aespa's Giselle under fire after making an inappropriate comment in Vogue video 

aespa member Giselle recently received flak for making a su*cide joke, in a YouTube video for Vogue.

Rookie K-pop group aespa is taking the US by storm. The four member group were recently in New York City for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, where they were a part of the “Her Future is STEM-sational” float. A few days before the annual event, aespa shot a video with Vogue, giving viewers a chance to take a tour of the Big Apple along with the K-pop act.

On December 11, Vogue released a video on their channel titled 24 Hours with aespa. While fans of the band have mostly been all praises for the easy breezy friendship and chemistry between the members, some took offense at a certain statement made by Giselle.

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aespa Giselle's comment in Vogue video leaves internet divided

In the short video, Giselle, Ningning, Karina and Winter visit some iconic New York locations, from breakfast at a cafe in SoHo to the Empire State Building.

Giselle, given her fluency in English, pretty much acts as the spokesperson for the group. However, the idol’s casual remark made at the 3:41 mark, while at the Empire State Building, has unleashed a debate.

While the aespa members were taking in the view of the city from the Empire State Building, Giselle, her phone in hand for a picture, comments in Korean, "I would die if my phone drops." While this off-hand comment would have been ignored had it been said in English, what stood out for several Korean viewers of the video was the usage of 자살말림, which means su*cide. Several stated that a much closer translation would be, "If my phone falls, I will kill myself."

Given the sensitivity of a topic like su*cide, Giselle’s lighthearted comment was not taken kindly by several Korean netizens. Many stated that as an adult, and as an idol, the aespa member should have been more careful in her choice of words. Her casual usage of su*cide was seen as disrespectful to the public.

Many even accused Vogue’s editors for not paying enough attention, claiming that censoring or editing that part out would have been better.

Incidentally, back in October, Giselle was called out for using the n-word while dancing along to American artist SZA’s song, Love Galore.

Despite the detractors, several have also come to the idol’s defense, stating that it was a joke. Many pointed out that jokes about “killing myself” is very GenZ humor, and thus it is no surprise that Giselle too would have a similar sense of humor.

Readers can watch the full video here:

Meanwhile, aespa announced on November 4 that they would be releasing a cover of S.E.S.'s Dreams Come True on December 20.