Two fans said they didn’t want to remove his photocards.
A clip of two alleged espa fans arguing about how beautiful the girl group’s album design is recently went viral and sparked intense debate online. The video initially gained traction on TikTok and has since made its way to X (formerly known as Twitter).
The controversy that broke out had nothing to do with the album itself but rather with the two girls who admitted that they were discouraged from buying a copy because they wouldn’t want to pull out a photo badge with Giselle.
aespa 에스파 ‘Whiplash’ ae-GISELLE : Whiplash Universe
aespa 에스파 The fifth mini album〖Whiplash〗
➫ 21.10.2024 18:00 (KST)🔗 https://t.co/8IVqBeE9vE
💿 https://t.co/vf9C9KK4FO#aespa #espa #espa #GISELLE #giselle#Whiplash #aespaWhiplash pic.twitter.com/sUGfOKAC1U—aespa (@aespa_official) September 29, 2024
The clip begins with the girls praising the group and their famous, intricate designs…
This would be a really nice scrapbook kit…I just don’t want to bring up Giselle.
— Fan on clip
But it soon turns into criticism of Giselle.
Fan 1: Literally, I was thinking, ‘If I pull Giselle, I’m going to turn over and die.’ I would have been really pissed.
Fan 2: I don’t care how much hate I get… Bro, don’t get me started on this shit…
@jiungsgimmiemoney #kpop #fyp #aespa #kpopfyp
♬ original sound – STREAM SAD SONG‼️🗣️ jiung
The two girls then mention Giselle’s past controversy, in which she says the racial slur N during a behind-the-scenes video of aespa recording their “Savage” music video. In 2021, a video of her singing SZA’s Love Galore and lip-syncing the N-word went viral.
SM Entertainment Privates aespa Video after protests over Giselle uttering a racial slur
Giselle faced heavy criticism from mainly international fans and was forced to issue an official apology.
I had no intention of doing this with any purpose and got carried away when one of my favorite artist’s songs was played.
— Giselle of Aespa in uttering the insult N
Hi, I’m GISELLE.
I would like to apologize for saying the wrong word from the lyrics of the song that was being played on site. I had no intention of doing this with any purpose and got carried away when one of my favorite artist’s songs was played. I sincerely apologize.
—aespa (@aespa_official) October 25, 2021
While some fans appreciated and accepted the Aespa star’s apology, others didn’t think the same. As such, controversy has followed Giselle ever since, with some fans still remaining critical of her. Indeed, even then, many found his apology insufficient and excusing.
also, how does your company edit it and upload it later without seeing anything wrong? 💀
— ⬟ eva ⬠ (@artisthyunggu) October 25, 2021
Based on the viral clip, it seems that even years later, some still haven’t forgiven her. However, some fans came to her defense. On TikTok, the now-viral clip was posted by an account that disagreed with the two fans, arguing that they had no right to say so after Giselle had already apologized. The original poster also states that the two fans called Giselle “ugly” in one of their replies.
“they don’t have to forgive Giselle” kiss my fat ass, bitch, these two smelly ugly girls thought it would be okay to call her ugly and mock her for all the reaction, don’t piss me off, it’s not about what the n word says it’s about the dislike of these two whores… pic.twitter.com/gDURmkCJEx
— ☆ 🏁 (@khiawings) September 29, 2024
The comments section, with nearly 2,000 responses currently, is a completely different story. The general sentiment in the comments is that the two fans, who are black, have every right not to accept Giselle’s apology and continue to feel disappointed or upset by her behavior. Regardless, there are still fans who defend her by claiming that if you don’t support Giselle, then there’s no reason to support Aespa.
Others say that, unlike the two viral fans, they would be extremely happy if they pulled out a photo card of Giselle. What are your thoughts?