Monday, January 7, 2013

Block B: The Pits of Fangirldom


For anyone who’s been living under a rock the past few days, and didn’t take their allkpop news source with them, then you won’t have heard about the latest controversy involving Block B (my second favorite Kpop group).  On Friday it was reported that the seven members of Block B filed suit with their management company Stardom to nullify their contract.  The reasons:  they claim they haven’t been paid in nearly a year, seen any of the profits from their OST sales, and a ‘CEO’ of the company collected nearly $70,000 worth from their parents for promotional purposes, and then promptly disappeared with the funds.  Stardom’s response included a lot of the expected garble and denials, blah blah blah.

The point is: AHSHHHHHHKJEJ:EJOsdjf;poeoifjlksdjf*&@#^()!@)(^)$(^96#^^&%(&^%$797%!!!!

Translation: I think this is truly the pits of fangirldom.  A nightmare of hellish proportions, shocking my entire family (husband and sister included) into morose bits of sighing, almost-crying, and all around depression every time  we accidentally flip through a Kpop mixed CD and land on one of our many prized and priceless Block B songs (especially the slow sad ones). 

For anyone not familiar with my Kpop fangirl history, it’s a short one.  True, I’ve been poking around the Kpop world since nearly the same time as I discovered K-Dramas, but the chapter of my life where I could officially confess and publically announce my membership in not one, but two fandoms, happened only recently.  I’m primarily a VIP (BIGBANG), but running a close second is my love of Block B, and it’s no secret that being a BBC (*laughs at the name still*) has turned me into the perfect fangirl.  I swoon, I dream, bat my eyelashes, and generally try to convert anyone I can get my hands on into a BBC.  At the very least, I play their music a lot. 

So the news that my darling boys are suing their agency hit me hard in the gut. For days my heart has been fluttering with a whole array of woes and worries:


1.      They won’t be appearing in public anytime soon to sing beautiful music.

2.      They won’t be on any more variety shows, showing off their talent and personalities.

3.      They’re out on a limb, assuredly with BBC support, but in dangerous territory about to fight a court battle with an uncertain future.

4.      Will they emerge victorious? If so, what next? Will they sign with a different agency or persevere on their own?

5.      Will they lose, and be *whispers* forced to disband?

6.      A few of the members are probably talented enough make it on their own (Zico, Kyung, P.O. and probably Taeil).  But what about the others?



This development has done some strange things to this fangirl’s heart.  Never before have I had to deal with a scandal or controversy like this as it happened.  BIGBANG’s series of scandals in 2011, Block B’s own errors during the Thailand interview earlier this year, the legacy of DBSK (3 whole years of it!) – all were in the past before I ever came to even know about these groups, or even to like/love them.



The verdict: I almost wish I wasn’t so much of a fan.  The sadness in my life right about a group of guys I’ve never met, or even been on the same continent with is a scary bit of reality.  And the worst thing is that there is nothing I can about it.  I can’t fight.  I can’t picket outside the company buildings. I can’t even know what exactly is going on, or who is truly in the right, or who is wrong.  I can’t hold Zico’s hand and tell him to stay steady.  I can’t give the whole group a hug and say it’s going to be alright.  I can only sit back and wait for news as it slowly comes in, and hope that somewhere, sometime in the future things will be alright, and my OT7 won’t be torn asunder.  This. Sucks.


Some inspiration until I make it through:





10 comments:

  1. awwww... I'm very sorry to hear this... hwaiting, Rosie! You can pull through. Everything will be alright ... eventually. I hope.

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    1. Thanks! Well, I've gotten to the point where I can listen to their stuff again and not get sad. Mostly because they are just so bad*** that it makes me happy ;)

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  2. Holy crap! That's not cool Stardom!!!!!!

    I have to admit I'm not that familiar with Block B, but I did really like that Nihili (?) Mambo song when I saw it recently- at the time I was crazy busy at work so I was going to follow up and find out more about them, but I guess that's not to be now!

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    1. It is a shame. They do have a pretty large following for a group of their age, but they're still so young into their careers.

      I wouldn't give up on them just yet, if only because the 3 short-ish albums, and the latest full length one Blockbuster (with Nilili Mambo) are stunning. I liked the mambo song and MV, sure, but it was only after hearing many of their other songs on that album that I became a fan - For a group their age, they've done a huge variety of song types, and do them all pretty well. Nanrina (the gorilla dance), Halo (sounds like 'hallo'), the soft Movie's Over and 100% Synchronization, not to mention all the songs put out by the rapper line (No Joke, LOL) if you happen to like that kind of thing. Give it a shot if you get the time.

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  3. I was actually wondering how you were taking this news, because even I, who isn't really a big fan, am quite scared for them. I listened to their Blockbuster album lately and really liked it. It is sad to think that in the worst case scenario, we won't be seeing them perform together anymore.
    In any case, I am always going to be on Block B's side, rather than a big company that doesn't give their singers the pay they rightfully deserve. Ever since the T-ara drama and the Open World Entertainment sexually abusing it's trainees, I just don't trust the entertainment companies.

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    1. Yup. Still trying to remain positive - but who knows how this will all end. The entertainment industry really is something else.. *siighs* Blockbuster's such a good album though. Which songs did you like?

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    2. Yeah, I'm hoping for the best for these boys.

      I really liked "Mental Breaker" and "Romantically". But I'm pretty satisfied with the entire album. Which is something that I wouldn't expect from a rookie group. Stardom Entertainment may be run by a bunch of scumbags, but at least the songs are well-produced.

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  4. i hope the group make a way to stay in the indusrty like JYJ did. Of course their music is so different but they did it with fan support and they are still struggling with their old company. But i tought without the gain of commertials or the other things makes them earn money it's too hard to deal with it.

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  5. This was exactly how I felt when all this went down. I manically avoided their music and spent too much time trying to find sources to tell me exactly what was going on. I'm just so glad that they're back. And that they're fine.

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    1. I still get a little overemotional when I think back to this time- similarly how I tear up every time I hear Be the Light now. :'(

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