5th Gen K-Pop Group Postpones MV Release After Fans Call Out Cultural Appropriation
ARMADA Entertainment‘s ONE PACT debuted as a 5-member boy group on November 30 with mini album [MOMENT]. At the time, they were comprised of former Boys Planet contestants Jongwoo, Seongmin, TAG (he left before the show aired), Yedam, and Jay Chang. Jay is going on tour as a member of B.D.U, a new boy group formed through Mnet‘s reality survival show Build Up. He is still sometimes featured in TikTok videos but is missing from their current comeback.
ONE PACT made their comeback with their first single album, PARADOXX, today, June 7. The music video for the title track, “꺼져 (FXX OFF),” was meant to be released along with it.
ONE PACT(원팩트)
1ST SINGLE ALBUM [PARADOXX]2024.06.07 6PM (KST) RELEASE!#ONEPACT #원팩트#PARADOXX #20240607_6PM pic.twitter.com/3J5OymgE1c
— ARMADA ENT (@armada_ent) May 11, 2024
When Teaser 2 for the “꺼져 (FXX OFF)” MV dropped, it was met with fiercely divided reactions.
ONE PACT 1st SINGLE ALBUM
[PARADOXX] : 꺼져 Teaser 2
📌https://t.co/UpzJujwX2h #ONEPACT #원팩트 #PARADOXX #20240607_6PM pic.twitter.com/u5MWCJbW69— ONE PACT (@onepact_) June 5, 2024
Fans noticed that TAG was styled inappropriately. It appeared he had multiple braids or locks (some argue it’s not his hair) but was covered by a beanie, which can even be considered a durag replacement.
Many fans were shocked by the styling, as TAG’s hairstyle appeared to be imitating a protective hairstyle of the Black community. Netizens expressed their frustration at the hairstyle, deeming it cultural appropriation, defined as “the unacknowledged or inappropriate adoption of the customs, practices, ideas of one people or society by members of another and typically more dominant people or society.” Many styles we see in K-Pop are cultural appropriation, directly taking inspiration from other cultures, while the original people group experienced prejudice and racism throughout history for these same things that people now want to use as “aesthetic.”
Dear Nhearts,
We need your support to raise our concerns to ARMADA about the use of CA in the 꺼져 MV. Please read this thread to find the email and tweet templates to send to ARMADA. Let's make sure our voices are heard.@armada_ent @onepact_ https://t.co/33Or2NEgrC— ONE PACT GLOBAL FANBASE (@onepactglobal) June 6, 2024
Fans voiced their disappointment and contacted the company via social media, tagging ARMADA Entertainment, and emailing concerns. Initially, the company released a now-deleted statement that fans felt was “doubling down” on the cultural appropriation, excusing the styling. Later, ARMADA released the below statement. This time, ARMADA Entertainment addressed the cultural appropriation, apologized, and promised to be cautious moving forward.
Hello, this is Armada Entertainment.
Regarding the recently released teaser video for ONE PACT’s ‘꺼져 (FXX OFF),’ we humbly accept the opinions that many of you have shared. First and foremost, we sincerely apologize to everyone who felt uncomfortable watching this video.
The overall hairstyles in this ONE PACT ‘꺼져 (FXX OFF)’ music video was inspired by the Bohemian looks. However, the misunderstanding that it sparked, resembling dreadlocks, was an error made by the company in approving the final version. In the future, Armada Entertainment will proceed with more caution and attention to such sensitive issues.
We always listen to and respect the valuable opinions of our fans and will do our best with an attitude of respect. We will take this incident as an opportunity to grow even further as Armada Entertainment. We ask for your continued support and encouragement.
Also, we ask for your interest and support for the upcoming release of the ONE PACT ‘꺼져 (FXX OFF)’ music video. We will do our best to repay your support.
Thank you.
— ARMADA Entertainment
Fans were not satisfied. They felt that an apology with no action was not good enough and that ONE PACT was being set up for failure.
A couple of hours later, ARMADA Entertainment released a further update. ONE PACT’s “꺼져 (FXX OFF)” MV has officially been postponed to a later date, as they remove the cultural appropriation. However, the album release, music shows, fan events, etc., will continue as scheduled.
안녕하세요 아르마다이엔티입니다.
금일 공개 예정이었던 ONE PACT의 "꺼져" 뮤직비디오는 여러분의 소중한 의견을 수렴하여 일부 수정을 거친 후 추후에 공개하기로 결정하였습니다.
팬 여러분의 너른 양해 부탁드립니다.
다만, 그 외의 앨범 발매, 음악 방송, 팬 이벤트, 각종 스케줄은 예정대로…
— ARMADA ENT (@armada_ent) June 7, 2024
Hello, this is Armada Entertainment.
The release of ONE PACT’s “Turn Off” music video, which was scheduled for today, has been postponed for some modifications based on your valuable feedback.
We ask for your understanding regarding this decision.
However, other album releases, music broadcasts, fan events, and various schedules will proceed as planned, so we ask for your continued interest and support.
Thank you for always supporting ONE PACT.
— ARMADA Entertainment
Fans are happy that ARMADA Entertainment finally listened to their concerns and are postponing the MV’s release. They hope that the mistakes won’t be repeated.
Thank you for finally listening to our concerns, @armada_ent. The fans only mean well and we want your company to take this seriously moving forward, especially since you treat ONE PACT as a global group.
Please do your own extensive research on CA and be mindful next time.
— ONE PACT Central (@onepactcentral) June 7, 2024
The new release date for the music video has yet to be revealed.
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