FANS TURNED STALKERS: UNCOVERING THE DARK SIDE OF IDOL CULTURE
From fans turned stalkers to punishment for public dating - GATA reveals the chilling realities of being an idol in Japan and South Korea. Delving into shocking incidents where obsession spirals into violence and idols' lives are endangered, this exploration exposes the disturbing underbelly of the idol industry, where devotion can quickly turn deadly.
Idol Handshake Event
Idols, by definition, embody various meanings: objects of extreme devotion, symbols of worship, or even false conceptions. The term was introduced to Japan in the 1970s inspired by the success of the French show "Cherchez l’idole" (1963), starring Sylvie Vartan. Vartan's popularity captivated Japanese audiences, with her EP selling over a million copies in Japan. Ironically, this unattainability associated with the term became intrinsic to the concept of idols in Asian culture. Aidoru as referred to in Japanese, are young pop stars who are scouted by talent agencies and are catapulted from girl-or boy-next-door to being idolized to the pitch of hysteria by legions of glowstick-waving fans.
A crucial distinction between Japanese idols and their Western celebrity counterparts is the emphasis on devotion to fans. Japanese idols are marketed as "existing for you," fostering a sense of intimacy with their supporters, in contrast to the perceived superiority and distance of Western celebrities. However, this closeness between Idols and fans can lead to challenges, including unreciprocated affection and consequent resentment - even resulting in stalking. Entertainment agencies often perpetuate this obsession, enforcing strict rules for idols to maintain an image of purity and constant availability for their fans. The entire fan system operates by commodfying people’s obsessions. The term "Sasaeng Fan" has been coined in Korea for obsessive fans who invade idols' privacy, reflecting the private and intrusive nature of their actions.
Despite Korean Idol culture's roots in Japanese idol culture, their paths have diverged, resulting in underlying differences. However, their common denominator is the intense relationship between idols and their fans, characterized by mania, and fascination. Extreme behaviors, such as writing letters in period blood or stalking idols by locating their whereabouts through reflections in their eyes, highlight the lengths to which fans will go.
Letter written in period blood
In 2009 a fan sent Taecyeon from K-pop group 2PM a letter written in her own period blood—with a few strands of her pubes. The fan was quoted as saying: “ I dedicate to Taecyeon my period blood letter. Taeyeon, you cannot live without me. Sprinkled with a few strands of my pubes.”
Picture of Taecyeon bloody pad
Stalker finds idol through reflection in her eyes on social media post
In 2019 a stalker located Japanese idol Ena Matsuoka, through the reflection in her eyes on a social media post. According to the record, he scrutinized her selfies, to find which metro station she would go to or look at the way the light would fall into her room, to determine what floor she lived on. Matsuoka, part of the idol group Tenshitsukinukeniyomi, regularly updated her fans about upcoming events and everyday life, as many idols and individuals do, but her selfies nearly cost her life. The stalker, who has been named by authorities as Hibiki Sato, confessed to gagging Matsuoka before dragging her to a dark corner and sexually assaulting her.
Rejected fan becomes obsessed and stabs idol 60 times
In 2016 Mayu Tomita, part of the cast of Secret Girls, a TV drama about girls leading a double life as both students and idols, was stabbed 61 times and left in a coma by “fan” Tomohiro Iwazaki. To quote his horrific reasoning: "I sent a gift (to Tomita) but it was returned. I asked her why but she gave an evasive answer, so I became mad and stabbed her numerous times." Before the incident, Tomita had informed the police various times that she had received over 400 comments from Tomohiro Iwazaki, including death threats after she rejected his marriage proposal; yet her complaints had no repercussions. She in turn sued the government for negligence and dismissal of her case for 76 million yen in damages from the government, her former agent, and her attacker. Iwazaki, who was 27 at the time of the attack, was convicted of attempted murder and sentenced in February 2017 to 14-and-a-half years in jail. Mayu Tomita called the police’s attitude careless: “I will continue my fight in the hopes that this court case will help prevent potential future incidents and save potential future victims”.
