Apink Shares Thoughts On Their Performance Being Cut Off At 2019 KBS Song Festival + IU Comments

Several members of Apink have expressed their thoughts and feelings after their performance was prematurely cut off at the 2019 KBS Song Festival.

On December 27, Apink performed live at the year-end music show, which took place at KINTEX (Korea International Exhibition Center) in Ilsan. For their song “%% (Eung Eung),” the group had choreographed a special end to the performance that involved the six members walking upstage and interacting with a male backup dancer.

However, during the live show, Apink’s music was abruptly cut off before the end of their performance, and the members looked lost and confused for several moments before ultimately heading offstage.

Upset by the incident, Apink’s fans soon banded together to trend the hashtag #JusticeForApink, which quickly rose to the top of Twitter’s list of worldwide trends. Fans who attended the live show also claimed that Apink had not been given a chance to do a rehearsal—something that might have prevented the incident from occurring.

#가요대축제_해명해
이거 무대 끝난거 맞나요 진짜
현장에서 찍으면서도 뭔가 했네 pic.twitter.com/skPywCU19F

— 파누 (@panu_apink_0419) December 27, 2019

가요대축제 이럴거면 부르지말아줘^^ pic.twitter.com/Eb1vZHqROJ

— 오하의마법사 (@y_960719) December 27, 2019

Later that night, Son Naeun took to Instagram to share two dance practice video clips that show how their performance was originally supposed to end. She also wrote in the caption:

So many upsetting things have happened at the end of this year. I’m posting this because I feel upset and apologetic that we weren’t able to show you the full performance that we worked hard to prepare.

To the Apink members and FreeMind, who toiled away while preparing [this performance], and to our staff, who toiled away from the early morning—no, from yesterday’s pre-recording—you all worked hard. Thank you to our Pandas [Apink’s fandom] who waited for our performance and cheered us on. As we had all gathered to wrap up the end of the year in a joyful way, to celebrate that we we had all worked hard and done a great job [this year], it was an event for which all the artists worked really hard to prepare.

I hope that in the future, it will be a fair and safe environment in which the performers can do a satisfactory job.

Thank you to the many people who are always cheering on Apink.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B6lMZ9mhTkw/

Both Jung Eun Ji and Bomi soon responded to her post with comforting comments. Jung Eun Ji affectionately wrote, “Our Naeung-nie, you worked hard too,” while Bomi declared, “Let’s find strength and work even harder.”

Shortly afterwards, Jung Eun Ji shared her feelings on her own Instagram account. She wrote:

Hello, this is Jung Eun Ji.

Many of our fans are feeling upset together with us and have been comforting us.

So after debating over what I should say to them, I’m posting this message.

I know that at the end of every year, many people work hard to put on a spectacular show. And I’m always grateful as I step onto the stage.

However, I sincerely pray for an environment in which the fans who fill the seats and the performances of all the artists, which are prepared with passion and sweat, are always treated with respect.

Thank you to our Pandas and all the other fans who cheered Apink on today.

I hope that you all enjoy a warm end to the year.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B6lS_qUhIqI/

IU responded to the post by commenting sympathetically, “How hard you must have worked to prepare your year-end performance and how hectic it must have been. How cold the dressing room must have been.”

Hayoung also voiced her opinion on her Instagram story, writing:

I believe that both the artists who are passionate about performing and the fans who love those artists and their music deserve to be treated with respect.

Let’s be happy as we wrap up this year, and let’s become each other’s strength..! It’s late, so please don’t feel upset or worry, and please fall soundly asleep.

Chorong opened up to her fans in a Naver V Live broadcast, remarking, “We were performing together as Apink for the first time in a long while, but parts of it were a bit disappointing. The members were very disappointed, and I thought that the fans might be disappointed as well, so  I decided to come on [V Live] even though it’s late at night, because I thought it’d be better for me to talk to you. I’m sorry [that it’s late].”

“Our fans were so worried about us, so I wanted to tell you not worry,” she went on. “What happened today was an accident. They apologized to us, and it was an accident.”

She added, “I think the reason we were upset wasn’t just about today’s performance. To be honest, the entire reason we attend these year-end music shows is for our fans. To give our fans one more performance. That’s why we go. But the amount of time we’re given is very short… we have to try to show as much as we can within that amount of time, so our agency, our dancers, and our members all [worked hard] to prepare this. That’s the part that was disappointing. We debated over even 10 or 15 seconds [of the song], whether to cut such-and-such part or leave it in. So from our standpoint, we want to show an even better performance, but it isn’t easy, and we feel regretful about that.”

Finally, Namjoo shared a comforting message for the group’s fans on her own Instagram story. The idol posted a selfie with the warmly-written caption: “We’re going to meet again with great performances, right? Sleep well. I love you.”

The full 2019 KBS Song Festival will soon be available with English subtitles on Viki. In the meantime, you can check out all of the performances here!

Source (1)

Top Photo Credit: Xportsnews