u/Thin_Improvement_621

I’ve seen people call any criticism of LE SSERAFIM “hate,” but not everything is hate just because the group went through a hate train. During that period, there was both genuine criticism and actual hate, and it’s important to tell the difference.

For example, I’ve seen videos from professionals pointing out that LE SSERAFIM rely heavily on live backtracks, to the point where they’re barely singing at times. That’s not hate, it’s a legitimate performance critique. Professionals aren’t going to praise excessive backtrack use or lip-syncing.
At Summer Sonic, even fan-recorded clips, not just the controversial livestream, led people to question how much they were actually singing live. Whether you agree or not, that’s a discussion worth having. If fans constantly praise idols regardless of whether they’re singing live, companies have less incentive to prioritize strong live vocals. And it’s kinda sad to make people pay to see you performing and you’re lying about being live…

At the end of the day, singers are expected to sing. I like LE SSERAFIM’s music, but I don’t think every criticism of their performances should automatically be dismissed as hate. Even many of their fans agree that they’re not the strongest performers in K-pop, and acknowledging that isn’t an attack on them.

Honestly, seeing how SM is doing right now, especially when it comes to their new training system, there’s a high chance that Lee Soo-man could actually outdoes SM.

I mean, he was a major reason why aespa (+every group before them) became what it is today, and he had been developing their concept for years before their debut. He’s also apparently a producer himself, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he manages to create something that ends up competing with SM.

The question is will sm stans support what he will come out with or not.

Sometimes I see a lot of videos of people talking about how fans can be parasocial and genuinely think that idols act on camera the same way they do in real life. But I’ve been into K-pop for a long time, not the longest, but still, and I genuinely don’t understand how some people get that parasocial. If you’re not a kid, you should know how this works and how being a celebrity works. So why would you believe that an idol acts exactly the same way off-camera as they do on camera?

Like, I’m genuinely so confused.
And some adults especially ARMYs, for example. A lot of them are in their 20s or older, and I’m just like, bro… how do you get that parasocial? 😭 I feel like you should be old enough to understand that what you see from an idol publicly isn’t necessarily how they act in their everyday life.

Like, imagine going to someone’s concert when you KNOW they’re controversial, dancing, singing along, taking pictures with them, getting close to them, tagging them, and then going on social media afterward to apologize for attending. 😭
That would be incredibly hypocritical.

You can’t publicly show that much support for someone and then turn around and say, “Sorry for supporting them.” If they apologized afterward, it would basically mean they’re disrespecting and ridiculing him which they clearly did not intend to do by attending the concert.

And honestly, I don’t see them apologizing. At this point, they’ve already made their choice, and apologizing afterward would only create an even bigger mess. So yeah, I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for an apology.

I know a lot of people are tired of the hate and everything going on, but honestly, it’s just so exhausting and frustrating. At this point, we need to let people stan whatever group they want and enjoy what they enjoy.

The K-pop community has become so toxic and, honestly, losing the plot on why we became “woke.” And being socially aware is a good thing, it’s something that was definitely lacking in previous generations. But I feel like we’re taking it too far now, to the point where we’re using “being woke” to hide hate.

If a group says or does something wrong, we can hold them accountable and educate them without turning it into a competition. We don’t need to make jokes, drag other groups, or say, “My fave didn’t do that, your fave did.” It’s childish, exhausting, and completely misses the point.

Being socially aware was never supposed to be about fueling hate trains. It should be about educating people so they can learn and do better.
K-pop is starting to feel like it’s more about hate and fanwars than actually enjoying the music. Can we just love the groups we love and mind our own business? If you don’t like a group, that’s fine, just enjoy what you love and let other people enjoy what they love.

I know some of us also need to touch grass but the thing is hate has become so normalized you can’t even escape it. Like some groups are getting treated like they killed someone. And the worst part is that some companies are using us as a way of promoting their groups because they know we blame anyone just for breathing.

At the end of the day, people are going to support who they want. No amount of controversy is necessarily going to make someone unstan a group, unless it’s something genuinely serious (criminal charges). Personally, I’m just tired. K-pop doesn’t feel as enjoyable as it used to, and I really miss when it was more about the music.

