[BREAKING] SNSD's Sooyoung and actor Jung Kyung Ho are dating... for 1 year? - Latest K-pop News - K-pop News

sometimes i stop paying attention to kpop for a few weeks, i guess i missed it!

But it has never been confirmed right? Not that I don't want her to date, but just to be sure :)

yes, i missed it but read the news last night.

Sorry, I didn't really intend my post to be like that. I don't see myself as part of their lives, but as a fan that has followed their changes over the years. I just address them generally like that, but if there's a better way let me know.

With all due respect, I feel like you've been immersed in this fandom, and the K-pop world in general, long enough to be able to recognize this sentiment for what it is. These girls are an emotional investment. We don't just like SNSD because of their music, though it's catchy. We love SNSD because of who they are, or at least the personae they purport to represent: humble in the face of unimaginable success, sexy without being overtly sexual, genuine role models that legitimately inspire. Where else in entertainment can you find someone like Seohyun, who has reached the pinnacle of her nation's entertainment industry - and yet her stated goal is to shed the reputation entertainers have for being airheads? Or where else can you find an entertainer who emphasizes proper, healthy living like she does? Whether her persona is artificial or not is irrelevant; the message is inspirational.

For those who love this group for more than the music - personally this is where I would draw the line between "SNSD fan" and "SONE", though I'm sure this is just a matter of choice - it's refreshing to be able to invest yourself emotionally into these girls and know that it's worth it. Not surprisingly, we often tend to switch to the first-person plural pronouns when we make that kind of emotional investment. See sports for another example, where it's not uncommon to hear people say things like "we beat Los Angeles 3—2 in the hockey game" despite not being able to skate. (And yes, I know some people get bothered by the use of "we" by sports fans too. For the same reasons, I feel like they should know why. Sports teams, like K-pop acts, also seek the emotional investment of their fans.)

Of course there's a danger that the emotions K-pop is designed to evoke will be taken too far. We still have to be responsible about being SONEs; sadly, all the emotional investment in the world cannot conquer reality, lest we become delusional. For those for whom it might be a problem, we need to prepare - or perhaps now I should say, ought to have prepared - for the possibility of "our" girls dating and being in confirmed relationships. And one day we're also going to need to confront the reality of SNSD ending... and given that SNSD is probably in the late mid-game now, that day may be coming sooner rather than later. But I think so long as one respects the constraints of reality, it's perfectly reasonable to talk as if one does an emotional connection with the girls, because, in a certain way, we do - heck, one can argue that that emotional connection is the only product SM really "sells". In the end, the experience is most rewarding for those who do make that emotional investment, without going over the edge.

tl;dr - I don't think it's fair to say that K-pop fans who use inclusive language are creepy.

Feel free to have whatever pet peeves you want but I don't see how you can be angry with fans and fault them for getting into the spirit of the material as it's given to them.

When the performers themselves say they know how some of the fans think of them as girlfriends and it's convenient when they're too busy to date because they don't want to break the fan's illusions, I don't think it's right to swear at and insult fans for going along with the game.

I find it funny that it fully describes the activities of a date, but doesn't reveal the length of the relationship because "it's personal" haha

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yep. I thought they were just rumors, but nope. Hope theyre still together!

Agreed. I'm genuinely happy for Yoona, Hyoyeon, Sooyoung, and any other member that's dating. It's refreshing to see that they have time to date. I wish them all long, happy, and healthy relationships :). But yes my fanboy heart is slowly dying out.

I wouldn't be surprised either. Taeyeon is close to Kangin and was rumored to date Leeteuk so she has those connections. Also the instagram pics.

Isn't it Sohee and Heechul?

Not that I disagree with your point, but I wanted to make a factual correction tangential to your argument. Their ages ranged from 18 to 16 at the time of their debut. I'm pretty sure most of them were still in high school (definitely the '90 line + Seohun, and at least some of the '89 line). Even when Gee was released, Seohyun, Sooyoung, and Yoona were all still in high school. The '90 line graduated about a month after that, and Seohyun didn't graduate until 2010.