Blackpink’s Jennie drew mixed reactions on social media after personally addressing her recent indoor vaping incident.
In an interview for Harper Bazaar, Jennie was asked why she apologized for the incident, and she said it was due to the Korean culture.
“What can I do? If Korean people think it’s wrong, I’ve got to make up for it,” she said.
“It’s like, I get why you guys are upset. It’s cultural, it’s history. It’s time. And I can’t go against time,” she added.
Some netizens took to social media to say that her new statement made her previous apology seem insincere, while others pointed out that she was an adult who can make her own decisions to smoke.
The video, now deleted, went viral on social media in July.
In the clip, Jennie was shown exhaling vape smoke while make-up artists were working closely on her face.
Netizens were quick to point out that the behavior could be classified as rude, and perhaps illegal as it was prohibited to smoke ondoors in South Korea.
The incident, which was suspected to have occured in Italy, was referred by an internet user to the South Korean Embassy in Italy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a probe.
Jennie’s agency issued an apology on X shortly after, stating that she “acknowledged and deeply regretted her mistake of vaping indoors and causing inconvenience to the staff.”
They added that Jennie had already apologized to the involved staff.
Jennie is set to release a comeback single within the month of October.
