Red Velvet's Irene was confirmed as the female idol who exhibited rude behavior towards a photoshoot editor. The idol quickly apologized for her actions but her remorse was met with mixed reactions from fans.
According to a report by Soompi, Red Velvet's leader Irene came out with a statement after a photoshoot editor posted about a female Kpop idol who went on a verbal rampage against the staff at a photoshoot.
The editor refrained from naming the celebrity she was referring to but she used the hashtags #psycho and #monster in her post, hinting that it was a member of Red Velvet.
In her apology, Irene personally acknowledged that she behaved poorly to the staff. She expressed remorse over her actions and vowed to be more considerate of the people she will work with in the future.
After Irene's attitude controversy came out, many netizens started calling for expulsion from Red Velvet. Some netizens said that Irene should leave because her behavior damaged the reputation of the group, Kpopstarz reported.
Others said that she should have been more responsible since she holds such an important role in the group as a leader, center, and main visuals. Some fans said that Irene should voluntarily step down to protect the other members from her controversy.
Meanwhile, a former Red Velvet stylist spoke up for Irene and said that while she sympathizes with other members of the industry who were hurt by Irene's behavior, people should understand that in every incident, there are always two sides.
Stylist Ellena Yim, who worked with Red Velvet for their La Rogue tour, said that an artist expressing her dissatisfaction over a costume should not be the sole basis of judging a person. She said that based on her experience with Irene, the Red Velvet leader was a person who was smart and talented. She said that Irene also could deliver her opinions clearly, All Kpop reported.
Yim said that she hopes that Irene could overcome the controversy and grow from it.
Some fans have also expressed support for Irene. They said that they appreciated the fact that Irene owned up to her actions and was honest about it.
Reveluvs said that while they were disappointed in the controversy, they admired Irene for handling the issue maturely by apologizing to the stylist and the fans.
Fans believe that the controversy may have been sparked by an incident at the Gangnam Kpop Festival where Irene's transmitter fell from her outfit at the start of the performance. Upon seeing the video, fans noticed that Irene had to modify the choreography on the spot because she was forced to hold on to the transmitter the entire time, Koreaboo reported.
