Sensitive responses from BTS' J-HOPE & IU to actor Lee Je Hoon... ”Political color” warning hits entertainment industry during presidential election

As the voting for the 21st presidential election began at 6:00 a.m. on the 3rd, the entertainment industry was on edge due to the political color controversies and firestorms among some stars that coincided with the timing of the election. Many stars are showing great care in their clothing and behavior so that their colorful clothing or poses will not be misinterpreted as an expression of political coloring or support for a particular candidate. On the other hand, the opposite behavior of some stars who publicly support a particular candidate and show their political colors with their beliefs is also noticeable.

Idol singers, who have particularly large fan bases, are paying extra attention to finger poses in connection with the presidential election. This is because the V-sign, volcock (pointing a finger at the cheek), and other poses usually used by idols in front of photo walls could be interpreted as a voting number for a particular candidate, such as number 1 or 2.

The group “RIIZE,” which made its comeback on the 19th of last month, created laughter and sadness as it paid special attention to finger poses in the process of holding an in-person fan signing session. Member Eunseok also performed a “thumbs up” pose in front of fans without even knowing it himself, and this was confirmed by member Shoutarou, who squeezed Eunseok's thumb to make a fist pose. Anton also made a V with both hands and then hastily put his hands down, which drew laughter.

Gaon, a member of “Xdinary Heroes,” drew attention with his fist-pumping greeting on the red carpet at the recent “ASIA STAR ENTERTAINER AWARDS 2025” held in Japan.

On the 29th of last month, singer G-Dragon (BIGBANG) posted a selfie on his Instagram story showing blue lights with the phrase “Off to L.A.”. He also posted a photo of a red moon floating above a dark sky. Some fans wittily interpreted this as "the blue color reminds me of a certain political party in the run-up to the presidential election, so maybe the red moon neutralizes and balances out the blue.

(Photo=Xdinary Heroes, Enmix, NCT Dream, Izuna's official SNS capture)
Actor Lee Jae-hoon drew attention when he candidly confessed in a media interview for the movie “Soju War” held on the 2nd, "I was careful about my clothes and poses in anticipation of the presidential election. In the interview, Lee Jae-hoon, who appeared in a black costume that day, said, "I was conscious of having color. There are various hand gestures such as greetings that are often expressed, but I was careful not to use such hand gestures because I thought they might be slightly misleading.” He jokingly drew sympathy and laughter with his complaint, "So I just fly a lot of hearts.”

J-HOPE (BTS) posted a pre-vote verification shot on his Instagram on the 29th. This is particularly noteworthy because the all-black outfit radically blocked out any color controversy. In fact, the all-black outfit, with no exposed fingers and just the face and upper body, fundamentally blocked any misconceptions about the color and the specific number associated with the color. IU also eliminated the possibility of political color controversy by posting an authenticated shot of her completing the pre-poll in colorless clothing.

Actress Kim Go-eun authenticated her advance voting by posting a photo on SNS with directions to the advance voting booth without any special comment. By verifying the fact that she had participated in the advance voting, she blocked unnecessary political controversy and caught the attention of the public.

The reason the entertainment industry is so sensitive about clothing and behavior is to avoid the possibility of “political color” controversy that might arise in the run-up to the presidential election. In fact, the fact that some stars posted selfies without any particular meaning and wore certain colorful outfits, which became the subject of online discussions, also played a role.

Earlier, KARINA of “aesp” was also embroiled in a political color controversy after posting a photo of herself wearing a red outfit with the number 2 written on it on SNS. I apologize for the concern, and I will be more careful in the future.

In fact, the opposite behavior of some stars who freely express their political colors is also noticeable. Some stars, such as actor Kim Whisun and singer Lee Seung-hwan, attracted attention by posting pre-voting certification shots in attire reminiscent of political parties during the two days when the pre-voting was held.