BTS’s Global Fandom Is Angry At Korea And HYBE, “They Don’t Deserve BTS”
Fans of BTS are frustrated because their idols are being surrounded by controversies every day without protection from the company
On May 4th, Sports Kyunghyang reported, “The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism received a complaint asking for an investigation into BTS’s chart manipulation allegations and plans to transfer it to the Korea Creative Content Agency, which is operating a corner for reports about music manipulation”.
After confirming the reports, the Korea Creative Content Agency will ask HYBE (Big Hit Music) to cooperate with the investigative agency.
In addition to the manipulation allegation, some people even filed complaints to demand the cancellation of the commendation given to BTS by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism for their contribution to the development of the Korean Wave in 2016.
People complained because it was a government commendation so the government should strictly select recipients of the ministerial awards, and conduct strict assessments by forming a fair evaluation committee. Some netizens pointed out that the recent chart manipulation allegation undermines fair competition, so the cancellation of the commendation should be promptly reviewed. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is reportedly looking into the facts.
Aside from that, rumors of BTS’s involvement in cult arose amid HYBE’s internal conflict. Due to the spread of continuous unconfirmed rumors about BTS, overseas ARMYs (BTS’s fandom) are expressing frustration and requesting the management company to protect the group.
In response to the current situation, fans in various countries poured reactions on X (formerly Twitter) and SNS sites, saying “Korea does not deserve to have BTS”, “The agency that is ignoring BTS who has nothing to do with the controversies should reflect on yourself”. “I got to know about Korea thanks to BTS, but the country is not treating BTS fairly”, “What exactly did the members do wrong?”, etc.
Korean fans also angrily criticized HYBE by sending protest trucks and condolence wreaths to the company building with messages, such as “The artists are affected by the owner risks”, “Release additional statements to protect the artists”, etc.
Meanwhile, BTS’s chart manipulation allegation has become a hot topic as the terms “chart manipulation” and “illegal marketing” were mentioned in the verdict of Big Hit’s blackmail case. In this regard, HYBE clarified that the suspicions were false and announced legal action against malicious rumor spreaders.