This post is not serious, but every single time I scroll on TikTok and see that “fuck ICE” part that Anderson, I think that’s his name said, I can’t help but at least smile. 😭 That part makes me laugh every single time. Especially the first time I heard it, I was like, “Oh, okay.”

Because honestly, there’s no chance in hell that a group from a big company would openly mention ICE or anything political. So, I mean, it might be performative, but he’s Asian American or from Asian American immigrant parents, so he kind of has the right to say it. I don’t know, personally, I just find it funny.

Every time, it’s always, “Oh, that person is going on hiatus!” and suddenly everyone is acting crazy. “Are they quitting the group? Is she leaving?” Like, it’s really not that deep.

Especially with KATSEYE, it’s getting so draining. Manon has been on hiatus for only ~8 months. We get it. Every time I see another conversation about her hiatus, I’m like, we get it already. It’s not even interesting anymore.

I feel like idols going on hiatus has become so normalized that people now make a huge deal out of it every single time. Before, hiatuses weren’t even discussed this much. Now everyone is either going on hiatus or going solo. Like, we get it. There’s no need to make such a fuss over it.

And unless there’s something serious going on medically, sometimes it really is just: go rest, take your break, and come back. We don’t need 500 discussions about what it supposedly means.
People are also speculating that Manon is leaving KATSEYE, but I don’t see that happening. I think she’ll stay. If they were going to kick her out, they probably would’ve done it earlier, because there’s really no reason to remove her.

The girls constantly say they miss her, and I’m sure she’ll eventually return. Hiatuses are normal. The industry has normalized them, so I think fans need to normalize them too. It’s for the idols’ well-being. Let them rest without turning every hiatus into a conspiracy. Personally, I don’t care that much.

The reaction to BLACKPINK’s 10th anniversary has been reminding me a lot of the way YG handled 2NE1. Obviously, the circumstances aren’t exactly the same, but the pattern feels extremely familiar.

As someone who has followed K-pop for a long time, I remember how 2NE1’s image was gradually damaged through scandals and through the way YG made it seem like the members themselves didn’t care about the group. Even though CL even spoke about wishing they had been given more opportunities.

At the same time, YG kept 2NE1 inactive and reduced their visibility while BLACKPINK was being prepared for debut. Keeping 2NE1 out of the spotlight made it easier for BLACKPINK to establish themselves without constantly being compared to or overshadowed by their predecessor.

Now we’re watching a similar situation unfold with BLACKPINK. A lot of Blinks are directing their frustration toward the members because they aren’t as involved in group activities as they once were. It reminds me of how Blackjacks used to blame 2NE1 for their own inactivity. Yes, BLACKPINK is less involved with group activities than they were before, and could’ve done way better than what they did. But that doesn’t mean the responsibility falls entirely on the members. YG is still a major part of the situation.

Let’s not forget how Lisa exposed him by showing that the little staff they had did not care a bit about the live and did not help the members in any way.

And honestly, I think the company benefits when fans focus their anger on BLACKPINK instead of YG. He doesn’t necessarily need to damage the group’s reputation outright. Keeping them relatively inactive can maintain their status as an iconic group while gradually reducing the expectation for frequent BLACKPINK comebacks. Meanwhile, that creates more room for attention to move toward whatever girl group YG plans to launch next.

That’s the part I find particularly interesting. The members are becoming the main targets of the frustration while the company behind many of these decisions gets overlooked. BLACKPINK can be responsible for some things, but they are clearly not the only factor involved.

And honestly, I wouldn’t be shocked if the same cycle happens again once YG’s next girl group debuts. We could easily end up seeing another fan war resembling Blackjack vs. Blink, except this time it would be Blinks fighting with the fandom of YG’s newest girl group.
History has a funny way of repeating itself. Mark my words.

We all saw BTS stand up for everyone against the Asian Pop category at the Grammys, and it reminded me of what happened with “APT.” Quite frankly, “APT.” is the biggest K-pop song since “Gangnam Style,” and seeing Rosé lose all of her nominations after BTS’s stance just proved to me that the Grammys do not want K-pop artists winning in the main categories.

