Even as I was riding in the metro I was pondering how such an event is to be perceived, both as the fan and as the person who is holding the fan meeting. My reservations for accepting this even as a legitimate human interaction is that one person is shelling out big bucks to meet another person, touch them, be in their presence. That has to be awkward for both parties involved no? Even if there is a general level of support that the fan wants to give the star why do they pay to meet them, the stars get paid enough I think. And don't the stars feel weird being pimped out, they are basically saying- pay 20 dollars to shake my hand. Not normal, right?
The moral dilemma behind me I was standing inches away from the yellow tape and the minutes were ticking by slowly but surely. A few minutes before 6pm the announcer came on stage and started working the crowd. Luckily my friend's co-teacher was there and able to translate what he was saying. One of the questions was- who traveled the farthest to see Jay? My friend and I screamed that we were from America and in true Korean fashion we were ushered onto the stage, given a free T-shirt and ofcourse had our picture taken. Didn't get a sneak peak at Jay unfortunately.
The crowd went wild when moments later he emerged from the white tent that was surrounded by security. He barely acknowledged the crowd and touched his abs in a way that made it seem like he just ate a huge dinner and needed to loosen his pants. His disinterest in the event and the fans was apparent from the beginning. He didn't smile and seemed like he wanted to be anywhere but there. My friend and I looked at each other several times because we were both sensing that something was off. Jay then sat down and began to sign autographs and bop along to his music. Still, no smile, no appreciation beyond the bare minimal. He was basically avoiding being rude, but thats about it. It wasn't even the large exasperated exhales or the vagrant glances that put me over the edge. The last straw that made me straight up leave the event was when an over-excited fan- in a cute not a creepy way- came over and was clearly having an awesome star-struck moment he gave her a look like - you a crazy person, instead of smiling at her. She was oblivious to the disapproving stare down that he was giving her but I would have to have been blind to miss the grumpy and "over it" look that he gave that poor high school girl (I know this because she was still in her school uniform). It may be argued that he was tired or that he was sick, but if either case was true he would have to be dying of an incurable disease for me to overlook the attitude he was giving his adoring fans. I also wondered if he felt pimped out or uncomfortable with the situation, I am sure living in the lime light isn't easy but no one is holding a gun to his head telling him he needs to represent the brand so he doesn't have to do these fan meets if he really doesn't want to. I couldn't help feeling like he knew that they had paid already so he already had their money and they should just be happy with the Jay Park they were getting. It's easy to fall for the cuteness on youtube videos but when the real deal was in front of me he just didn't deliver on the personality or charisma that sold me in the first place, so if he can turn it on and off so easily it is probably quite an act (read: fake) so points to Jay for being good at turning on the charm when the camera is around.
So as I left I decided that last week's no show at the concert and today's lackluster performance (I mean, come on dude, SMILE!) put an end to my interest in this pop idol.
"I'm so full" (OF MYSELF!!!)
What a happy camper...sucks to have so many people adoring you.
Maybe he just got dumped. Iono. That's terrible. :/
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, I don't know how true this is: "but no one is holding a gun to his head telling him he needs to represent the brand so he doesn't have to do these fan meets if he really doesn't want to."
Maybe he's stuck in some kind of contract?
But still, I hear you. :/