Sunday 4 March 2012

"I Am Scared of Certain Types of Fans" - Chiima Confesses and Shares her Thoughts on Certain Types of Fans

Please, do not get offended by this post. I am not aiming it at specific people, but at a certain type of fan which honestly scares me, and makes me dislike a fandom even more.

I'm going to start this post off with this: I was, at first, trying to reason with myself exactly why I should make this blog post, because in all honesty - I am scared about what people will say. I mean, coming out about how I feel about AKB was a hard (and brave) thing to do for me, because I honestly get scared about what people will say to me. In the end, I tell myself that it is my opinion, and I am allowed to have said opinion and speak out about my feelings. So, in the end, that was the reasoning I gave myself for doing this post.

Oh, and I talked to my sister about it - because she's the one who is more sensible.

Anyway, this is basically about a certain incident that recently happened in Japan, and it includes certain Berryz members...


Yeah, you guessed right - the drama with the K-pop fans.

Now, this post won't be all about just this topic, more so, it concerns a topic that I have wanted to talk about a lot, but kind of wigged out on because of my fear of people hating on me - and that is my opinion on the fanbase of most groups. No, not just one, but most groups. And honestly? These fans scare me and make me feel somewhat ashamed of being a fan of a certain Jpop group. But, let me just say this: THIS DOES NOT APPLY TO ALL FANS!


Now, let's get back to the Berryz fiasco first - an article on Aramatheydidn't popped up concerning hate towards Momoko, Miyabi and Chinami - more so towards Momoko and Miyabi rather than Chinami, and it was all because of a scripted (read: scripted, meaning it was meant to happen) act that Momoko is well known for: Crashing in on someone else's gig and claiming how cute she is, and doing her usual annoying act on TV. Well, this didn't seem to go down too well with the fans of T-ara, who were also on the show, and they started to shout horrible things to Momo, like DIE and You're annoying, and even told Miyabi that she wasn't cute. My sister even dug up a little more info (from 2ch, no less) and found out that once Miyabi had gone off stage, Momoko started to yell, asking who had dared to say Miyabi wasn't cute at all.

If you want to read the article, you can find it HERE.

For a person who is pretty much on the fence with Berryz, but a Chinami and Miyabi fan, this was shocking, and it made me extremely angry. I mean, I don't really support Berryz - there are few songs of theirs I like, and I think it's pretty well known how much I dislike Momoko, but I do respect her as an Idol - and hearing this, it really just... riled me up. And it just makes me dislike the extreme fans even more - you know, the sort who go out of their way to defend an idol by telling you to go die, that their idol is the best, that your Idol sucks and that you are a shame to the fan community. You know - those fans.

Anyway, this, of course, annoyed a lot of aramatheydidn't writers - I mean, most of them are in love with Berryz and of course, they defended them - but honestly, some of these comments can be nasty. Which kind of proves my point with how I don't really like some fans of Jpop groups. And, I honestly have a feeling that at some point (actually, I am almost certain about this) that I was disliked greatly because I was a hater of AKB48. I won't deny it. Ever. However, I never wanted to wish death upon a person, fan or Idol, because that is far beneath me.

But, it's fans like this - who take everything one step too far by wishing death, or yelling it, at Idols or even other fans that make me ashamed of being in a fandom with people like this. I mean - how could they think, or say that? And, with these T-ara fans, it just makes me less and less interested in learning about T-ara, and it makes me even more disinterested in listening to Kpop turned Jpop. It really turns me off of the idea, because fans seem brutal and scary. And they said these words in real life - they are not hiding behind a computer screen, they really did tell Momo to die (it seems).

But, it's not just K-pop, as I stated - it's most fandoms. I mean, when I was dead-set against listening to AKB48, I thought that the Hello! Project fandom was one of the nicest, laid-back fandoms out there. Pfft, how wrong was I - I have actually found myself disliking the fandom a lot more now, because some people are just... well... horrible. So, when did I find this out?


