20 Tell-Tale Signs That You’re a Through and Through Fangirl
There’s an unmistakable air around fangirls. If you’re walking round your local town, you can spot them from a mile off, giving them the shuttle glance of mutual understanding that you both love the same thing. Sometimes it’s the limited-edition merch they’re wearing that gives it away, and other times, it’s a subtle tattoo peeking out from beneath the hem of their jumper. But if you ever find yourself questioning your fangirl title, this list of 20 tell-tale signs should clear things up!
Your room/wardrobe is filled with merch.
If you were to look back in 2012, the rooms of fangirls were filled with teen bop magazines cut out and put on walls, life size cutouts of their favorite artist, bedsheets and pillowcases of their favorite artists and thinking back at it cringing so hard because of how unappealing it looked. Fast forward to 2021, merch is now on a whole new level. Many thanks to the talented fans who have created their own shops on etsy or their own website, you can choose now from the aesthetically pleasing posters, tote bags, phone cases or the cute crewnecks and baby tees. Fan made merch caters more to what every fan wants and follows the trends, most of what artists don’t even do with their own merch.
You overhear people talking about them and start eavesdropping.
You’re casually at a cafe, waiting for your order when the group of people next to you start talking about your favorite person. You begin to ignore what anything is going on around you and start listening in on their conversation. You hear them talk about the latest song they came out with and you want to be able to say “But have you heard of this song off the album yet, I feel like they’re more open with their songwriting this time around” If you were to say that, you’d come off as creepy. You get a sense of excitement, when you overhear people talking about them because you know someone local listens to them and that they’re not your little secret.
You know every little thing about them.
Being a fangirl comes with many steps and one of those important steps is learning every little thing about your favorite person. It goes way past what their favorite color is, what color eyes they have or what they like to do in their free time. You would think you would know these facts in a not so creepy way but in all honesty you’re going to get creepy. You’ll go through the stage of looking up their old high school, pictures of when they were younger, their past partners. You’ll know their family members by name and exactly where they live and what they were doing on this day and who they were with. You know where their tattoos are located and the specific date they got them and where they’re located. This all just comes with you deep diving and wanting to learn more about your artist, don’t get it wrong though there is a fine line on how deep you should dive.
Bringing them up in conversation even when no one mentions them.
You’re out at a function and hanging out with your group of friends and then someone says “Well I was thinking of getting this butterfly tattoo on my arm but my tattoo artist didn’t have availability.” And your ears perk when they say butterflies because your person also happens to have a butterfly tattoo. So you say, “Wow, so and so also has a butterfly tattoo and he got it when he was nineteen in 2013.” Then you receive these weird looks because no one mentioned him at all but it’s something so normal to you because you’re just thinking about them 24/7.
You keep concert memorabilia.
Back in 2014, when I went to the 1D/5SOS concert (*sigh*, the peak of both bands), the confetti that fell and the posters you had to hold up if you wanted to win a meet greet with the 5SOS boys and the 1D perfume samples people were handing out, this is just some of the things that I still have 7 years later sitting in a box. Keeping it and then going back to it when you’re feeling nostalgic is something I always like looking back at because it brings me back to that night. Keeping concert tickets and any other memorabilia is just something that you will always have kept locked away 10-15 years from now and it’s always going to be a part of a fangirl life.
You’ve at least read (or written) fanfiction.
Wattpad, AO3, tumblr. You read recommendations from fellow fangirls and you now have like 15 books in your wattpad library ready to be read, but honestly who are you kidding you’ll probably finish half of them by the end of the night. Or maybe you’re on the other side where you want to create a world with your favorite and readers get to experience the thrill of your writing. You’re probably looking for a story that takes place in another time period, location, or alternate universe, no need to worry there’s a fanfic for that! You’re in too deep when you get into the world of fanfiction. It’s an obsession. Point blank.
You own the same clothes or accessories as your favorite.
As Ariana said, “I want it, I got it” and sometimes that means breaking the bank to get it or just getting the dupe and you’re going to get it because you saw it on Harry Styles (or who ever is your idol) As soon as I saw Harry with the eliou blue necklace, what did your girl do, went directly onto etsy to purchase the look alike for a cheaper price. You see something on them that you love and you’re just like “Yes, give it to me now.” And quickly look for it online. When we saw the beautiful Harry Styles on set for Don’t Worry Darling with that gallon water bottle, it sold out within minutes on Amazon. Fangirls will go at any length to have everything their idol has.
Have a tattoo related to them. (Or want one)
If you’re old enough, then you probably have at least one tattoo related to your favorite person. It could be a lyric, a replica of a tattoo they have, a phrase they say, literally anything. My dream one is “You sunshine, you temptress.” My favorite lyric from my favorite song, Fine Line by Harry Styles. A cool girl on TikTok got tattoos that related to the track titles of Fine Line. Yeah it may be something permanent, but if it’s something that is so important to you then do it and don’t get discouraged from getting it. Getting tattoos that relate to your idol, can be so important to someone because you don’t know what they have gone through and how that person has helped them and it’s a little homage to them.
You’ve atleast been on stan twitter at some point.
I feel like the prime time for stan twitter would be 2012-2015. The time where “Directioners” ran twitter. A place where many fangirls could interact and make friends. I made many friends back in 2013 from twitter. Met up with them and even attended live performances for 1D. Stan twitter will either be a place that you will love or hate. There’s stan wars and people fighting over stupid things but it’s a place where I will always have great memories. Freaking out over what my favorite person has done, what they wore, where they’re performing or who had the chance to meet them. It’s a tight knit community that has been around for some time. People have left, they’ve come back, new fans have joined but you will for sure get great new best friends from stan twitter.
