The breast cancer awareness campaign event 'Love Your W 2025,' hosted by fashion magazine W Korea, has faced mounting criticism, with the publisher now issuing a brief response.
On October 16, a W Korea representative told OSEN regarding the controversy surrounding 'Love Your W 2025,' “We are unable to provide a response.” The event, held on October 15 at a hotel in Seoul, marked the 20th anniversary of W Korea’s largest domestic breast cancer awareness campaign. The gala dinner and party-style event featured dozens of celebrities in attendance.
However, online criticism quickly emerged, pointing out that the event offered little in terms of actual breast cancer awareness content or performances. The controversy intensified when Jay Park took the stage to perform his 2015 hit “MOMMAE.” The song’s lyrics, which overtly describe women’s bodies and reference breasts, sparked backlash for being “completely at odds with the purpose of a breast cancer awareness campaign.”
A breast cancer patient commented, “I doubt the attendees even looked up a single thing about breast cancer. For patients, this feels like mockery.” Another netizen wrote, “They should have just held a party without using "breast cancer" as a theme. Having drinks and watching a "MOMMAE" performance is painful for those who’ve lost family members to breast cancer.”
Criticism also extended to the structural aspects of the event. While international breast cancer charity events often feature pink dress codes and pink ribbons, these were largely absent at 'Love Your W 2025.' Additionally, the cumulative donations over 20 years reportedly amount to only 1.1 billion KRW (approximately $775,997), which critics argue is disproportionately low for an event of this scale.
Some voices defended the event, noting, “The primary goal of a charity event is to raise funds. What kind of party it is shouldn’t matter,” and “Celebrity participation is still valuable for raising awareness about breast cancer.”
In response to the growing backlash, Jay Park issued an apology on social media on October 16, explaining, “My performance took place after the official breast cancer campaign event, during the after-party, so I performed as usual. I apologize if any cancer patients felt uncomfortable or offended.” He added, “I prepared the performance without pay despite an injury, so please don’t misuse good intentions.”
Following the controversy, W Korea quietly removed videos of Jay Park’s performance but has maintained its stance of not commenting publicly on the issue.
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