The K-pop world in the past week has been turned upside down due to numerous heated
controversies.
You guys must be so curious about what’s been shaking lately, mustn’t you?
So without any further ado, let’s get down to the video to discover all of them.
The video will start with a really explosive discussion around the dating rumor of Blackpink's
Jennie and BTS's V. For a year, there have been rumors linking the two’s relationship
but neither of them nor their respective management companies have acknowledged or denied their
relationship.
However, fans now have more reason to believe the rumor owing to their most recent pictures
taken in Paris.
Particularly, just a few days ago, a clip of Jennie and V spending the night in Paris
went viral on the internet.
The footage shared by a Paris photographer, Amar Taoualit, shows a couple wearing bucket
hats, walking hand-in-hand along the Seine in Paris.
He confirmed that it was indeed Jennie and V he saw walking along the Seine and their
managers were trailing at a discreet distance.
Amar said he had captured it from afar on his iPhone, as their security detail had requested
that he refrain from approaching.
After that, Amar shared an Instagram Story of a photo taken by another photographer,
Ali Letaissa, which shows a guy resembling V and his manager.
Not only that, there was also another photo reportedly showing Jennie spotted with her
manager, in which she was wearing the same outfit as in the first footage that spread
online.
The same manager has also been seen uploading photos of himself online in the same outfit.
And you know what?
Jennie and V are both having schedules in Paris and here is a clip of V signing for
fans while wearing the exactly same red jacket and bucket hat recorded not long ago:
But that’s not all, most recently, eagle-eyed netizens spotted that on the way to France,
V was wearing a necklace that looks exactly like the one Jennie wears.
Worth mentioning, this is a necklace from a brand that neither V nor Jennie is an ambassador
or a representative of, so the likelihood of coincidence between the two idol’s accessories
is quite low.
Reacting to this pile of hints and evidence, fans are currently flooding Twitter with mixed
reactions.
For those who support the alleged couple, they use the hashtag #taennie – which combines
V’s real name Kim Tae-hyung and Jennie to make it a trend on social media, sharing that
they are so happy for them as they deserve all the happiness, love, and peace in the
world.
However, there is a part of fans, specifically 300,000 Chinese ARMYs, who announced that
they had decided to stop being V’s fans.
It is known that the keyword "Leaving fandom" is standing at No.1 on hotsearch Weibo.
When clicking on this keyword, we can see that a part of Chinese fans is reacting very
negatively to the dating rumors of V and Jennie.They expressed their disappointment as they thought
that V had no responsibility for his fans while they prove themselves as ARMY by purchasing
albums, photocards, and merch over the years.
It can be seen that, for these fans, it is obvious that idols have to do fan-service
until they are no longer idols, and any idol who dares to date while still active is disrespectful
toward fans and deserves to be punished.
Because once their idols have been taken, these fans would feel that they have no chance
left even if it’s the slightest chance and only exist in their wildest dreams.
For me, if the rumor were true, I would cheer for V and Jennie.
At the ages of 27-28 years old, they are mature enough to find partners.
Moreover, if they have had the courage to go out together and wear couple items like
that despite knowing they would be bashed nonstop, they must truly be in love with each
other and are willing to face any criticism from fans and netizens.
So, even if some ARMYs want to leave the fandom, just do what you want and let V and Jennie
do what they want.
It is worth mentioning that wanting to control an idol's love life and resorting to verbal
abuse when the idol publicizes their romantic relationship, as a mere fan, is an unacceptable
behavior.
I believe fans need to understand their position in their idols' lives and respect the boundaries
they should have with them.
_________________________________________
Here we come to the next controversy sparked last week, which is about Hwasa’s allegedly
offensive behavior while performing at a college.
To be more detailed, most recently, Hwasa, along with other singers like BOA, Lee Hyori,
and Junghwa performed at a festival at Sungkyunkwan university.
The presence of these famous stars with their satisfying performances has obviously stirred
up the atmosphere there.
However, trouble soon came to Hwasa when the female idol performed the song “Don’t
give” with the guest rapper, Loco.
While performing, she suddenly sat down with her legs open wide, licking her fingers, then
touching her private part, and moving them along her body, which according to most netizens,
was extremely sensual and vulgar.
Though the choreography lasted only a few seconds, it soon went viral and put Hwasa
under harsh criticism.
Many were shocked and soon got angry when seeing Hwasa pull out such choreography as
they all viewed this action really obscene and inappropriate because at that time she
was performing at a campus site where not only students but parents and lecturers might
come to the show and watch this performance.
