Written by: Hairi Park
Compiled by: Mehwish Mahmood
Edited by: Emi Tea

Lies. Controversies. Insults. Truth. Hate. The truth is in there somewhere. Who is wrong and who is right? Maybe it’s complicated. Maybe it’s simple. Maybe we’ll never know the entire truth. But among the lies, controversies, insults, and hate, here is a fragment of the truth.

Well… Let’s start from the beginning shall we?

The other idol’s [TEEN TOP’s] win resulted in many rumors and gossip. Many people questioned the win because there was a huge amount of sales in a very short period of time. A lot of bad talk and rumors were floating around... but we cannot be sure that they are true. However, it is a fact that everyone was sensitive about this issue. Seungho and G.O calmed us down with their tweets…however, that was the exact reason why G.O got attacked…

People misinterpreted his tweet. We, as A+, know that he is talking about our hard work and efforts... but to others... It had a completely different meaning.

In his tweet he says, "We all know the truth, then it is enough, thanks for your hard work this week too! Love you!!"

Others interpreted it as... “We know that the ‘cheating thing’ is true...” It was an “in reality, we are the true winners” kind of interpretation. And this resulted to a whole lot of attacks and issues involving G.O. People started to claim that G.O was insulting the other group’s win.

This continued to the point where one of our KA+ admins… Well here’s some background info first…

KA+ has strict rules on the official website, such as “no mentioning any other artist except MBLAQ”, no this, no that... we, KA+ are known for its politeness and goodness, and we try to protect that image.

Well... the admin said: screw that; we are going on a “lifting all rules” period. And so A+ was allowed to do whatever they wanted…

At the beginning there was bunch of posts protecting MBLAQ... Twitter went off like crazy... A+ even went to the most painful site that we try to avoid (nate.com, where everyone swears at each other). A+ started to go to all of these places... And we fought back to protect MBLAQ. Although A+ was fighting back in defense, everyone tried to do so in a controlled manner… The admin was so surprised at how controlled our uproar was... she even questioned the purpose of having rules for us.

A beautiful irony is that our image as a fandom is really pure... This kind of image does not just appear. It takes a while to establish a pure fandom. It is difficult to create, and even more difficult to maintain. But we as A+ try to protect that image.

When all turmoil died down... we realized that many people were on our side as G.O was wrongfully accused. Sometimes when we A+ are just minding our business and ignoring hateful comments... other fandoms would shield us on their own free will. They would say: “Don’t touch A+.” Even critics who hate idols have said, “A+ is the only fandom that I leave alone”.

To tell you the truth we have a hard time trying to calm ourselves in front of insults and rage... but at times when other fandoms come to protect us on their own free will is when I feel that it was all worth it… Do you know now? A lot of comments in Korean sites consist of: “MBLAQ is the only group that made me become their fan because of their fandom”. Some say, “I fell in love with MBLAQ’s fandom... and so I became MBLAQ’s fan”.

That is why we are very protective and cautious of our every move. Because we understand that the relationship between idols and their fans is sensitive. Because our actions reflect upon MBLAQ’s image. Because we care.

Three words others use to describe A+ is: polite, pretty(?), and poised. This allows MBLAQ to be portrayed as an idol that has something that other idols lack—such as, the wide range of ages within their fandom. This is also one of the reason as to why we don’t do as well on charts. Adults and older people generally don’t know how to stream... so that is why we don’t get as much streamers compared to the number of fans registered on our website! But in a way… our low charts can be a compliment. Because we have a very wide range of fans that other idols don’t normally have. Many idols usually have a fandom of “teen”, but this is not the case for MBLAQ. They have support from adults and older generations as well. This means MBLAQ has the capacity and talent to capture the attention of people all around the world, no matter what age they are, no matter what language they speak, no matter what.

For most part, but not all, I think a fandom’s image is very important on how the artist is portrayed.. especially if they are still not well established in the entertainment industry. Even people, who are not in any kind of fandom say, “Even though I had no issues with some idols, it can change negatively in a second due to the rudeness of their fans”.

Fans play a HUGE role and that is why we are a cautious fandom... that is why some call us the intelligent fans. They say, "You think A+ are dumb because they let insults off the hook or say sorry and ask to still look at them nicely...? Well you are wrong… To me, they are the scariest and intelligent fans I have ever seen. They give me the chills... because they don’t do any dirty work, but others end up doing it for them. Never underestimate them; they are not being nice because they are dumb or weak. Everyone else is being manipulated. So don’t you try to nudge the very calm and pretty-looking A+... you don’t know what you are getting yourself into."

Amid the lies, controversies, insults, and hate, this is a precious piece of truth we hold on to.

We support MBLAQ, who supports us.
We care for MBLAQ, who cares for us.
We protect MBLAQ, who protects us.
We love MBLAQ, who loves us.

We are a fandom that is as charismatic as the idols we support.
We are a fandom that is as respectful as the idols we care for.
We are a fandom that is as strong as the idols we protect.
We are a fandom that is as pure as the idols we love.

We are A+... And we are proud.

- A+
Frighteningly well-mannered since 2009.