So I discovered that page ytd and read through like 50 pages LOL I was bored so... XD (This is why I shouldn't be allowed to be bored)

A lot of the interesting confessions (I would disregard the random shipping & collab proposals although they were a fun read) are largely about a few things as I've noted.

1. Underrated groups (big3 or not, and there is usually a lot of comparison)

Ah, underrated. I think that's a word applicable to about every single group I know of, except for exo then (I'm saying then because they've pretty much fallen off that peak really). Every single fandom believes their group is underrated or underappreciated, no matter what height their group stands at. SJ is underrated specifically in  korea  ( honestly  some  dont  even consider them as idols and  im  not lying about that, they view them as gagman or MCs and it's hurtful to think about that), they barely recognise  suju  as one of the main groups that brought  hallyu to life.  SHINee is thought to be underrated, people forget them, their fans say, for what an amazing group they are (which I must kind of agree, because they fall in between the 2nd & 3rd generation and are not representative of either era). Teentop is underrated, they have some of the most synchronised dances out there but many don't see that (they only see infinite, shinee etc). DGNA is underrated for a group as vocally solid as they are.15& is underrated, they need to be better promoted. XXXXXX rookie group is underrated, they hold so much potential. And these are only the examples that I can recall at this moment, and the list is endless.

See? Every damn group out there is underrated because there is not way everyone sees them as their fans do. It doesn't matter what the group has or has not achieved, it's never enough. I myself stanned DBSK & SuJu for both around 5-6 years, they've been active for a decade and longer, won dozens of major awards, but is that enough to me? No. As a fan, I want their efforts to be realised. I want to give them the best that I could. There is never an end, when ah its enough, let's stop now. No. Those "give the rookies a chance" bull? that. If they deserve that award they'll get it, if they don't then they shouldn't be receiving it, end of discussion for me. We play fair, but you should never deny the chance for playing.

Overrated is in fact really rare, and probably only happens for groups under the big3. Mainly SM. The best example was EXO then, then as in 2015 and before. When I say overrated, I'm talking about a situation whereby it is not well-earned, when efforts don't match up to outcome. The usual formula is that you get back half or less from the efforts you put in. But under big labels, this proportion of return gets magnified with the help of resources, connections, and the sunbae effect. They get a headstart in this business with just awareness alone - everyone knows when big labels are debuting a new group, there's a hype about it. Seventeen had a long pre-debut history to finally build up that vibe, BTS had something similar with all the vlog & unofficial cover MVs, other companies strive to have something eye-catching (all blonde BAP?) or whatever, they struggle a lot in comparison to big labels. Hell, I'm no SM-stan, but I eventually got to know about NCT (NTC?) because Leeteuk hosted that SM Rookie show, Heechul's hosting their introduction live show or sth, and Yesung uploaded his selca with some members of that group.

EXO was overrated. They had the fame coming so easily, I understand all the hate that they receive. The path to fame is practically laid out for them. They climbed to the top way too easily. Now hold up I'm not saying that they didn't work hard, of course they did, but the proportion of return to effort is ridiculously high and unattainable to most groups (even to artists under the big 3, there are very rare cases when what exo got will happen). The daesung that they won in 2014? Yeah that's full of bull, they only won because the top 2 best-sellers (DBSK & SJ) were not even given the chance to be nominated. I'm not saying that their album isn't good, it wasn't the type of music that I enjoy, but there were good songs out of it. But the point here is how they never did won fair and square. Similar to BoA's first daesung way back (it was supposed to be shinhwa's), and SNSD's win with Run Devil Run (SuJu was the real winner, hell Leeteuk even had the acceptance speech written out, but suddenly new rule says no group can win twice in a row like wtf? and that rule was removed after that -.-) Not saying that those artists are not deserving, but at that point in time, those were not deserving wins.

Comparison of talent is something I saw very frequentlly. But what I want to say is that talent may be one thing, luck may be another. Is EXID lacking of talent? No. Solji is some of the most solid female singers out there and LE is amazing at rapping, but it took one fancam of Hani and suddenly they go from on the brink of disbanding to famous. Also, how willing is your company in promoting you? fx is also under SM, do they get the same amount of promotion as Red Velvet or SNSD? In comparison, BTS is the only group under bighit as for now, they get pretty much all the resources. How well can your company promote you? JYP didn't do a great job in promoting Wonder Girls. Timing is also another factor. Were you up against very strong competition? EXO & BAP debuted in the same year. I Need U clashed with Big Bang's promotion. Rookies who debuted when huge artists made a comeback. Was your release in between two way more popular ones? All of that are important factors beyond talent that should be considered.

