(G)I-DLE’s Soyeon apologizes after being accused of plagiarizing ATEEZ’s song but netizens are still mad 

The controversy over plagiarism of (G)I-DLE’s Soyeon is creating a stir among netizens.

(G)I-DLE’s Jeon Soyeon is getting embroiled in a plagiarism controversy surrounding the song “SUN”, which she composed for the finale of MBC’s show “My Teenage Girl“. The chorus of “SUN” was later pointed out by fans to bear similarities to ATEEZ‘s “Wave” released in 2019. Notably, the production team of  “Wave” – Eden-ary – was added to the credits of “SUN“ by Cube without consent from the original composer. 

On February 28, Cube Entertainment officially addressed the incident. Cube acknowledged the similarities between the two songs, so they decided to edit the song’s credits by adding the original composer. Soyeon herself also reached out to the production team to discuss the credit change and gave an apology. However, Eden-ary’s agency turned down the offer to be credited. Even so, “SUN” was sent out for release as scheduled, so it was available without considering the agency’s position. Cube apologized for modifying the credits of the song before a settlement was reached with the original composer and their agency. 

Later, Soyeon also personally issued an apology. However, the leader of (G)I-DLE added that “SUN” only has “a partial resemblance” to “Wave”. She said she contacted, apologized to the original composer and promised to be more careful in the future.

Netizens are harshly criticizing Soyeon‘s apologies. On TheQoo, Korean netizens reacted badly, stating they had lost sympathy for Soyeon over the plagiarism incident. Soyeon is said to be condescending and unkind when making an insincere apology. It is likely that this scandal will affect (G)I-DLE because the group is preparing for a comeback.

Some comments:

• Was that her apology?  It’s really bad
• I like Soyeon because she’s smart and good at communicating, but what’s with that apology?
• Hopefully Soyeon will show a better side in the future.
• So Soyeon admitted that she had copied ATEEZ’s song, right?
• Fans used to flatter her as a genius producer, but now that’s over.  What genius would copy someone else’s work?
• Is that a real apology?  Is she trying to say that she didn’t steal the song?
• Jeon Soyeon’s apology or Cube’s apology doesn’t really sound like a sincere apology at all.