Is Celebrity Obsessions really a thing?

Hello Everyone!

Bit of a random topic this Wednesday, but I feel like this is interesting to discuss. This is a long post, so stick with me! Not only this, but we got a topic in one of my lectures the other day and I found it amusing. "Why do humans become obsessed with celebrities and people we don't actually know?". I've always been quite curious to the answer of this question. We've all done it, found someones account on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook and just looked at everything they've done recently. I know that I've found someones instagram and gone through all their images, looking at what they've done recently. I feel like this is something that everyone's done, so I can't be alone in wondering the answer to this question!

A common known phrase amongst teens (and probably adults now) is the phrase 'Fangirl' / 'Fanboy' or 'Fangirling'. This is linked to celebrities. According to Urban Dictionary, a fangirl is defined as "A female who has overstepped the line between healthy fandom and indecent obsession". Why do people become obsessed with people they don't know? For example, the media portrays people (celebrities) as these amazing individuals with perfect personalities. Take Justin Bieber - Once a teenage heartthrob (and still is to some), turned into someone who probably shouldn't have done half the stuff that he did. But, he still had a group of followers who praised everything he did..."WOW, Justin's been arrested..and he's smiling in his mugshot! how funny". Now think of someone that you know well. If they got arrested, there would not be this kind of stigma attached to it. 

Another 'celebrity' that has a large following is Nash Grier. A Viner, Youtuber - and a teenage idol. Nash Grier has come under fire for many backhanded comments, especially about the gay community. Why, in 2015, is this still a big deal? How does a boy with millions of adoring fans have this kind of stigma attached to a large part of human community?! To me, it seems incredible that people still follow and believe in his views and the things that he does. Now, again, I'm not hating on Nash. He has apologized for his wrong doings, but that doesn't mean that they don't exist, because they do. Everyone is so easy to forget what he does because they adore him. Is this just the celebrity culture?

 This topic is interesting to me, because last Summer I found myself watching videos including 5sos and following Tumblrs dedicated to them. Now, I wouldn't say I'm obsessed with them, but I felt that they could make me happy and in my opinion could do no wrong. Therefore, If I kept this up I could become "obsessed" with them. Then, I saw a post which stated some bad views on them. The person writing stated some things that had happened when they had met some of the band members. This suddenly threw things into perspective. Was I looking at these Celebrities because I thought they were something that they weren't? Why did it depend on whether I liked them or not? Did it matter? Turns out, once I had questioned everything, I decided that they were just a band. Yes, they did (and still do) make me laugh, but other peoples opinions didn't matter to me. This is because I don't know them as people (and probably never will), so why shouldn't I just appreciate their music? That's what they're all about after all. So, even after reading bad things about them, I still appreciate them as a band. But, I stopped myself from becoming obsessed with them - after all, they are just a group of regular teenagers (and twenty year olds). 

The same that I can say about myself cannot be said about other people. Mostly young teenagers find themselves basing their happiness of a certain person or a band. Why is your happiness essential on what someone else does? How do you know that those views aren't just opinions from a day when their idol was having a bad day? I mean, come on. We all have bad days, maybe someone woke up to some bad news. Maybe they just broke up with someone. You are left guessing, and will probably never know. The media will only portray things as much as they feel will entertain, and thats what we are lead to believe. Just look at how many men Taylor Swift has been linked too - has she dated them all? Maybe, but you don't know! You just don't know unless you actually physically know a person. 

 So, why do we become obsessed? I think it's partially to do with the media, and the culture we have been brought up with. Twitter has now become a platform to interact with your favourite celebrity straight away - sometimes they see, and sometimes they don't. Fan accounts are now a thing, and "fandoms" hate against each other if they disagree over awards or whether someones dating someone they think is wrong. Why can't people just get along with each other? How do you know for certain that the person you idolise isn't in love with the person you hate? 

I think its so important to remind yourself why you admire someone. I think that its okay to look up to someone and admire what they do. Maybe they make you happy, helped you achieve something you didn't think would be possible before you knew about them, they saved your life when you were down. Theres a whole list of reasons why its okay to love whoever you do. But for the sake of your happiness, do not judge them on something you don't know. Did they physically save your life, or was it something that they did that helped you? For example, their music? If someone else has a bad opinion, let that be their bad opinion and don't take it to heart. Think about how much time you spend idolizing someone, sitting on twitter asking for their follow (Has anyone ever seen the spam accounts that tweet someone the same thing over 40 thousand times?!?!?). Think about if you were in their position. Would you want someone to spam your twitter account just for you to follow them? If you had a bad day, would you want thousands of cameras in your face when you went to Tesco or Walmart? Would you want to think about what you can and can't wear for fear that you may be judged on whether your outfit is good or bad? Lets be honest, I wouldn't want to get up and look perfect before I went out. I love my sleep - I can't function without a nap, and thats okay. If i didn't nap, i'd be grumpy and my housemates would not enjoy that. So, I like to leave as little time as possible to get ready. Likewise with relationships, I wouldn't want every single person in the world to know or have the ability to know about what I've done or who I've been with! I think the reason so many celebrity couples break up is because of the media. One celebrity hangs around with their friend for the day and suddenly their cheating on their partner. Oh what a world to live in!

 So, while its okay to admire someone for what they do and the way they handle situations, in my opinion its important not to think that you just admire the way someone looks, or the way they act. This opinion could change hugely, and you'll realise that the Friday night you had planned and cancelled because your fave celebrity was doing an online podcast, was SO NOT WORTH IT. Admire who you please, but keep your real life friends close and rely your happiness on something other than what someone else does. Like everyone always says, the only person you can always rely on is yourself. 

 Let me know your opinions on this!! 

Love, 

Lucy Victoria xo