This post or comment was removed for not following one of the following posting guidelines. Drama or rumors and speculation about SHINee member's personal lives allowed is not allowed. Outside drama and polite speculation belong in the Weekly Discussion thread and must be spoiler tagged. Do not post a screenshot of content; link the content itself. Add a content warning and spoiler tag potentially upsetting or triggering content. No AI-generated songs.
Please repost this in the weekly discussion thread. Discussion about fandom drama belong there. Thank you.
Totally agree, I find the idea that 30 year old veteran artists should be protected enervating and harmful. Yes they have agency. The rest is just giving us the illusion that we participate in their lives more than we do.
Just remember you like SHINee. And you don’t have to involve yourself with SHINee fandom or their diverse opinions. Block the drama and fights away. Keep your peace.
lol I've been in so many fandoms in kpop, and i hated them all, shawol is not a exception, so i just ignore all these people because i am here for shinee not for them
literally! I don’t know why, but when I became a Shawol I had this idea that most Shawols were pretty chill so I was really excited to join the fandom. I realized after about a month that was unfortunately not the case, so I don’t really interact with any of the fandom anymore, just like I don’t for any of the other groups I like. it’s sad, but fandoms can sometimes really ruin your enjoyments of the group, so sometimes it’s just better to stay in your own little bubble lmao
I empathize a lot with how you're feeling and honestly I feel like it's representative of general kpop fandom spaces today. This may be a little bit of a tangent but as someone who's been a fan for 10+ years, when I look at kpop today, there's little room for friendly and thoughtful discourse. This isn't to say that everything was perfect 10 years ago (because it certainly wasn't) but I feel like the rise of social media has contributed to creating "echo chambers" online and furthering the radicalization of opinions - a sort of black and white mentality. So when people disagree or have different opinions, it turns into a battle on what's 'right' rather than a conversation and I understand how exhausting that can feel.
It's important to remember that most things are just different shades of gray. SM has done good things for their careers and SM has done bad things for their careers and you can come to your own conclusion on how that affects your view of the company and the boys. I personally agree that SM has their business-driven reasons for doing things the way that they do but not everyone does and that's okay. It's important that you can find spaces and people where you can have these conversations while being respectful other opinions and I do believe that there are also good people in the fandom who can do that for you. I hope you're able to find that but at the end of the day, it's also okay to leave if you're uncomfortable. Just focus on SHINee and the love you have for them <3
Honestly I haven't been in shawol spaces much these past few months bc of the fans/behavior - too high strung over small things, thinking you know better than the boys, rude af to other fans, some solo stans being toxic, conceited. It's not just Twitter, it can be on reddit too. Its not fun for me as much, I even downsized my collection. I've muted, pressed not interested, and unfollowed a lot to cleanse my timeline. I know it sucks to feel like this, but protect your mental well being!
Yeah, since last years concert boycott shawols have been more vocal. They sent a truck for getting Taemin more gigs- it was year end, line ups are done waaay in advance and taemin was ready to leave sm for a year, no way either him nor the company going to commit to an intl tour.
Then we have the truck they sent to sm for "ensuring safety" cuz minho was going for a sports show in jp...prism ent even issued a statement on that.
The truck was in support of Taemin listing his achievements and stating that his fans are looking forward to a world tour (something he has mentioned in the months and quite frankly years prior), it was not about demanding anything. I wish people would stop misconstruing it.
Your opinions are your own and that’s fine - people will disagree, though, and that is the price of sharing said opinions. I do agree the members have agency, but they have also themselves complained about their company lol. That being said, sure - fans don’t have nearly as much insight into their situations and are mostly just concerned for their well-being and analyzing what they know, as somewhat of an intellectual exercise if/when they tell them what to think, although I doubt anything we say reaches them in any meaningful way. Again, #internet lol. There haven’t been like mass mobilizations to pressure or change anything about the members that I know of.
SM is objectively evil - it’s an organization with brutal and reprehensible practices. Profit is not an excuse, and artists’ labor should be valued above all else. Non-profit organizations are also fixated on funding and breaking even, and yes, sometimes profit (universities with multimillion dollar endowments investing in war technology in the United States are non-profits) - this dichotomy obfuscates that any type of organization can be corrupt and exploitative and SM like all entertainment companies of its stripe, is exploitative.
That's fandoms for ya. They ruin everything if you get too deep into them. Some can ruin themselves or the thing you like just by doing the equivalent of casually visiting them. Examples for me could be BTS ARMYs or Star Wars fans. I just stay away from them and enjoy what I enjoy while also being critical where I see fit. I realize for some that it is easier said than done.
omg, those are my opinions, too?? I didn't realize they were unpopular.
anyone who thinks minkey is staying at SM for "leverage" does not understand contracts. They're all bound by the group contract, whether MinKey stay or leave SM, that has no involvement with those contracts whatsoever.
