China has hit back at BTS again. Reports claim that China has taken credits for BTS being nominated in the main category of prestigious Grammy Awards. In the guise of taking credit it has also warned BTS of consequences, if the Kpop boy group tries to undermine China.
The news was published in China Global Times. The statement was made after 'BTS wins Grammy nomination' started trending on China's popular social media platform Weibo. Chinese fans were also seen congratulating BTS on the nomination.
The Warning
Here is when the Global Times took action and issued warning to BTS in the form of an article. It started with taking credit for the nomination by saying it would not have been possible without Chinese ARMY [BTS fans are called ARMY]. "The only reason that BTS was successful in getting nominated for the GRAMMY awards was because of Chinese ARMY. It was with the money of Chinese ARMY that BTS was able to place first on the Billboard Hot 100 as well," the news said.
Further reading shows a change in the tone of the writing where an indirect warning is issued to the BTS. "If they say anything that undermines China's dignity again, the group will face greater consequences. We hope they think before they speak the next time they have something to say," it read.
Despite Chinese government officials statement that there is no animosity between South Korea and China and also clarifying that BTS is not banned in the country, Chinese social media has been targeting the top Kpop boy group.
Chinese Social Media Targeting BTS
BTS is being targeted by the Chinese netizens after the Van Fleet award was issued to the Kpop group by the non-profit organization of the US. While accepting the award, BTS members spoke about Korean War and appreciated the US for its role in trying to restore peace. The BTS members spoke about the sacrifice of soldiers during the war. It did not mention China while speaking about the war. China had sided with North Korea during the war.
This made Chinese netizens angry and they claimed that BTS had insulted the Chinese soldiers who had sacrificed their lives during the war. Since then the cold war between BTS and Chinese netizens is on. However, BTS has not responded to these hate messages.
The waning to BTS is the latest development with regard to the issue. Neither BTS nor its agency Big Hit Entertainment has reacted to the news so far. BTS has been nominated in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category in Grammy Awards 2021.
