Why BTS Army and other K-pop fans are aiming their activism at Donald Trump
- Fans of the South Korean soft power export have banded together to troll the US president and champion Black Lives Matter
- Analysts say most of these fans are politically aware, liberal and masters of social media
Thousands of K-pop fans and other social media users encouraged their followers on Twitter and TikTok to register for tickets for Trump’s Saturday appearance in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and then not show up – a prank that appears to have fuelled wildly inflated predictions of a huge turnout.
After Trump’s campaign manager Brad Parscale last week announced the event had received more than 1 million requests for tickets, the president ended up speaking at a 19,000-seat venue that was more than two thirds empty.
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K-pop fans and TikTok teens troll Trump with fake registrations for first campaign rally in months
His campaign blamed the poor turnout on “radical protesters” – though few were reported at the scene – and the media scaring supporters away. Among the Democrats greeting the images of empty seats with glee was New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who thanked Generation Z “zoomers” and K-pop allies for their “contributions in the fight for justice”.
And while K-pop fans are known as the rallying force behind sold-out concerts and No 1 songs, the world has only recently taken notice of their political clout.
“From what I’ve seen these past few years, our fandom is extremely politically engaged,” said Adaeze Agbakoba, a 21-year old African-American BTS fan in Washington. “This is due to the fact that our fandom has the most diverse demographic in all of K-pop.