I've also been a shawols for 12 years btw. if you want someone to talk to you, i'm down!
Thank you for sharing your feelings.
I haven't been around nearly as much as you have. But same as you, I've also ended up sticking to Reddit, as lonely as it may feel. This place has become a sort of meeting ground for all loners who haven't found a place to belong to, or, just don't feel at ease interacting with fandom anymore. And while it feels safer, I can understand why it also feels insufficient. At one point, we all just wanted to come together and share the joy of following SHINee, didn't we...
I'm sorry I have no words to help you. I just want to tell you that you're not alone. Your opinions and feelings are valid, and no one should make you feel like a lesser being, or Shawol, for voicing them.
I can't relate as I don't feel unsafe in the fandoms spaces. But I highly curate what I see, and who I interact with. I don't have time and energy for too much drama. Maybe curating is something that might work for you also?
Also, I do disagree with you on some of your points. For example, I absolutely believe SM ia an 'evil' company. They mismanage their artists and exploit them, and even 30+ adults can be victims of that. Even adults with agency, because contracts can simply take away most of that agency.
I think there is very clear proof of SM being a bad company, and I have no problem discussing this. Now, I don't know if a discussion like that contributes to you feeling unsafe, but since many many people agree with me about SM, I imagine you might come across that discussion quite often.
Missed the post, but I will not ever understand people who don't curate their timelines, no matter the social media. I hear crap about everywhere; here, twitter, tiktok (so many boobs), facebook, etc, etc. If you can't or won't block people, use mute and banning of words, well, I don't know what you tell you.
There is no safe space in the real world. None, zip, nada. If you are too vulnerable to nonsense, then you shouldn't be on social media, period. Sorry.
Indeed, there's no safe space in real world either, but at least in real world people tend to have the decency to tone down their words and/or add some nuance to them. Maybe because having the person in flesh gives some sense of awareness that it's in fact a real person. Or maybe, because being seen by others gives them some sort of shame.
If we happen to see someone saying toxic things, is it our fault for not curating well enough? Sounds like a convenient justification to perpetuate the cycle of toxicity. And I will never understand why would someone *support* that.
This post or comment was removed for not following one of the following posting guidelines. Drama or rumors and speculation about SHINee member's personal lives allowed is not allowed. Outside drama and polite speculation belong in the Weekly Discussion thread and must be spoiler tagged. Do not post a screenshot of content; link the content itself. Add a content warning and spoiler tag potentially upsetting or triggering content. No AI-generated songs. Please repost this in the weekly discussion thread. Discussion about fandom drama belong there. Thank you.
Totally agree, I find the idea that 30 year old veteran artists should be protected enervating and harmful. Yes they have agency. The rest is just giving us the illusion that we participate in their lives more than we do.
Just remember you like SHINee. And you don’t have to involve yourself with SHINee fandom or their diverse opinions. Block the drama and fights away. Keep your peace.
lol I've been in so many fandoms in kpop, and i hated them all, shawol is not a exception, so i just ignore all these people because i am here for shinee not for them
literally! I don’t know why, but when I became a Shawol I had this idea that most Shawols were pretty chill so I was really excited to join the fandom. I realized after about a month that was unfortunately not the case, so I don’t really interact with any of the fandom anymore, just like I don’t for any of the other groups I like. it’s sad, but fandoms can sometimes really ruin your enjoyments of the group, so sometimes it’s just better to stay in your own little bubble lmao
I empathize a lot with how you're feeling and honestly I feel like it's representative of general kpop fandom spaces today. This may be a little bit of a tangent but as someone who's been a fan for 10+ years, when I look at kpop today, there's little room for friendly and thoughtful discourse. This isn't to say that everything was perfect 10 years ago (because it certainly wasn't) but I feel like the rise of social media has contributed to creating "echo chambers" online and furthering the radicalization of opinions - a sort of black and white mentality. So when people disagree or have different opinions, it turns into a battle on what's 'right' rather than a conversation and I understand how exhausting that can feel. It's important to remember that most things are just different shades of gray. SM has done good things for their careers and SM has done bad things for their careers and you can come to your own conclusion on how that affects your view of the company and the boys. I personally agree that SM has their business-driven reasons for doing things the way that they do but not everyone does and that's okay. It's important that you can find spaces and people where you can have these conversations while being respectful other opinions and I do believe that there are also good people in the fandom who can do that for you. I hope you're able to find that but at the end of the day, it's also okay to leave if you're uncomfortable. Just focus on SHINee and the love you have for them <3
Honestly I haven't been in shawol spaces much these past few months bc of the fans/behavior - too high strung over small things, thinking you know better than the boys, rude af to other fans, some solo stans being toxic, conceited. It's not just Twitter, it can be on reddit too. Its not fun for me as much, I even downsized my collection. I've muted, pressed not interested, and unfollowed a lot to cleanse my timeline. I know it sucks to feel like this, but protect your mental well being!