During the release of PPU. During this time, the song (and costumes, more so) got a lot of hate - not just from AKB stans, but also from H!P stans. A lot of fans claimed to boycott MM because of how horrible the costumes were, or because of how different it was. It pissed me off, and I honestly wanted to bitch slap a lot of these people - one person even went as far to (stupidly) say PPU would have sounded better if the costumes were different. Yes, I am not kidding. Someone said that (on an MM confession blog, so they are anonymous - damnit!) - But it wasn't just PPU - it was stuff about the MM members, too.

I've come to realise that, whilst these girls are generally accepted in Japan, a lot of international fans don't like them - most notably, Eripon and Haruna. Two of my favourite members in MM, so of course I have quite an issue with those people. I've also come across the odd one or two Riho haters (who I have enjoyed fighting with), and honestly, I do respect her - I just don't care for her.

I had a (great) dislike for Riho during the period of Only You, as most of you would know, and I still don't care greatly for her - but when Only You came out, my main issue was the line distribution rather than Riho - and I bitched about it. A lot. On this blog, on a fourm I go to... and on that forum, I got a lot of hate from a few people that I knew quite well. These people were not happy with how a lot of us acted on the forum towards the single, and claimed that we weren't true fans of MM and that we didn't appreciate them or that we were all evil for hating on a little girl. Er, no - we were hating on the line distribution. But, because it was Riho who got the lines, obviously, these guys felt the need to turn it around and make it look like we were bitching on Riho. But, most of us were actually just explaining how we hated the line distribution, and how it was unfair that only Eripon, Fukuhikme and Zukki got no solo lines whilst Riho got a lot. We weren't exactly saying 'Riho should DIE'. We were just voicing our, gasp, opinions.

And this is an example of extreme fans - people who basically like to offend you, act mean towards you and try to make you feel bad about what you say. Even for the slightest criticism. And this is actually why I am on the verge of hating certain fans of music that I enjoy. Especially the fans who hate on members that I love - but that's a personal thing, because I obviously adore those members of a certain group, and I will want to defend them or cry for them.

I have actually seen people boycott MM or Jpop all together because of these fans - they hate the fan community, and how they act with certain members, and so they just stop listening. I doubt that I will go down that road, because I love MM, and I don't want to leave this fandom at all - I have met amazing people through blogging and listening to Jpop, but some people just go to the extreme lengths to hate on certain idols, or fans who are happy to like or dislike music or a video, but still be a fan.

The same goes for AKB48 when it comes to fans - as someone who once didn't like them, I am guilty of the odd few comments that talked about how bad their music was (and I still think it's meh, especially considering most are meant to be million sellers :/) as well as disliking certain members. But, even as a casual fan now, I still disagree with others about how amazing they are, and I still dislike Maeda Atsuko - but I will never ever go to extreme lengths to say that she should die. No, she should not. No Idol should. I may dislike Momoko and Maeda about the same, but they are Idols - they bring us entertainment (more so Momoko than Maeda) and they bring us music. They are both good singers, and they are Idols for a reason. They do not deserve to have death threats by fans or haters. That is wrong, and immoral on so many freakin' levels. It's downright nasty!

Honestly, these fans scare me. And I am scared that one day, I will turn away from Jpop because of these fans.

Ping!!! International Wota Recommended Reading: March 4th, 2012

22 comments:

  1. Those 3 are my favorite Berryz members, and I love Kpop, so I was really excited to see them with T-ara (even though I don't really like T-ara, but my love for Kpop in general made me curious). But then fans start acting like this and it completely RUINS THE MOMENT! That seriously ticked me off.

    I can understand if you don't like a certain idol's work. Like I said, I don't really like T-ara that much. I don't really like AKB48 either (I only like a couple of their songs). But what they do should not cause you to hate them at a PERSONAL level, considering you don't even know them. Telling them to die is the most idiotic thing. I can't even tell you how outraged I am at this... HOW DARE YOU HURT MOMO AND MIYA LIKE THAT!

    OK, I'm gonna calm down a little bit... but seriously, fans really need to chillax.

