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KISS OF LIFE is facing backlash after a birthday livestream for member Julie on April 2, 2025. It was themed “old-school hip-hop vibes.” During the livestream, the members wore outfits linked to Black and Latino culture. Viewers called out the stream for allegedly using racist stereotypes and cultural appropriation. The clip went viral, sparking outrage online.
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Soon after the controversy surfaced, S2 Entertainment posted an official apology. However, fans and netizens weren’t happy with it, and some KISS OF LIFE fan pages announced the closing of their accounts on social media.
On April 5, KISS OF LIFE posted a second apology—a handwritten letter on their socials. In the note, the members said they’ve learned from the incident and promised to do better moving forward. Reactions to the handwritten apology were mixed. Some fans appreciated the personal touch, but others called it out.
“It’s giving ChatGPT,” an X user commented, noting that the apology sounds like it was written by AI.
Some users pointed to a drop in followers as a possible reason for the response. Others said the apology is once again "chopped."
"Y’all were just testing the waters (with the company apology) and when you saw you lost 200k followers you knew you had to make an apology," one fan said.
"If you aren’t black and you speaking about we need to accept this apology please STFU bc you have no right to tell us how the feel and what the feel the apology once again is CHOPPED," another X user mentioned.
"Calling this a “learning experience” is f**ked up. educate yourself beforehand so your learning doesn’t come at the expense of thousands of your fans," another person said.
Meanwhile, others were more accepting of the apology, expressing support and appreciation for KISS OF LIFE's "honesty."
"It's not my apology to accept but I just want to say that I'm here with you girls in learning and growing every step of the way. kissys have your back, and I wanna be with you girls throughout the ups and downs ❤️," another netizen shared.
"Appreciate the honesty fr. we all make mistakes — what matters is how you grow from it," another fan added.
KISS OF LIFE sees a drop in followers
Following the livestream, KISS OF LIFE experienced a significant loss of followers across multiple platforms. As per Pinkvilla's April 5 report, on Instagram, the K-pop group's official account lost 56,172 followers on April 3, 2025. Followed by another 22,266 on April 4, 2025.
The group’s TikTok account reportedly saw a drop of approximately 100,000 followers. On YouTube, subscriber numbers declined by around 8,000 during the same period. Along with the follower drop, many fan accounts went silent or were deleted. These accounts are used to promote the group actively.
KISS OF LIFE started their Asian tour KISS ROAD on April 4, 2025. This comes right after they wrapped up their European leg. They’ll perform in nine cities. Including Bangkok (Natty's hometown), Manila, Singapore, Macau, Yokohama, and Osaka. The group is also set to perform at Hungary’s Sziget Festival in August 2025.
