Street Man Fighter’s producer, Choi Jung-nam, shared that she was apologetic towards BoA for the controversy regarding her judging skills in a press conference on October 5, 2022. She said that Mnet is looking towards measures that will help them shield judges from potentially malicious comments.
BoA, a renowned K-pop idol, was trashed incessantly for judging when she, along with other idol-judges, made Prime Kingz' Trix lose against Bank Two Brothers’ J-Roc. Viewers seemed to have unanimously agreed on the former to be the rightful winner of the battle.
However, the defeat brought back the conversation of choosing idols to judge professional, world-renowned battlers. Unfortunately, BoA faced the brunt of it.
Choi Jung-nam also felt that the incident made them realize that they could have shown the judges’ decision process better. As per Koreaboo’s translation, she said:
“I am sorry she (BoA) was put in a difficult position while filming the show. Through this experience, we are looking into ways Mnet can help better shield them (BoA, Wooyoung, Eunhyuk) from malicious comments.”
The producer added:
“I felt we had to do a better job of making audiences understand the judge’s decision. I feel we could have done a better job in showing how the judges came to their decision.”
Mnet’s reality shows have always been laced with controversies, and Street Man Fighter is just the latest in its roster of scandals making headlines.
“I think they are well qualified”: Street Man Fighter’s producer explains why three idols judge professional dance crews
K-pop idols shine bright across the world, but back at home in the South Korean music industry itself, they are often regarded as inferior to “real” singers or dancers. The same goes for dance crews who choreograph idols and street dancers, no matter their popularity. Street Man Fighter, the successor to the highly popular Street Woman Fighter, clearly shows the rawness behind this disparity.
Street Man Fighter is only halfway through its 11-episode run but has been the subject of multiple controversies. Choi Jung-nam, the show’s producer discussed various aspects of the show with News1 on October 5, 2022. She shed light on the continuous doubts on the judges’ evaluation skills.
Choi Jung-nam explained that Wooyoung of 2PM has had previous experience with street battles. He has “detailed knowledge” about dance battles, its terminologies and was well-versed with the street dance scenes.
Super Junior’s Eunhyuk was good at directing. He is the main dancer of the group and also a choreographer. Meanwhile, BoA is dubbed the Queen of K-pop and is one of the most influential Korean artists with decades of experience under her belt.
The Street Man Fighter producer said that the judges “are qualified enough” to critique professional dance crews that represent South Korea’s rarely-tapped-into dance scene.
Producer Choi Jung-nam also touched upon MBITIOUS’ Jungwoo’s controversy. She said that the young dancer was struggling to meet the expectations and was “taking time to reflect.”
When asked about the social media post in which Jungwoo claimed he was forced, the producer shared that he had posted it “due to immense pressure” and it is not true.
Street Man Fighter airs every Tuesday on Mnet.