Singer Lee Young-ji was embroiled in a political color controversy after posting on social media (SNS) a photo of herself with hair dyed red and wearing a red top during the June 3 local elections early voting period. She later deleted the post and, after dyeing her hair black again within a day, apologized in person.
On the 31st, Lee Young-ji wrote on her Instagram story, "I must have startled many people by posting a story with no timeliness the day before," and added, "Many people let me know via DM (direct message), and feeling sorry, I hurried to at least get my hair dyed to try to manage the situation somehow, so my explanation is late. I'm sorry." She also released a photo showing her hair dyed black again.
Earlier, on the 30th, when early voting for the June 3 local elections began, Lee Young-ji posted on Instagram a photo of herself wearing a red top with her hair dyed red, writing, "Isn't the hair color pretty." She set the group Cortiz's "REDRED" as the background music for the post. Later, while posting with the intent to communicate briefly with fans, she also attached a photo of herself wearing a red top.
Some online spaces noted that wearing red clothing and having red hair on the eve of an election could evoke a particular political party. Lee Young-ji deleted the related posts and issued a separate statement.
Lee Young-ji said, "Even though I was clearly aware this is an important time, my desire to communicate seems to have gotten ahead of me, and I was preoccupied with randomly uploading recent updates," and added, "I will not hide behind the cowardly excuse of ignorance; I will reflect and learn. I am sorry for my rash behavior."