What do you get for someone you love? It's hard enough to think of the perfect gift when the person is living with you but what if the person or ‘persons’ are living across the globe from you. That is just one of the problems faced by the majority of K-Pop fans.

So why do they do it? Why spend time, effort and money in sending those gifts to their ‘idols’?

“To make them feel special like they have support from everyone all over the world.”

At least that is what our profile, Hajar, thinks.

One thing that can be said about K-Pop fans is that they really do care about their idols and they can be quite generous with it. Some of the most common examples would be the feeding of staff. When an idol is performing on a music programme or acting in a drama, it is not uncommon for the idol’s fans to cater food for them as well as the whole staff involved in the production. Fans also do their part and send in medicine if they catch a whiff of their idols being sick. 

Fanclubs in Korea have an almost unique sub-culture where they periodically make an effort to celebrate an individual member’s birthday or any major milestones in the groups’s lifespan to show their constant devotion and love for the group.

That is why, for her final goodbye, Hajar has decided to end her obssession with Teen Top’s 1000^th Day Project. 

To know more about Hajar’s final project, stay tune for the release of Kpop Kraze. 

4 years ago, Hajar laughed when she first saw a K-Pop video. Today, Hajar practically worships it. She owns uncountable posters and albums of her favourite group, Teen Top.

No one would have guessed that this hardcore Panic At the Disco and Green Day fan would turn into a K-Pop fanatic.

“Someone sent me a video of SHINee’s ‘Replay’ practice video. Then after that, I started like watching the videos online and kinda got addicted,” Hajar says.

After getting to know more about K-Pop and the Korean culture, Hajar eventually stumbled upon and fell in love with Teen Top, a 6-member pop group consisting of Niel, Changjo, C.A.P, Ricky, L.Joe and Chunji, who is her favourite member.

Her passion in supporting them grew from watching their music videos to attending their Singapore fanmeet. Not being able to get enough of Teen Top, she then flew to various countries, in secrecy, to watch them perform. She also became the Singapore-based fan club leader and even learnt Korean, so that she could watch their shows without subs.

However, her joy in supporting the group wasn’t well received by her parents. They frowned upon her being obsessed with K-Pop. But of course, the strong-headed Hajar still continued liking K-Pop and soon, her family ties deteriorated.

Her determination to support the boys was short-lived. An incident that happened while she was in Thailand for Teen Top’s event, served as a wake-up call for her and made her think about what she was actually doing with her life.

Now, Hajar has decided to end her relationship with K-Pop with 1 final project that celebrates Teen Top’s 1000^th Day Anniversary, for her parent’s sake and for her own.

Know of anyone that is as passionate as Hajar? Share with us your stories!

K-pop has always been a huge hit in Singapore ever since its introduction in 2008 – 2009. Some may think that the K-wave is dying down, but newer groups are popping up in Korea, and they are most definitely capturing the hearts of teenage girls here in the little red dot.

Groups like Teen Top and B.A.P came out during the post-introduction period and have garnered many fans all around the world! Our Producer, Heidi, is a huge fan or B.A.P herself.

“The fact that when B.A.P first debuted, all the members have blond hair made the group stand out,” Heidi explained excitedly. “And they are different from the groups that came out during that time (2012) because they were very hip hop based.”

Psy, with his hit single ‘Gangnam Style’, united the world with this quirky dance moves and rap in Korean just shows that you don’t have to be young and good looking to have fans worshipping at your feet.

The fame of ‘Gangnam Style’ went on for months and the popularity of the song went too over the board.

“Because usually K-pop doesn’t reach America, so when ‘Gangnam Style’ came out, everyone, even those aunties and uncles here in Singapore, thought that K-pop was like that, but it isn’t! And I got a little annoyed,” Cherlyn Tung, a K-pop fan, admitted.

So, what do you think about K-pop? Tell us in the comments, or hit our tagbox with your thoughts! In the meantime, let us hear what some poly students have to say about it.

Have you ever booked a taxi to follow your favorite star around all day? Have you ever thrown yourself in front of a celebrity’s car just so that you would have some sort of an interaction with them? Have you ever written a fan mail with your period blood?

If you responded yes to any of these, you are what the Koreans call a ‘sasaeng’ fan.

Define 'sasaeng': 

To put it simply, a ‘sasaeng’ fan is a celebrity’s worst nightmare. In Korea, the ‘sasaeng’ community is made up of young teenage girls. They have dedicated their lives to follow their idols around, everywhere. There have also been incidents of the fans breaking into the dorms of the stars. Inside, they take pictures of the sleeping idols, satisfied that they have reached such a close proximity with the stars.

In Singapore, the fans are not as extreme, thankfully.

“Some Singaporean fans book a room in the same hotel as the stars and book a van to follow them wherever they go. It’s scary but it’s nothing compared to what ‘sasaeng’ fans do,” Faiz Suhairi, 19, a K-Pop fan says.

This unhealthy obsession with a celebrity has affected many lives. Many of these fans have dropped out from school and are shunned by their families. They are blinded by the thrill of following a star and are unaware that this obsession may just be a temporary phase in their lives.

While it’s okay to have a liking for a celebrity, there has to be a limit.  Unhealthy obsession should be avoided, seeing what it could do one’s life.

What are some of the stories you have heard extreme fans have done? Share your stories through our chatbox on the left!

