Moss Parrott | 2026 I.S. Symposium
狈补尘别:听Moss Parrott
Title: You Make Stray Kids Stay: How Boy Bands Build Communities
Majors: Religious studies; Anthropology
础诲惫颈蝉辞谤蝉:听Jeremy Rapport; Pam Frese
The K-Pop fandom exploded in worldwide popularity in 2012 and has remained in the public consciousness ever since. Operating in the digital sphere, the K-Pop fandom brings together people from all over the world, creating an entirely new community and culture with distinct behaviors, beliefs, and rituals. One such fandom is the STAY community, forming around the K-Pop band Stray Kids. Through examining STAY rituals and language, we are also able to examine our perception of the divides between secular and religious; as well as between digital and physical. This Independent Study argues that there is no functional difference between digital communities and physical communities by identifying ritual, community relationships, and shared behaviors and beliefs.
Posted in Symposium 2026 on May 1, 2026.
