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PSY’s Summer Swag concert has once again made headlines, but this time, it’s not the artist or the concert that landed in trouble. A bus company in Yeosu came under fire for using derogatory language and objectifying women in a message meant to encourage riders to work late.
The company alerted its riders to the influx of riders on August 8, the evening the Gangnam Style hitmaker was scheduled to perform. As it increased the riders’ service hours to accommodate the attendees, it sent a message to all its employees telling them that they can “consider this a feast for your eyes.”
After the backlash, the company apologized for their remarks. They said that they did not have any “malicious intent” but were only trying to “boost morale” of the riders working late at night. They said,
“As the driver’s working hours were extended, many drivers were having difficulties. We sent the message hoping to boost morale, but we had no malicious intent. We will have preventative measures in place to ensure something like this never happens again.”
PSY’s Summer Swag concert began at 6:40 pm and lasted three hours. Since the concert attracted nearly 30,000 visitors across the country, the bus company delayed its closing time from 11:30 pm to 1:10 am.
PSY’s Summer Swag concert fiasco continues: Bus company calls female attenders “a feast” to encourage drivers working late
K-pop legend PSY is on his annual domestic tour spanning seven weeks and seven cities called the 2022 Summer Swag concert. The concert kicked off on July 9 and will go on till August 20. The concert has made multiple headlines in the past, twice for negative reasons.
On August 8, South Korean online communities were abuzz with criticisms against the text message sent by a Yeosu bus company on August 6, the day of PSY’s Summer Swag concert. The message was termed as s*xual harassment and objectification of female attendees at the K-pop legend’s concert.
The majority of the message was a simple alert notice. It notified the drivers of what to take care of while picking up passengers from Jinnam Sports Park (the venue of the concert).
"This is a message from the bus company. On Friday, due to PSY’s concert, there will be an influx of riders in the terminal from the afternoon. Also, it is said that the riders will be drenching each other until late in the evening, so please be careful as they may slip and fall while boarding the bus. Please be wary, so the riders are not hurt."
It also mentioned information on extra buses and routes to make the evening to midnight ride a bit smoother.
“Additional buses will begin their routes 20 minutes later, so do not worry. The routes which will be affected will be advised in the afternoon.”
However, it was the last line that was deemed inappropriate. The message called women attending PSY’s Summer Swag concert eye candy and, as per the company’s apology, was meant to energize drivers who were working later.
“Skinny and voluptuous women from all over the country will be riding the buses today, so consider this a feast for your eyes and work hard.”
The text message soon became a hotbed of controversy. As per SBS News, a netizen even commented that they “thought it was a nightclub promotional text.”
The bus company assured that the message was not of malicious intent. It added that it will be more careful in the future to ensure it is never repeated.
