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On May 6, 2024, GOT7 idol BamBam commented on an X post where the online user accused him of s*xualizing minors. After receiving backlash from his fans, the user deleted his two tweets on X. The matter escalated online on May 6, 2024, as another old topic resurfaced, causing a discourse.
For context, on May 5, 2024, the allegations made by the X user (@jenniesnatched) touched the emotional nerve of the GOT7 idol. In the next tweet, the user demeaned the Fine singer, alleging that "nobody knows who BamBam is" and accused him of s*xualizing minors.
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The user added that the artist needs to stay away from NCT's Jeno. This further irked BamBam, who replied sternly with the question, "How about you, stfu?"
BamBam's recent tweet brings back a year-old matter amidst ongoing online discourse
On May 5, 2024, a netizen (@jenniesnatched) ignited the debate by putting BamBam in opposition to Jeno in a since-deleted post, saying, "Jeno did it better." This happened after the GOT7 idol and Jeno of NCT made news of going shirtless during their respective concert performances on May 4, 2024.
While NCT DREAM captivated audiences at "THE DREAM SHOW 3 IN SEOUL," BamBam electrified fans during his sold-out "2023-2024 BamBam THE 1ST WORLD TOUR ENCORE "AREA 52" in Bangkok on the same day.
The two recent malicious tweets against the GOT7 member that accused him of s*xualizing minor idols were a reference to a year-old matter from February 2023. The X user (@jenniesnatched) accused the idol of making inappropriate comments about NewJeans' Haerin in episode 6 of Bam's House.
The episode in question (episode 6 of Bam's House), showed GOT7 idol answer a hypothetical question posed by his guest, YouTuber Poongja, where he had to choose his partner between aespa's Winter and NewJeans' Haerin. The Fine singer mentioned that if he had to choose a partner whom he could trust with his life, he would pick Poongja.
When probed further by Poongja, he went ahead to pick Haerin but then immediately changed his mind, stating that her age was an issue since Haerin was 16 at that time. It is important to note that this was a hypothetical fun question asked by Poongja.
Following the incident, the Slow Mo singer's actions were branded as inappropriate and creepy online, sparking allegations of pedophilia in February 2023.
In February 2023, Abyss Company—his management agency—issued a notice stating that they would take strict legal action against perpetrators who would spread malicious content against the musician.
After that, the musician decided to use Weverse Live to share his birthday with his followers on May 2, 2023. The artist acknowledged the matter from February 2023 on a live stream, albeit not explicitly responding to it.
"I’m tired and stressed out and I wanna give up sometimes, not gonna lie. You know, just let me live, let me work, everything I need is love. If you’re not going to support, just back off and let me do my thing." (as reported and translated by Koreaboo)
It is important to note that the two matters—the GOT7 idol being accused of inappropriate comments in 2023 and being compared to Jeno in May 2024—happened during two time periods but got linked to one another due to the recent criticism against the GOT7 member.
Fans came in support of BamBam to prove his innocence in 2023
In February 2023, after the allegations, devoted supporters promptly rallied to BamBam's support, claiming that the video had been misinterpreted and taken out of context. They contended that the GOT7 idol's remarks regarding the female idols were not improper; rather, they sprang from respect for their music throughout the show.
Additionally, a Reddit user (@ishouldstopcommentin) detailed the entire episode from Bam's House in February 2023 and highlighted the criticized sections. The user's post resurfaced due to the ongoing circumstances.
The user constructively stated when and how the GOT7 artist mentioned each female idol and the context. Based on the post, it was evident that the Slow Mo singer's comments were in fact misconstrued and blown out of proportion.
Previously, in one YouTube video titled, Drunk BamBam shows his SOUR side to fans, the idol was seen having a good time chatting with four Ahgases on a talk show.
After ongoing hate for months since February 2023, he addressed the false allegations in his Weverse livestream on May 2, 2023. BamBam asked his fans to have faith in him and not believe the "haters". He said he strives to be the greatest version of himself and occasionally thinks about quitting.
"You know, this has been bothering me every day since like three weeks ago. You know y'all tell me not to care about the haters but people do believe the haters these days. So how do I not care? […] You guys know what kind of person I am, don’t believe a ten-second video." (as reported and translated by Koreaboo)
Even though the dispute has been going on for a while, BamBam was definitely affected by the current upsurge in negative comments. He concluded his "AREA 52" concert tour in his hometown in Bangkok with a sold-out show on May 4, 2024.