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    1. Thanks for your reply ^3^

      Idols are there to make people happy, and whilst I dislike some, their work with other members I like makes me EXTREMELY happy 9I love Riho and Erina singing together, for example) so I don't get how people can be like this... it's scary!

      I feel bad for Momo and Miyabi - the fact that Momo is used to this kinda says something, and it makes me feel like such a douche for disliking her.

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  2. You've hit the nail on the head with this one. It's part of the reason why i haven't been bloging as much as i want to.

    I had another blog but because i said that i didn't like Reina, on fan turned around and started leaving me really nasty comments which then turned into racist remarks.

    I'm a very sensitive and simple person and because of this i have some personal rules which i follow like you must respect everyone no matter what they say, you must always have a reason for not liking something/one and don't offend people personally because you don't know what goes on behind closed doors.

    The only reason why i'm still ranking Reina lower that the other members is because of what happened to me. I can't say it if was just one fan or not because they were anonymous every time they commented, but it has left me with the feeling of "why should i bother with being a fan of this girl if her fans can't respect others opinions?"

    Like wise with AKB48, a similar thing happened when i stated the obvious and now i'm still worried about writing what i want on them.

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    1. I think that fans can be scary - and what happened with you and this Reina fan, wow - that's beyond belief! I honestly don't understand why people feel the need to go so far for someone they do not personally know!

      In all honesty, I am sensitive - I get scared about how people will read into it, but then I just kinda tell myself that this is what I do: I blog. I kinda just signed myself up to the haters, lol.

      I think that how other fans react to what you think, it has such an impact on how you can view a group/member of a group :/ and that's BAD, but it puts such a horrible impression on other groups.

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    2. Thinking about it now, I think it comes down to self-control. Like, I LOVE Reina, so when I read that someone doesn't like her, honestly for a little bit I get kinda angry, wondering how someone can't like her. Human nature, I guess. I'm not happy admitting that. But of course I've run into many people who can't stand Reina, and never once have I called them out or been mean to them. So maybe it's just because I have more control over what I say on the internet (or in person, for that matter).

      Just a thought. :) The only reason I thought of this was because you said you don't like Reina. XD XD XD

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    3. Self-control is good - I don't necessarily like Reina, but I do find her to be a very pretty girl who is a talented singer, however, I don't necessarily care for her at all.

      I mean, I also get angry when people are mean about Haruna or Ikuta - I get offended by it, even. But the worst I have done is actually fight with a Riho hater, despite my dislike of Riho. So, even if a person is mean about a member I don't care for, I can get very defensive XD

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  3. I am a hardcore kpop fan, (well mostly K-Ballad), and I love T-ara beyond belief, but yeah what these fans said were ridiculous. I actually don't like Berryz at all and the only member I can stand is Chinami so I was sad to hear these things said about her. I actually hate Miyabi the most so like, I don't disagree with what they said about her, but it was totally uncalled for in this type of situation.
    But I also think that the producers of this program could have done a better job preparing Berryz for this, because well, it's a known fact that kpop fans are insane and irrational (especially me:)
    Like in the early 2000s/late 90s (dr which), there were rumors of this kpop idol Yoon Eunhye dating a really famous kale idol. Sme fans got so angry that they sent her death threats and even lined letters up with razorblades so she would cut herself while opening them.
    There was even one incident when an anti fan shot her in the eye with a mixture of soy sauce and vinegar in an attempt to make her blind, so like it's a well known fact that kpop fans are psycho.
    So pretty much, Berryz got off easy in a way, but they better watch out, don't want any of them to get hit in the eye with soy sauce.
    But now I think that variety producers in Japan have learned the danger of kpop fans, and won't be doing anything like that in the future, because fans of popular guy groups like Super Junior or Toshinki, would have done so much worse to those girls. But a lesson has been learned I think and I don't forsee this problem happening again, but as a result it will cost us entertain,net coming from these varieties.
    Eek I feel like nothing I just said makes sense...

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    1. Hello! Thank you for reading this and for commenting! I'm also glad that you're not a big Berryz fan - you basically feel the same way as me (though Miyabi is one of my favourite members, haha).

