Complaints about fake fans are common and often-heard in fan forums. Teenagers wearing 80s rock band t-shirts are often berated, “Can you even name three songs by [said artist]?”
If a person were to be unable to answer said question, the teenager would leave embarrassed and possibly closed off of a community that is unwelcoming to younger listeners. If they supplied a satisfactory answer, on the other hand, the inquirer might leave embarrassed and feeling that he or she might not judge so quickly.
All this to say, minding your own business supersedes however deep your passion may be for a certain band. A person could just be starting to listen to a band and an interrogator would have never known.
A Plaza Publishing Group study stated, “74% of 16-24 year olds say music is important or very important in their lives.” Generally, people tend to listen to a variety of genres. With so many listening to and prioritizing music so greatly, younger people probably listen to a greater variety than older generations.
This could be interpreted to mean that younger people do not spend as much time listening to individual artists as much as they listen to more styles of music but not becoming submerged solely into one genre or artist.
Calling yourself a fan of an artist should not have to carry the weight of a thousand suns.
On a Twitter poll ran by me (@adriaescala), 40% of people thought it was acceptable to wear band t-shirts without knowing the artist’s music while 60% disapproved.
While there was a disparity between the two opinions, people may be overly concerned with their outward appearance and in turn judge others for wearing whatever choice of clothing they choose.
It doesn’t have to mean that you know the pre-show ritual of the lead guitarist and it doesn’t even have to mean you know all the band’s song lyrics by heart.
People’s hatred of fake fan culture is essentially a superiority complex manifested through the mob mentality of an obsessive or abusive fan base.
