K-pop girl group Kiss of Life is facing backlash following a controversial livestream themed “old-school hip hop vibes” on April 2, celebrating member Julie’s birthday.
The quartet, consisting of Julie, Natty, Belle, and Haneul, were seen wearing gold chains, cornrows, and Bantu knots, in addition to using stereotypical mannerisms. They are now facing accusations of racism and cultural appropriation.
In response to the criticism, the girl group’s management, S2 Entertainment, issued a statement on April 3 addressing the issues caused by the content posted on the Kiss of Life channel.
“We sincerely apologise for causing discomfort to our viewers. The true purpose of the content was to celebrate hip hop culture, which serves as much of the musical inspiration for Kiss of Life,” the agency stated.
They apologized for the “shortcomings in recognizing the negative cultural implications” that their content could be perceived to have. “Our members and team promise to approach cultural references with greater caution and respect moving forward.”
Additionally, the agency stated that all associated content has been taken down from the group’s channels.
Kiss of Life has also issued a statement on X (formerly Twitter) last April 6 addressing the said issue. “We sincerely apologize for the content that was uploaded that caused so much disappointment to our fans,” their statement reads.
Although they wanted to have addressed this sooner, they are “taking the first opportunity to address it now.”
“Our intention was to show how much we loved the category of old school hip hop because it greatly influences our music. While shooting the content we ended up taking the concept too far, we realize now that our content was culturally insensitive and take full responsibility for our actions and can only promise to do better,” they continued.
Social media users were not satisfied with the apology as they took to social media to express their disappointment in the girl group for their “insensitive” behavior.
Julie born in Hawaii said the n-word and apologized, Belle born in Seattle acting crazy, I actually liked Kiss of Life and I thought Julie's apology was sincere but this proves that black people are just something you can make fun of but if you get blacklash your sorry pic.twitter.com/tFwEpyN8F9
— Katseye 🥖 (@aekatss) April 2, 2025
To Klan Of Life, https://t.co/bPHH7esPDW pic.twitter.com/kjqvwqzz64
— jupi SNAP⚔️ (@fromkicatcher) April 5, 2025
A CHOP. https://t.co/jfo7bUXFv0 pic.twitter.com/92eV4fXeCn
— brynn 🎀 (@fimburger) April 5, 2025
“took the concept too far” so yall still don’t get it https://t.co/AR76CUOpxl
— toph ʚɞ TWISTED PARADISE ʚɞ (@hisoknen) April 5, 2025
"We will continue educating ourselves "
Yall are already educated about streotyping . Many kpop idols have done this shit before and you're trying to tell me they never saw them getting dragged and apologizing.
And don't dare to tell me to accept their apology . https://t.co/ksGjCyjpF2 pic.twitter.com/kTQtPOj8Pm— 𝐁𝐀𝐁𝐘𝐘𝐀𝐄𝐂𝐈𝐀 (@BABYYAECIA) April 5, 2025
second apology and still cannot manage to address Mexican/ African Americans oh brother it’s a chop https://t.co/RhleQtHlvS
— mel 🐨 FUCK WEAK HERO (@leehanloveb0t) April 5, 2025
the fact that they don’t even say sorry to the black and latino communities https://t.co/g7TcOYWaK5 pic.twitter.com/qsVDKeFbM6
— starlight ᯓ★ (@itoshikirose) April 5, 2025
Lemme say this! If you are not BLACK🤎 then SHUT THE FUCK UP! You have no say in this! Stop saying “we appreciate your apology”
STOP SPEAKING FOR US! https://t.co/CLXwd8FS5b
— 卂长工尺卂ꇙꏂꋊꉣꋬ꒐ (@akirasenpaiNSFW) April 5, 2025
Again, who’s the certain race you offended and why you’re scared to say that certain race group in this repeated weak apology letter? https://t.co/Hh2bgZfYq3 pic.twitter.com/NGHT8q8nML
— Jackson’s plant 🪴 (@empresswjiaer) April 5, 2025
"To all of our Kissys" This apology should be directed towards black and Mexican fans. "We took the concept too far." Being black or Mexican isn't a concept! We aren't a costume! https://t.co/Dw4o3ztruV
— ✨Neo is seeing SKZ 6/6✨ (@HelloItsNeo) April 5, 2025
Kiss of Life, best known for their songs “Igloo” and “Sticky,” made their debut with their extended play (EP) “Kiss of Life” in July 2023. From October to December 2024, they performed in South Korea, the US, and Canada as part of their first world tour, “Kiss Road,” adding a European leg for February and March 2025.
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