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Fans of K-pop boy band BTS are asking the group’s management company to eliminate the head of its North American subsidiary after accusing him of supporting Israel in its ongoing war against Gaza.
Calls for the firing of Hybe-America CEO Scooter Braun are part of a broader movement among K-pop fans to draw attention to the plight of Palestinians in Gaza.
On February 23, some fans sent a truck to Hybe’s headquarters in central Seoul, urging the company to divest “from Zionism and Zionists in the industry,” according to the Korea Times.
A screen on the truck showed various demands along with videos of the devastation in Gaza. a video appears to show BTS merchandise found in the rubble, with a caption that reads: “They could have been your friends.”
“If our demands are not met, ARMY (BTS fans) will continue to push for you to meet our demands. Don’t look the other way when the same thing that happened to your Korean ancestors is happening to the Palestinians,” shown in the message on the truck. aggregate.
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“We ask you to stand up for humanity, for the right side of history and against violence.”
In a letter-writing campaign directed at Hybe, fans to accuse Braun from making comments or posts on social media that legitimize Israel’s violence in Gaza or obfuscate the realities of Palestinians living under occupation.
In December of last year, Braun speak at a demonstration in Tel Aviv calling for the return of Israeli captives who were captured by Palestinian armed groups during the October 7 attacks in southern Israel, in which more than 1,100 people, mostly Israelis, were killed.
“I had to come and support my people,” he said.
Hybe distanced himself from Braun’s comments at the time, according to reportssaying: “It is a personal statement separate from the management of the company.”
The label has not commented further.
‘Boycott of the Big Four’
The truck was the latest in a series of actions that K-pop fans have taken as part of pro-Palestinian activism since the start of Israel’s war against the besieged enclave.
Israeli attacks since October 7 have killed more than 30,000 people and injured 70,000 more, according to the latest update from the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Collective efforts on social media have included fan pages dedicated to K-pop, such as @ARMY4Palestine on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, an online platform. petitionas well as the use of various hashtags.
BTS is the most influential K-pop group in the world, with more than 352 million followers worldwide. The group’s management company had its annual sales will skyrocket to $1.6 billion (2.17 trillion won) in 2023, a milestone no other K-pop agency has reached.
BDS Korea, also known as Palestinian Peace and Solidarity in South Korea (PPS), has also supported the recent campaign.
Boycotts have also targeted the industry’s “big four” (YG Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, SM Entertainment and HYBE) with hashtags such as #StrikeAgainstThe4.
The fans too criticized other Israeli and pro-Israel figures, such as American record producer Benny Blanco and Israeli record producer and songwriter Omer Fedi, who have worked alongside BTS and its individual members.