Amid controversy over its official light stick design resembling that of The Boyz, girl band QWER has faced a wave of malicious comments—prompting member Siyeon to speak out. Despite the ongoing legal dispute, QWER has proceeded with the sale of the product.
On September 30th KST, Siyeon wrote on her social media community: “Oh right. To those who even come over to my Instagram to say unspeakable things—please, go ahead. Thanks for filling my dopamine. The more you do it, the more I want to rise higher. Thank you. Good night, my driving forces.”
She added: “Sorry, I have to say what needs to be said. I’ll probably get scolded again, but still—I have to speak up. Even if anonymity is guaranteed online, as human beings, we shouldn’t make groundless and outrageous personal attacks against one another. Everyone has circumstances, twisted moments perhaps, but what you inflict on others will ultimately come back to you.”
QWER is currently embroiled in a dispute over the similarity of its official light stick to that of The Boyz. The issue arose after QWER revealed its light stick for the group’s first world tour ‘Rockcation’ in Seoul, which was criticized for closely resembling the megaphone-shaped design The Boyz has used since 2021.
The Boyz’s agency One Hundred stated: “After recognizing the issue, we continued discussions with QWER and requested design changes, but no final resolution was reached. We will now pursue legal procedures to prevent recurrence.”
QWER’s agency countered: “We were in the process of amicable discussions with One Hundred when they abruptly announced legal action. Our company has received repeated reviews and opinions from lawyers and patent attorneys, confirming that there are no issues, including copyright infringement.”
The Korea Entertainment Producers Association (KEPA) has since stepped in to mediate. “From a neutral position, we will do our best to mediate between the parties and establish effective measures to prevent recurrence. To this end, we promise efforts such as creating an official dispute resolution platform, industry-wide joint statements, and campaigns,”KEPA said.
Nevertheless, QWER has moved forward, announcing delivery details for the light stick merchandise and proceeding with sales.
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