Thread by @gmcantave1, Ok I just wanna make something clear to everyone who follows me [...]

Ok I just wanna make something clear to everyone who follows me and everyone who might wanna try me in the future. I am a korean Music fan, not a kpop fan. Just wanna make that super clear. And BTS is my ultimate favorite Korean artists. What that means is that I listen to+

And enjoy other korean artists as well. Be it korean pop groups, ballad singers, indie groups, korean rap music, r&b music and more and I respect each and every one of them. I am first and foremost a music lover. And I dont discriminate languages or sounds as long as it is+

Pleasing to my ears. And resonates with me. That means that I enjoy and love other artists apart from BTS. That includes exo, shinee, got7, big bang, super junior, b1a4, vixx, infinite, bap, and more (as groups and as solos), I listen to Jay park, Jessi, Mfbty, verbal jint, +

All the artists form planetarium, swingz, dynamic duo, Sanchez, San e, and more. I listen to solos artists like Lee hi, park hyo shin, sohyang, Lee seung chul, legends like cho yong pil, Boa, lee hyori, and many more. I love korean gg and more. The only difference is I +

The way i feel when listening to BTS is not comparable to the way i feel when listening to other artists korean or not. They resonate with me and have grown with me and their values and my values are aligned, with bts it is more than the music, its the feeling and that is why+

I call myself ARMY. And I make that difference very clear. BTS is the only group ever that I've stanned, and I do not take the name of a fandom lightly ever, i learned that lesson the hard way (story for another time) . All im saying is, there's a difference between enjoying +

An artist's music and enjoying the artist themselves and everything that they stand for and I feel that people should start thinking about that. Listening and enjoying exo imo does not make me an exo l just like listening and enjoying bts music does not automatically an army make

Get that through your thick skulls. The support that bts get from ARMY happened because of the bond that they established from the get go and the transparency that they allowed and showcased and also the authenticity and detail of their artistry as well as their thirst for +

Innovation. And I connect deeply to that. So no matter how many times you try to convince me that im exo l or whatever other denomination you wanna put there imma tell you no I'm not. Why? Because I don't that connection and I dont get the same feelings when I listen to other +

Artists. Its that simple. Does it mean other artists are not talented? No it doesn't. Does it mean that other artists are not Iconic or legendary? No it doesn't. However, I'd like everyone to acknowledge that BTS are in their own lane, that they created and through them+

A lot of other korean musicians and artists are being exposed and are coming out to the world in a way never before possible. And they play a huge role in today's acknowledgement and spread of Korean music and culture. And thats a fact. That both kpop fans and ARMYs need to +

Acknowledge. And agree on.

Also i need this whole kpop generalization to just go away already. I seriously don't see us calling every english speaking artist English pop regardless of the genre of music that they make. And the ideas associated with the label of kpop have +

Long been so twisted and soiled that the label itself in the outside market carries a heavily biased and mostly negative connotation in the eyes of the general public. And bts has been trying so hard to change that not just for them but for the rest of the industry+

Which is trying so hard to catch up to the leaps and bounds that BTS and big hit have made and we as their fans should commend that and reflect this. So having stupid fanwars and participating in the same old, messed up, arguments and old stereotypical behaviors that are +

Vestiges of that "kpop culture and label" that we are trying to shed and that we are always whining about wanting to loose, is not the way to go. So #ARMYREALTALK a lot of us get caught up in that shit and that needs to stop. Just like BTS are literally redefining Kpop, we also+

Have been redefining the definition of fandom. Bts has taken the best part of what the kpop industry had to offer, rejected the stupid, outdated methods and ideas and elevated everything about it to create their own style and world and culture, and as a fandom we're currently +

Doing the same and if not imo we should do the same. That means a lot of things (which i will go further into in another talk/rant) and that's starting with the stupid fanwars this fandom be getting into, and of course the tolerating of old outdated fandom ideologies+

Like solo stans, and this damn need to control our artists and more stupid shit that we really don't see in other types of musical fandoms as a prominent and running theme. Also this active tearing down and disrespecting other artists just because they are not BTS. Needs to stop+

It is the most hypocritical shit I've ever seen this fandom do and im calling it out today. I dnt enjoy every artist out there but I am not actively running smear campaigns and complaining about them and actively trying to tear them down, this is shit that "kpop stans" do and +

I am not about to sit down and watch y'all criticize them (I do criticize a lot of kpop stans) while y'all wanna do the same. I can critique music and visuals and I can call out some of the dumbass practices that I witness with some korean groups without being nasty and going+

Overboard. Y'all know what they did to our boys, and how they literally went after every thing they ever did just out of spite and pure hatred and jealousy and although I am petty as hell, I dont wanna stoop to these people's levels.

Another thing is this, I need y'all to+

Stop trying to make other people feel guilty for also enjoying and listening to other korean groups and artists. This shit needs to stop. Its art and its music, what resonates with you one way might resonate differently with another. Just because someone also enjoys shinee's +

Music does not necessarily make them anti BTS, or an enemy. Just like just because someone listens to BTS does not automatically mean they will also enjoy other kpop groups. Stop trying to police or control people's tastes, its not cute. It goes both ways. We are individuals +

Remember that. Same goes for exo or any other group out there, let people enjoy what they will enjoy in peace. Yes we've been burned by some toxic ass exo stans and bp stans and other toxic kpop stans however, just like we always screaming at the top of our lungs that the few+

Toxic BTS fans, who love to call themselves armys, do not represent us. We also gotta understand that about the other fandoms too. Most people are here to enjoy the music and want the experience of listening to kpop/korean music to be a positive one but the bad apples are always+

The loudest. In every situation, so taking your anger out on every single exo l or blink etc... and hating on the artists and their music because of that is really not helping anything. Its fostering hatred and animosity where it really doesn't need to exist and it is a double+

Standard because we always call bs on kpop stans who hate in bts and say they dont listen to bts music because of the fandom/the toxic bts fans. Again double standards. It goes both ways.

