We’re not starting a cult but some followers on Instagram would be nice. Thank you.
Taiwanese fashion influencer Molly Chiang has apologised after coming under fire for making Korean singer IU uncomfortable at the Gucci Cruise 2024 show in Seoul on May 16.
A video uploaded by Vogue Taiwan showed Molly bypassing the singer’s bodyguard to reach out for IU’s hand.
She continued to hold on to it, even though the singer looked visibly uncomfortable at the interaction.
It was only after the singer’s bodyguard intervened that she let go of IU.
The original video has since been deleted and replaced with one that does not include the incident, but one TikTok user has uploaded a clip from a Taiwanese media outlet that includes the old video, with onscreen text reading: “IU was so helpless”.
https://www.tiktok.com/@verygood0119/video/7234031359272979717
The swop did not go unnoticed by some Instagram users, some of whom questioned if they had taken down the original clip at Molly’s request.
Translation: Why did you take down the clip of Molly trailing IU and not letting go of her hand? Are you helping her?
Translation: Why did you take down the clip of Molly holding IU’s hand? Did she ask you to do it?
Many continued to criticise Molly’s actions in the new video.
Continued to trail behind the star
Another video uploaded by an IU fan page ohhhmy_iu shows the influencer continuing to follow the star, even after the awkward interaction.
View this post on Instagram
Apologised for her actions
Following the backlash, the influencer, who has more than 800,000 followers on her Instagram account, issued an apology on May 18.
View this post on Instagram
In her apology, she acknowledged her mistake and apologised for causing “discomfort” and “distress”.
She continued:
“No matter how much I wanted to take a photo together (with IU) and fulfil my fans’ wishes of wanting to see me take a photo with her, I should not have initiated physical contact with celebrities who do not know me. I deeply apologise for this behaviour.”
Molly also acknowledged that she was a “nobody” compared to IU, but had worked hard to get to where she was today, where brands would invite her to such events.
She hence felt it was “unfair” for this incident to undo her and her team’s efforts thus far.
The influencer went on to explain that as an online personality, she had to be responsible for her traffic and numbers.
Hence, the need to interact with her followers and strive to produce content that they request or would be interested in.
However, she clarified that she would only take photos with celebrities after obtaining their prior consent.
Molly ended her post with another apology, and a clarification that her comments section had always been open only to her followers, and was not changed because of this incident.
Wants to convey her apologies to IU
In an Instagram story, she also responded to a comment telling her to apologise to IU instead of netizens.
To this, Molly responded that she is willing to do it and asked if any IU fans knew how to get in touch with the singer.
She added that she was worried that if she sent IU a message, she might not see it.
Top image via IU and Molly Chiang’s Instagram.
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