Being a fan

Every now and then, I think about reasons people give for being fans of something. Why do people spend time searching for the tiniest bits of information about a subject and why do fans like us wait years for an album that is usually about 45 minutes in length? I'm sure everyone has their own reasons for being a fan of something, whether it's collecting stamps, skydiving from a plane, or listening to a Swedish pop group.

I also find it fascinating that we, as Acers, are so captivated by the music and the lives of the band members. We know about the band but we don't know them. I once had an eight hour conversation with three other fans about Ace of Base once. Think about that. Eight hours. You have to know a subject pretty well to keep the conversation going for that long. But why talk about one subject for eight hours to begin with?

What motivates us to search out information about the car Ulf drives? Why do we want to know about how Jonas spends his money? Why do we care about Linn's hobbies? Why do we discuss Jenny's family?

I can't possibly list all the reasons for being a fan, but I'll list some of the reasons that I'm a fan.
The band’s music is number one for me. It always has been that way, and I suspect that many other Acers will say the same. I enjoy listening to the melodies, harmonies, and lyrics that the band creates. Listening to a fresh song is like an adventure, a journey. I discover something new with each listen. When I learn the song, I enjoy the anticipation of hearing the melody again or waiting for the bridge to kick in. I also enjoy the familiarity of the song. I know all the words and can sing along with the chorus.

It's hard for me to say with certainty whether the music or the lyrics are the most enjoyable to me. Ace of Base's lyrics intrigue me because the words convey much more than most people realize. Most people look at the band's lyrics and automatically dismiss the gravity of the message because the lyrics are positive and the music is upbeat. I think that the majority of people, or at least most critics, feel that if song lyrics are dark, moody, and tragic then the music is deep and artistic. In other words, positive, upbeat lyrics are fun to listen to but they are merely fluff and contain no real message. I think Ace of Base's "Beautiful Morning" contradicts that idea. "Beautiful Morning" is a good example of a song that is positive and upbeat, while still sending a strong message. The lyrics urge us to look at the positive events in life, even though life is difficult. The band explores the idea that by focusing on the positive, even in the difficult times, you will be able to realize what's most important to you.

Memories play an important role for me as a fan. We spend a lot of time in our lives trying to "capture" and relive events in our lives. We take pictures. We record home video. We sit and talk about the past. We celebrate events that took place in the past, such as birthdays and anniversaries. Would you go see a movie if you knew you would not remember it the next day? What would be the point of watching a movie if you couldn’t remember what you just experienced? You would enjoy the movie while you were watching it, but what then? You could not talk about it or discuss it afterwards. You could not explain how you felt about the movie or talk about any part of the movie. You would take nothing away from it.

Memories are important to us. They help define our lives and our relationships with others around us. I’ve been a fan for nearly 13 years now and I’ve stored up a great bank of memories associated with being a fan. The band’s music reminds me of my years as a teenager and young adult. I remember great parties with "All That She Wants" and "Lucky Love" playing in the background. I recall listening to the band’s cds during some rough times. I also have many memories associated with meeting other fans and enjoying their company. I’ve been to Europe several over the past 13 years. I’ve gone to school there and worked there. I’ve taken vacations there. I’ve made new friends, taken part in new experiences, and learned a great deal about myself along the way. The memories from those trips and the people I met stay with me. Ace of Base’s music is connected to all of those memories.

A third great thing about being a fan is the treasure hunt that constantly takes place. It never ends. If you are a collector or enjoy auctions, then you understand the treasure hunt concept and the fun of it. Ever wonder how someone can get excited when they see a one-eyed teddy bear made in the 1940s? Ever wonder why they’d pay $100 for it? Yes, you've heard it before; "one man’s trash is another man’s treasure". You may not think that an Ace of Base Interview cd is really a treasure if you’re not a fan, but to those who enjoy the music, it is a treasure. The Interview cd is quite hard to find and if you have a copy, expect to get around $100 for it.

If you set your sights on something like a teddy bear or an Interview cd, you'll try to reach your goal. When you finally achieve the goal you’ve set, you’re happy about it. Maybe the whole purpose isn’t really about having the cd or the bear at all, but maybe the hunt itself is the point. It’s enjoyable. So, you set up another treasure hunt goal and go about trying to reaching it. It may not be a serious goal or a "let’s save the world" type of goal, but it’s something you can look forward to solving. Maybe it’s like a jigsaw puzzle or a sudoku puzzle. It’s fun to work through the puzzle and reach the end, but there is no productive purpose behind it.

There’s treasure that you know you can get relatively easily, such as cds, interviews, or posters and then there’s a different type of treasure. You know it’s out there, but you’re not quite sure where, when, or how you will find it. You could say it’s the buried treasure of being a fan. First, there are the small coins of some value but not a lot of value: little bits of info you can find using a search engine or by chatting with other fans. New information is always fun to find on a fan site. Demos have also been known to pop up from time to time. Demos are definitely buried treasure.

And then there are the gold bars, which could be classified into three categories: Albums, Concerts and Encounters (Get it? ACE? Har. Har.) I would say that these three are the three events that most Acers look forward to. Why? Each event is quite rare. Albums are released once every three years on average. Concerts don't happen too often either. I’ve been a fan since I was 12 years old and I was 24 when I attended my first Ace of Base concert. Encounter is the fancy name I made up for a simple event- a fan meeting one of the band members. Fans are able to meet the band members every now and then. Some fans have met the band in Sweden, while others have met the band during promo stops in different countries. The band members are friendly to us and give us a chance to meet them when we show up at different events, which is nice. I think many fans enjoy meeting the band because they get to interact with the people themselves. The band can easily be seen as a product in the form of cds, posters, and interviews, but when a fan meets them in person, the band becomes more than just a cd or a picture. They become real, living, breathing people. Obviously, fans know the band members are real, but to see them and to be able to interact with them, to be able to speak with the band about the music, is an entirely different experience than just enjoying the music.

I think the common theme that holds everything together is an investment. As fans, we have invested ourselves in the music and the band. We invest in many ways: time, money, emotions, memories, etc. So, maybe we spend time thinking about Ulf and his fast car because we might hope to have our own fast car one day. Maybe we want to know how Jonas spends his money because we have invested our own personal money in his talents. Maybe we invest time caring about Linn’s hobbies because we want to know more about her as a person. And maybe we invest time in discussing Jenny’s family because it allows us to think about our own (future) families.

Some fans have big investments, while other fans have small investments. No matter how much you choose to invest as a fan, being a fan of anything is always guaranteed fun.

What are your reasons for being a fan?