Five years is a long time when it comes to music since things change so quickly. Five years ago, Kpop was a lot different than it is today. I started listening to it right before the idol boom, so I got into it during Kpop's transition period where solo artists were dominant to where idol groups are dominant.
Yes, I posted a Japanese song even though I dislike most of the Japanese music I hear. However, this is how I really got into Kpop. Way back when Inuyasha aired on [adult swim], I heard BoA's Every Heart and thought she was Japanese. Same with Younha when I heard her song Houki Boshi for Bleach. I never really became fans of either of them, but just liked those two songs. When I discovered m-flo's the Love Bug, I became hooked on BoA and m-flo. I learned a lot about both of them and found out that both BoA and Verbal were Korean. That lead me to listening to BoA's Korean songs and I found out that Verbal had collaborated with plenty of Korean artists under m-flo and as a solo artist.
So after listening to a shitload of BoA and m-flo songs, I had discovered that Emi Hinouchi collaborated with Epik High. The song, Flow, remains one of my favorite Epik High songs today. Shortly after that, Epik High had released their fifth album (and last good album.) After watching a shitload of Epik High MVs on Youtube, I had been introduced to a lot of artists that I still listen to today. For example, Younha, Jisun, Clazziquai, Drunken Tiger, Dynamic Duo, Leessang, etc.
For a whole year, I was able to avoid idols even though they were becoming the "it" thing in 2008. Wonder Girls were relevant back then, that's how long ago this was.
Then it happened.
Yes, Gee was the first idol song I heard. Shortly after, I had become a Sone. It was much easier following a group with nine members that had a lot of activities as opposed to just following BoA who wasn't really doing anything in Japan.
I started going on forums like Soshified, getting along with people there. Along the way, I would come to like many idol groups: Kara, T-ara, Secret, 4minute, 2NE1, f(x) etc. 2009 actually was a good year for idols. Everything was going great and this carried into 2010.
I had joined even more forums later in 2009 and 2010, going to Soompi and 6theory. I had mainly stuck with people in the "fandom" on those boards.
By the end of 2010, everything was falling apart. These groups were becoming more popular by the day and gaining a shitload of fans. These groups then started releasing shitty fucking songs. 2NE1 with Try To Follow Me. Okay, everything 2NE1 has released since 2010 has sucked. SNSD with Hoot. T-ara with Yayaya.
I hated all of these fucking songs. Yet, as I revealed my displeasure with these vile songs, I was receiving shit for everything. I had fandoms acting like monkeys who loved throwing their fecal matter everywhere.
In early 2011, I had enough of the shit. I got run out of Tiara Diadem along with some of the other founding members here. I got tired of allkpop's shit and got banned for posting porn. However, unlike the rumors out there say, I didn't cause 6theory to close down, as I wasn't the one posting gore. I had been banned for over a year before 6theory closed down.
Suckmydee and Lickmypunani persuaded me to start AKF and they both helped spread the word out while I invited Bou and Gayvid to be authors at the start. I just needed a place to share my opinions without fangirls pissing and moaning all of the time about my opinions. Okay, that part still hasn't changed.
However, the creation of AKF allowed me to discover new groups since I tried reviewing groups outside of what I normally listened to. Then it dawned on me: no matter what genre you listen to, no matter what country the song comes from, you're going to think that 90% of what you listen to sucks ass. This has always been my experience. I started reviewing more songs that I hated because it was much easier to rip on a song than to praise one.
AKF has allowed me to stay a fan of Kpop because it has forced me to listen to artists/groups I never would have. If you look at the groups that initially got me into Kpop, I would have stopped listening by now. SNSD sucks ass, Kara's busy releasing Jpop (and I hate their Japanese songs), 2NE1 hasn't released anything worth listening to since I Don't Care, I haven't liked a 4minute song since I My Me Mine, etc. etc.
Who knows what the next five years will bring. Will I enjoy about Kpop as I was when I first discovered it in 2008? No, because I don't now. The brand new feeling faded away, just as it did for Jpop. However, what keeps me listening to Kpop (and Jpop) is discovering new groups/artists. Everyone has their heyday and they'll eventually start releasing music you don't like. Don't let nostalgia hold you down. Free yourself from those chains and venture outside what you normally listen to. I always find artists/groups that keep me listening. I don't need 9038457334535 groups to release 90384592348929374927130174072134 songs a year to keep me entertained. I'm never "bored" by Kpop like a lot of fans claim because I don't try to follow everything all the time. That's why you'll see me make several posts in the same day instead of making brand new articles everyday. Kpop is just something I enjoy listening to, not the center of my life like how some Kpop fans tend to treat the genre.