What do you get for someone you love? It's hard enough to think of the perfect gift when the person is living with you but what if the person or ‘persons’ are living across the globe from you. That is just one of the problems faced by the majority of K-Pop fans.

So why do they do it? Why spend time, effort and money in sending those gifts to their ‘idols’?

“To make them feel special like they have support from everyone all over the world.”

At least that is what our profile, Hajar, thinks.

One thing that can be said about K-Pop fans is that they really do care about their idols and they can be quite generous with it. Some of the most common examples would be the feeding of staff. When an idol is performing on a music programme or acting in a drama, it is not uncommon for the idol’s fans to cater food for them as well as the whole staff involved in the production. Fans also do their part and send in medicine if they catch a whiff of their idols being sick. 

Fanclubs in Korea have an almost unique sub-culture where they periodically make an effort to celebrate an individual member’s birthday or any major milestones in the groups’s lifespan to show their constant devotion and love for the group.

That is why, for her final goodbye, Hajar has decided to end her obssession with Teen Top’s 1000^th Day Project. 

To know more about Hajar’s final project, stay tune for the release of Kpop Kraze. 

4 years ago, Hajar laughed when she first saw a K-Pop video. Today, Hajar practically worships it. She owns uncountable posters and albums of her favourite group, Teen Top.

No one would have guessed that this hardcore Panic At the Disco and Green Day fan would turn into a K-Pop fanatic.

“Someone sent me a video of SHINee’s ‘Replay’ practice video. Then after that, I started like watching the videos online and kinda got addicted,” Hajar says.

After getting to know more about K-Pop and the Korean culture, Hajar eventually stumbled upon and fell in love with Teen Top, a 6-member pop group consisting of Niel, Changjo, C.A.P, Ricky, L.Joe and Chunji, who is her favourite member.

Her passion in supporting them grew from watching their music videos to attending their Singapore fanmeet. Not being able to get enough of Teen Top, she then flew to various countries, in secrecy, to watch them perform. She also became the Singapore-based fan club leader and even learnt Korean, so that she could watch their shows without subs.

However, her joy in supporting the group wasn’t well received by her parents. They frowned upon her being obsessed with K-Pop. But of course, the strong-headed Hajar still continued liking K-Pop and soon, her family ties deteriorated.

Her determination to support the boys was short-lived. An incident that happened while she was in Thailand for Teen Top’s event, served as a wake-up call for her and made her think about what she was actually doing with her life.

Now, Hajar has decided to end her relationship with K-Pop with 1 final project that celebrates Teen Top’s 1000^th Day Anniversary, for her parent’s sake and for her own.

Know of anyone that is as passionate as Hajar? Share with us your stories!

K-pop has always been a huge hit in Singapore ever since its introduction in 2008 – 2009. Some may think that the K-wave is dying down, but newer groups are popping up in Korea, and they are most definitely capturing the hearts of teenage girls here in the little red dot.

Groups like Teen Top and B.A.P came out during the post-introduction period and have garnered many fans all around the world! Our Producer, Heidi, is a huge fan or B.A.P herself.

“The fact that when B.A.P first debuted, all the members have blond hair made the group stand out,” Heidi explained excitedly. “And they are different from the groups that came out during that time (2012) because they were very hip hop based.”

Psy, with his hit single ‘Gangnam Style’, united the world with this quirky dance moves and rap in Korean just shows that you don’t have to be young and good looking to have fans worshipping at your feet.

The fame of ‘Gangnam Style’ went on for months and the popularity of the song went too over the board.

“Because usually K-pop doesn’t reach America, so when ‘Gangnam Style’ came out, everyone, even those aunties and uncles here in Singapore, thought that K-pop was like that, but it isn’t! And I got a little annoyed,” Cherlyn Tung, a K-pop fan, admitted.

So, what do you think about K-pop? Tell us in the comments, or hit our tagbox with your thoughts! In the meantime, let us hear what some poly students have to say about it.

Have you ever booked a taxi to follow your favorite star around all day? Have you ever thrown yourself in front of a celebrity’s car just so that you would have some sort of an interaction with them? Have you ever written a fan mail with your period blood?

If you responded yes to any of these, you are what the Koreans call a ‘sasaeng’ fan.

Define 'sasaeng': 

To put it simply, a ‘sasaeng’ fan is a celebrity’s worst nightmare. In Korea, the ‘sasaeng’ community is made up of young teenage girls. They have dedicated their lives to follow their idols around, everywhere. There have also been incidents of the fans breaking into the dorms of the stars. Inside, they take pictures of the sleeping idols, satisfied that they have reached such a close proximity with the stars.

In Singapore, the fans are not as extreme, thankfully.

“Some Singaporean fans book a room in the same hotel as the stars and book a van to follow them wherever they go. It’s scary but it’s nothing compared to what ‘sasaeng’ fans do,” Faiz Suhairi, 19, a K-Pop fan says.

This unhealthy obsession with a celebrity has affected many lives. Many of these fans have dropped out from school and are shunned by their families. They are blinded by the thrill of following a star and are unaware that this obsession may just be a temporary phase in their lives.

While it’s okay to have a liking for a celebrity, there has to be a limit.  Unhealthy obsession should be avoided, seeing what it could do one’s life.

What are some of the stories you have heard extreme fans have done? Share your stories through our chatbox on the left!