The domestic hip-hop project group Ssaekkeunboys (SGBOYZ), formed five years ago, is suffering from unexpected appearance-related disparagement after being mistaken for a rookie idol group in Japan.
On Friday, a Japanese netizen shared a video of Ssaekkeunboys' past M Countdown debut stage on X (formerly Twitter), writing, "I'm sorry. I really feel like my sensibilities have aged. Is this serious? Is this cool?"
They added, "No matter how you look at it, J-pop is much better," and "If they force this through, of course people will stop watching TV."
As of that afternoon, the post had surpassed 540,000 views, recording over 1,700 "likes" and more than 200 reposts.
The released video showed four men wearing matching white suits taking turns looking at the camera while singing. Distinctive hairstyles, such as long bob cuts and unique braids, also drew attention. The screen displayed the subtitle "HOT DEBUT," announcing the debut of a rookie group.
Some Japanese netizens who viewed the video reacted with comments such as, "They're all ugly," "Is this a comedy?", "It looks like a performance by relatives at someone's wedding," and "I thought it was made by AI as a joke."
On the other hand, some netizens offered different opinions, stating, "Standards of coolness change with the times," "There are differences in individual values," and "Isn't this a comedy concept?"
However, the group in the video was not an ordinary rookie idol group, but a project group formed by famous domestic rappers.
Ssaekkeunboys is a group consisting of four members: Park Jae-beom, Rocco, Nucksal, and Den Mills. It was formed following the variety show "Nucksal in a Curious Country" on the hip-hop content channel Dingo Freestyle in 2021.
At that time, the members also presented an exaggerated idol concept and comical facial expressions, eliciting laughter.
When the video was shared on domestic online communities, Korean netizens expressed a sense of absurdity.
They left comments such as, "Did they think Ssaekkeunboys were real idols?", "It's even a stage from 2021," and "Why are they being cursed at now for a group from five years ago?"
in ENTERTAINMENT
