KISS OF LIFE dropped from KCON LA just 5 days after announcement following fan backlash over cultural appropriation controversy
On May 16, KCON LA organizers released an official statement confirming the group's removal. 'After careful consideration and thorough discussions exploring all avenues for participation, KCON and S2 Entertainment have mutually agreed that KISS OF LIFE will not be joining KCON LA 2025,' it read. 'We sincerely apologize to the fans who were looking forward to the performance and ask for your understanding.'
While the announcement didn't dive into why the group was suddenly out, the internet isn't clueless. The timing lines up closely with the ongoing backlash KISS OF LIFE faced over a controversial birthday livestream in April.
During the live, celebrating member Julie, the group styled themselves with an old-school hip-hop theme that many viewers, especially international fans, called out for playing into harmful Black stereotypes.
Fans took issue with several things: exaggerated "Black mannerisms," the use of culturally significant braided hairstyles as costume pieces, and a parody rap name, Lil Taco. The moment quickly made waves online, with fans on TikTok and X (formerly Twitter) calling out the group for crossing a line and reducing Black culture to a theme party.
KISS OF LIFE 's backlash prompted S2 Entertainment to issue an apology on May 4, saying they regretted using stereotypical imagery and expressions. A few days later, on May 6, the members posted handwritten apology letters in English on their social. Still, a part of the fanbase felt the apologies didn't fully address the harm or show a real understanding of the issue.
Neither KCON nor S2 Entertainment confirmed that the controversy was the reason behind the group's removal, but fans online aren't buying the 'mutual decision' line without context. To many, it's clear that the fallout from the livestream pushed the organizers to reconsider.
KCON LA 2025 will still take place from August 1 to 3, with more artist announcements expected soon. While fans are disappointed, others are saying this move shows that accountability is becoming more important in the K-pop world, especially when artists are performing on global stages.
Whether this turns into a teachable moment or a long-term hit to KISS OF LIFE 's image is still up in the air.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
an hour ago
- India Today
Ganesh idols: Immersed in ecological uncertainty
(NOTE: This article was originally published in the India Today issue dated August 18, 2025)In a small workshop in Hamrapur village, 60 kilometres from Mumbai, Nitesh Daur stands quietly amid neat rows of white Ganesh idols. Crafted from Plaster of Paris (PoP)—a lightweight, detail-friendly material—the statues have been his livelihood since 2005. 'If I shut down this business, what will I do?' asks the 35-year-old father of two. 'I have no other skills.'advertisementDaur's anxiety stems from a long-running legal battle over the environmental impact of PoP idols, the genesis of which can be traced to a 2005 PIL by the late rationalist Narendra Dabholkar's Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti. On January 30, this year, the Bombay High Court issued an interim order, directing civic bodies across Maharashtra to enforce the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) 2020 guidelines banning the immersion of PoP idols—even in artificial tanks—during the Maghi Ganeshotsav (January-February).The rationale: PoP's adverse effects on aquatic ecosystems. The result: a swift crackdown by municipal bodies and police. On June 9, the court modified its order, allowing the manufacture and sale of PoP idols—so long as they aren't immersed in natural water bodies. A CPCB expert panel has also clarified that its 2020 guidelines were advisory, not mandatory. The partial reprieve has given idol-makers like Daur some breathing room ahead of this year's main Ganeshotsav, which begins in late August and is the most popular festival in Maharashtra. Then, on July 24, came further clarity. The court ruled that PoP idols under 6 feet in height must be immersed only in artificial water tanks, while taller idols may go into natural water bodies. The court also directed the state government to ensure local bodies strictly implement these amended norms and to provide enough artificial tanks for immersions. Additionally, the state was told to form an Expert Scientific Committee within a month to explore ways to recycle and reuse PoP and examine eco-friendly methods for faster dissolution. These directions will remain in force for all immersion-based festivals till March 2026. Accordingly, the state government has issued comprehensive guidelines for the immersion of PoP idols. Even so, not everyone is mollified. Naresh Dahibavkar, president of the Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti, welcomes the relief but warns of uncertainty ahead. 'This is only an interim order,' he says. 