Down the Idol-hole: From Teeny-bop Magz, Fanzines to 24/7 Updates

Main Entry: idol·ize
Inflected Form(s): idol·ized; idol·iz·ing
Date: 1598
transitive verb: to worship as a god; broadly: to love or admire to excess.

There is no doubt that fandom is one of the world’s most organized and loyal social gatherings ever. If there is something in form of music, books, films or television; there is always someone who loves and adores that genre with an enormous passion. There is always something to be admired and fans are born.I believe that being a fan back in the day must have been easier than it is today. Back then, you had to wait for the weekly or sometimes monthly release of a teeny-bop magazine, some random concert or the opportunity to see them in a TV show.

As a fan one could express their love while doing fanzines, chasing after trading cards or listening to the same single over and over again on a record player. Today, we have the Internet, information is spread worldwide with the click of a finger and stars are much more available to fans. Everyday fans can follow their idol’s activities, gore over new pictures and seeing as many idols today use Twitter, fans get to know what the idols are up to every minute of the day. Fans can download new releases through iTunes, there is always a torrent with something fans need to see or listen to.

Besides that, there is the presence of forums. Today everyone and their dog has an opinion about everything, fandom has gone from being held in private homes among friends, to be splashed everywhere and shared with millions of people. This always leads to heated discussions about who is the better fan and who knows the most. There is always a wanker ready to express their sometimes stupid ideas. Now, fans can express their love to their idols by creating their own written world where their idols are the heroes; to videos where they showcase their idols’ better qualities. The Internet has created a world of fandom that is immense, innovative and humongous.

Julyssa

Music is all I do: I work in music, I write about music, I listen to music.

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