Famous TikToker and K-pop star Sorn has landed herself in hot water after her latest photoshoot. The controversy stems from Sorn sporting a hairstyle that is predominantly worn by black women.
The singer was quick to apologize to her fans and supporters but not fast enough to evade backlash and hate comments.
It all started with Harper’s BAZAAR Singapore releasing a photoshoot of Sorn in their magazine. She had a big and bold afro hairstyle in the images while posing with her male co-model. Sorn is being blamed for cultural appropriation as her hairstyle might be offensive to the black community.
The backlash increased so much that WILD was forced to take down the pictures and issue a public apology.
Some fans blame the company for putting their artist through such an ordeal. The photoshoot was organized and approved by WILD and Harper, but the artist faced the most hateful comments.
Others believe that Sorn is perfectly capable of making her own decisions and should have never agreed to the photoshoot. As the issue gained more and more attention, Sorn posted an apology on her social media page.
Many claim that this is not the K-pop star’s first time making mistakes like this, referring to how she once suggested many skincare products to Indian actor Anupam Tripathi, who played Ali in the Squid Games.
In her past controversy, Sorn partnered with skincare brand, Wishtrend to make a video where she would recommend beauty products to Squid Game actors. She suggested many more products to Anupam, compared to other actors, because she liked him the best.
Fans, however, have taken this the wrong way and claimed that it is a clearly racist move due to his skin color.
Not all comments criticize the idol, though. Fans had voiced how silly it is that using a mere hairstyle can be called cultural appropriation when she meant no disrespect. Black women have also shown support by posting that she does not need to apologize as she did nothing wrong.
Sorn recently released her new song, “Not A Friend,” which has been a huge hit. The catchy lyrics and melody have blown fans away as they hope the singer can keep delivering the same quality in her upcoming albums.
While Sorn functioned as a K-pop idol as a member of the group CLC, she left the group and CUBE Entertainment in March 2022. She and another member, Seungyeon, are signed to WILD Entertainment and are solo artists.
Sorn had opened up about CLC’s abrupt end and commented that the agency did not want to promote them as a group. Naturally, the artists moved on since the group couldn’t be promoted together.
In her years working as an idol, Sorn has fought for her group as well as for other girl groups. She has been an empowering person for her juniors. However, fans have pointed out her history of borderline racist instances that are bringing down her reputation. Of course, the comments make it far worse than the situation is.
What do you think of the whole controversy regarding the hairstyle? Is the artist to be blamed or the company? Or should it be brushed past since one wrong hairstyle isn’t the end of the world?
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