Kiss of Life: K-pop band accused of cultural appropriation over hip-hop themed birthday livestream

The controversy began during a live stream titled “Birthday”, held on April 2 to celebrate member Julie’s birthday. The group adopted an “old-school Hip Hop vibes” dress code for the occasion, which quickly sparked criticism online. Viewers accused the group of disrespecting hip-hop culture, calling the styling and presentation insensitive.

The backlash has prompted an official apology from the group’s management company, S2 Entertainment, though many fans remain dissatisfied.

The statement read: “We’d like to address the issues that arose from the content that was uploaded on KISS OF LIFE’s official YouTube yesterday (April 2). We sincerely apologise for causing discomfort to our viewers.

“The true purpose of the content was to celebrate hip hop culture, where much of the musical inspiration for KISS OF LIFE comes from. We apologise for our shortcomings in recognising the negative cultural implications that our content would be perceived as.

“Our members and our team promise to approach cultural references with greater caution and respect moving forward, and all related content has been removed from all of our channels. Thank you.”

Despite the swift response, fans were left unsatisfied with the apology. Online reactions criticised the statement for being vague and suggested that the members were being shielded from direct accountability.

Comments included concerns that the wording failed to acknowledge the specific elements of appropriation that upset fans, and that the apology focused more on the company’s intent than the impact of the broadcast.

As of now, all videos related to the controversial livestream have been taken down.