Jay Park-produced idol group draws backlash over 'middle-finger' photo

LNGSHOT, a rookie boy band produced by singer Jay Park, drew backlash over a photo showing members posing while holding up their middle fingers before their official debut.

Jay Park posted a photo and video of himself and the members on his social media on Sept. 20, writing, “Aren’t my kids good-looking? I don’t know if they’ll be the best-selling, but I know they’ll do K-pop in the coolest way.”

In the uploaded content, Jay Park and the members of LNGSHOT are seen giving the middle finger to the camera.

Online commenters criticized the gesture, saying, “Why flip the finger when it’s the first time we’re seeing you?” “You’re idols, you can’t do that,” “Go back to learning basic idol etiquette,” “This is just a continuation of ‘hip-hop isn’t cool,’” and “Glad I’m not the only one offended.”

LNGSHOT is a four-member group composed of Louis, Ohyul, Woojin and Ryul.

Jay Park introduced the group on stage at a university festival held at Hanyang University in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul, on Sept. 19. LNGSHOT performed a new song at the event.

The group is scheduled to officially debut in January next year.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY JUNG SI-NAE [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]