In such a nation heavily influenced by Confucianism as Korea, personality is placed at the top
priority when evaluating one person, especially public figures.
Albeit their talent and popularity, Kpop idols can be severely stoned for their allegedly
disrespectful actions toward their seniors.
Here are 4 idols whose reputation was negatively affected by these accusations.
1.
Seunghoon (WINNER) was said to try to hit Ilhoon (BTOB)
As Seunghoon appeared on the show Idol Radio with Ilhoon from BTOB, he drew mixed opinions
from netizens with his so-called inappropriate action.
While the duo was excitedly chatting with each other, in a moment of “excessive enthusiasm”,
Seunghoon held the script scroll and hit Ilhoon on the head twice, making Ilhoon a little
back off.
As the show was on live, a wave of fierce criticism from Kpop fans immediately came
to him.
Although Seunghoon is two years older than Ilhoon, Ilhoon is still considered his senior
for having debuted with BTOB two years before WINNER, which calls for a certain level of
respect and etiquette in Korean society.
As a result, many Korean netizens expressed displeasure with Seunghoon’s action and
demanded an apology.
They said he was so inconsiderate and disrespectful to his senior, which is strictly forbidden
in Korean tradition and culture, and also claimed that as a public figure, Seunghoon
should have been a lot more careful with his actions.
Later, Seunghoon had to personally apologize for this incident on his social media account
and affirmed that he would try to be a more complete artist in the future.
He also explained that since he had a close relationship with Ilhoon, he just wanted to
hype up the atmosphere of the show in a humorous way.
While some thought that Seunghoon hitting his senior was intolerable and he should apologize
to Ilhoon in person instead of posting on social media, others made allowances for his
actions since they believed he did not have any ill intention at all.
2.
Sunghoon (ENHYPEN) was said to greet his seniors half-heartedly
In mid-November 2021, a video of ENHYPEN’s Sunghoon greeting other artists went viral
on the Internet, as netizens accused him of not treating respectfully to his senior TWICE.
Specifically, on the latest episode of “Music Bank” broadcast on November 12, TWICE performed
their new title track “SCIENTIST” and also had an interview with Sunghoon and Wonyoung.
However, netizens noticed that after finishing the interview, Sunghoon only bobbed his head
to greet TWICE instead of bowing like Wonyoung did.
This situation made many netizens feel uncomfortable as TWICE is a major senior who debuted 5 years
before Sunghoon yet they still politely bowed to greet him, while Sunghoon was said to only
nod his head with a so-called superficial attitude.
Some even sarcastically said that he seemed to have a serious problem with his back, since
he couldn’t bow properly or at least put a smile on his face.
They claimed that Sunghoon should have had a more professional attitude and displayed
more respect to other idols.
Notably, Korean netizens also looked into some other MusicBank interviews to prove that
TWICE was not the only artist that Sunghoon greeted in a half-hearted way.
The visual of ENHYPEN was also said to fail to bow properly after interviews with 2 other
groups, LIGHTSUM and The Boyz.
However, fans have come to defend Sunghoon, saying that as the studio was too small and
cramped, bowing lower could cause him to collide with other idols and that Sunghoon was just
trying to avoid an awkward situation
Still, many others believe that Sunghoon needs to improve his greetings and behave more sincerely
to avoid further controversy in the future.
3.
Lovelyz was said to disrespect RED VELVET and INFINITE
After the Inkigayo music show in early July 2019, Lovelyz members received intense criticism
from the online community for allegedly acting disrespectfully towards senior Red Velvet.
Specifically, while Red Velvet had a greeting gesture and Yeri even kindly bowed to greet
them many times, Lovelyz just turned their faces away and had an indifferent expression
toward their seniors.
Though Lovelyz’s supporters defended that the stage was quite crowded and the members
might not notice Red Velvet were greeting them, many netizens believed that this explanation
seemed irrational and the group’s action was intolerable.
Back in 2016, Lovelyz was also accused of having disrespectful manners at the concert
of their seniors in the same company- INFINITE.
It was said that the members plugged their ears in the middle of the performance, brought
in bags of chips when food and drinks were clearly banned, threw Inspirit slogans on
the floor then sat on them and left all their trash at their seats.
Netizens angrily said that the girls failed to keep a basic level of respect and did not
deserve to be invited to the concert.
However, some fans who attended the same event defended the group, saying that Lovelyz might
have been misunderstood since they were with their manager the whole time and there was
no way the company would let this incident happen.
4.
BLACKPINK was said to not even greet BTS
So, even BLACKPINK couldn’t escape the disrespectful controversy early in their career but different
from other cases, they were promptly vindicated.
Specifically, after the 2018 MBC Plus x Genie Music Awards, a video of BTS members returning
to their seats was circulated on various social media platforms and captured the attention
of many netizens.
However, the “spotlight” of the clip belonged to BLACKPINK members, who were spotted sitting
still while the other groups were respectfully bowing to greet BTS.
Many people expressed their doubts and wondered why the girls did not stand up though their
seniors were right in front of them.
However, many people have pointed out evidence to clear the accusation.
Accordingly, they said BLACKPINK had a problem with their costumes at the award and had difficulty
moving with those inconvenient outfits, therefore, they had to sit still in order to protect
their image.
Later, after fixing the fits, BlackPink still bowed to BTS members thus clearing all disrespectful
attitude controversies.
Although respecting seniors is a time-honored and beautiful tradition of not only the Kpop
industry but also the Korean culture, perhaps netizens should pay more attention when accusing
artists to avoid putting wrong blame on idols.
So, do you think these idols really have attitude problems or some people were just being overly
sensitive?