Tiffany Under Fire For Japanese Flag SNS Post On Korea’s National Liberation Day: Netizens Want Girls’ Generation K-Pop Idol Off ‘Unnies’ Slam Dunk’
The most popular K-pop girl group in the K-pop industry today, if not its entire history, is So Nyeo Shi Dae (SNSD), better known as Girls’ Generation. At this moment, however, they have taken a step back from the limelight as a group to allow its members to pursue solo endeavors. Yuri, Sooyoung, and Yoona are concentrating on their acting careers. Yuri and Sooyoung recently starred in OCN K-dramas, Neighborhood Hero and Squad 38 respectively, while Yoona will make her K-drama return in The K2.
Taeyeon is improving her solo career in music. Taeyeon, so far, is the most successful with her two singles, “I” and “Why,” topping the Korean music charts. Finally, Seohyun is pursuing both a solo career in music and acting, and she’ll be the third Girls’ Generation member to get a solo album while acting in upcoming C-drama, Scarlet Heart: Ryeo (also known as Moon Lovers). As for Sunny and Hyoyeon, they are busy with their own endeavors, but they make sporadic appearances on variety shows.
Finally, we are left with Tiffany. After finishing her first solo album I Just Wanna Dance, Tiffany became one of the cast members for Unnies’ Slam Dunk. Unfortunately, Tiffany’s participation in the variety show may be cut short if netizens’ calls for her removal are honored. Reportedly, Tiffany angered many Koreans for an SNS post of the Japanese flag on Korea’s National Liberation Day.
Tiffany, real name Stephanie Hwang, came under fire for her SNS posts on her social media accounts, especially her official Instagram, over the weekend, as reported by International Business Times. According to the report, Tiffany went on a social media posting spree following the SM TOWN Live World Tour V taking place at the Tokyo Dome on August 13. She along with the rest of Girls’ Generation and other SM Entertainment musical acts performed for Japanese fans.
Most of Tiffany’s social media posts on Instagram and Snapchat showed her having a great time with her fellow SM Town label mates, but two of the posts caught the attention of Koreans, which are seen in the picture below.
Needless to say, Tiffany angered many Korean netizens with her posts. As a result, many of the viewers of Unnies’ Slam Dunk are demanding that Tiffany is removed from the show, as reported by AllKpop. Right now, the viewer board for the show has been flooded with demands of taking Tiffany off the show.
Tiffany’s removal from Unnie’s Slam Dunk would be justified if she did nothing to reconcile with her Korean fans, but she did write an apology for her actions. She posted it on her Instagram via a heartfelt, handwritten letter. For those who are unable to read Hangul, the translation for the post is written below.
“Hello, this is Tiffany. I apologize for causing concern to many people due to my mistake on such a cherished, meaningful day. I’m embarrassed at myself for disappointing people through this mistake, and I’m reflecting on my action. From now on, I’ll make sure to remember that a lot of people are watching my actions and seeing my words, so I’ll work hard to become a person who thinks deeply so something like this does not happen again. Once again, I’m sorry for disappointing people because I was lacking.”
There is no word on Tiffany’s possible removal from Unnies’ Slam Dunk. What we do know is that Korean K-pop fans have an unusual amount of authority pertaining to K-pop idols. If the demand for Tiffany’s removal is too high, J.Y. Park and the production behind Unnies’ Slam Dunk might not have a choice.
[Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Burberry]
