fr people act like idols are such fragile individuals wholl breakdown for one mere critique i often feel the same about some of bts recent songs sorry jimin but his songs r corny its the only word i can describe them and i think theres other groups now that are tad more interesting with more varied songs / talent. not that bts arent talented just they definitely had the helping hand of the fact tnat they had debuted at s time when there wasnt an other next big boy group about so really.
idols defo have two sides to their personalities and koreans have this clouded view about it where they act so shock when something "scandal" like comes about when in the west its usually nothing new. if ppl dont like something we shouldnt always lap it up willingly. i do wonder why music in general is becoming unlistenable not all of it but a lot of it is so centred around social media and every thing an idol does is centred around social media it still doesnt paint an honest picture of the idol in question thats why i often hate this chronically online era of kpop / music groups in general it feels like its the only way they can connect to people. some dont even tour properly my country anymore not like they used to in the 00s. every other country instead gets varied events and extra bonuses in terms of merch shops, the groups seem so poorly promoted here like they only come to one major city and even then its not worth forking that much out for the events itself. america usually gets the most events nowadays. i think its hard to genuinely meet them out of schedule to actually "be a friend" of theirs would require much sacrifice of ur own schedules and whatever u do. i think theyre so kept in their pen bubble they dont fully know their idols besides what is shown so unfortunately i can only base my assumptions off social media. they have made it so difficult to follow music groups compared to the 00s. used to go to loads of concerts and now kpop ones are like 1000s just for that brief interaction where all the audience does is wait to film that one viral moment. same for like when they go to airports whats even the point? they barely going to get an in person interaction cause all of its for social media / media articles etc. i dont think idols genuinely know how to connect with folk who dont use online platforms. even fancalls are a letdown bc again u have to always splurge just for one random chance of a random member to fancall them. it feels like its more catered for younger generation even tho the group i like generally has a very mixed age range audience it still feels like they like a lot of promotions potential. especially because if they come over this way they can more so be themselves then when theyre in their home country but once again we miss out on it.
You are right about treatment of idols in the west vs SK. I am from South Asia and celebrities in countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh are treated like normal people. Yes they too have rabid fans but people aren't shocked when their favorite celebrity is caught in scandals. Its an open secret that most celebrities in the entertainment industry have to do "things" to get a career and the perception of celebrities is much like in western countries. Most people know they are out of touch with the masses and are greedy liars and manipulators so I had a huge moment of culture shock when I saw how idols are treated by fans.
Like, Armies still don't accept that BTS's music went to shit after Dynamite and that they are releasing basic pop music because they are greedy and just chasing charts. Swifties get a bad rep for being insane like Kpop fans but most of TS's fanbase admits she is a greedy capitalist who cares about chart success and breaking records. A lot of Swifties hated the re-recorded version of Style and most songs on 1989 Taylor's version saying the OG version had better production. You won't ever see Kpop fans doing this because if an idol has a production or lyric credit on a song the fanbase must like the song or it is taken as an attack on the idol themselves. Kpop idols will milk their fans by adding a huge pay wall behind every piece of merchandise and fan interactions but most kpop fans will still not accept their favorites are doing this for the money. They always blame the company or the staff for everything and keep coddling up their favorites like children who can't make decisions for themselves but on the other hand if a song or album is good then the idol is 100% deserving of the credit and composers, songwriters, directors and the company didn't do anything.
But, I still feel bad for idols sometime because the one thing I disdain about Kpop is how idols focusing on their solo careers or wanting to do less group content is seen as some kind of betrayal or a serious crime. Fans see idols as nothing more than group members because of the whole family narrative pushed by companies. For Instance, Apink's Naeun received massive hate for leaving the group because she wanted to focus on her acting career and Shawols recently have made a huge fuss about Taemin releasing his own light stick and logo saying stuff like "The light stick will ruin our pearl aqua ocean", "we have always seen him as a SHINee member and not soloist", "It will destroy fandom unity" like that guy doesn;t have any identity or interests outside of being a boyband member and throwing tantrums over what?? a piece of plastic that glows?? Groups are great for getting your name out there but most singers want to have a solo career because it lets them showcase their own talents and personality like they themselves want and its weird to expect idols in their 30s to enjoy doing aegyo and scripted variety shows. Most idols are actually more mature than fans and realize how fake and childish Kpop is. This is why most older idols turn to acting and stop doing idol promo to rebrand themselves as serious musicians.
