Former Girls' Generation member Jessica has addressed controversy after a video of her appearing to gag at an airport went viral.
The clip, which spread online in recent days, showed Jessica arriving at Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport in China.
In the footage, Jessica walks through a crowd of fans, briefly glances to her left, lightly covers her nose and appears to gag.
The video drew a range of reactions online. Some users suggested she may have been reacting to the smell of nearby fans, while others cautioned against jumping to conclusions. Several commenters noted that regardless of the reason, the gesture was easy to misread and she should have been more careful.
As the controversy grew, Jessica went live on social media on Saturday to address the matter. "It had absolutely nothing to do with any smell from fans," she said.
She explained that a fan had mentioned the previous day had been their birthday. When she asked how old they were, the fan said 21. "I was surprised by how young they were," she said. "I thought, 'How do they even know who I am at that age — and they came all the way here?'" She added that her reaction "was probably too much."
Jessica debuted with Girls' Generation in 2007 and left the group in 2014. She currently pursues fashion projects alongside activities in China.
paq@heraldcorp.com
