BTS Gig On Japanese TV Canceled Over Member's Atomic Bomb T-Shirt

An international incident erupted ahead of the K-pop band's Japanese tour.
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The mega-selling K-pop band BTS isn’t so popular with a Japanese television show.

“Music Station” on TV Asahi canceled a performance by the group scheduled for Friday because a member apparently wore a shirt that seemed to celebrate the atomic bombing of Japan in World War II, CNN reported.

The station nixed the K-pop stars’ gig after discussing the shirt with the band’s record company.

“We deeply apologize to the viewers who were looking forward to their performance,” the station said, per CNN. The band is scheduled to kick off its tour of Japan next week, The Hollywood Reporter noted.

BTS has sold out U.S. arenas and topped the Billboard charts twice.
BTS has sold out U.S. arenas and topped the Billboard charts twice.
Associated Press

According to the BBC, social media images circulated recently showing band member Jimin wearing a shirt that said “Patriotism Our History Liberation Korea” with a photo of what appears to be a mushroom cloud. The actual date of when the pictures of Jimin were taken is unclear. (Newsweek reported it was Aug. 15 but CNN said local stations reported that the photo might be from 2013.)

World War II remains a tense subject between South Korea and Japan. A generation of Koreans suffered under Japanese occupation, while hundreds of thousands of Japanese died when the U.S. dropped bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, leading to Japan’s surrender.

BTS has topped the Billboard charts twice while earning the admiration of Taylor Swift.

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