Friends get tired of hearing about it.
If you’re like me and have no one else to text about what THEY have done, so you text your friend at 2 am and let them know that your favorite is going to be in a movie and that they have to see it with you once it comes out. Or you drag them to places when they’re not even big fans themselves. Sometimes they actually care and will listen but then other times they will just flat out ignore you. That’s why it is so important that fangirls stick with fangirls that way you have someone to freak out with you about your opinions or theories.
Have to contain your excitement.
You’re out at the shops and doing your thing when all of a sudden you hear that first beat over the intercom that’s when you let out a little squeal hoping that no one has heard you. Or you get a notification saying that they have done so and so and you break out in the biggest grin ever because it’s the only thing that you can do in the moment having to hold in the excitement until you are in your private place. Having to contain your excitement has to be one of the toughest things about being a fangirl because you want to be in the moment and freak out, do your pterodactyl noises and just be yourself.
Ready to defend them at any time.
Being a fangirl, comes with not everyone agreeing with you and finding everything your obsession does loveable or perfect. That’s when you come in and do everything in your power to make the hater go away. When it comes to someone saying that what your favorite wore to the event was ugly, you become the protective fan and make sure that your favorite never sees it because you will do everything in your power so that your person will never feel that what they do or wear makes them unlovable. That doesn’t mean attack the person and belittle them because TPWK.
You own every product your idol has put out.
They’ve just released their debut album, but they also are doing three limited edition vinyls and you just have to have all of them even if they have the same songs on them. Or they have three different covers for the magazines so you wait online for them to restock and are only available to purchase one of those covers or sometimes none. *deep sigh* You own the different movies they have been in and the special feature disc so that you can put in their collection. They brought out a perfume, alright bet you have that in your cart ready to check out. Whatever item comes out you will get it because you want to be able to support them any way you can.
You’ve slept outside the venue for days.
I have not had the privilege to say that I have been outside days before a performance so I can get front row. It’s something on my list of things I need to do, some people might think I’m crazy but just think of all the stories you’ll tell about how you waited days in the cold or the hot summer night. I did stay up 24 hours waiting for 1D to perform on Good Morning America during a thunderstorm and I still tell that story to this day because of how much fun it was to be able to do that. Some artists have even brought their fans food or drinks to keep them going through the night, or some have had facetime calls while waiting in line. Sleeping or staying up 24 hours in a line waiting to see your person is something I recommend fangirls to do.
Full on sobbed because of them.
Some memories are great and some are sad. Sometimes you can’t control the tears that slip out because maybe you’re so proud of them or they did something that you’ll never get to experience with them. True story: I, among probably every 1D fangirl, cried during 1D last performance on the XFactor, because I knew they were going on hiatus for a while (still hurts thinking about that “hiatus”) and there was nothing I could do to turn back time and relive those special moments again. There have been so many other times I have cried over Harry Styles and how there is a very slim chance I’ll ever meet him while casually walking down NYC streets. Sobbing is just a characteristic associated with being a fangirl.
Practice how you’ll act when you meet them.
Call me crazy, but I know I am not the only one who has daydreamed scenarios over and over again about how I will act if I ever met my person. Practicing out the scenes in front of your mirror. Even having a special outfit in mind, the setting and how you’ll act if you ever did see them out in public. Everyone knows though that things don’t always go as planned but that won’t stop me from creating the scenes in my head before I go to bed so that I can dream about them. This is something non-fangirls will never understand.
Your camera roll is filled with their pictures.
After a busy night of an event, 100+ pictures of them come out, some professional, some not. So you have to delete some personal pictures on your camera roll in order to make room for some new ones. Props to you if you even create an album for every event they attend or have it organized by the month they were taken. When people ask to take a look at my camera roll it’s mostly half TikTok videos I have saved and half Harry Styles, honestly not embarrassed about it at all. You save every baby picture they have out to every fan interaction they have or sometimes those really creepy hidden pictures that they have no clue were taken of them, I do feel bad saving those but I NEED EVERY PICTURE. You never know when you’ll need them.
Stayed up early/late just to see them perform in another country/state.
I try not to do this as much now because of adult priorities, but staying up late or waking up early was a part of my life. With your person traveling in a different time zone you have to be prepared to be up their time so that you don’t miss their performance. Or willing to at least only sleep for 3 hours so that you can see them on a late show. Having FOMO so you think staying up late or waking up early just to catch a glimpse of them will be beneficial to you. Time zones will be the death of a fangirl.
Missing work or setting alarms for when tickets go on sale.
I also have not had the privilege to do this because I usually wait until the last minute to get tickets on seatgeek and pray but I have heard of many people doing this. Trying to get tickets for a very popular artist is like getting ready to go to war. You will be on your laptop ALL DAY. Have your charger on hand, have your phone charged in case something goes on. DON’T REFRESH. I would also advise not to leave your station and have food right by your side because you never know what can happen. Have tabs open and pray to the fangirl gods that they’re on your side so that you’ll be able to get front row tickets. May the odds be ever in your favor and LET THE GAMES BEGIN!
Obsession takes over your life, but you wouldn’t change it for a thing.
There’s so many things that make you a fangirl, but the #1 thing is always being there for your person and your fellow fangirls. We have to stick together and create a positive environment for each other. A place to not feel judged when the outside world makes fangirls seem “crazy and uncontrollable” when we are just expressing our love, just how people get excited for the super bowl or a soccer match. No matter what, scream out how much you love them because in the end they’re making you happy and getting you through your tough times. Never be ashamed of obsessing over someone. Once a fangirl, always a fangirl.
