DJ Soda Forced To Take Off Pants Before Flight Because F-Word Design Is Deemed 'Offensive'
American Airlines has since responded to the issue, confirming that its staff had asked the music artiste to change her outfit displaying explicit language.
By Yap Wan Xiang — 29 Apr 2022, 04:14 PM
South Korean deejay and music artiste DJ Soda said she was forced to take off her pants at an airport in New York, US in front of flight crew because it was deemed 'offensive'
Sharing the ordeal in an Instagram post on Tuesday, 26 April, DJ Soda, whose real name is Hwang So-hee, said she was wearing a pair of sweatpants sponsored by a brand.
The black sweatpants have an expletive 'f-ck you' printed all over them.
DJ Soda said she was flying from John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) with American Airlines in business class.
Once she had taken her seat and given a glass of drink, she was told by an approaching staff to disembark the flight.
Confused by the order as she was not given any explanation, she was escorted off the plane
While she was leaving the plane, the 34-year-old music artiste was told that her sweatpants were "inappropriate" and "offensive".
She was told to take the next flight.
"I had an important meeting set up in LA on that day, so I could not afford to get off this flight," she wrote.
"I pleaded to stay on the flight but was ignored by the staff and the flight attendants. I even offered to get changed but the request was denied. What happened next was horrendous."
Pushed into a corner, DJ Soda took off her pants in front of the whole crew and stood half-naked while they continued to refuse to let her board the flight
"They even sarcastically commented that I could have taken off my pants earlier," she recollected.
"When they finally let me enter, I put my pants [on] inside out and finally sat down after an hour of delay causing inconvenience to the members of the flight on board."
DJ Soda said she was mortified and trembling in fear throughout the six-hour flight to LA.
"In my eight years of touring, I have never experienced or been treated unfairly, especially in a country that is known for its freedom of speech and individuality," she added.
"From now on, I will be boycotting American Airlines and hope this never happens to anyone ever again."
Following the issue, American Airlines in a statement confirmed the incident involving its crew members and DJ Soda
In the statement to Insider, the airline said the company has policies "prohibit offensive clothing".
"During the boarding process for American Airlines Flight 306 at John F Kennedy International Airport, our team members informed Ms So-hee of our policies and provided her the opportunity to change out of clothing displaying explicit language. The customer complied with requests and was allowed to continue travel, as planned, to Los Angeles International Airport," it said.
American Airlines added that its customer relations team has reached out to the artiste to learn more about her travel experience.
Insider reported that DJ Soda is not the first celebrity to get in trouble with her clothing while flying with American Airlines.
In 2019, reality TV personality Aubrey O'Day said a male flight attendant made her remove her shirt with offensive designs in front of other passengers.
Then again, earlier this year, influencer and model Olivia Culpo was told to "cover up" while she was wearing a cardigan, sports bra, and biker shorts.
Influencer and model Olivia Culpo was told to "cover up" while trying to board an American Airlines flight.
Image via PeopleDJ Soda made her official debut as a deejay in 2014 and gained massive popularity remixing electronic music.
Dubbed "the hottest female artist of today's Korean club scene" a few years after her debut, her illustrated career has brought her to hit some of the biggest clubs around the world, including Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
