Fans of NCT U criticise K-pop group again for using Islamic imagery in new song

The group’s performance on a show was accompanied by visuals identified as an Islamic shrine, and a rendition of a religious text could also be seen on stage

Make A Wish (Birthday Song) is performed by a number of NCT group members, including Taeyong of NCT 127, Lucas Wong of WayV and Jaemin of NCT Dream

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K-pop boy band NCT U have come under fire for use of a mosque as a backdrop in a recent performance. Photo: SM Entertainment

Published: 10:45am, 27 Oct 2020Updated: 4:20pm, 28 Oct 2020

A unit of South Korean boy band NCT has come under fire for using images of an Islamic shrine as a backdrop during a recent performance – the latest in a series of allegations of cultural and religious appropriation levelled against the K-pop group.

On Sunday, NCT U performed a new song Make A Wish (Birthday Song) on the South Korean music show Inkigayo, and were accompanied by visuals that some fans on social media quickly identified as the Imam Husayn Shrine, which is both a mosque and the burial site of Husayn ibn Ali – the third imam (or leader) of Shia Islam and who was a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad – in the city of Karbala in Iraq.

An artistic rendition of a religious text from the shrine could also be seen on stage, raising concerns among fans of the act, both Muslim and otherwise.

The creative theme of Make A Wish started attracting attention even before the song’s release on October 12, when generic Middle Eastern, Indian and Arabic imagery started appearing in teaser photos.

Shots from music videos and performances have shown members wearing turbans or performing what appear to be mudras, holy gestures from religions including Hinduism and Buddhism, upsetting fans who believe the band was being disrespectful to foreign cultures.

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