Again listening to and enjoying other korean artists does not mean you are betraying BTS+

As long as you know where your priorities are when it comes to the efforts that you put in to promote them, vote for them, and take up for them when they need you to. And as long as you know that you are ultimately ARMY at the end of the day. You can compliment exos vocals +

And their dances skills without it being considered a betrayal to BTS. You can acknowledge that Taemin from shinee is an amazing singer and a phenomenal and iconic dancer that also makes fantastic music while also being clear that BTS dance line are amongst legends in this +

Industry. You can agree that exo's vocalists are some of the most polished and skillful vocalists amongst the idol groups while being certain and firm that BTS vocal line is amongst the best of the best in the industry as well. That too is a matter of taste and the sooner+

We learn that things can coexist and that quality can also be is as subjective as it is objective (especially in art) , the easier it will be for us to interact and have conversations with others without starting wars and fights.

Learn to agree to disagree correctly.+

This offstandish fear that we have of people in our fandom who also happen to love and enjoy other groups is absolutely ridiculous (although not unfounded because of the toxic ones who literally twisted our views of multis).

And to kpop stans (notice ive been saying kpop stans+

And not kpop fans). Please stay in your delusional lane and stop ruining the experience for everyone else who is here for the right reasons. A lot of yall are seriously some of the most cruel, nasty, and illogical people I've ever had the displeasure of encountering+

And you are fucking it up for the actual fans out here.

These stans are the people who keep the toxic label alive and are holding on to those stupid ass outdated mentalities and it is sad to see how much bigger the percentage of these stans are getting. It is true that+

There are less kpop stans present amongst armys then with other fandoms because from the beginning we were treated like outsiders and have always tried to keep ourselves apart from this shit (although these days with our growth more kpop stans are infiltrating our ranks)+

However, lets not forget as well that our beginnings as a fandom was with kpop fans ( fans not stans, make the difference). What we like to call multis in our fandom these days were the first armys. And that is a fact, and It makes me feel so bad to see us alleniate+

Them and see the term become more and more twisted an negative because of the twistedness of some of these stans out there who wanna call themselves army and instigate chaos and spread toxicity. And honestly I think we have to reclaim or rebrand that word for the sake of those+

Who are truly here for bts and who truly are army despite the fact that they do have a passion for other korean groups and artists. Because lets be

BTS PAVED THE WAY because they opened the Door and a whole new world of music to the rest of the world and the rest of us+

So denying yourself the pleasure of listening and experiencing that new world and that whole new genre amd style of music because of the stupidity and absolute toxicity of a group of people is just not it.

Again no one has the right to make you feel guilty for liking whatever+

You like as long as you are safe and not harming yourself or other people.

This mentality is not being competitive its being close minded and straight up contradictory to everything we've been trying to accomplish. It doesn't mean that we're giving other kpop groups+

Bts spots if At the end of the day, you are voting for bts and purchasing their music, and supporting and spreading their message, and celebrating them as people and as artists and cheering them on.

I dont see Rihanna and beyonce fans tearing each other down and going+

If you listen to beyonce you can't listen to Rihanna. How stupid is that? Like come on. These are both iconic artist, divas in their own lane with their own sounds and their own styles.

And it can be argued that the intensity and loyalty of kpop stans are on another level and +

Thats why shit like that happens (I'll talk about this in another talk) and I agree to a certain extent. However I also disagree because intensity can also coexist with rationality and reasonableness and a lot of the things that we think we understand about kpop fans+

Have been twisted and are being seen through the lenses of outsiders which as I explained ARMYs are/have become from all intents and purposes. And like bts we are standing on the edge, not a kpop fandom and not a normal music fandom either and I think just like BTS we confuse+

Many. Including kpop stans, and sometimes even ourselves speaking of baby armys and newbies and/or the many people amongst us whove been here for years and still don't know or understand army history. Which is why mistakes like apologizing for army to other fandoms happen+

And getting into unnecessary fights or starting stupid and also useless fights and wars on behalf of army and so on and so forth.

And as long as we don't have/make an effort or a plan to educate and guide and remind ourselves of the things that made us what we are today as +

A fandom. As long as we don't get all of us and everyone else also truly understand what makes BTS special and by association makes ARMY special as a fandom. We're gonna keep running into these dilemmas and these stupid arguments and these stupid stereotypes will be a perpetual +

Part of our label. So please think critically and rationally, educate yourself, and learn to respect other people and remember at the end of the day we are music lovers and lovers of art. And art is meant to be shared and celebrated. Not boxed and disrespected and destroyed. +

Art is meant to be critiqued and dissected in all its forms, no matter what the source is and the way we experience it and what we choose to experience is a completely subjective thing so please stop trying to ruin that for yourselves and others.

This was my rant of today+

And a completely impromptu #ARMYREALTALK Triggered by some foolery in my DM today while I was preparing for my 5/18 talk. Which by the way i have to post tomorrow because of technical difficulties but oh well y'all got this talk today so...