TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The K-pop super group Blackpink is in hot water with Chinese fans after they referred to concertgoers in Macau as "Macanese" rather than "Chinese" on social media.
Blackpink's two concerts in Macau, a special administrative region of China, were held on May 20 and 21. Chinese and Hong Kong celebrities such as Angelababy who flocked to Macau to attend the concerts were labeled as "unpatriotic" because K-pop singers have been banned in China since 2016 over the Thaad anti-missile dispute, reported HK01.
Fights broke out among audience members near the stage, reported Korea Boo. Group member Jennie can be seen in one video stopping in the middle of a song to call for security to deal with a brawl between two men in front of the stage. In another incident caught on video, Lisa became agitated when a fan threw a teddy bear at her, per KBIZoom.
On May 23, Blackpink posted a thank-you message to its fans, which it calls "Blinks," for their support during the Macau concerts on its Twitter and Weibo accounts. In both cases, the South Korean group wrote that it was deeply touched by the support of its "Macanese BLINKs."
Nearly a week went by before Chinese netizens noticed the use of the term Macanese. On Monday (May 29), a Chinese internet celebrity "Yellowstone PK" (黄石PK) uploaded a post claiming that Blackpink's use of the word Macanese was inappropriate because it refers to Portuguese descendants who were born and raised in Macau. He added there are only 10- 20,000 such people, who do not represent the majority of the population, reported CNA.
The celebrity then accused Blackpink's management company of "licking white skin" and deliberately not using the word "Chinese." The influencer called on officials to keep the ban on K-pop group performances in China and to boycott such groups.
This quickly fomented anger among Chinese Weibo users and the topic soon exceeded 100 million views. Thousands of Chinese nationalists flooded Blackpink's official Weibo page with comments such as, "Don't be ridiculous, what are Macanese?" "Is 'Chinese' so difficult to type that you created a special word?," "You can't spell 'Chinese,' let us teach you," and, "If you want to develop in China, you must respect China and the facts!"
In an apparent response to the backlash, the original Weibo post was edited to thank "Macau BLINKs." The original tweet was taken down and replaced with the same wording as the Weibo version.
However, many Chinese netizens are still not satisfied as they believe that the band should thank "Chinese BLINKs." The band does not have any concerts scheduled in China for this year's world tour.
Original version thanking "Macanese BLINKs." (Weibo screenshot)
New version thanking "Macau BLINKs." (Weibo screenshot)
Original version thanking "Macanese BLINKs." (Twitter screenshot)
New version thanking "Macau BLINKs." (Twitter screenshot)
