K-pop star Hyolyn is embroiled in a controversy over a revealing outfit worn at a performance in Seoul this week that many said left her “butt-naked”.
However, she’s not the first Korean idol to cause offence with a risqué costume.
K-pop star’s ‘butt-naked’ performance shocks Korea drama awards
While K-pop songs and music videos may be becoming more sexually charged, South Korea remains a conservative society and female stars in particular are expected to keep their assets under cover or risk incurring the wrath of the country’s moral guardians.
Here are five other times K-pop idols crossed a line with their outfits.
Seven years before Hyolyn shocked the crowd at 2018 KBS Drama Awards, her former girl band, Sistar, caused a controversy at the 2011 edition of the same event with short and revealing red outfits.
Plus the dance routine they performed during their song So Cool went a bit too far for some audience members.
Just last month, Mamamoo member Hwasa raised eyebrows by wearing a revealing, skintight red costume at the Japanese edition of the 2018 Mnet Asian Music Awards.
While some fans praised Hwasa for her confidence, others argued the outfit was embarrassing.
When this eight-member girl group performed in Hong Kong in 2012, singers Tiffany and Taeyon surprised fans by appearing on stage in thigh-high stockings and corsets during the performance of their duet Lady Marmalade.
The outfits were unexpected as the members had been known for their cute, bubbly image.
Year 7 Class 1
As name suggests they are high-school girls, this seven-member girl group perhaps went overboard with their short and revealing costumes when they made their debut in 2014.
Apart from their racy costumes, their suggestive dance moves were seen as inappropriate by many critics.
When this four-member girl group made their debut in 2014, they shocked observers, not by revealing too much skin, but by appearing in outfits that drew comparisons to Nazi uniforms.
The group’s management said the arrows on the singers’ arm bands represented the group’s desire “to expand without a limit in four directions”.