Shaving head in apology for dating
In 2013 Minami Minegishi, a 20-year-old member of the popular Japanese girls group AKB48 was caught leaving another idol’s—Alan Shirahama—apartment early in the morning. The tabloids exposed their relationship, which was immediately met with harsh criticism, yet only towards her and not the male idol. AKB48 then released an apology video of Minegishi addressing her fans—with a newly shaved head. In the video, she was seen tearfully apologizing for her mistake, and showing remorse through this haircut. In Western media this raised eyebrows, even condemned this radical move, as taking it too far within the J-pop industry. However, it is important to note that in Japanese culture, it is usual to express apologies through physical actions, such as head shaving, to show the significance of the apology. She was demoted to trainee level, as members who break these “cardinal rules” are demoted by their talent agencies for tarnishing the illusion of their availability and purity, in regard to the fans. AKB48's management office’s official statement was that she was demoted to a trainee team as punishment "for causing a nuisance to the fans".
Minami Minegishi apologising
Satoru Umeta on Japan news
Hand saw at handshake event
In 2014 two members of the popular idol AKB48 group were assaulted with a handsaw at a fan "handshake" event. These meet and greet events are held regularly for fans to meet their Idols, this particular one took place at Takizawa City, in Iwate Prefecture. A 24-year-old man, identified as Satoru Umeta, was standing in line when he struck both Rina Kawae (19) and Anna Iriyama (18) with the handsaw. Kawei’s thumb was cut and broken and Iriyama also broke a finger. Additionally, both of them were slashed across their heads, thankfully only resulting in small cuts. The assailant was arrested and sentenced to six years in jail. Both AKB48 members had to undergo surgery, Rina Kawae never recovered from this incident and announced her departure from the idol group based due to post-traumatic stress. Close fan access has become a crucial commodity, yet this incident has resulted in a debate about stricter safety measures.
Attacked members from AKB48 leaving the hospital
Idol’s underwear stolen
In 2014 a sasaeng fan of the K-pop group EXO-M claimed to have obtained underwear from fan favourite Do Kyung Soo. (D.O). She is quoted saying: "I am selling the underwear of Do Kyung Soo (D.O). I personally got it from their dorm. It was extremely hard for me to obtain. I think it's worth 100,000 won. You don't believe me? There were a couple of hair strands on the underwear that you could test for DNA. I also have socks. Do not argue or tackle one another. I'm going to go next week to get Sehun's underwear if you want to reserve it. I could not get through EXO-M's thorough security. This item was something I was able to barely obtain. I'm selling hair strands, too." Here in turn D.O is quoted speaking about saeseng Fans: “Personally, since there are so many sasaeng fans, I’ve started to feel victimized and it’s so grave, it’s changing my feelings toward regular fans when I see them. My personality has changed. I’ve always somehow been displeased with strangers but because of the sasaeng fans, it has worsened.
Insufficient protection from idol management
In January 2019, idol singer Maho Yamaguchi, a member of the idol group NGT48 was attacked by two 25-year-old university students on her way home. They grabbed her face on the way home and attempted to enter her apartment with her, thankfully the police were summoned before that could occur. The two assailants denied having violent intent, and were quoted saying “We wanted to talk with Ms Yamaguchi, and we didn’t think it would be such a big deal”. Besides the stress and trauma Yamaguchi suffered, the aftermath of the incident was more bizarre and alarming. The management behind NGT48 did not issue any statement, so Yamaguchi herself took to Twitter and a streaming platform, to inform her fans about this attack on her and how she did not feel protected by her management. This occurred a day before the third-anniversary celebration of NGT48, where she then took to the stage to apologize: “Recently, I caused a large commotion, and I am sincerely sorry. As I explained the other day, there are people I want to protect, and so I ended up talking about the things I did. This has caused trouble for people who have helped and supported me, and I would like to apologize for that.” In the aftermath of her public statement, NGT48’s management said they would be instituting security patrols in their idol’s homes and giving them pocket-sized crime alert sirens, as well as providing psychological support for Yamaguchi and other idols.