That song was literally everywhere. There wasn’t a day when kids weren’t singing “APT.,” and it was nominated for Record of the Year or Song of the Year. Because they knew the impact that song had it’s the first kpop song to be nominated there.

The fact that she featured a Western artist and still lost just proved that, no matter what tactics K-pop artists use, the Grammys won’t budge and will continue denying those songs.

I think the Asian Pop category came after multiple attempts by BTS, but even more so after “APT.” came out and the Recording Academy started to realise that K-pop was actually bigger than they thought. And ignoring chart-breaking songs like that just made them look ridiculous.

However, as we’ve seen with African and Latin artists, instead of having them compete in the categories they were already eligible for, they created regional or genre-specific categories. To me, it comes across as, “Here, damn.”
And I don’t even think BTS’s move, as great as it is, will change anything because the Grammys were created by Americans for themselves American music industry.

I think they’ll eventually do this with every emerging genre or regional music scene that isn’t from the US, and over time people will probably make peace with it.

I mean, even some American pop stars have said the Grammys are rigged, yet we still give the awards so much attention and treat them as the ultimate music awards. We’re kind of part of the reason they hold so much power.

It’s still a good opportunity for artists from smaller Asian countries to have a chance to win and showcase Asian music and culture. Breaking into the main categories is incredibly difficult, so even though I think the downsides are more obvious, there’s still a little bit of good that could come from it.

I need you to walk with me on this one. I’m a Coer, and I watch all of CORTIS’s content. I saw their video titled something like “Getting My ID,” and they kept repeating “No Identity” a lot. James was also doing some kind of adlibs that reminded me of rage-rock-type songs.

I think the song will probably be okay, and it might actually be their best song because their current songs are just songs you’ve already heard before. However, I don’t think it’s going to be the gag they think it is, because why would you make a clapback to haters saying you have no identity when, honestly, that criticism has some truth to it? Just like katsseralit, I was sooo disappointed when hybe released it. Why would you set my girls up like that, ESPECIALLY katseye, katseye is too talented to be singing about being mistake… And the song is honestly not even good…

Anyways I’m a rap fan, and CORTIS’s songs are mostly free rap samples or songs that sound very similar to things that already exist. By saying “No Identity,” I guess they’re at least acknowledging it. But guys, just watch that video, we might actually see rock CORTIS soon.

I just really hope they don’t use a rock sample or make a rock song that sounds extremely similar to another rock artist, because that would just make them look ridiculous. But I’m kinda excited yall, I know A LOT of people will call me delusional but just wait I feel like I’m 90% right.

I feel like every generation until the 5th gen had at least one SM group that was considered one of the best vocal groups, if not the best. But the standard has decreased over the years and especially in the 5th gen. I don’t know if it’s because SM prioritised having “natural cute visuals” over vocals and then training them, but it kind of failed.

First of all, NMIXX took over aespa’s spot as the best 4th gen vocal group, but in the 5th gen, apart from BABYMONSTER and YG’s new girl group, it’s literally crickets. Now, don’t get me wrong, the H2H girls are good vocalists, but by SM’s standards, they fall really low.

I wanted to excuse them by saying they’re so young, but the thing is, YG’s new girl groups were better even when they were younger, with most being literal kids. I find it kind of disappointing for an agency to lack in the department it’s famous for, but at the same time, I’m not really surprised that YG’s new groups are going for the top spot because YG had Big Mama, which is, quite frankly, the best K-pop vocal group. Idk if the girl trained with them, but you can tell that the training in YG is rigorous cause gawon from meovv trained with the baemon girls for some time and she’s literally built like them.

The K-pop community has a lot of fan wars, but I still think even the biggest haters vibe to songs by groups they dislike. I mean, songs don’t go viral for nothing, especially in the girl group sphere.

I feel like boy group stans don’t really mind streaming other boy groups, and the hate is less prominent there compared to the girl group side. But the girl group industry has so many good songs from almost every group that I think even haters agree the songs are good on the low.

Personally, I don’t really hate groups like that. I just listen to music that sounds good to my ears, and I can definitely say that most groups have at least one song that is pleasing.