Famous K-pop group BTS under hot water due to the comments that their leader RM made in regards of Korean war.
South Korean boyband BTS is facing a barrage of criticism in China after its leader made remarks about the Korean War.
Several famous brands, including Samsung, have apparently distanced themselves from BTS amid the uproar.
Korean war is associated to that part of history when US and Korea joined their forces against North Korea and China.
The controversy is the latest example of the political landmines lying in wait for big brands in China, the world’s second-largest economy.
Details of BTS controversy
Kim Nam Joon, also known as RM, is the leader of BTS and he also acts as the spokesperson.
He upset many people in China in a speech when the band received an award from a U.S.-based organization for their contribution to South Korea-U.S. relations.
RM invoked a “history of pain” shared between South Korea and the United States.
While doing that he referred to the 1950-53 Korean War, and spoke of “sacrifices of countless men and women”.
The war pitted South Korean and U.S. forces against those from North Korea and China.
The comments touched off heated debate on social media in China.
“They should not make any money from China,” one angry user said on the Weibo platform, referring to BTS.
“If you want to make money from Chinese fans you have to consider Chinese feelings.”
Posts featuring Samsung’s BTS special edition smartphones and earphones disappeared from Chinese e-commerce platforms.
Those platforms mainly included T-mall and JD.com as the controversy swirled.
BTS-related posts from other companies including sports fashion brand FILA and automaker Hyundai, which have endorsement deals with the seven-member group, also disappeared from their official Weibo accounts, Chinese users said.
It was not clear if the companies or someone else had removed the posts.
Samsung, FILA and Hyundai did not respond to requests for comment when contacted by Reuters.
The band’s management company, Big Hit Entertainment, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.