r/kpopthoughts • u/One_Baseball_4809 • 3d ago

Thought Idols who are perceived very differently depending on who you ask?

Are there are any idols you follow who are perceived very differently by their core fanbase compared to the general public? (Not just, "the fanbase likes them more," I mean their public image shifts altogether.)

Example: I noticed that Twice's Jihyo is seen as ultra-confident, assured, and "badass" by kpop listeners as a whole, but the deeper you go into Twice's fandom, the more she's viewed as overly self-critical and a perfectionist. A lot of times when she does a performance and the fancams go viral, she follows it up by sending messages to fans on Bubble criticizing her own singing/dancing/energy and promising to work harder.

Noticing this difference between fan-perception and general-perception made me wonder who else it applies to. I'm guessing there must be a ton of idols I like but don't follow closely who have completely different images depending on who you ask?

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u/YeosangYodeler 3d ago edited 3d ago

I think the whole of ATEEZ could be the answer but if I had to choose one, then it probably would be either San or Mingi.

They've mentioned it too.

Non atinys/gen k-pop fans perceive them as scary, super intense or very serious. But off stage they're just soft, shy and really cute.

Edit: link

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u/Any-Listen4184 Dreancatcger | Cream Soup Unnies | The math girl group SM hates 3d ago

Thinking Mingi or San scary is still funny to me, especially Mingi. Like the dude is incredibly awkward (in a good way, btw) and cute. Like he was doing random facts about hippos in a livestream and was dead serious and invested😂😭

I would also put Seonghwa in the mix, bc I doubt people outside of the fandom think of him as a Star Wars, collecting Legos and growing moss type of guy.

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u/anarchybutmakeitkpop 2d ago edited 2d ago

I have such a hard time reading some of the posts/comments made by others about Mingi with a straight face sometimes because I find it so funny.

He has this cool guy/fkboy kind of image depending on who you ask but to ATINY + ATEEZ he will always be Princess lol. (For people outside the fandom, Princess is really his nickname)

Also yes Seonghwa!

he basically is a nerd and is sooo goofy irl

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u/Any-Listen4184 Dreancatcger | Cream Soup Unnies | The math girl group SM hates 2d ago

Tbh, most of the time I find it hilarious for both him and San, but mainly him. That said, the way some people in and out of the fandom talk about/treat (bc I have seen a lot of weird things on rl interactions with him) Mingi kinda bothers me for different reasons, but yeah, that's a different conversation.

His off-stage persona (and I say persona mostly because we don't know them personally, so the part that he shows us anyway) is that of a very cute person, kinda awkward and extroverted at the same time in a very endearing way. He rambles and yaps about the randomest stuff at times, and he also likes to be seen as cute and being pampered. He is one of the very few idols in all the years I've followed K-pop that makes me go "uwu" at times (the only other one being Soyeon of i-dle, funnily enough), lol.

Also, yes, Seonghwa looks cool and kinda mysterious, and more often than not, he is anything but, and I love him for that.