UK Army and Vibe
I have been asked about this a few times, so I thought that I would explain fully: Back when Vibe was first released, a screenshot was posted where Dynamite was high in the UK Apple Streaming list. This promoted a certain part of the fandom to lash out. They misunderstood the screenshot to be from iTunes, not the Apple streaming service. This is a separate thing entirely and, during each new release, Dynamite rises in streams. Sadly, anyone who tried to explain this difference got attacked or branded an anti. It was brutal.
The way this moved so quickly was terrifying. I had friends who I’ve known for years suddenly turn on me, because they truly believed that we had planned to sabotage Jimin behind the scenes. No matter what I said. No matter what screenshots I sent. They did not believe me. They got swept up in a wave of angry emotions and it blinded them. To make matters worse, a K-Army account translated what we had apparently done. However, for reasons I still don’t understand, they included an accusation that UK Army had stolen money from Vibe funds and used it for Dynamite instead. This accusation literally came out of nowhere and made tensions heighten. A translator account then re-translated the Korean post back into English, because they believed them without evidence. It was all a lie. When I was little, I used to watch the tv series Charmed. I have never wanted Piper’s time stopping powers so much in my life. I just wanted all the fighting to stop and for them to listen to what we were saying. When this was first happening, I was on my way to a local supermarket. This journey is only ten minutes walking time. When I left my home, everything was normal. In those ten minutes, absolute chaos had happened.I can only imagine what the staff there thought of me as I stood by the fruit section furiously typing on my phone for a good fifteen minutes. Each new tweet I saw or message I got, just made things worse. Thankfully K-Army eventually understood that they were mistaken and that they had actually added to the misunderstanding themselves. This prompted them to use a hashtag saying sorry to the fish and chip Army (us) and they also encouraged us to “keep swimming” (streaming).
The event was quickly forgotten as much as it began. But personally it was a few hours of absolute hell. The week after, it was announced that Jimin charted high in the UK. We went from being sent death threats to being labelled as heroes in a matter of days. I have experienced this sudden hate a few times before and I imagine that it will happen again. Some of my friends finally spoke to me again and some refused, being too stubborn or proud to admit that they were wrong. To them, I probably still am an anti because I refused to follow everyone elses emotons or believes. I used reason and logic against lies and heresay. However, it won’t change my stance on anything though. I will keep streaming and loving. I just ask that sometimes you might need to take a step back or to fully listen to someone when they ask you to.