Fans of smaller companies tend to make lots of angry confessions about how the big3 artists have it easy. Do they really? Let's talk about pre-debut first. Why is it that those artists passed the auditions and yours didn't? Or why did your artist dropped out from training? Maybe by the time they debut, the gap in ability has been bridged, but at the point of time when auditioning, they don't quite meet the cut and that's it. The big3 is around for a reason. Their artists are solid. I can name you the powerful vocalists and the great dancers. SM's younger groups have very synchronised dances. These artists from big labels - they have a reputation to uphold. They may have terribly mean ways, but they also have terribly effective training. I don't mean to say that training in other companies is not as intense, but maybe it doesn't work very well due to lack of good teachers, lack of good hardware (eg venue, equipment etc), lack of experience of the company etc etc etc. One must work hard but smart too.

Do not deny the amount of effort that any idol put into debut preparation. These people sacrificed a lot more than you think they do, friends, family, romantic relationships, and a normal life that they will not have. Don't be so crude, it's not easy for anyone.

This is a little astray, but I'll have this point here too. Is visuals not part of your talent? In-born or not. We humans are visual animals. Who isn't attracted to beautiful things? I mean, let's be real, even in real life, if you're better looking, it's easier to get help from people and even strangers. SM is always said to value looks above talent, because there's always an appeal for good-looking people. You cannot deny that most SM artists have looks that are widely appreciated. 

2. Relating to the ARMY fandom that is getting more toxic, and BTS abandoning their initial hip hop concept.

I must first admit that I don't know there was this much hate towards the fandom (since I am the more ignorant sort of kpop fan that doesn't pay lots of attention to things that aren't very nice). When I think back, it's true that I've seen ARMYs at random videos, esp Buzzfeed. I don't know what's the complain about if we're commenting at Buzzfeed though, non-kpop-fans would ignore it or just be a little confused, the uploader doesn't care because there are a lot more that don't know about kpop there commenting relevant (or not really) stuff. But I've read confessions that said there are rude ARMYs at the comment sections of videos of other kpop groups. I've never actually seen those, but they probably exist too. That is unacceptable because we should respect other groups' lanes and we stay in own.

It's always inevitable that you get more toxic fans when you're becoming the hot topic - exo is living proof. Most of these toxic fans are not really fans per say, they are the kind that "flocks" to the hottest group in their perception, stan them hard without actually understanding and loving the members. They are also fast to abandon ship when trends change or bad things happen (which is why I don't fully consider exo's lawsuits bad per say, as I wrote in a post long ago). There is a sudden surge in numbers in the fan cafe, quite some of them are these toxic fans. While I'm very happy that BTS is being widely recognised, it worries me when I know such 'fans' exist.

And about BTS abandoning their hip hop concept and turning to produce what people want to hear... I don't think it's something very important honestly. I've not heard of any groups in kpop that stuck to one single concept throughout their career. I'm no big fan of hip hop, and I didn't like most of BTS's 2013-2014 music (with the except of songs like Born Singer, Tomorrow, Let Me Know, Spine Breaker etc etc etc, there are still songs that were lovely). In fact, I like their 2015-current releases very much. Line distributions got better as well. I don't have the best understanding of what is hip hop, but it's probably has a lot to do with rapping and dancing. But let's not forget that BTS has 4 vocals, that while they may not be the best vocalists in the industry, I would call them decent at the least. If you don't like their music, just don't support them and chill with the hating. When they've stabalised their development, probably sub-units will be formed and the rapper line will pick up the hip hop concept again.

Also, all that hate towards BTS & ARMY lately. I just want to say, that the poor behaviour of some self-claimed ARMYs is of course terrible, but please don't direct fire at the BTS members. I said this back then about EXO too. Leave the boys out of this, they've done nothing to you. They've worked really hard to be in this position, and don't judge them for wanting to achieve more. Whatever emotions you may feel towards BTS, bitter, jealousy or what nots, I hope it's not directed to the members, and you don't bash them for what they do, because they are just humans like you and I, and your own idols, and they are just boys who sacrificed their youth and more to make music.