      I'm glad that you have given me your insight on this topic, and how things could go - I do agree now that this is a light way to tell them to back off or to warn the producers. But, I think that is wrong.

      I think you made perfect sense, and you have given me an insight on how things are with some fans. Thank you for that, and I will try not to let it deter me from listening to Kpop (I love IU) :)

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  4. I'm surprised your perspective on the fans. I've heard some pretty bad things coming from H!P fans. (Even calling girls ugly.) I tend not to hear too much hate coming from AKB fans towards H!P. Maybe that is because I'm a bigger 48 fan. I just complain about H!P's management, but I adore the girls (for the most part). Usually I've seen AKB fans being defensive, but I don't spend too much time on forums so maybe that is why.

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    1. In all honesty, I've seen bad from all sides in a way - from girl and boy groups, spanning from H!P to AKB48. I was once in a forum fight with a major Riho hater who was saying horrible things about Riho, to defend Fukumura - it was uncalled for, and it was ugly! I find that no matter what, there will be haters, and scary fans. And they scare me!

      Some AKB fans can be scary, but for the most part, I have met some nice AKB fans, but I have also met some who have told me that MM sucks and that H!P have no talent and worse things. But it depends where you go.

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  5. AKB fans are the least of your worries. They already got over the early AKB years of H!P fan abuse and couldn't care less about H!P and their fans anymore. Extreme popularity makes fans more tolerable of antis. I just wonder how your article about T-ara and Kpop fans turn into an I don't like AKB48 piece. Oh, well...

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    1. I agree with this, though during 2010, I experienced a few of the 'die-hard' fans who hated H!P, which is probably why I wasn't too keen on AKB in the first place...

      Actually, I like AKB, just not as much as others want me to - if I didn't, I would never blog about them like I do now. Hence why my later posts involve more AKB rather than none of AKB.

      Please don't turn my post around in your comments - it's about a certain type of fan, not just K-pop fans, I stated that.

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    2. 'I just wonder how your article about T-ara and Kpop fans turn into an I don't like AKB48 piece.'

      Chiima never once said that her post would be solely based on the T-ara fans, she said it would be a generalization of her fears on the obsessive fans that wish death upon other idols.

      If you actually read the post rather than scan it and just look for the 4 AKB sentences, you'll see that there was a huge wall of text about H!P fans who are way too obsessive and mean.

      If you're going to passive-aggressive bitch over the internet, at least come out of the guise of anonymous, I like to know who the trolls are.

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  6. Preach it girl, there is such a lack of respect towards the girls/boys in the fandom and I admit I have had my feelings hurt by what some people have said.

    There is nothing wrong with a little snark but when it turns to out right abuse a line has been crossed. I mean Jesus some of these Idols are children!

    This was an awesome post.

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    1. Thank you for commenting! :) And I am sure that a lot of people have been hurt by what fans say, and they have no reason to say it, I think.

      I totally agree - snark is one thing, but abuse is another, and is pretty much cyber-bullying in my eyes. I am a very snarky reader, and I admit to my mistakes - but I try to reason with positive things, like how Riho is an amazing dancer, despite me not really liking her as an Idol.

      Anyway, thank you for reading!

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  7. I don't know why fans goes to the extreme and start screaming death threats to a poor girl, I'm not a fan of Berryz personally is the last H!P group i like, neither i'm a Momo's fan nor Miya, but i recognize they're girls who gives their best to entertain fans and i admire them for that, ok i must admit the char Momo plays is annoying but is a char if you like it fine, if you don't just don't say anything. I like T-ara and won't judge the group or all K-pop fans for this incident but what those fans did was just wrong.

    About the H!P fans, here in Mexico there's a lot of people who call themselves "fans" but they keep whining and bashing on the groups specially Momusu, you say in your post that you read this "PPU would have sounded better if the costumes were different." well most fans here were the same saying things like "I don't like the song 'cause the costumes.", i've even read Berryz fans saying "Momusu sux" "Should disband" "Momusu is nothing", and °C-ute fans saying Berryz is a copy of °C-ute, i think thats one of the reasons why groups ins H!P can't get casual fans, 'cause if someone wanna give a try to H!P groups they see "fans" bitching about H!P they just turn around.

