Xdinary Heroes’ Jun Han has issued a formal apology after facing backlash for his controversial comments. Many fans and netizens found his remarks racially insensitive and linked to outdated eugenic ideas.
The controversy began when the 22-year-old idol made problematic remarks on the fan messaging platform Bubble about different races and their supposed “advantages” in music, physical abilities, and intelligence.
In one message, he speculated about combining “white people’s ability to break down sugar, black people’s physical abilities, and the skilled brains of Asians and Indians.” Another comment claimed that Black people are good at music due to having “a lot of cells in their ears.”
After the post went viral and sparked outrage, JYP Entertainment apologized to the fans for not properly educating the artist.
We sincerely bow our heads and apologize to everyone who was hurt by the careless remarks made by our artist, Xdinary Heroes member Jun Han, on a fan communication platform today.
Jun Han is taking this matter very seriously and is deeply reflecting on the pain and disappointment caused by his thoughtless words. We, too, take responsibility for the shortcomings in our artist education and feel a strong sense of responsibility for this issue. We will pay closer attention to prevent such incidents from happening again.
We will do our utmost to ensure that our artists receive thorough training in social awareness, sensitivity, and careful communication with the public, so they can grow into mature individuals with the right values.
Once again, we sincerely apologize to everyone who was hurt by this incident.
JYP Entertainment
Jun Han also released a handwritten apology, saying
First and foremost, I sincerely apologize for causing great hurt and discomfort to many people with my thoughtless comments. I am deeply reflecting on the fact that the content I mentioned contained biased views.
Once again, I bow down and apologize to anyone who felt unpleasant or has been offended by my lack of history, social consciousness, and sensitivity. From now on, I’ll continue to learn and change so that I can act based on the right knowledge.
I will act more carefully and responsibly in each of my words and actions. Once again, I sincerely apologize.
Jun Han
Despite the apology, netizens have been criticizing him for promoting harmful stereotypes and ideas related to eugenics. It is a belief that certain human traits should be bred or combined to create so-called “superior” people.
On the work front, Jun Han’s group, Xdinary Heroes, will hold a concert in Taipei on July 11 as part of their world tour ‘Beautiful Mind.’