"Politics Isn't Cool → Hip-hop Isn't Cool" Plagiarism Controversy... Lee Jun-seok Calls It "Excessive Criticism"

Kim Min-gyu, who gave a speech at the launch ceremony of the People Power Party's Election Countermeasures Committee. / Photo by People Power Party YouTube capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Following criticism that high school senior Kim Min-gyu's speech at the People Power Party's election committee launch event plagiarized the song "Disharmony," Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, dismissed the claims as "excessive criticism."

On the 8th, Lee wrote on his Facebook, "Would Lee Jun-seok have intended to plagiarize the song by Im Jae-beom when talking about rough thoughts and anxious eyes?" This referred to Lee’s acceptance speech as party leader, where he borrowed from singer Im Jae-beom’s song "For You," saying, "Rough thoughts about change, anxious eyes of party members, and the people watching."

He added, "Similarly, attaching the word plagiarism to borrowing the expression and style of the very famous 'Disharmony' from Show Me the Money is itself an excessive criticism."

He continued, "If seriously Kim Min-gyu’s speech reminds someone of something existing, then say he plagiarized Lee Jun-seok for borrowing the format of Obama’s speech in the middle and appropriately evoking song lyrics. I grew up watching Obama’s speeches, and I feel proud that someone might be contemplating while watching my speech," he said.

Photo by Lee Jun-seok, captured from Facebook

Earlier, in his speech at the election committee launch, Kim said, "What truly excites people is something that stands out among the same things. Others mocked us as 'Disharmony,' but we ultimately proved that it is a wonderful piece of work."

However, some netizens pointed out that Kim plagiarized the lyrics of the song "Disharmony" by Akdong Musician and Mud the Student. In particular, the lines "What’s important is peace, freedom, love, My Life, something that stands out among the same things. Among circles, one sharp triangle, we call that a work" became problematic.

Also, Kim’s line, "Since when did politics stop being cool? Love for the people rather than power. Philosophy of fairness and common sense before the trophy called the presidency," partially matches the song lyrics, "Since when did hip-hop stop being cool? This is just a trend or TV show. We choose love over money. Philosophy over trophies."

Meanwhile, Kim explained, "The responsible department conducted a prior review regarding plagiarism, and confirmed there is no legal issue," adding, "Knowing there might be plagiarism suspicions, I even posted the link to the performance three days before the speech."