(p.s. my original post got taken down in another sub bc mods said it didn’t fit 😭 re-posting here instead, hopefully it makes sense!)
i’m not saying Red Velvet needs to be the biggest kpop group out there, but i genuinely believe they deserve so much more recognition for their talent, vocals, and discography. every single member brings something special to the group. wendy’s vocals are unmatched, irene has that iconic visual presence and her skills as lead dancer (she’s so much more than just a visual), joy has a really distinct voice tone and charm, seulgi is an absolute powerhouse, and yeri adds so much warmth and personality to the group dynamics. even with wendy and yeri no longer being under sm, i love how close they still are. they literally treat each other like family and you can see how much they care about each other.
their discography is also top tier i can never decide whether i prefer their red or velvet side bc both are THAT good. irene has been my bias since 2017 when i first got into kpop, and even though i’m not as active in the fandom as i used to be, red velvet will always be a huge part of my happiness. i love their solo releases too, especially seulgi’s album! but something i’ve noticed over the years is how they get viral tweets and endless praise online, yet their chart performance doesn’t always reflect that level of attention and whenever this happens, it brings out the most toxic takes like onces dragging rv calling them nugus or flops, random accounts using rv pfps just to set them up and start drama, or akgaes fighting within the fandom itself.
this is honestly such a clear example of the token stanning problem in the kpop community. people love to talk about red velvet, praise their discography, and use them for clout or as an example of “good kpop” in fanwars. but the second it comes time to actually support stream, buy, vote, show up suddenly everybody vanishes. it’s so exhausting bc it feels like red velvet is respected but not supported, admired but never actually invested in. it really makes you wonder how much of that online hype is genuine interest in the group versus people using them as ammunition.
i’m not saying everyone who enjoys their music has to become a hardcore, dedicated luvie. casual listeners are completely fine, and nobody owes a group their time or money. kpop shouldn’t be treated like a full-time 9-to-5 job, and I’m not expecting everyone to stream 24/7 or vote on every app. but as someone who’s been a fan for years, it can be frustrating when you genuinely want to see the group succeed and feel like their numbers don’t match how talented they are.
cosmic was such an amazing song and it didn’t get the recognition it deserved at all, esp when most people kept assuming it was gonna be their disbandment song (which turned out wrong thankfully). but tbh, their newest comeback album isn’t really hitting for me as much? i was super hyped for it bc it was their first cb after 2024, and while I’m so glad they’re back and seeing them together makes me happy, the music itself just didn’t fully land for me this time. being a fan doesn’t mean i have to blindly love every single release, and there’s nothing wrong with admitting that.
to be fair about the fandom side of things though, luvies or reveluvs just have a completely different relationship with kpop culture compared to others. there’s generally way less organized streaming or voting than you see with onces, blinks, or armys. on the flip side, one thing we CAN genuinely brag abt is that rv listeners are super organic. their music is just that good that casual listeners and non-fans tune in naturally, without mass streaming farms or organized campaigns.
plus, a lot of us luvies are simply getting older 😭 so many of us have been around since 2014–2017 and are managing real-life responsibilities now. school, work, family so we just don’t have time to sit there streaming on 5 devices or voting around the clock like we used to. that doesn’t mean people stopped loving the group, though. the fact that people are still listening years later, buying concert tickets, and keeping their tracks on replay shows that their longevity is definitely real.
looking back at how toxic fandom culture gets, i sometimes cringe so hard at how i used to act in fanwars back then, esp on twitter 😭 i was never an rv akgae (i was for a different group back then, which embarrasses me now 😭🤣), but it made me realize how easy it is to get caught up in the drama. that toxicity is honestly why i’m trying to avoid twitter for my peace of mind. i just want to listen to red velvet, appreciate their music, support the members, and praise them in peace without all the negativity and honestly, that goes for the wider kpop community too bc it gets exhausting.
maybe i’m just being dramatic about my girls lmao 😭 but i don’t want red velvet’s success to be measured only by chart positions. i just wish the amount of love and recognition they receive online translated into more visible support when it matters.
does anyone else feel this way about red velvet, or do you think their more casual fandom culture is just part of what makes them different?
submitted by /u/katrinasimba
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