Stan LOONA

Stan LOONA is a phrase used to describe the South Korean girl group LOONA. It is usually a sign of promotion or support towards the group, or an attempt at trolling. 
It is not uncommon within K-Pop to use the word "Stan" followed by the group the fan supports. However, "Stan LOONA" extended beyond K-Pop, turning into a viral meme, that appeared into fandoms and tweets unrelated to LOONA.
This was due to LOONA's fans (nicknamed "Orbits"). They were infamous for using memes and guerrilla marketing tactics to promote the group. They would comment and spam on various tweets, with the words "Stan LOONA", followed by a videoclip of one of their songs, (often Eclipse" or "Girl Front"). It resulted in a rise of popularity for the group (who were at first considered a nugu group, meaning unpopular), but also gave the fandom a negative reputation for trolling.
== Origin ==
The origins of this meme are often associated with "Gay (or Queer) Twitter". A subset of Twitter users known for being LGBT and often a crossover with Western pop music, such as Charli XCX, Kim Petras, Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift and others. 
It went viral around 2018, among Twitter, though there were a few instances of "Stan Loona" being said before then. In 2016, the first tweet mentioning "stan loona" was posted by @lgbtluda, just 24 hours after the announcement for the group:
== Queer Twitter ==
LOONA began gaining a devoted queer fanbase. In promotions for "Eclipse", member Kim Lip wore a pride shirt. More famously, the music video for "Heart Attack" received attention due to it's apparent queer storyline. As a result, LOONA become a LGBT+ icon and the words "Stan LOONA" were becoming frequent among gay fans.
One of the earliest mentions of the meme was by Kim Chi, in January 2018, a drag queen appearing on RuPaul's Drag Race, who would tweet about LOONA multiple times during their pre-debut, including one with the infamous catchphrase "Stan Loona".Tweet, by @KimChi_Chic, on February 1st, 2018
It was first added to Urban Dictionary on May 9th, 2018:
Since then it has been a staple of "Gay Twitter", known by many fans and non-fans alike:
The meme has been covered by several news outlets, including MTV, Polygon, Babe, Vogue and others.
== Examples ==
Some examples of "Stan LOONA" appearing in various different contexts:
 
File:Stan LOONA - Kim Chi.png|Kim Chi, a drag queen who appeared on the eight season of RuPaul's Drag Race, telling her followers to "Stan Loona"
File:Stan LOONA - Trump Tweet.jpg|A troll replying to former US president Donald Trump, saying they would be 'more productive' if they stanned LOONAFrom article on Polygon, posted on Aug 21, 2018
File:Stan LOONA - Chile Pride.jpg|Fans holding "Stan LOONA" signs at the Chile Pride in 2018. LOONA signs were common at Pride.LOONA Is An Icon For Gay Pride In Chile on Koreaboo, posted on June 24th, 2018
File:Stan LOONA - Stranger Things.jpg|A fan with Stranger Things actors Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Scnapp, the latter is holding a sign that says "STAN LOOΠΔ"
File:Stan LOONA - Overwatch.jpg|An Overwatch fan holding a "Stan LOONA" sign in the background of Overwatch League. The lead writer for Overwatch, Michael Chu is also known to be a fan.Tweet, by @westofhouse, posted on May 21, 2019
File:Stan LOONA - a reylo fic.png|"Stan Loona" being included as a AO3 tag for a reylo fic, from Star Wars. No mentions of LOONA exist elsewhere in the fic.See this fanfiction, on AO3
== Reputation ==
The meme was widespread and resulted in LOONA's fanbase gaining a negative reputation. Some fans found it annoying, especially seeing it spammed on unrelated tweets and posts. This even deterred fans from viewing LOONA's music.
== Response from LOONA ==
The members of LOONA are aware of the meme:
== See also ==
* Yeonjun Safe Zone - Another example of a K-pop related spam comment that has spread beyond its original context.
* a reylo fic - A popular Rey/Kylo Ren fanfiction from Star Wars that contained "stan loona" in it's tags.
* doofenperry twitter au!!! - A Phineas and Ferb fanfiction, that acts as a parody to several K-Pop groups, including the "stan loona" meme.
== Further reading ==
=== Resources ===
* Stan Loona on Know Your Meme
* Stan LOONA on Urban Dictionary
=== Articles ===
* Stan LOONA: How The K-pop Rookies Are Striving To Become The 'Ultimate Girl Group' on MTV (2019)
* K-Pop Group LOONA Talks #StanLoona and Why They Love Orbits on Teen Vogue (2019)
* ‘Stan Loona,’ the meme sparked by a Korean girl group, explained on Polygon (2018)
* What is Loona? Everything you need to know about the K-Pop sensation taking over your timeline (2018)
=== Reddit ===
* How big was #stanloona? (2021) on r/LOONA
* Does anyone else get annoyed by all the "stan loona"s everywhere? (2021) on r/kpoprants
* Do you think the "Stan Loona" meme did more harm or good? (2019) on r/LOONA
== References ==
Category:K-Pop Fandom
Category:LOONA
Category:2016 Memes
Category:2018 Memes