German radio show Bayern 3 has come under fire by BTS fans after its host made comments about the band, which many found offensive and even racist. This is not the fanbase you want to be on the wrong side of.
The Bavarian radio show discussed BTS’ recent cover of Fix You by Coldplay from their MTV: Unplugged. However, it isn’t his views alone on the song that have found him in a social-media storm, but choice of words to convey them instead.
Matthias Matuschik compared BTS to a “s**t virus” like Covid-19 and exclaimed that there would hopefully be a vaccination against them soon.
According to Ansoko, these translated comments followed:
“Nothing against South Korea. You can’t accuse me of xenophobia just because this boy band from South – I have a car from South Korea. I have the coolest car ever. I drive a South Korean car with a six-cylinder, twin-turbocharger, four-wheel drive, all the bells and whistles and a top speed of 270, Korea rules, well, South Korea. But BTS. And BTS, yes, they actually have an MTV Unplugged now – with a boy band, Unplugged! That alone is paradoxical! Yes? And then these… these little pissers brag about the fact that they covered Fix You from Coldplay, where I say: “This is blasphemy!” And that’s what I say as an atheist! This is… this is sacrilege, for this you will… for this you will be vacationing in North Korea for the next 20 years!”
BTS fans have taken to Twitter
Shortly after the comments were made on Bayern 3, a BTS fan uploaded a video of the show to Twitter. Cue BTS Army.
Many fans have felt that the comments were not only offensive but also xenophobic, citing the Covid-19 comparison specifically. In the recent year, there has been a rise in hate acts and blame towards Asian communities over the coronavirus pandemic.
“BTS are South Korean, okay? This guy mentioned the Coronavirus which a lot of Asian people have been blamed and discriminated against,” tweeted one fan.
While the joke of sending the group to North Korea has also displeased fans, who found it “crossed the line”.
“Going to North Korea for 20 years? Comparing them to Covid-19? All because he didn’t like their cover of fix you. He crossed the line,” tweeted a fan.
Bayern 3 responded to the backlash
The radio show responded to the BTS drama, coming to the defence of their host and explaining that the program’s character often entails exaggerated excitement which caused the wrong choice of words. Bayern 3 released the following statement on the BTS situation:
In the show “Matuschke – the slightly different evening”, presenter Matthias Matuschik gave his personal opinion on the very successful South Korean band BTS and their unplugged concert and many of you have complained about it. It is the character of this program and also of the moderator to express his opinion clearly, openly and without makeup. In this case, out of the promise to present his opinion with ironic and exaggerated excitement, he overshot his choice of words and thus hurt the feelings of the BTS fans. But he had – he assured us – in no way intended.
This is his personal opinion of taste, regardless of the band’s origin and cultural background. You don’t have to share this taste, nor do you have to share the rough expression. The story of Matthias and his actions, his posts in the past (to be read on his Facebook page and in various articles) clearly show that he is absolutely far from xenophobia and racism in any form. He has also tried to present this here, but does not change the fact that many of you have perceived his statements as hurtful or racist. We apologize for this in all form. We will work on the topic again with Matthias and the team in the next few days.