Geffen Records issues apology over executive's controversial response to BTS' Jimin inquiry

Geffen Records has issued a formal apology following a social media controversy sparked by a response from one of its executives regarding BTS member Jimin. The incident began when a fan inquired about the iTunes pre-orders for Jimin’s upcoming pre-release single, 'Smeraldo Garden Marching Band’, scheduled for release on June 28. The fan tagged Geffen Records, BTS’s U.S.distributor, along with its parent company Universal Music Group, and Ray Kurzeka, Geffen’s senior vice president and head of streaming.

In an unexpected turn, Ray Kurzeka responded to the inquiry by linking to Gracie Abrams’ ‘us’. featuring Taylor Swift, and commented, “song of the year…” This response triggered a wave of criticism from BTS fans, who interpreted Kurzeka’s reply as dismissive and inappropriate given the context of the inquiry about Jimin’s release.
As outrage grew on social media platforms, the hashtag ‘GEFFEN APOLOGIZE TO JIMIN’ quickly gained traction, reflecting fans’ demands for accountability from the label. On June 27, local time, Geffen Records released an official statement addressing the incident and offering an apology.
"An employee of our label issued a single post on his personal social media account in response to an inquiry from fans of Jimin. This was made by mistake and in no way reflects either the views of the employee or those of our company. Both he and the company are deeply sorry that this happened. The post does not comply with the company’s social media policy.
Our compliance team is addressing this with him directly and implementing enhanced controls across the company to assure that it never happens again. As we address this matter, we request that fans refrain from any personal attacks. We wish to assure you that the scheduled release of Jimin’s second solo album, “MUSE,” will proceed as planned without any impact".

Meanwhile, Jimin’s pre-release single, ‘Smeraldo Garden Marching Band’, featuring Loco, was subsequently released online on June 28 at 1 p.m. KST, marking the start of promotions leading up to his highly anticipated second solo album, ‘MUSE’, scheduled for release on July 19.