Kissing the Statue of a Girl and Playing Obscene Videos on the Subway... Insane YouTuber

Streamer Johni Somalli Causes Commotion Across Korea
Kisses Statue of Peace and Plays Obscene Material on Subway
Previously Controversial for Racist Remarks in Japan Last Year

A YouTuber who caused a commotion and was arrested in Japan last year has recently been roaming around South Korea causing disturbances. According to JTBC's 'Sageon Banjang' on the 7th, this man is streamer Johni Somali, active on video platforms such as YouTube, Twitch, and TikTok. Somali is causing trouble in South Korea by kissing the Statue of Peace and playing obscene sounds in public places.

Johnny Somali kissing the Statue of Peace. [Image source=JTBC 'Case Officer' broadcast screen capture]

Somali recently entered South Korea and has been live streaming while wandering around various parts of Seoul. He sat next to the Statue of Peace and kissed the statue's cheek. He said, "I support Korea's thoughts. I love Korea. And among what I know about Japan, I mostly side with Koreans and Chinese." In a subway car, he played obscene sounds pretending it was a mistake, and showed embarrassment when moaning sounds came out in the video. On a bus, he played loud North Korean music and was kicked out, and at an amusement park, he caused a disturbance that reportedly led to police intervention.

Somali had previously gained notoriety for similar disturbances in Japan. It is reported that he was arrested for trespassing after playing obscene sounds on a Japanese train. Also, when he visited Japan in May last year during the G7 Summit, he caused controversy by making problematic remarks in the subway, saying, "We will drop the atomic bomb again." He asked a Japanese man sitting next to him rude questions such as, "Do you know where Hiroshima and Nagasaki are?" and "Pearl Harbor?" The Japanese man showed a confused expression, but Somali continued with racist remarks and even filmed passengers on the opposite side without permission when they did not respond to his questions.

At that time, a Korean-American man stepped in and said, "Leave that person alone," and "You represent America. If you do things like this, people from other countries will not respect Americans," which drew attention. This scene spread on the American online community Reddit, where American netizens criticized Somali's behavior for not observing public etiquette, saying, "He is not even American," and praised the calm response of the Korean-American man. According to NextShark, an Asian-focused American media outlet, Somali is presumed to be a Somali-American.