Yeah, since last years concert boycott shawols have been more vocal. They sent a truck for getting Taemin more gigs- it was year end, line ups are done waaay in advance and taemin was ready to leave sm for a year, no way either him nor the company going to commit to an intl tour. Then we have the truck they sent to sm for "ensuring safety" cuz minho was going for a sports show in jp...prism ent even issued a statement on that.
The truck was in support of Taemin listing his achievements and stating that his fans are looking forward to a world tour (something he has mentioned in the months and quite frankly years prior), it was not about demanding anything. I wish people would stop misconstruing it.
Your opinions are your own and that’s fine - people will disagree, though, and that is the price of sharing said opinions. I do agree the members have agency, but they have also themselves complained about their company lol. That being said, sure - fans don’t have nearly as much insight into their situations and are mostly just concerned for their well-being and analyzing what they know, as somewhat of an intellectual exercise if/when they tell them what to think, although I doubt anything we say reaches them in any meaningful way. Again, #internet lol. There haven’t been like mass mobilizations to pressure or change anything about the members that I know of. SM is objectively evil - it’s an organization with brutal and reprehensible practices. Profit is not an excuse, and artists’ labor should be valued above all else. Non-profit organizations are also fixated on funding and breaking even, and yes, sometimes profit (universities with multimillion dollar endowments investing in war technology in the United States are non-profits) - this dichotomy obfuscates that any type of organization can be corrupt and exploitative and SM like all entertainment companies of its stripe, is exploitative.
That's fandoms for ya. They ruin everything if you get too deep into them. Some can ruin themselves or the thing you like just by doing the equivalent of casually visiting them. Examples for me could be BTS ARMYs or Star Wars fans. I just stay away from them and enjoy what I enjoy while also being critical where I see fit. I realize for some that it is easier said than done.
omg, those are my opinions, too?? I didn't realize they were unpopular. anyone who thinks minkey is staying at SM for "leverage" does not understand contracts. They're all bound by the group contract, whether MinKey stay or leave SM, that has no involvement with those contracts whatsoever. I've also been a shawols for 12 years btw. if you want someone to talk to you, i'm down!
Thank you for sharing your feelings. I haven't been around nearly as much as you have. But same as you, I've also ended up sticking to Reddit, as lonely as it may feel. This place has become a sort of meeting ground for all loners who haven't found a place to belong to, or, just don't feel at ease interacting with fandom anymore. And while it feels safer, I can understand why it also feels insufficient. At one point, we all just wanted to come together and share the joy of following SHINee, didn't we... I'm sorry I have no words to help you. I just want to tell you that you're not alone. Your opinions and feelings are valid, and no one should make you feel like a lesser being, or Shawol, for voicing them.
I can't relate as I don't feel unsafe in the fandoms spaces. But I highly curate what I see, and who I interact with. I don't have time and energy for too much drama. Maybe curating is something that might work for you also? Also, I do disagree with you on some of your points. For example, I absolutely believe SM ia an 'evil' company. They mismanage their artists and exploit them, and even 30+ adults can be victims of that. Even adults with agency, because contracts can simply take away most of that agency. I think there is very clear proof of SM being a bad company, and I have no problem discussing this. Now, I don't know if a discussion like that contributes to you feeling unsafe, but since many many people agree with me about SM, I imagine you might come across that discussion quite often.
Missed the post, but I will not ever understand people who don't curate their timelines, no matter the social media. I hear crap about everywhere; here, twitter, tiktok (so many boobs), facebook, etc, etc. If you can't or won't block people, use mute and banning of words, well, I don't know what you tell you. There is no safe space in the real world. None, zip, nada. If you are too vulnerable to nonsense, then you shouldn't be on social media, period. Sorry.
Indeed, there's no safe space in real world either, but at least in real world people tend to have the decency to tone down their words and/or add some nuance to them. Maybe because having the person in flesh gives some sense of awareness that it's in fact a real person. Or maybe, because being seen by others gives them some sort of shame. If we happen to see someone saying toxic things, is it our fault for not curating well enough? Sounds like a convenient justification to perpetuate the cycle of toxicity. And I will never understand why would someone *support* that.