aespa Giselle Draws Criticism Following Suicide Joke in Vogue Video

[TW/CW: Mentions of suicide jokes]

aespa member Giselle is facing scrutiny for making a suicide joke during the group's video with Vogue. Keep on reading for all the details.

aespa Giselle Faces Scrutiny Following Suicide Joke in Vogue Video

On December 11, Vogue uploaded a video to their official YouTube channel titled "24 Hours With aespa." In the video, viewers had the opportunity to follow the aespa girls as they went on a tour around New York. Previously, the girls were in the city in November 2021 to perform at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

The video features the girls at various hot spots in New York, from breakfast at a cafe in SoHo to admiring the city view at the Empire State Building. However, Vogue's video quickly sparked a fierce controversy surrounding a statement made by member Giselle at the 3:41 mark after the video was posted.

ALSO READ: aespa Winter Earns Praise for Doll-like Beauty at 2021 Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA)

While the aespa members were taking pictures of New York City from the Empire State Building. According to the captions, Giselle said, "I would die if my phone drops." However, the Korean term Giselle used is "자살말림," which means suicide. Therefore, if translated from its literal Korean, Giselle actually said, "If my phone falls, I will kill myself."

As suicide is a sensitive topic, Giselle's statement immediately became the focus of serious debate on South Korean online community forums. Many believed that Giselle's comment was thoughtless and inexcusable, as she is an adult and a celebrity with a massive influence on the youth. Therefore, making a joke about suicide in public is disrespectful on her part.

ALSO READ: aespa Karina's Solo Dance at the 2021 Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMAs) Earns Mixed Opinions - Here's Why

Others criticized Vogue's editors for not carefully censoring the content before posting online. People claimed that the publication should have cut out that put or simply put music over the conversation before posting to avoid misunderstandings.

However, some have defended Giselle, saying that her statement was a common joke between friends.

ALSO READ: SM Entertainment Draws Scrutiny for aespa's Low-Budget Stage at 2021 Mnet Asia Music Awards (MAMAs)

Some of the comments concerning Giselle's statement read, "First the n-word, now suicide?" "Giselle should have kept her mouth shut," "Giselle was reckless in this situation," "It has only been a year since her debut, but she already has so many scandals. From the n-word to suicide..." and "Why did they not censor it carefully before posting?"

Check out Vogue's video with aespa here:

What do you think of the situation? Tell us in the comments below.

aespa's Recent Activities

On November 4, it was announced aespa would release a cover of "Dreams Come True," a song originally by S.E.S. The cover will be released on December 20.

On December 2, aespa won their first Daesang for "Stage of the Year" at the 2021 Asia Artist Awards (AAAs). On December 4, aespa won their second Daesang for "Record of the Year" at the 2021 MelOn Music Awards. (MMAs).

For more K-pop news, keep your tabs open here on KpopStarz.

KpopStarz owns this article.

Written by Alexa Lewis.