Some, even her fans, stated that they felt secondhand-embarrassed and said that she was
indeed shameless when doing such an offensive action in front of students right in a formal
place like a university.
Eventhough she has been known for portraying a bold and sexy image, this time Hwasa is
said to have crossed the line.
In the eyes of some netizens, her actions have just shown that she's trying to be erotic
and not respecting the audience since the barrier between sexy and offensive is really
thin.
Not only that, netizens also reminded her to be aware of the fact that she is an Asian
K-pop idol.
Therefore, she needs to consider the social norms of the place where she lives rather
than doing whatever she wants without thinking twice.
However, as for her fans, they believe that there’s no problem with Hwasa, but netizens’
perspective is the point.
Fans claimed that she appeared to be seductive not vulgar but the way some netizens perceive
it has distorted everything in an opposite and negative way.
What’s more, the atmosphere at that time was extremely exciting and vibrant, thus Hwasa
just immersed herself in it and pulled out those sexy dance moves to make the show become
more appealing.
Some also argued that netizens are just imposing strict standards on Hwasa while she was trying
to be free from prejudices and follow her own style like what Western singers are doing
every single day.
So, they hoped that people wouldn’t be so hard on Hwasa as overall she didn’t harm
anyone or have any ill intention.
Well, in my opinion, I don't think netizens are entirely wrong to criticize Hwasa.
Her choreography could be more suitable if she chose the right place to perform, such
as a concert in Europe or America.
However, considering the educational environment with many students and their parents, I completely
understand why netizens are saying that it is inappropriate for Hwasa to do that.
Moreover, I also hope that fans will stop abusing the label 'break the prejudice' as
an excuse for inappropriate behavior.
Additionally, they need to refrain from comparing Western singers with K-pop idols, as these
two belong to different cultures.
Thus, such comparisons are unreasonable and irrelevant.
____________________________________ Now let’s move to the last discussion revolving
around our Jungkook who has become the target of a sasaeng fan’s death threats.
Recently, an alarming incident unfolded when Instagram user @/chu02859 posted a photo of
a knife along with a chilling message, “I am going to kill Jungkook, just wait“.
This user said that killing him was not at all difficult as he knows his address, and
even emphasized that his house is close to Jungkook’s.
Disturbingly, this person also claimed responsibility for sending delivery food to Jungkook’s
house a few days prior.
Specifically, on May 4th, Jungkook denounced on his Weverse account that he received food
anonymously from a sasaeng to his house, and this was not the first time.
Afterward, the idol asked his fans to stop sending him food and stated that he would
take legal action if this continues.
Thus, the reason for the sasaeng’s frenzy was obviously that he believed Jungkook was
so rude when rejecting the food he sent.
In another post, fueling the menacing tone of the threats, the sasaeng even swore that
in just a few months, people will see Jungkook lying in a coffin.
The scenario has prompted indignation among ARMY, who are now demanding HYBE’s intervention
to conduct an investigation.
However, even in the face of potential consequences, this obsessed fan stated that she felt no
concern and claimed that no one could stop him from harming Jungkook.
Shockingly, this sasaeng seems really sick and dangerous as she shared that he has been
in contact with another sasaeng to inquire about Jungkook’s new address.
This further raises concerns about the extent of these weirdos’ obsessive behavior.
Meanwhile, some ARMY members conducted investigations into this account information.
It has come to light that the user behind the @/chu02859 account is potentially a 17-year-old
foreign minor who had previously resided in Korea and obtained Jungkook’s residence
address.
But now, his current IP address traces back to Indonesia.
Currently, fans are actively urging the company to take prompt actions to protect Jungkook
as much as possible and even instructed other fans to report the situation via email and
make the issue become a hot topic on various social media platforms to draw attention to
the management company.
Phew, I think the K-pop industry is notorious for its severe laws and norms, and it’s
past time for fans to grasp and follow these rules.
Strict actions from HYBE are considered the most effective means of protecting idols when
faced with obsessive fans.
They should know that it is of paramount importance to respect celebrities’ privacy and avoid
exceeding the line between fan and stalker.
It’s depressing to see that idols are expected to reveal every detail of their lives to followers
despite the continual violation of privacy.
So, do you think V and Jennie are really dating or is it another scam?
Does that action of Hwasa deserve to be condemned?
And what do you think is the most effective way to protect Jungkook and other idols from
such sasaengs?