BLACKPINK, one of the world’s most popular K-pop girl groups, made a comeback after a hiatus that lasted close to two years with Pink Venom. Released on August 19, 2022, the highly anticipated and wildly popular single has been topping music charts in the UK and the USA. However, in conflicting news, Korean Broadcasting Network (KBS) deemed the catchy song ineligible for Music Bank, as reported by South Korean daily Soompi. Allegedly, the band violated Article 46 or the Limiting Advertising Effect of the Broadcasting Review Regulations of KBS–which refers to the mention of a brand of a particular product.
The mention of the French luxury brand CELINE and the use of Coco (Chanel) in the song may have been the reason for Pink Venom not being broadcasted in South Korea. A rap portion of the song, sung by band member Lisa said, “This da life of a vandal, masked up and I’m still in Celine.” It is worth mentioning that Lisa is also the global brand ambassador for the French luxury brand.
However, it is not uncommon as the KBS has set rules and regulations for any song that they scrutinize. Notably, Pink Venom was rated highly on weekly music award shows such as MBC’s Show Champion, Mnet’s M Countdown, and SBS’s Inkigayo. The same report by Soompi revealed that ‘Pink Venom’ was absent from the weekly chart rankings on KBS 2TV’s Music Bank even though two of BLACKPINK’s older songs made it to the latest chart. The songs were “Lovesick Girls” and “As If It’s Your Last.”
When a song disqualifies for broadcast by the KBS, the agency usually amends the part of the song that is problematic or raises questions and then requests a thorough re-evaluation, reported Korea JoongAng Daily. The report also mentioned that based on the evaluation reports, on August 24, BLACPINK’s agency, YG Entertainment, apparently did not apply for a re-evaluation. The song in contention ‘Pink Venom’ is a precursor to the group’s upcoming album ‘Born Pink’. It is all set for release on September 16, 2022.