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    1. Thank you for commenting, I really appreciate it. I agree with everything you said, and as someone who also doesn't really like Berryz, I can sympathise with you!

      I think that if I had wanted to become a fan of Momusu now, I wouldn't have done it because of these fans. All they do is make everything look bad, and make the group seem bad too! It makes me sad! And I honestly have no idea how people can say that Berryz is a copy of C-ute, because C-ute was made after Berryz!

      Thank you for commenting with this! I didn't know that a lot of fans were like this in Mexico! Dx

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  8. It's sad that fans of another group would just shout negative stuff. Theres groups I don't like but I won't go as far as saying they should die or their ugly.

    I always thought Hello Project fans are peaceful and nice but I guess I was wrong about that. Fandom is such a scary thing. I started hating AKB48 fans, Johnny fans, any fans of popular groups that are super hardcore and aggressive after I started singing on YouTube cause of the amount of hate comments I got from those fans.

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    1. I agree - it sometimes makes me wonder what happened to this fandom, and I do honestly wonder why I continue to follow it with all of these people - however, I just follow these groups for the girls, not the fans.

      In all honesty, I thought that H!P fans were really great, but you can get your fair share of fans who are not so nice and peachy, and will hate on other groups - it's the same with any fandom. I only really experienced terrible fans from AKB and H!P respectively. I haven't encountered a terrible Kpop fan directly though.

      Wow, you have hateful comments!? On youtube? I am a dubber too (under a different name) and I haven't had a bad comment as of yet* But listening to you, you have a really nice voice - don't let these hateful people get to you :)

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    2. Yeah I agree. All fandoms are the same. Theres always someone that is so hardcore, that they'll go as far as bashing a member that person doesn't like or even saying bad things about other groups. I got really upset when I figured out Renai Hunter will have some tough competition but I didn't really say anything bad about the groups that are releasing their singles on the same day. But I saw some bad comments on the video about those rival groups.

      Yup, well when I first started. I disabled comments on those videos but it was really horrible. I guess the reason I thought HP fans are nice was because not cause of fans saying about things about the members or bashing other groups but because they're the only kind of people who actually posted nice comments. While AKB48 fans, Johnnys fans, AAA fans etc, we're super rude. I experienced those kinds of stuff from mostly Japanese ppl so there was even a time hated Japanese ppl and yeah...and thanks! ^-^ I usually just ignore those comments or just tell them to not watch my vids.

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    3. Sadly, this is true - these fans tend to be quite scary, and I dislike them Dx I mean, I dislike some Riho fans because of how they are. They can be extremely mean spirited, however, Riho haters can be much worse Dx

      When I found out that Sexy Zone were bringing out their single on the 11th, I wasn't overjoyed, however, I like Sexy Zone - and there will always be rivals for these groups, so it doesn't bother me that much. Especially as I like the group xD

      That's mean! I feel that people hate just because it's easier to right now - if they met you in real life, they probably wouldn't be so mean. However, the Japanese comments sounds sad :( I am sorry they hurt you Dx

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    4. Yeah, I dislike them myself. For some reason, I usually thought asian fans are just mean but yeah...

      I think I kind of overeacted when I figured out Sexy Zone was releasing on the same day lol. I thought they would releasing their new single on the 25th or something XD. Also I got really upset because I wanted Morning Musume to be #1 cause I really like Renai Hunter plus it's Gaki san's last single. I like Sexy Zone myself but I just really wanted Renai Hunter to do well and I was up to the point where I didn't even want their 2nd single cause it's releasing on the same day. Right now, I'm still thinking if I whether I should get it or not.

      Yeah and maybe they're probably just jealous. It's so easily to express your opinions now cause of the internet. Thanks :) I find it really interesting that usernames on YT who are like hardcore fans of a group has a username that's really obvious they like that certain group and hates ppl for just covering a song probably cause it's sounds different.

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