Lia. 1998 liner. Likes to yap about manga/anime that pique her interest. English is not her native language 🌻 Top favorite characters: Kazutora (tokrev), Zenitsu (kny), Juvia (ft), and Aira (ddn). OTPs: Gruvia (Gray x Juvia) & Zennezu (Zenitsu x Nezuko) 🌻 Current favorite series: KnY 👹 Dandadan 👽 Hyakkano 💯 GSNK ✒️ || Please DNI if you dislike any of my fav 🙏🏻 I don't want my activity to bother you 🥹.
This is my tumblr account dedicated to yap about anime and manga. But I think I'll use it to talk about kpop too, at least for this one because it's been bugging me for sometime and I don't know where to discuss it (I don't use reddit or discord and only has art account on twitter and instagram where I refrain from talking about things not related to art).
I stan stayc. My bias is isa and I'm aware of how popular she is among non-fans, especially international kpop fans. Sieun is the most popular one among korean general public due to her background, and I see seeun often getting viral among knetz due to her princess-like beauty. And as far as I know, the fandom fortunately has a minimum to nonexistent amount of akgaes. Even some self-proclaimed solo stans I came across are still supportive toward the other members and defended them when antis throw hate or malicious rumors (seems to me like these solo stans actually just like particular members a lot, thus feeling bad to call themselves swiths because they don't hype up other members ー which I personally find nothing wrong).
What I'm curious about is why do non-fans adore isa so much when they don't follow stayc or just casually listen to their music? Even to the point of saying she would've been better off in a more popular group rather than stayc?
In almost my 10 years of being in the kpop community, I usually witness this kind of thing happening to face of the group idols like chuu (loona), nana (wooah), eunwoo (astro), etc. This is where it confuses me. Isa is not the face of the group. For all I know, both sieun and yoon are the pushed ones more in korea. As the only english-speaking member, sieun also takes charge whenever they hold concerts or events in foreign countries.
I understand at least why isa is popular in my country (Indonesia). My friend said she has the typical beauty locals love here, amplified by her cute eye-smile and a bit of resemblance to karina aespa who is really popular in my country. Like, I remember when yoon and isa had bebe and vvv challenges with the boyz's members. I think the Indonesian comments I've seen are focused on isa, praising how cute and beautiful she is. I was grateful but feel a bit sad that yoon almost got no mention 🥲. And I do admit that many kpop fans here still place visual in high priority too, so I get why even those who don't know much about stayc can find her endearing. But how about kpop fans from countries who usually don't care about visuals, especially western kpop fans?
Just within this month, I've seen a few comments saying how her potential goes to waste in stayc or if only she were in a better group. I'll understand if it's like the case of harry june's overwhelming popularity after boys planet 2 where people feel it's a shame he is not in a bigger company, because brave entertainment indeed sucks at promoting dkb ー and their artists in general ー no matter how talented and eager the boys are. But high up is doing just fine IMO. Sure, their stayc promotion in 2024 was disastrous. But the previous years' promotion tactics were fantastic (especially in 2023) and even this year they seem to get back in gear again. The girls are not abandoned, they seem comfortable at the company, and all members get to showcase their talents properly. I might even argue that the reason stayc is not more popular at this point is due to non-fans already have prejudices about the group's capabilities and music without diving in head first to see for themselves and how most kpop casual listeners prefer to check out new stuffs from bigger names, not the lack of stayc's talents nor promotion.
The reason my confusion exists is NOT because I undermine isa's potential or unable to see why she can be popular as an individual. It's because whenever she is with stayc ... she blends in. Not overshadowed, but like a puzzle piece is finally put into place. She became my bias in the first place only after I binge-watched stayc videos from the earliest ones. Meaning that I know she exists after I know there is stayc. When I first discovered stayc, almost none of them stood out to me except sieun (mostly thanks to her unique bow-like hair in stereotype mv). That's why I'm curious about the reason behind isa's popularity among non-fans. The reason why some of them say that stayc hinders her potential. Because as a fan, I honestly think she already shines bright in stayc, as bright as her sisters and none of them drag the other down.
So I want to know your opinion, especially if you don't follow stayc but have any idea why many non-fans like isa (you are welcomed to discuss it too if you are a fan 😉). My judgement can be clouded because I've always seen stayc up close (figuratively), that's why I need objective input from non-fans/non-antis' standpoint. And I'm not here to argue your opinion, so feel free to have different perspective. It might actually be helpful for me to gather information haha.
Bonus!
The one who caught my attention first: Sieun. When she first appeared on screen, I immediately said, "How adorable!" I mean, sieun and her hairstyle are so cute!
First bias: Isa. I always love soft-spoken people. And the way she speaks is so gentle, it's what intrigues me about her first. It's also the reason why I like chaewon from le sserafim.
Current bias: Isa. Tbh I rarely ever change bias because I always find new reasons to like them even more. Same goes for isa.
Bias wrecker: the rest of the group, like it keeps changing
First song I listened to: actually asap but stereotype's the one I sat down and properly listened to, and the song which introduced me to them
Most favorite title track: stereotype if the sentimental element is counted lol, but the one I replay the most is bebe
Most favorite album: um... if we are talking about the songs alone then it'll be [s] with staydom close behind. If we put the aesthetic aspect into consideration, I'll vote for teddy bear (I love the pink one) and metamorphic. But if it's also about the era, the cohesiveness, and the impact, I'm gonna go with young-luv.com (as much as it feels too romanticized by many swiths) even if r&b is not really my favorite haha
Trying to explain Mikey's position in the sano sibling is CRAZY what do you mean he went from being the youngest to becoming the middle child to becoming the eldest to becoming a middle child again to becoming the youngest AGAIN to becoming an only child to becoming the second youngest that shi crazy.
