[Commentary] The kind of ticket you have doesn’t measure how much of a fan you are

Concerts are definitely an experience worth spending money on. But nowadays, costs for these once-in-a-lifetime experiences have been ramped up to absurdly sky-high prices that attending them is already seen as a luxury.

Speaking from a personal experience, it’s even more fulfilling if you bought your ticket with your hard-earned (and saved!) money. Most especially if you grew up with the knowledge that the money your family had was only enough for the necessities in life.

Even before K-pop became a mainstream genre in the Philippines, K-pop artists and groups included the country (Manila, Bulacan, Cebu) in their world/Asia tours. Their concert prices have gradually increased as the years gone by, some even jaw-dropping prices that fans scramble on social media to jokingly post that their internal organs are on sale.

Despite the drastic increase in prices for these K-pop concerts, the artists and the production behind it all make every K-popper’s concert experience worth the money they spent. The blood, sweat, and tears that these artists and their teams have just to get the concert up to standard is also a big reason why some of these concerts may be too expensive for a normal fan.

And who, you may ask, are the majority group in the Filipino K-pop fan demographic? Students and working young adults.

Are the prices of these K-pop concerts friendly to students and working young adults in this economy? To be honest, no. But, both groups still do their best just to afford concert tickets—saving money, working more shifts, budgeting everything, etc.

At this point, the ticket tier you’re getting doesn’t matter anymore. For real fans of K-pop groups/artists, it doesn’t really matter what ticket price you paid for; what matters is that you’re part of the crowd.

But, apparently, for this one teenaged Stray Kids fan, she just had to get a VIP ticket for the group’s upcoming concert in November. The bad part? She used her older sister’s name just to loan money from her sister’s friend—without the former’s knowledge.

In a now-viral Reddit post on the r/OffMyChest subreddit, a 26-year-old breadwinner posted a rant about her 17-year-old Stay sister and how she basically committed fraud just to be able to afford a VIP ticket to the Stray Kids concert in November.

17K na utang for VIP ticket ng Stray Kids
byu/yovilleenthusiast inOffMyChestPH

Before unloading all of her emotions on the post, OP did give a little context about her and her family: she first got her taste of reality at the young age of 7, her first salary was only about P15,000, she was not able to go to a private school/college and experience hardships just to get to school, but was able to pull through and provide a better life for her family.

She, like most breadwinners and eldest daughters, was able to send her younger sister to a better school with her hard-earned money, basically putting her family first before herself.

To keep this short, the younger sister borrowed P17,000 from her older sister’s friend under her sister’s name, because she needed dire help. When the older sister found out, she got rightfully mad at the younger sister.

When she (OP) asked her younger sister on how she will be able to pay her debt, the sister said, “Andyan ka naman ate eh, malaki naman sahod mo.”

This gained numerous reactions on social media (not just on Reddit), where people chastised the younger sister for being a spoiled brat and advised the older sister on different ways to deal with the situation. Others also placed their focus on the friend and why they didn’t do their due diligence and asked the sister if everything was true before giving the money.

saw this post sa tiktok.

sa mga student dyan gaya ko ik nakakainggit yung mga aattend ng concert tapos vip pa pero keep in mind na may mga work na yung mga nakakasecure ng vip and they have the means to pay for the tix (kahit pa icard nila),

(1/2) pic.twitter.com/xVeUQ2L1Y3

— ian (@j_onedaloml) August 19, 2024

if you really wanted to attend the concert sana kahit yung pinakamura nalang (snc wala naman talagang pangit na seat pag dating sa skz!), nakakasad lang sa part ni op. ☹️

(2/2) pic.twitter.com/RIzNAxw4fO

— ian (@j_onedaloml) August 19, 2024

17K na utang for VIP ticket ng Stray Kids
byu/yovilleenthusiast inOffMyChestPH

The conversation also sparked a dialogue on how K-pop fans, especially students, shouldn’t be influenced by the content they see on social media (VIP ticket concert experiences, etc) and that those who are able to afford the highest ticket tier are those that have worked hard to get them.

In short, live within your means.

The OP posted an update hours later, where she detailed the agreement that she reached with her younger sister: The sister will need to find work to pay for her debut, and through the written contract that they have, she will have to pay P3,000 on every 30th of the month. When she misses the due date by 2 days, she will have an additional fine of P500. If she is totally unable to pay for it, it will increase to P1,000.

If she also fails to follow through with their contract, the Barangay officials will get involved.

[Update] My younger sister na nangutang ng 17k for VIP ticket ng Stray Kids.
byu/yovilleenthusiast inOffMyChestPH

K-pop fans and other people on the Internet also weighed in their thoughts on how the older sister dealt with the situation. Sentiments varied from one person to another, with others agreeing with how the older sister treated their sibling, while others wished that she (OP) had treated her more harshly.

OP did explain why she decided to deal with the situation this way and said that she didn’t want her sister to feel like everyone is doubting her capability to be better in the future, and that she wants to encourage her sister to work for the better.

This situation all boils down to being more responsible people, regardless of our age, when it comes to what we spend on. There is a definite need to establish what are our wants and needs, and to fix our priorities.

Sure, experiencing a concert by our favorite artists at the VIP section is definitely a dream that some of us really want to achieve. But, we have to think within ourselves first—is it something we can afford at the moment? Everyone has to learn how to live within their means and to prioritize our needs more than our wants.

Honestly, true fans don’t really pay no mind to the kind of ticket they’re buying. If you’re there to enjoy the concert experience and the vibes, then any kind of ticket will do. If you’re able to buy a VIP ticket without asking anyone else for help, then go for it!

No one’s stopping you if you have the means anyway. But, when it comes to the point where you’re as irresponsible as OP’s younger sister, then that’s a different problem that needs to be addresed ASAP.

There’s nothing wrong with not being able to go to your favorite artists’ concerts, or being unable to afford their merchandise. If you enjoy their music and their content, then that’s more than enough. There’s no point in what makes a fan better than anyone else because we are able to support our favorites in different ways.

That’s the most important part.

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