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Was Shinee's Taemin wearing a durag in 'Don't Call Me'? SuperM Mark's reaction has fans calling him 'ignorant'

At the beginning of the SHINee ‘Don’t Call Me’ music video, Taemin is seen wearing a white bandana. SuperM members' reaction video to the song has sparked controversy

SM Entertainment is getting into yet another cultural appropriation controversy after a shot from SHINee’s comeback music video ‘Don’t Call Me’ caused a buzz in social media. SM Entertainment’s special K-pop group SuperM which consists of SHINee’s Taemin, EXO’s Baekhyun and Kai, NCT’s Lucas, Taeyong, Ten and Mark were reacting to SHINee’s new music video ‘Don’t Call Me’. In the beginning, Mark shouted either "Swag" or "Durag" which started the social media storm.

"Durag" or "Do-rag" is known as the symbol of the Black Power Movement in the late '60s which became a fashion statement among African Americans and is worn by rappers, athletes and people of all ages. Ideally, durag helps in keeping the braids in place while sleeping or to project the waves. The history of durag dates back to the 19th century when it was originally worn by enslaved African American women and laborers.

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Was Shinee’s Taemin wearing a durag?

In the beginning of the SHINee ‘Don’t Call Me’ music video, Taemin is seen wearing a white bandana that covers his whole head. While the bandana didn’t create much buzz on its own, when SuperM’s reaction video to ‘Don’t Call Me’ surfaced on social media surfaced, netizens pointed out that Mark shouted "durag" when the scene played. Some fans argued that he shouted "swag".

SM's history with cultural appropriation 

SM Entertainment has been slammed in the past for various cultural appropriation incidents on social media. On one occasion, NCT U's merchandise caused commotion among Muslim fans for copying the structure of the Mosque, on another occasion, WayV star Hendery was called out for wearing a wig.

A social media trend that got much traction called #SMBlackout is still fresh in the memory of K-pop fans after which SM Entertainment put out a statement showing their support to Black collaborators and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Fan reactions

SuperM fans have rallied behind the group for support saying that it was Mark’s comment but Taemin wasn’t actually wearing a durag. A fans stated, “in the superm reaction to shinee comeback video, mark called the thing taemin was wearing a durag (it wasnt), it's okay, it wasnt racist or CA or anything, just an ignorant comment cuz he clearly doesnt understand what it is!”

Another stated, “mark’s big mouth got him in trouble. superm reacted to dont call me and he called taem’s bandana a durag, it’s just really ignorant!” Another fan believed, “On the new SuperM video, Mark clearly said 'swag'. You can hear the 's' sound and when you say it in a korean accent u would say it like 'seuwag' and someone from the 7 spoke at the same time w/ Mark so now people are saying that he said 'durag'. You guys misheard him.”

Watch SuperM’s reaction video here:

Stream SHINee’s ‘Don’t Call Me’ below: