The Differences between Sasaeng Fans and Normal Fans

               
   Image:  http://www.soompi.com/2013/08/13/exo-members-experience-hardships-over-sasaeng-fans/

           

               In the world of entertainment, the more popular a celebrity is, the bigger the fan base they have. Fans are bound to get crazy, scream, and get obsessive over their favorite celebrity but there are boundaries between being a normal fan and an overly obsessive fan. In the Kpop world, fans are categorized as either a sasaeng or normal fan.

How to differentiate a Saesang fan from a Normal fan:  

                         

The picture on the left is of Junsu from JYJ taking a picture with one his fans. In the
         background, there are sasaeng fans stalking Junsu. The picture on the right  is a picture a sasaeng fan took while Jaejoong from JYJ was sleeping in his dorm. 
Image: http://onekpop.com/18646/a-managers-perspective-on-sasaeng-fans/#

          While all fans of idols share the same obsession and love for their favorite Kpop group or Kpop idol, there are fans that take obsession to another level.  Saesang fans and normal fans are categorized as “fans” but it’s what fans do that differentiates them from being either a normal fan or a sasaeng fan.

Every Kpop fan is similar, they always research their idol, hoping that one day they will get to meet them. Kpop fans research everything about their Kpop idol so they can get to know them better and  also get noticed by their favorite idols and become special to them. In order for fans to really support their favorite idol, they attend the idol’s concert and purchase their album. But of course, there are fans that take their love and obsession for Kpop idols overboard by doing really scary and obsessive things.

While, normal fans would just watch videos about their favorite Kpop bands to know more about them, Sasaeng Fans use the method of “stalking” and other outrageous methods to learn more about their idols as well as hoping their idols will remember them. In order for these fans to get their favorite idol’s attention, these obsessive fans camp outside their favorite idol’s dorm and try their best to break into their room. The reason for camping outside their idol’s dorm is because they want to be able to know what their favorite idols are doing on a daily basis while, trying gather information about their idols that others don’t know making them feel “special.” Now, this may already seem scary and illegal but there are way more bizarre things sasaeng fans have done to their idols. Fans have reported sasaeng fans leaving their unsanitary period pads on their idols doorstep, disrupting their idol’s privacy by snooping out their favorite idol’s phone number and taking pictures of Kpop idols sleeping in their (Kpop idol) dorm.

                                                

Saesang Fans taking videos and pictures of Baekhyun while he was attending his brother's wedding   
 Image:  http://www.allkpop.com/article/2013/09/exo-wedding-sasaengs#axzz2lGLEoSu 

Just recently, there were news going around about how sasaeng fans crashed an idol’s family wedding. Baekhyun (from the Kpop group, called EXO), was at his brother’s wedding, where sasaeng fans have found him. These sasaeng fans were very disrespectful. They climbed on top of tables while taking pictures and videos of Baekhyun.  

              Normal and Sasaeng fans do have the same idea of wanting to become closer to their favorite idols. They both want to be seen as different from other fans as well as support their favorite idols but the difference between the two fans are their mindsets. Normal fans have more self- control over themselves and are not as obsessed with wanting to know about their favorite Kpop idol’s private life.  While, Sasaeng fans don’t know how to distinguish between what is the right and wrong way to support their favorite idols. 

As a normal fan, I understand the kind of obsessiveness that comes with liking Kpop idols. Sometimes you like your favorite Kpop idol so much that you want to marry him or her but there are boundaries. I am pretty obsessive myself, where everywhere in my room I have Kpop posters or pictures of my favorite Kpop idol but I would never be as extreme as a Saesang fan. I think what Saesang fans are doing to these innocent Kpop idols are scary and should be illegal. It is kind of funny because Saesang fans say they stalk their favorite idols out of love but if they really love their Kpop idol, then they should let their idols live a safe and private life. Love for an idol should not be that extreme! Simply purchasing or supporting Kpop idols is enough. Kpop idols are normal people and deserve to have a private life. Although it is easier said than done, I really hope sasaeng fans will really reflect on what they are actually doing to their idols and stop being so obsessive.

               If you were a Kpop Idol, how would you approach your Saesang Fans?

Female Korean Idols: Beauty = Thin

           Image: http://shineonew.wordpress.com/2013/09/26/fxs-amber-greets-her-aussie-fans-on-twitter/

                   

               One thing Kpop idols have in common are their skinny physiques. Female Kpop idols are constantly dieting to become slimmer than they are and honestly, it’s weird for female Kpop idols to diet when they are already so skinny. When I read articles about Kpop idols dieting and losing weight, I really wondered how much weight they could actually lose, when they barely look like they have any fat on them, but as an idol “being skinny” is a must. 

