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Being a K-Pop fan is a lot of work, keeping up with the latest trends, staying up to watch music videos or live shows, and spending hours in queues to buy merchandise.
Furthermore it can be a very costly devotion being apart of the stan culture. Fans develop a deep parasocial relationship with idols. Getting emotional over the choices that the idols make, fans get mad when they see their favourite idol has gotten into a relationship with someone else.
They go through extreme highs and lows being a fan. They celebrate when their idols make comebacks or receive awards. They feel miserable when their favourite idols go on a hiatus, get enlisted in the military, or get into scandals. They also suffer from burnout trying to keep up with all the content, streaming parties, voting campaigns and defending their idols online against haters.
Being a K-Pop fan results in financial consequences, as a fan, you will do anything to get your hands on the physical albums, concert tickets, merchandise, lightsticks, photocards, the list is endless on what the fans spend their money on. Some fans even end up in debt or sacrifice their essentials to keep up with this habit of theirs. This becomes bad to the point where fans compete with each other to see who is the better fan based on the amount of money spent.
Fandoms can be a toxic environment to put yourself in because of their behaviours. Fans can go to the extent of cyberbullying their “bias” (favourite) partner because they don't support the relationship. They will start bashing other idols because of personal drama between them and their bias.
Female fans start to compare themselves with the idol's beauty standards, which is very unrealistic. Young girls are comparing their bodies to women who have a team of professionals ensuring that they look good on camera. This leads to them developing body image issues, or they end up struggling with their self-esteem.
Being in a fandom can be such a fun experience; you create new and lasting friendships and new memories, but there has to be a balance with it. Set limits when it comes to supporting your favourite K-Pop idol, and don’t let it take over your life.
Reanne (reannej.gregory@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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