A brief note on the idol/fan binary

Feb 25, 2023

An idol has more power than the fan who got them to where they are. No matter how much an idol may love their fans the inequalities remain. An idol can only be an idol within a capitalist society; an idol can only exist at the expense of their fans. One is powerful and the other, less so. One makes a profit from the other and rarely is it the other way around. It only remains ethical for as long as the fan willingly participates, but that in itself is up for debate. — Idol Limerence: The art of loving BTS as phenomena by Wallea Eaglehawk (2020) p. 66

The idol/fan binary is incredibly interesting to observe and study. As fans, we interact with idols as… idols. And they interact with us as fans. These are two distinct roles and the only way we can interact and know one another is by existing within them. Yet, as humans, we are multifaceted and complex. We are not ‘just’ a fan and our beloved idols are not ‘just’ idols. Yet in order for idols to be idols, there must be fans, and for fans to be fans, there must be idols. And within this binary, there are different power dynamics at play, whether we like it or not.

This binary runs along the same current as a parasocial relationship. We know the idol—often to what we feel is an intimate extent—but they only know us as part of a larger whole: fans. The binary is what perpetuates and maintains the parasocial relationship and vice versa.

BTS is one of two, a binary, there is no ARMY without BTS, and no BTS without ARMY. They are two sides of the same coin, an exemplar of the idol fan relationship on a scale never seen before. If no one does it quite like BTS, then there is no other group or organisation in the world quite as powerful, unique, diverse or far-reaching as ARMY. But ARMY is a double edged sword: the one that works in perfect synchronicity with BTS, slicing through cultural barriers and social norms; the only one that can pierce the metaphoric skin of their beloved idols. So if ARMY are the wings of BTS, are they wings of an angel, or are they the wings of a devil? If anything, ARMY are the mirror image of BTS reflected back to the group in the millions of faces sat before rectangular screens around the world; so if they are the devil, BTS are too. — Idol Limerence: The art of loving BTS as phenomena by Wallea Eaglehawk (2020) p. 144

Think of it this way: parasocial refers to the type of relationship, the idol/fan binary refers to the power dynamic. Just an example, it’s far more complex and nuanced, but you get the idea.

Being a fan is super empowering, getting to show your love and support in whatever way you please… it’s liberating, it builds and sustains communities, movements, eras. If you’ve been here for a while, you’ll know that I love to talk about the revolutionary capacity of fandom.

“BTS are so empowering, but I also find the binary to be very disempowering … we consume their content and it’s really fun … but then we still have the lived experience of being nowhere near them, not actually knowing them … we’re on the other side of this binary, we’re the ones that sustain them financially and otherwise, and they don’t know that we exist.”

What I’m (briefly) touching on in this excerpt from my latest podcast episode is the disempowering nature of being in a binary. One of two. As humans we are not simply one of two, we are multitudes and are infinite in our expression and lived experience.

Which brings back into question whether or not the fan is exploited in this binary, when they derive so much pleasure, happiness and knowledge from the experience. A company that sees the often deemed hysterical fans as equals is revolutionary in itself, but at the end of the day all these steps are made so that they can continue to make a profit. A complex relationship, with no right or wrong answer; the fans demand it and so they get it, Big Hit willingly obliging. Though it’s not perfect, it’s as close to perfect as one company can get under capitalism. After all, Big Hit, like BTS, are just a reflection of the fans; this is all of our own making and we take much delight in it. — Idol Limerence: The art of loving BTS as phenomena by Wallea Eaglehawk (2020) pp. 191-192

The key tension I have felt in my experience as a fan comes from wanting to meet BTS as equals. For that is what the parasocial relationship so often triggers in us—the desire to meet these people we feel so connected to. Yet, realistically, all of us cannot meet BTS as equals (think: colleagues, peers, friends). We have one of two choices: be a fan and stay within the binary, or walk away. Be free of the binary but never know BTS again. Of course, within the binary, we, like BTS, have agency and autonomy. We can make the best of this situation, but that doesn’t remove the moments of disempowerment, sadness, or torment. Nor do moments like those take away from the many, many, positives BTS and idols bring to our lives.

The BTS Theorist

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