After finishing the North αмєяι¢αn leg of the j-hope Tour 'HOPE ON THE STAGE', j-hope began his Asian journey in mid-April to meet fans in Manila, Saitama, ѕιиgαρσяє, Jakarta, Bangkok, Macau, Taipei and Osaka.
In particular, to kick off the tour in Asia, j-hope chose to set foot in the Philippines - where fans have been waiting for him to return after 8 years since the first time he performed with BTS here. The fans' cheers in this country were more enthusiastic than ever, making the BTS superstar exclaim: "Today, ARMY's pαѕѕionate support has reached the stage again! I'm so happy to be able to share this moment together".
Despite the successful conclusion of the two-night concert in Manila, which ended on the 13th of this month, some controversies regarding the support of fans here for him continue on SNS.
Specifically, it comes from some videos recording the scene of j-hope arriving and leaving at the Philippine airport. When the idol appeared at the airport, he was protected by a team of bodyguards to escort him out or into the airport safely and quickly.
Unlike the usual scene of a crowd of fans surrounding the idol at the airport. On the days j-hope was in Manila, there were very few fans waiting for him in the airport area. Some fans at the airport were also very orderly, only daring to call j-hope's name from afar.
Because of this scene, some people accused j-hope's popularity here is low and it is not soмєтнing to brag about. Even having many bodyguards following j-hope when there are only a few fans chasing him is considered pretentious or "fake fame".
These people rely on the premise that normally, fans would gather or crowd the airport if it is a famous and popular idol.
Amidst this rumor, many fans, especially local ARMYs, quickly spoke up to defend their idol. PH-ARMYs noted that they have organized a project calling on fans to stop coming to the airport when j-hope lands in Manila to show respect and bring a sense of safety to him since early April, called "NO TO TEAM AIRPORT".
People also explained that crowds of fans at the airport should not be considered a sign of fame because these crowds often tend to invade the artist's privacy and are generally unsafe.
Many fans and netizens said that netizens do not need to use the crowds at the airport to prove the artist's popularity:
- It's wild that kpop stans want to drag an idol for not being mobbed at an airport to imply a lack of popularity/attention. Meanwhile ARMY have spent years trying to foster a fandom culture of NOT going to airports & allowing our idols space to travel freely. This is a win for us
- apparently airport mobs are a better measure of one's popularity now over ticket sales
- Lmao, it is supposed to be a drag? filo army didn't appear in the airport because we have a fan project to respect jhope privacy and personal space and we all mutually agreed with that. We know when to show up and where to respect him
- Leave it to kpop stans to brag about artists getting mobbed at airports. Honey no sane person would go harαѕѕ someone they say they love when they're just trying to catch a flight
- he is literally in the biggest group y’all reaching atp lmao calling him irrelevant? LMAO?
- Imagine flexing bc your idols get hunted down at airports while Hobi was not. Speaks volumes of their fandom tho
- Being mobbed at the airport is not a flex. Your fans respecting you enough to not show up at the airport so you can travel safely and peacefully is.
- By the way, thank you to PH ARMYs for not showing up at the airport. It made me so happy to see him being able to get through the airport safely.
- Antis are trying to use the fact that ARMYs stayed away from the airport to drag
- If ur talking about the clip from ph, it's also because the fanbases discouraged fans to go to airport for his safety and to respect his privacy as per BH fandom rules.
- ARMY is a fandom like no other. The man just had 16 sold out concerts from SK, USA, Mexico & the Philippines. These records stand. No fans? The universe knows better. Respect is what he was shown.
- If they wanna compare crowds, they should start at concerts. what nonsense is this with airports.