               

            In Korea, the idea of beauty is being skinny and as an idol, he or she have to make sure they look up to those standards. Their bodies and overall physique is looked upon by thousands of people and from these thousands of people, many of them wished they had the same body as the Korean Idols. Unfortunately even with their perfect bodies, many female idols feel pressured to become pretty by trying to keep losing weight with diets and exercise.

image: http://blog.daum.net/sanheon/7754181

Common Kpop Diets:

One Meal Diet- consists of eating only one big meal every day. The meal can be anything you want to eat.

Paper Cup Diet- This diet consists of only eating out of 3 cups.  Each cup has holds different types of foods. The first cup has side dishes, the second cup should have fruits, and the third cup should have brown rice.

Danish Diet- This diet consists of eating only 600 calories a day.The foods for this diet are                                                       lean beef, lettuce, eggs, and coffee.   

These diets were used by stars like Hyosung from Secret, Nicole from Kara, Eunjung from T-ara, and Nine Muses.

          

             Shouldn’t Kpop Idols be happy with their bodies? Kpop Idols should be happy with their bodies but it’s hard to stay positive when there are people always judging the way they look. Korean Idols are constantly criticized because of their looks and even the so called “fans” even bash them by telling them to lose weight. Hyosung, from the girl group, Secret also known as the bagel girl (Baby Face and Glamorous Body, which I wouldn’t be mind being called), was criticized on the internet for being “short and thick.” Although, Hyosung had a wide range of male fans swooning over her body, she was still pressured into losing weight. In a year for her group’s comeback stage, Hyosung came back with a thinner complexion, losing about 10lbs by eating the one meal diet. Sadly, even though she lost the weight to please others, fans were not satisfied and exclaimed that she looks ugly and was so much prettier before.   

                                  

Sojung talking about her weight loss on the show "Incarnation"
  Image:  http://www.allkpop.com/article/2013/09/ladies-codes-sojung-reveals-she
-didnt-have-her-period-for-a-year-due-to-her-extreme-diet#axzz2jXJr0tUH    

       

              Sometimes, Korean Idols might take dieting too far in order to meet the standards of beauty. Female idols already have intensive practice and long schedules but they still continuously diet even when they have plenty of exercise. One of my favorite Korean soloist, G.na dieted to the point where she was underweight and malnutrition. It was so upsetting to see one of my favorite females idols become so worried about her looks that she didn’t even care about her own health. Sojung from the girl group called Ladies’ Code, recently confessed that she lost 26lbs after seeing herself on TV. She exclaimed that she barely ate and only worked out making her lose 26lbs, making her at an unhealthy weight of 88lbs. Right now, she is trying her hardest to increase her body fat and hopefully become healthy again.

I don’t blame Korean idols for having this addiction to losing fat by dieting but sometimes it’s almost scary seeing my favorite idols become so thin.  Being pretty shouldn’t mean having to be skinny. Many idols are very talented and don’t need to be skinny to appeal to their fans. Although, I was never in the idol’s shoes, I know it’s hard to become confident in your own body when there are so many negative comments trying to make you think the opposite.  I hope that the female idols would stop caring about being pretty and take care of their health, which is the most important. 

                                            
                               What is your idea of beauty?  

The Hardships of Becoming a Kpop Idol - Training

            What is the secret behind creating successful idols? The answer is the trainee system. Korean companies like JYP, SM, and YG have auditions all around the world to find talented young individuals to go under their company. But of course, not all the talented individuals chosen to be part of the company have the experience or the background of an idol. These individuals leave their family behind while, they become trained to increase their skills in dancing and singing, hoping to one day become the perfect Kpop star. Training may seem easy since becoming a trainee is almost halfway from becoming an idol, but there is still a long road full of hard work and hardships before trainees can debut.   

Jo kwon and Jaebum dancing during their JYP trainee days
 Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGqyTowIut4

Although ,trainees are already part of a Korean company, they are constantly thrown into singing and dancing classes, where they are given no guarantee if they are able to debut. Trainees have schedules consisting of singing, dancing, and language lessons every day from day to night. After a week of lessons, trainees are evaluated by their company based on if the trainee improved. If the company doesn’t see a trainee as good enough, he or she will be cut from the company.

