In the past few days, there has been chaos surrounding HYBE and its affiliated companies because of the HYBE-ADOR dispute. Furthermore, BTS was involved in the controversy, facing allegations of being linked to a cult, manipulating charts, and even copying concepts.
In addition, Big Hit Music released a statement refuting the accusations and stating their plans to collect evidence and pursue legal action against those spreading defamatory claims that harm BTS’s reputation.
Despite this, the fiasco provoked intense anger among BTS fans, who strongly opposed HYBE.
Consequently, on May 3, fans of BTS united to send funeral flower wreaths and protest trucks to the HYBE headquarters. The wreaths were adorned with scathing messages such as “The most incompetent management company in the industry…”; “They only use BTS when convenient and abandon them when things get tough”; “We urge BTS to separate themselves from HYBE and its constant risks”, and more.
The South Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism announced an investigation into allegations of BTS’s involvement in music chart manipulation. In addition, there have been complaints filed with the ministry requesting revocation of BTS’s honorary citations due to these allegations. As a result, the international fandom of BTS has become even more upset with the current situation.
As a result, on May 5th, international fans of BTS, known as ARMYs, started a trend on social media using the keyword “South Korea apologize to BTS.”This action has sparked intense debate within the K-pop community.
Are BTS Fans Taking It Too Far?
Despite continuously taking strong measures to defend their idols, BTS fans were often criticized for “taking things too far”.
Despite BTS’s enlistment, it is understandable that they would feel anger as they continue to be unnecessarily involved in HYBE’s turmoil.
However, the act of fans sending funeral flower wreaths and demanding a nationwide apology from South Korea has been met with criticism from Korean netizens. They have retaliated on forums such as Instiz and theqoo.
Here are a few remarks from internet users:
- Who do they think they are, placing their idols above an entire nation?
- The foreign fans over there are really scary and disgusting. That’s some cult-like behavior
- Why should an entire nation be held accountable for the actions of one particular group?
- Wow the fans are acting like national disgrace
- It’s one thing to be defending your favorite idols, but this is going too far
- Leave Korea alone
The source for K14 can be found on Instiz and theqoo websites.
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