T-ARA’s Hyomin Is Criticized For Allegedly Using Problematic “Ilbe” Slang — Responds To The Controversy

T-ARA‘s Hyomin is criticized by netizens for allegedly using slang associated with the controversial site Ilbe.

On March 8, Hyomin uploaded an Instagram story in which she is posing in the mirror.

The idol captioned the story writing that her outfit was inspired by the designer brand Miu Miu, which fashion show she had watched the day before.

This is the outfit I wore after being inspired by watching Miu Miu’s show yesterday… The skirt length is already short, but are you saying it needs to be shorter? Iggy.

— Hyomin

Controversy arose, however, when netizens alleged that the dialect in which the caption was written was akin to the way users of the notorious far-right community, Ilbe, wrote.

Specifically, many netizens cited the fact that Hyomin ended her sentence by ending in “노” (no) as well as the fact that she ended her caption with the word “이기” (Iggy) was a tell-tale sign that she was associating herself with the problematic community.

• “People in Gyeongsang-do don’t use ‘iggy’ in text messages.”
• “Who is defending her by saying that’s how people in Gyeonsang-do talk? LOL. Ilbe users are the only people that use it.”
• “The fact she uses ‘iggy’ after ‘no,’ sigh.”
• “Wow, what is this?… Is this real?”
• “I’m from Busan, and although we use “no,” we don’t use ‘iggy.’ We rather use ‘this’ instead.”
• “You can defend her use of ‘no,’ but her use of ‘iggy’ is inexcusable.”
• “Isn’t this literally exactly how Ilbe users talk?”
• “(Gyeonsang-do people) frequently use ‘no,’ but what is ‘iggy?’

Hyomin has since responded to the controversy. In an Instagram story, she stated that she accidentally used the word without knowing its association with Ilbe and apologized.

I thought it was a provincial slang that meant, ‘What is this?’ I’ll be careful and even more careful from now on!

— Hyomin

Hyomin was born in Busan, a city in the province of Gyeonsang-do, where words such as “노” (no) and “이기” (iggy) are used. This isn’t the first time that an idol born in Gyeonsang-do found themselves in controversy over their province’s dialect. Previously, aespa‘s Winter was also criticized for something similar. You can read more about it in the link below.

Netizens Defend Aespa’s Winter After She Gets Accused Of Using “Ilbe” Slang