VIXX's Ravi apologises to Red Velvet over “uncomfortable” lyrical references
VIXX member Ravi has issued an apology to Red Velvet over alleged sexual references to the girl group in his new song ‘Red Velvet’.
Ravi came under fire yesterday (June 3) soon after the release of ‘Red Velvet’, featuring former 15& singer Jamie, which is included on his latest EP ‘Roses’. Fans were upset with the references to the girl group – including to their songs ‘Dumb Dumb’ and ‘Russian Roulette’, as well as members Joy and Yeri – in relation to the supposedly sexual nature of the song.
The rapper has since apologised for the track’s lyrics with a statement issued through his label Groovl1n. The VIXX member said that he “take[s] responsibility” for the controversy, personally apologising to both the girl group and to their fans, while revealing his decision to take down the song from streaming services.
“I want to sincerely apologise to the members of Red Velvet who were mentioned in the lyrics and to the staff from SM Entertainment,” he wrote, as translated by Koreaboo. “I thought a lot about how I should take responsibility for this, and today, I personally called SM Entertainment to apologise to the Red Velvet members and the company.”
Ravi also added that he would be “reflecting on my complacency regarding this situation, not only as Ravi but also as the person in charge of [the label] Groovl1n”, through which the song was released. “Shamefully, while working on this song, I did not realise that many people would find the lyrics uncomfortable,” he continued.
“This song was meant to express a sweet and bright energy, but since a specific group was mentioned, it is my responsibility to think about how the artist and their fans will feel as I write my lyrics,” Ravi said.
— GROOVL1N (@GROOVL1N_GTCK) June 4, 2021
Ravi had previously claimed in an interview with Sports Today that ‘Red Velvet’ was not a reference to the girl group. “The song ‘Red Velvet’ is about the cake red velvet. I wanted to express the sweet warmth using the topic of the red velvet cake,” he said, as translated by Allkpop, adding that he thought references to the group would “make [the song] fun”.
Earlier this year, Ravi released the single ‘Tiger’, featuring fellow rappers Chillin Homie and Kid Milli. The song was his first new drop of 2021 and was influenced by traditional Korean folk singing and instruments.
