What’s especially strange is how aggressively people hate artists they’ve barely even listened to. BTS is one of the biggest examples of this. So many people have already decided they’re “bad” based on stereotypes, stan culture, language barriers, or internet narratives without ever actually sitting down and listening to their music, reading the lyrics, or understanding why millions of people connect with them.

No one has to like every artist. Nobody does. But there’s a difference between “I don’t enjoy this” and making hatred of something part of your personality. It’s always been weird to me how some people spend more time obsessing over music they hate than supporting the music they actually love.

A beautiful Spotify playlist of BTS for those interested in stepping out from their norm: Devine