Vietnamese fans explode to argue about idol position on poster
Social networks have been buzzing in recent days because of the "underground battle" between two large fandoms (fan communities) in Vpop, Sky (Son Tung M-TP fan) and Kingdom (Sobin Hoang Son fan), originating from the image position of the two artists on the poster (advertising image) of a major music event held on November 2 in Ho Chi Minh City.
On the poster, Son Tung M-TP and Soobin are placed in the center - a place often considered "power".
Son Tung's image is somewhat more prominent, while Soobin is lined up in the same row at the center.
A part of the fan community believes that Son Tung, with his outstanding reputation and influence, should have been the only face in the center. Fans even compared the popularity of Son Tung and Soobin Hoang Son, leading to a decidedless debate.
Meanwhile, many neutral audiences commented that the organizers had "arranged" the position reasonably because Son Tung's photo in the poster was larger and more prominent, based on popularity.
This event caused social networks to heat up every hour. Many audiences commented: fan culture in Vietnam is entering a period of transformation, where the position of idols on posters is not only a design arrangement, but a measure of their power and reputation in showbiz.
Previously, in September 2023, the organizers of a music festival encountered a wave of reactions when Jack was placed on par with veteran stars such as Dan Truong, Phuong Thanh, Ho Ngoc Ha - even closer to the poster center position. Meanwhile, the image of Ngoc Anh, Thuy Chi, Thanh Duy was pushed to the edge of the advertisement.
Previously, the online community also "made waves" because the poster with My Tam's image was placed behind Uyen Linh, or Phuong Thanh was "inferior" to Thu Minh and Le Quyen in the same program.
Notably, Son Tung M-TP and My Tam appeared together at a music event a few years ago. At that time, Son Tung's image was placed more prominent than his senior's, while My Tam was in an un prominent position.
The arrangement of positions on a music program poster in addition to fame must also be based on the "reasonableness" of the profession.
No matter how hot a star is, he cannot stand above his seniors with decades of experience. The respect of people in the profession is one of the factors that the organizing committee must put first when arranging the center position.
Symbol of power in Asian entertainment culture
Director Viet Tu once shared that K-pop often arranges this position according to the popularity and time scale in showbiz, perhaps influencing Eastern culture.
In Korea, the concept of center has been clearly defined in K-pop, as the person standing in the middle of the lineup, taking on the most prominent part in the song or choreography, and being the face of the group.
When entering the film industry, this position became a sensitive issue. Korean experts commented: "Poster not only reflects the role, but is also the result of commercial power - whoever is able to sell tickets will be in the middle".
In the Chinese entertainment market, the position ( self-named and positioned) has a special meaning. Whoever is in the "one-stop" position is the one who "represents the whole group", has the greatest influence or is most favored. Therefore, just a small change of position is enough to make fandom angry.
Chinese films have also fallen into session crises many times.
In the movie Sure of the line - a movie based on the famous video game of thrones, Luhan was initially announced as the only male lead, but then Wu Lei was promoted to the same position. Immediately, the fandoms of both sides exploded.
Arranging the center position when a group of photos for the magazine also became a difficult problem for the organizers. The most recent example is the Vogue China event celebrating 20 years, with a cast of top stars such as Liu Yifei, Yang Mi, Dilraba Dilmurat, Ni Ni, Tan Zhi Lei....
When the magazine cover was published, Liu Yifei's middle position with many "beautiful actresses" being "pushed to the edge" caused hundreds of thousands of controversial comments on Chinese social networks to explode.
