Weibo in China suspends BTS, Blackpink, EXO fan accounts

Agnes He, a college student from southeast China’s Jiangsu Province, said she believed it could help curb fan behavior that had gone too far. But she was also worried about whether she could still buy albums at a discount through bulk purchases organized by fan accounts.

“I’m pretty reasonable when chasing stars,” Ms. He said in a phone interview Monday, adding that she viewed pop idols as positive and energizing influences. “It’s personal freedom. Just because I love Korean pop idols doesn’t mean I’m not a patriot.

K-pop fans around the world are known for their organizational prowess, with plenty of billboards, giant LED screens, and transit vehicles to show their support ahead of an album release or anniversary. from a favorite band member. Some turned to political activism, and others praised themselves for helping to inflate expectations of a rally in Oklahoma for then-President Donald J. Trump by booking tickets they didn’t had no intention of using.

But online armies of Korean pop music fans are clashing with President Xi Jinping’s broad agenda to clean up some aspect of China’s entertainment industry. The Chinese Cyberspace Administration has banned the ranking of celebrities by popularity. A regulator also charged actress Zheng Shuang with tax evasion, fined her more than $ 46 million and ordered broadcasters to stop showing content she appeared in.

BTS clashed with Chinese patriotic sentiment last year, when its frontman Kim Nam-joon, who performs under the stage name RM (formerly Rap Monster), made a seemingly innocuous remark about the shared suffering of Americans. and Koreans at a ceremony commemorating the Korean War.

Chinese netizens erupted in anger, wondering why he had not also acknowledged the sacrifices of Chinese soldiers who had fought alongside North Korea. To anticipate a nationalist backlash, multinational brands have deleted references to their collaborations with BTS on their Chinese websites and social media accounts.

This week, Chinese netizens both celebrated and criticized the suspension of K-pop fan accounts. Some saw it as a necessary balm against idol worship and overspending on celebrities, even going so far as to call BTS an “anti-China group” and Korean pop music as a form of “cultural invasion”.