On Thursady, June 29, K-pop artist Yena's latest music video, Hate Rodrigo, was removed from YouTube at the request of American songstress Olivia Rodrigo's team. Yuehua Entertainment, the agency behind the video, had to allegedly take it down due to copyright issues that arose.
The music video included certain scenes which took inspiration from Olivia Rodrigo's previous work, which supposedly led to its removal. It is important to note that the decision to remove the video was not due to the controversial name of the song, but rather because the company had used posters, photos, and scenes featuring Olivia Rodrigo without her permission, resulting in copyright infringement.
Fans noticed the disappearance of the Hate Rodrigo music video from the official YouTube channel and took to social media to express their thoughts, both humorously and seriously:
"This is disrespectful to both Olivia and Yena": Fans believe agency should have been careful regarding the use of the former's visuals in the latter's latest music video
In Yena's music video, multiple posters, photos, and scenes of Olivia Rodrigo were used, leading to the video being taken down from YouTube due to copyright issues. The sudden deletion generated varying opinions among fans.
While some felt sympathetic towards Yena and expressed their disappointment in how her efforts were undermined, others believed that Yuehua Entertainment, the agency involved, should have conducted proper research on copyright issues and treated the matter seriously.
As mentioned by many fans, Hate Rodrigo was Yena's way of paying tribute to one of her favorite singers, Olivia Rodrigo. The former aimed to portray her cute jealousy towards the driver's license singer, but unfortunately, all of her efforts became meaningless due to the copyright infringement.
Take a look at how fans are reacting to the abrupt removal of the Hate Rodrigo from YouTube:
Earlier, the singer herself clarified the meaning behind her song, Hate Rodrigo, while stating:
"Hate Rodrigo' is a song that cutely and honestly expresses various emotions of longing for the object of envy and sometimes being jealous. I will do my best to show my longing and affection for you through sincere lyrics and performances."
With the video being taken down, fans are speculating and eagerly awaiting an official statement from Yuehua Entertainment, while also being curious about Yena's thoughts and emotions regarding the recent news. Fans are concerned about her well-being, hoping that the removal of the video hasn't had a significant impact on her.
The mentioned song serves as the title track for her second single album, HATE XX. Additionally, the album, which was released on June 27 recently, includes other songs such as Bad Hobby and Wicked Love.
More about Yena
The singer, a trainee under Yuehua Entertainment, was a member of the Japanese-Korean idol group IZ*ONE. She gained recognition by ranking fourth in the survival show Produce 48 (2018), securing her spot in the final lineup of IZ*ONE.
The idol made her television debut on the variety series Prison Life of Fools (2019) and is also a regular cast member on the variety show Girls' High School Mystery Class. In 2021, she received the prestigious Brand Customer Loyalty Awards Daesang as an Influential Entertainment Idol.
On April 29, 2021, IZ*ONE officially disbanded as a group. Beginning her solo journey, Yena made her debut on January 17, 2022, with the release of her mini album, SMiLEY.