Ninth Shanghai International Film Festival (Photo : Getty Images)
Weeks after “Descendants of the Sun” premiered over KBS 2TV and video platform iQiyi, China’s Ministry of Justice issued a warning to female fans of South Korean actor Song Joong-ki to control themselves. Beijing was wary the women’s fascination with the 30-year-old actor could break Chinese families as wives spend more time watching the 16-episode drama than take care of their children and husbands.
However, not all fan girls are screaming and fainting teenagers. Some of them are women in their 50s whom Chinese netizens and media call “dama.” However, unlike their younger counterparts who fantasize that they would be the next girlfriend of their male idol such as Song Joong-Ki or Jin Goo, these older women fans consider the actors their sons.
It is their maternal instincts which are awakened whenever they see the handsome actors or KPop performers on stage, in television or in person. Some of them would go great lengths to defend or show their love for their idols, just like how mothers in real life would die for their children.
Beijing Morning Post cited the case of a retired woman, Li, who is a fan of EXO member Zhang Yixing. She recently spend three whole days removing 5,000 illegal fliers pasted on bus stations near her house in Beijing because the materials covered the face of Zhang. “Putting up fliers in public places is a nuisance, and it’s unbearable that so handsome and pretty a face is covered by ugly fliers,” Li said.
Some view the younger male stars as their nephews or future sons-in-law for their teenage daughters. Li Jiannzhong, a psychologist in Beijing, explained, “Young male idols are popular among middle-aged even old women because they can transfer their identities as a devoting mother, aunt, and sister [onto their idol].”
While younger female fans are frequent commenters on social media about their idols, it is different for the older fans, also called ayi, who are not into social media sites like WeChat and Sina Weibo. However, they are active in live events and leaders of fan clubs even tap them to take prominent roles in photo opportunities because “A group of adults like moms and aunts are obviously more convincing of our idols’ charm and good characteristics. After all, the seniors love good kids,” the leader of the TFBoys fans club told Metropolitan.
Nevertheless, the fan base of every great band is a predominantly young female audience which is “appreciative and invested and willing to scream and dance with abandon,” pointed out The Guardian, “which is the point of music.”