      Jo Kwon during his trainee days                 
            Source: http://angangwoo.wordpress.com/2010/03/03/
this-was-our-leadja-this-is-our-park-jaebum

           Many renowned Kpop idols that also went through the same trainee system, recall their trainee days as the time when they endured the most hardships to be where they are now. Jo Kwon, from the ballad group called 2AM, had to train under JYP for 8 years basically spending almost all his teenage life as a trainee. He exclaims “I had no idea it would take this long, and I kept wondering why I wasn’t being cut.” Jo Kwon didn’t know if he was ever going to debut because Jin Young Park (Founder of JYP) never complimented him. He felt pressured when he saw new trainees like Nichkhun and Taecyeon from 2pm. While, Key , from SHINee, who came to Seoul, South Korea from Daegu (a Korean city) to become a singer described himself as being depressed because his “skills weren’t improving” and others “kept criticizing and pointing out [his] weak spots.”  

Key from Shinee
   Source: http://kpcave.blogspot.com/2011/12
/shinee-amigo-repackage-album.html

Similarly to Key and Jo Kwon’s experiences, trainees constantly have to work hard and be persistent in order to become idols. Trainees are constantly told that they are not good enough and that they need to work harder but it’s hard when they see other trainees better than themselves. Key, felt like he wasn’t good enough and in the end felt depressed because his dream of becoming an idol didn’t seem like it was going to come true. The feeling of not being good enough, can really hurt trainees emotionally, making them feel depressed and wanting to give up.

When you’re a trainee, it seems as if becoming an idol is so close but in reality it’s a lot farther. The trainee life is hard and not many people are able to endure the kind of competition and hard work needed to become an idol. But when it comes to following your dreams anything is possible. Would you want to become a trainee for a Korean Company? 

                                                     

My First Experience

My first experience with Kpop was in September 2010 when my friend introduced me to the Kpop song, Replay by SHINee. I didn’t really have any opinions on the song because I thought it was so weird to listen to songs that I couldn’t understand. It wasn’t until the summer of 2010, when I first discovered a Korean variety show called “Let’s Go Dream Team,” where Kpop idols go against Athletes on obstacles or anything sports related, on TV. Little did I know that from then on, I would start listening to Kpop.

                         
                                                               SHINee  

                From right to left: Onew, Taemin, Jonghyun, Minho, Key
                                         Image: http://kpopinformer.com/shinee/

The reason I started to get into Kpop was because of Choi Minho, who was an idol/dream team member of “Let’s Go Dream Team.” The first time I saw him on the variety show, he danced to one of his group’s songs called Ring Ding Dong. I was so surprised to see him dance because I didn’t really see him as an Idol star with his long hair and feminine looks. But after watching him more and more on the variety show, I found him to be super handsome and as a result, I decided to research more about him. I found out that he’s a part of a 5 member boy band called SHINee. The moment I watched SHINee’s music videos I was so amazed with their dancing, singing, and unique looks. Replay and Ring Ding Dong were my favorite music videos and because I liked their music and videos so much, I couldn’t go a day without watching them. I was obsessed and my love for SHINee just prompted me to learn everything about them and also explore other Kpop bands.

                                            
                                                              2PM

                             From right to left: Wooyoung, Nichkhun, Taecyeon, Chansung, Jun.K, Junho
                 Image: http://www.jpopasia.com/news/2pm-officially-announce-upcoming-comeback::12685.html

SHINee started my interest in Kpop but the group called 2PM was what started my curiosity about the Kpop Industry. Because Kpop is Korean music, I always assumed that everyone in a Kpop band is Korean. I was proven wrong when I researched the members of 2PM and to my amazement one of the members named Nichkhun was actually not Korean at all but Thai.  I was really confused because Nichkhun was actually from America and he didn’t know any Korean when he first joined 2PM. I began to look into this and how these idols became part of a group and I realized that Kpop companies like SM, JYP, and YG hold auditions in America, where they find talented individuals to go to Korea and train under their company. This was all so foreign to me. I have never heard of anything like “training to become an idol,” but because this was so different, it got me really interested in the formation of bands, how idols live, and how the Kpop industry works.

             In this blog, I will write about the Kpop industry and how Kpop bands formed. The Kpop industry is really different and complex compared to the American music industry. Many of the idols go through years of intense training to follow their dreams to become a Kpop star, which I respect about each idol. I’m not going to lie but it was the Kpop Idol’s good looks that got me into Kpop but besides all that, it was the idol’s determination to follow their dreams that made me appreciate their music even more.  I may not be Korean but as an Asian American, I am proud the Hallyu wave (Kpop wave) has influenced many cultures and has also spread throughout non- Asian cultures. While reading this blog, I hope you will learn more about the Kpop World.

What was your first Kpop song? If you have never listened to Kpop, what do you want to know about Kpop?