South Korean girl group LE SSERAFIM (르세라핌) recently announced a new mini album, which serves as their first comeback since being the target of widespread hate from K-pop fans. Unfortunately, the group’s shot at redeeming their pre-controversy status has another obstacle after fans urged a boycott of the release.
The five-member girl group will release their fourth album, “Crazy”, at the end of August. The album comprises five songs, including the title track, Crazy”. However, the song “1-800-hot–n-fun” was the one which garnered some negative attention from many international fans. The track is produced and written by several notable names, including producers BloodPop, AOBeats and Omer Fedi – with the latter receiving the most attention.
Omer is an Israeli producer who has worked with many artists, including The Kid Laroi and Ella Mai. The 24-year-old was born in Tel Aviv, which, according to history, was built as a settlement in the Arab city of Jaffa in 1909. However, since 16, Omer has relocated to Los Angeles, where he has lived ever since. There also aren’t details regarding his stance on the Israeli-Palestine war, but many K-pop fans regard his background as enough reason to boycott his work, including the LE SSERAFIM album.
It’s worth noting that Omer’s participation isn’t the only reason why fans are urging a boycott of LE SSERAFIM’s album. Many international K-pop fans have been calling for a boycott of all releases under HYBE LABELS, including Source Music, since early this year. The move started in response to the company’s ties to Scooter Braun, the CEO of HYBE America. Scooter is an infamous figure in the American music scene and an outspoken supporter of Israel. At the same time, many K-pop fans also chose to boycott HYBE in response to the allegations surrounding founder Bang Si-Hyuk.
Only time will tell whether fans will end up boycotting LE SSERAFIM’s album – and whether there will be an effect on the EP’s performance on the charts. What are your thoughts on this?
