BTS Once Shut Down a Reporter Who Tried to Ask Them a Disrespectful Question

The members of BTS are known for being nice and polite. They often seem eager to answer questions from fans and the press. However, sometimes BTS can decide that a question has crossed the line and choose to shut down the topic. In one instance, they did this with a reporter who asked a disrespectful question.

A reporter once tried to ask BTS a question about their plagiarism accusations

In April 2019, BTS held a press conference for their album Map of the Soul: Persona. Instead of focusing on the newly-released album, a reporter decided to ask the group about a plagiarism accusation BTS received for a “Blood Sweat & Tears,” a song they released three years before.

“I was curious if you were inspired by other works for your previous albums outside of the latest one,” the reporter said, according to Koreaboo. “Last February, there were talks about ‘Blood, Sweat and Tears’ being inspired by another work. I was wondering if you can talk more about that or about the news reports that talked about it.”

BTS seemed initially confused by the question, so RM asked, “From what I understand, are you asking to know what kind of artworks helped inspired our albums, especially ‘WINGS’ and ‘Blood, Sweat and Tears’? Did I understand the question correctly?”

The reporter, then, clarified that they were bringing up this subject because French photographer Bernard Faucon had claimed that BTS’s artwork for their album “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Young Forever” and their music video for “Blood Sweat & Tears” copied his photographs.

“I wanted to know more about the issues brought up by the French photographer,” the reporter said. “I know this question can be uncomfortable but I wanted to hear what you had to say.”

BTS’s Suga shut down the question

However, instead of providing details about where they stand on the issue, BTS’s Suga shut down the reporter’s question. He shared that BTS’s company, Big Hit Entertainment, was taking care of the matter.

“In regards to that, our company’s legal team is talking the photographer,” Suga responded. “I believe that our official stance will be the same as our company’s. Our company is currently looking into it, so I’m sure we’ll know when the results come out. Thank you.”

According to Koreaboo, many fans and onlookers sided with BTS. They criticized the reporter for bringing up an issue concerning an album and single released years ago, which they interpreted as the reporter trying to disrespect BTS’s creativity.

The French photographer later clarified his stance on the issue

As reported by Soompi, photographer Bernard Faucon initially demanded an apology and compensation after claiming BTS had copied his work. However, he later shared that he considered BTS’s work a tribute, not plagiarism. Faucon also said that the original newspaper that reported the story, The Hankyore, misinterpreted his words.

Meanwhile, Big Hit refused to admit there was plagiarism on BTS’s part.