring out the worst in people. We love our idols, we really do. I love mine, you love yours, and maybe we even love eachother’s… sometimes. So why does there need to be hate involved? Just because you love your idol more than you love mine doesn’t mean that I should hate on you or your idol. It means that hey, we are human and we make our own choices based on personal preference. But instead of just realizing this, some people take it upon themselves to try and “convince” others why their idol is best, sometimes without using their common sense. This can lead to one of my least favorite things since I got into K-Pop: Fan Wars.

My goodness people! Fan wars are the silliest thing I have ever seen in my 25 years of life! And I, unfortunately, have seen a lot of those mini wars and battles since I got into K-Pop not even a year ago (more like 7 months I think). With the Mnet awards and then the K-Pop Pop-off on pop-dust, I, as a VIP, have experienced a fan war first hand. With 2NE1′s release of I Love You on youtube, I have experienced it second hand (I don’t pay much attention to the comments, but I know a lot of BlackJacks who do). And the only thing that I see coming from these hateful fan wars is just more hate. So I took a moment and wrote this letter to all of you. Not just VIPs or BlackJacks, not just American fans, and not just K-Pop fans. This is for fans of every nation, fandom, and music genre. Please, take a second to read it, (really, really read it, not just skim it) and then think about it. Think about how what you say or do effects others, including your idol. The people you talk to online are real people, with real feelings. So the next time you see someone say something mean or rude or they are just being a troll, think before you act, speak, or type.

Dear Fans,

I want you to take a second and think of your favorite idol or idols. Picture them in your mind. You love them right? You’re proud of them? The way they act on shows, towards fans, and the way they live their life? In fact, that’s why you sometimes argue with other groups, right? Because your idol is so much better than theirs? And we all know that sometimes these arguments can get a little out of control and turn into “Fan-Wars”. Well, I want you to stop for a moment. How do you think your idol feels about that? Do you think your idol would want to hear about how some fan of theirs called another artist “fat”, “ugly”, or “talentless”? Or how there was an argument in the discussion part of their newest MV that resulted in their fans calling other fans rude, mean, and cruel names?

Actually, let me rephrase that. How would you feel if you heard that your idol called another idol “fat”, “ugly”, or “talentless”? What about if they made a fan cry by calling them a mean name? Or got into a fight, verbal or physical, with another idol because of some silly matter such as who may or may not have a song that sounds similar to theirs? You would be ashamed, wouldn’t you? Well, I imagine that is how our idols feel whenever they hear about these so called “fan-wars”.

Instead of putting other groups down to make your fandom and idol seem better than theirs, try simply being nice to each other. If you want to discuss different groups, talk about them, discuss them. Just remember, discussions are completely different from arguments. The results of arguments are never good, whereas discussions can end peacefully. We are all K-Pop fans, are we not? We all want our idols to be proud of us. In the end, our actions should make it so that its not the fandoms that are fighting about the idols, but instead it is the idols who are fighting about the fandoms. Imagine your idol talking with another artist saying “My fans are so amazing. They are the kindest, sweetest, and gentlest fans ever. They never put down other artists or fandoms and in fact they seem to love talking with other fandoms. Sure, it is because they are trying to convince the other fans that I am, in fact, the most amazing idol out there, but they aren’t being mean about it. And that? That is why I love them and always will.”

… Okay, so no idol would probably say all of that out loud to another idol, but please. Before you fight, argue, or say something mean, think about this. Is what you’re doing going to make your idol proud to have you as a fan? Or will it make them cringe and want to act like they don’t know who you are?

Lots and Lots of love,

Niki <3