We The Fans

I got the following letter as a forward in my mail (thanks, Andrea, for sending it!). A lot of the time, I delete forwards without even reading them, and if I do read them, I usually delete them right after and don’t bother to send them on. With this one though, I not only didn’t delete it, but I’m posting it on my site for all my visitors to see. I don’t know the girl who wrote it, but I agree with her whole-heartedly.

This is the letter:

We the Fans

I heard AJ was drinking again. Who cares? Not us, we are the Backstreet fans. We love AJ no matter what. And we don't believe filthy rumors. Well, Kevin and Brian are married. Why do you still love them? Who cares? Not us, we are the Backstreet fans. We support them for their voices, and we are happy they've found someone to keep them happy. But Nick got his ears pierced. Who cares? Not us, we are the Backstreet fans, we love Nick for always, and we love his sense of style (plus it's kinda sexy). NSYNC is popular now though. Who cares? Not us, we are the Backstreet fans, BSB is always and will always be popular if we have anything to do with it. AJ went into rehab. Who cares? Not us, we are the Backstreet fans. We are happy AJ got himself some help, and we will always support him. Howie has long hair. Who cares? Not us, we are the Backstreet fans. We love his voice and his hair!

Backstreet fans stick by the boys always, don't love them because they're hot, because they're popular, or what they were. We love them because they've given us music and love, and for that, we are always grateful. That's why we vote, we go to concerts, and we defend them. Don't get me wrong, they're hot as heck, but we love them for more than that. And there are some fans that wouldn't love the guys if they were fat or if they were ugly. But true fans, that is not true. Can you call yourself a true fan? I can all the way. And those are the ones the boys need. Sure, we get a little crazy sometimes, but we love them. And you can't say you love them without being a true fan. Because liking them for their looks is not a true fan.

Sometimes I wonder, why do I bother being a true fan? Why do I bother doing all the work I do for them? And last night, when I turned on that video and watched that concert, I remembered why. It's all the little things they do that they have no idea what they're doing. The smoothness of Brian's voice. The slow sexy voice of Kevin. The truly beautiful and amazing voice of AJ. The strong and leading voice of Nick. And who could forget Howie’s soft and loving voice? Put them all together, and you get a sound that you don't want to stop listening to. A sound that pulls at your heart and fills you with love. That's why I'm a true fan. And there are other reasons. The look in their eyes when they say thank you to all their fans. It makes you feel wonderful, and you know they're talking to you. The glances they make at you in a concert, and you know they're making eye contact with you. Their to die for smiles that makes your heart go wild. The love in their voice when they sing. How honest they are to us, their fans. And how they don't get angry at us when we invade their privacy, when we ask for constant autographs, or when they can't even go out to dinner in peace. I promised myself if I ever saw them in person, I'd write a note to them and hand it to them with my phone number and hope they call me because I wouldn't want to take away their time.

All us fans need to think about this. Are you true? And if you are, then a lot of us need to get our acts together and show these boys we love them and they have not lost their true fans to other boybands. That we will be with them always, through rehab, and anything else they may face. I'm talking sell out albums, #1 everyday, and hard work. If you're not up to it, then I don't know why you are a fan or why you call yourself a fan. The only fans those guys need are true ones.

With Love,
Chelsea Roff