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dreamer_easyI will tell you a lovely story about fandom. Last night, watching K-pop related videos as is my current wont, I came across a clip of boy band SHINee's (slightly) bad boy, Jonghyun, crying on stage. Now, Jjong is noted for his tendency to burst into tears of joy, as when the song he helped write, "Juliette"*, came first place on the show Music Bank in 2009.
However, this wasn't a happy occasion. These kids work like dogs, and are always getting sick or injured. Jonghyun, whose ankle was bust, was apologising for being unable to dance at the concert. If you watch the video, you'll hear a chant begin to rise from the audience: "Gwaen-chan-ha! Gwaen-chan-ha!"
This sets him off sobbing helplessly, gasping "Mianhaeyo, mianhaeyo" - "Sorry, sorry." Gwaenchanha is how you respond to an apology in Korean: it's OK, that's all right, it's nothing.
I don't know whether the chant just happened, or if it was planned and/or led by the fans. But suddenly, instead of the selfishness that can give fandom such a bitter flavour, there was nothing but compassion and support. (And instead of a scowly sex puppy, there was a vulnerable twenty year old.) While watching it I may possibly have become slightly emotional.
* Everything to do with Baz Luhrmann and nothing to do with the Marquis de Sade. It's a remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal With It", for which Jonghyun wrote original (and rather more romantic) lyrics.
However, this wasn't a happy occasion. These kids work like dogs, and are always getting sick or injured. Jonghyun, whose ankle was bust, was apologising for being unable to dance at the concert. If you watch the video, you'll hear a chant begin to rise from the audience: "Gwaen-chan-ha! Gwaen-chan-ha!"
This sets him off sobbing helplessly, gasping "Mianhaeyo, mianhaeyo" - "Sorry, sorry." Gwaenchanha is how you respond to an apology in Korean: it's OK, that's all right, it's nothing.
I don't know whether the chant just happened, or if it was planned and/or led by the fans. But suddenly, instead of the selfishness that can give fandom such a bitter flavour, there was nothing but compassion and support. (And instead of a scowly sex puppy, there was a vulnerable twenty year old.) While watching it I may possibly have become slightly emotional.
* Everything to do with Baz Luhrmann and nothing to do with the Marquis de Sade. It's a remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal With It", for which Jonghyun wrote original (and rather more romantic) lyrics.