'Next year, the issue will be back in court.' He wants a 'permanent solution' to the issue of immersion of large idols—installed by more than 3,000 Ganesh mandals in Mumbai alone. Environmentalist Harshad Dhage, a petitioner in the case, too notes the 'temporary' nature of the reprieve. Emphasising the need to strike a balance between faith and sustainability, he says, 'This is not a fight against festivals, but against pollution.'HUBBUB AT THE HUBFor decades, idol-making has been the lifeblood of Hamrapur and neighbouring villages like Kalave, Johe, Tambadshet and Dadar in Pen taluka of Raigad district. Anchored by Pen town, the region is the nucleus of Maharashtra's Ganesh idol industry and even got the Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2023. Across the taluka, some 250,000 people are said to be employed in the Rs 200-crore industry, collectively shipping out millions of clay and PoP idols each year, not only in India but to diaspora communities as far afield as the United States. Mumbai alone hosts some 12,000 public Ganesh mandals and over 200,000 household idols—most of them made from PoP and sourced from this Ganesh worship in Maharashtra was a modest, private ritual, with small, hand-crafted idols made from local clay. But in the 1890s, nationalist leader Bal Gangadhar Tilak elevated the festival into a public spectacle—an instrument of anti-colonial solidarity. Pen's transformation into an idol-making hub gathered pace in the 1950s, propelled by its location between Mumbai and Pune, and the availability of clay. A crucial shift came when local sculptor N.G. 'Rajabhau' Deodhar experimented with PoP, initially to embellish decorative images with finer detailing. Cultural cues added fuel. In V. Shantaram's 1959 film Navrang, an imposing 11-foot Ganesh idol made of PoP commanded the screen and was later immersed ceremoniously, foreshadowing a trend toward ever-larger images of the deity in households and mandals. The material proved easy to mould, light to transport and ideal for mass production. By the 1980s, Pen housed more than 500 workshops crafting idols from both clay and PoP, according to Shrikant Deodhar, Rajabhau's nephew and a fourth-generation sculptor. In the 1990s, outlying villages, with their cheaper land and abundant labour, joined the fray. In Hamrapur, farmlands long eroded by saline ingress have given way to gleaming bungalows—quiet monuments to the prosperity the idol trade has brought. In this belt, artisans are organically initiated into the craft as January court order, however, had sent tremors through the region. Many workshops suspended work entirely. 'We lost three critical months,' says Jagdish Patil, president of the Shri Ganesh Murtikar Utkarsha Mandal, representing about 600 workshops in Hamrapur. 'We usually produce around a million idols every year. This time, it may drop to 800,000.' THE PoP VS CLAY DEBATEadvertisementThe economics is unforgiving. Most manufacturers take loans to buy raw materials. For, while wholesale buyers settle dues post-festival, vendors supplying PoP, paint and coir insist on advance payments. 'Customers are fewer this year. There's confusion and fear,' says Neeraj Naik, an idol-maker in Hamrapur. In a neighbouring workshop, sculptor Kunal Patil gestures at a half-finished idol. 'One person can make 10-15 PoP idols per shift. Clay? Maybe two or three,' he is a key factor—while the retail rates of clay and PoP idols vary widely depending on the market and locality, a one-and-a-half-foot tall clay idol typically costs around Rs 3,000, compared to Rs 2,000 for a similarly sized PoP idol at the lower end of the product line. Patil and others maintain that PoP idols are not just more durable and cost-effective but more aesthetically consistent. 'Clay idols are fragile—even a damp garland can cause them to flake, which many consider inauspicious,' says Mahendra Kamble, a distributor who supplies Hamrapur idols to Dombivli, an extended suburb of Mumbai. 'If I sell 1,000 idols, barely 150 are clay. This means people prefer PoP.'advertisementBut traditionalists and environmentalists contest that logic. 'PoP doesn't dissolve, and broken parts of these idols later wash up on the shore,' says Mumbai-based clay sculptor Vasant Raje. 'This is vitambana (sacrilege) of our religion.' Raje points to the iconic 20-foot clay 'Girgaoncha Raja', installed every year in Mumbai's Girgaon neighbourhood, as proof that size isn't a bone of contention, i.e. PoP, is made by heating gypsum to remove water, resulting in a powder that hardens when mixed with water. A 2023 study on the Tapi river, which runs through Maharashtra's northern edge, found a clear correlation between PoP idol immersion and degraded water quality. The paints often contain toxic metals like lead and cadmium. PoP itself may take months—or even years—to dissolve, raising water hardness and harming aquatic life. Wildlife biologist Anand Pendharkar notes that the material clogs the burrows of fish and crabs and damages mangrove roots. 'It has affected the breeding of Bombay duck, sponges and other marine organisms,' he says. The annual use of PoP across the state is about 4,500 tonnes, with Mumbai alone accounting for 675 tonnes, notes the 2023 study. Gradually, other states, like Goa, are banning the import and sale of PoP Ganesh doubts persist about how viable a large-scale pivot to clay would be. Today, just about 20 per cent of the idols made in Pen taluka are clay-based. The supply chain isn't ready. Nor is the workforce adequately trained, say those in the PoP idol industry. Some stakeholders call for a middle ground. 'The issue has to be seen from the prism of employment,' says Dhairyashil Patil, a Rajya Sabha MP of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and former MLA from Pen. 'Even chemical industries pollute. Yet, we don't call for them to be banned. We ask for them to be regulated.' For now, the idol-makers of Hamrapur and nearby villages sculpt on, tracing divine forms in drying plaster, uncertain what shape their future will to India Today Magazine- EndsTrending Reel
