We've all seen them. Picture the athlete in school who has a group of girls following him around and doing whatever it takes to be with him, including giving sexual favors. Or imagine the head cheerleader who has her own clique and everyone in it dresses like her and tries so hard to be her best friend.

It may not be as obvious as I am making it sound, but the people who follow these popular people around are groupies.

 

Carolina  Guillen Photo by Pryde Brown

Dictionary.com defines a groupie as "an enthusiastic supporter or follower." That can mean anyone from the teen in your high school who desperately attempts to be friends with the most popular kid to those who devote years of their lives following around a rock group.

Rapper 50 Cent is even more specific. He says a groupie is a person who gets overly excited about the celebrities he or she meets. This is something I see again and again.

I spend a lot of time around the entertainment industry, and I watch a lot of teens degrading themselves and doing crazy things to be with celebrities who will not even remember their names the next day.

Not All It's Cracked up to Be

I remember being at a club event in New York where a group of girls flashed the bouncers to get into the VIP section, so they could meet a famous rapper. And it didn't stop there! These girls went on to offer sexual favors to the security guards in order to meet the rapper. But after spending some time with the guards in the bathroom, all they got in return were free T-shirts. I later found out these girls were only 17 years old.

Although a groupie might get the chance to spend an intimate moment with his or her favorite celebrity, that doesn't mean he or she will be respected. In fact, many celebrities think groupies are pathetic, even as they take advantage of the perks they offer. One rapper I spoke to called girl groupies "byrds," a term for a girl who has no mind of her own. He said he would never consider them as potential girlfriends.

Becoming a groupie only causes more problems, not less. The celebrity might have a sexually transmitted disease (STD) and not care about passing it on. It's also possible that the celebrity will not really be too concerned about a groupie's safety. How many rape cases have we heard involving celebrities and groupies? It seems like every other month there is a story about some celebrity taking advantage of a groupie and forcing him or her to engage in an unwanted sex act.

So Why Would Anyone Want to Be a Groupie?

The image. Watching the glitz and glam of celebrities' lives on television or reading about them in a magazine makes this lifestyle appear exciting. Some people believe that if they are somehow attached to someone who has money and fame, they'll be worthy of all that attention, too.