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
3 upcoming K-Dramas starring Fight For My Way's Park Seo Joon and Kim Ji Won: Bloodhounds 2 to Waiting For Gyeongdo
Upcoming K-dramas in 2025 and 2026 Waiting for Gyeongdo Doctor X: Age of the White Mafia Bloodhounds 2 Fans of the beloved 2017 K-drama Fight for My Way have reason to celebrate, both Park Seo Joon and Kim Ji Won are making their highly anticipated return to the small screen. With three new dramas set to release across 2025 and 2026, the dynamic stars are gearing up to showcase their range in romance, action, and noir thrillers. Here's a closer look at what viewers can expect from their upcoming Seo Joon, known for his roles in romantic comedies, will headline Waiting for Gyeongdo , a fresh take on rekindled love. Set for release in the second half of 2025, the series revolves around Lee Gyeongdo,an entertainment reporter at Dongwoon Daily, and his ex-girlfriend Seo Jiwoo, played by If You Wish Upon Me star Won Ji An. Jiwoo, now the heiress of Jarim Apparel and known for her headline-making antics, finds her past colliding with her present after her husband's scandal is series brings a balance of comedy, nostalgia, and second-chance romance as the two former lovers, who first dated at 20 and broke up at 28, are pulled back into each other's lives. Waiting for Gyeongdo also features an ensemble cast including Lee El, Lee Joo Young, Kang Ki Doong, and Jo Min Guk, and is already generating strong buzz as Park Seo Joon's big return to the rom-com from her emotional performance in Queen of Tears, Kim Ji Won will next be seen in Doctor X: Age of the White Mafia , a dark, noir-style medical thriller set to release in 2026. This drama marks her first medical role since 2016's Descendants of the Sun. Kim plays Gye Soojung, a prodigious surgeon who voluntarily exiles herself from the medical world after a devastating incident. Now, she returns to challenge the corrupt medical system using only her unmatched surgical skill. With themes of revenge, justice, and redemption, Doctor X positions Kim Ji Won at the center of a high-stakes narrative that is expected to showcase her depth as a leading fans eagerly await his lead role in Waiting for Gyeongdo, Park Seo Joon will also make a special appearance in Bloodhounds 2, the sequel to the popular action-thriller series. Though details of his role are still under wraps, his reunion with Woo Do Hwan and director Kim Joo Hwan, his collaborators in The Divine Fury, has heightened 2 follows boxers Kim Geonwoo (Woo Do Hwan) and Hong Woojin (Lee Sang Yi) as they enter a brutal global underground boxing league led by the formidable new villain, played by Rain. The series is expected to hit Netflix in 2026.
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
HEYOON: I try to write from a place hoping it'll connect with a lot of people
A decade since her debut, HEYOON says her current frame of mind is all about having fun. Her latest single "Addicted' is a deep house track which marks a significant creative shift for the singer, who turns composer, lyricist, and even takes production charge. HEYOON With its surreal framework rooted in R.E.M. sleep and the hypnotic world of dreams, HEYOON lucidly explores themes of seduction, ecstasy, and downfall, describing it as a reflection of her own imagination. 'I try to write from a place hoping it'll connect with a lot of people. What's amazing about music is that once you share it with the world, people can relate to it through their own experiences. With Addicted, I just hope it makes people DANCE.' Also read: YOUNGJAE: Indian music shows me that there's so much to explore Addicted, her third single, follows the chart-busting success of her solo debut Pivot, a collaboration with American rapper-singer Armani White. She finds resonance in both tracks, as each represents a different timeline in her life. 'When I released Pivot, I was going through a pivotal moment, moments of self-acceptance. These days, I'm trying to have some fun and seize the day.' Transitioning into a solo career after five years as part of the global pop group Now United, HEYOON says the shift was as challenging as it was relieving. She feels indebted to fans who stood by her through the transition, which she describes as a journey of growth and constant learning. 'I feel lucky and grateful I get to continue my creative journey as an artist because these kinds of transitions are not easy. It's challenging to navigate the pressures of being a solo artist.' Splitting her time between Los Angeles and Korea, HEYOON has witnessed K-pop's global rise first-hand. 'I felt so proud seeing the love for K-pop grow everywhere,' she says, crediting its 'attention to detail and fantasy' for its worldwide pull. India, she says, has her heart. 'I love Bollywood's unique sound and energy,' she says. 'I was lucky enough to work with Badshah in 2019 while at Now United, and even stayed in India for a month. It was such a rich experience. I can't wait to perform there again.' Popular among MZ (millennial and Gen Z) listeners, HEYOON insists her music is for everyone. 'I try to not think too much about what the song should give. The more I write something I personally enjoy and resonate with, the better it works, because when there's love and authenticity in your art, people will feel it too.' As for what's next, she's clear: 'Definitely more music. I'm having fun exploring my sound right now and working towards a body of work , hopefully an EP or mixtape for the fans!'
