BTS’ Jin’s 'Super Tuna' Receives Flak From Japanese Netizens

A song unveiled by BTS’ Jin to celebrate his birthday last week has drawn protests from some Japanese netizens over a reference to the “East Sea” as a dispute exists over the naming for the body of water which is bordered by Japan and Korea.

The naming conflict between Korea and Japan has been continuing for a long time. Japan calls the body of water as “the Sea of Japan” while Korea refers to it as “East Sea.” The issue was first raised in 1992 when Japan argued that the water body should be called “the Sea of Japan” but Korea protested that the name was used during the Japanese occupation.

“Super Tuna” is a novelty song released by 29-year-old Kim Seok-Jin, also known as Jin, on Dec. 4 as a surprise gift to his loyal fans.

Upon its release, the upbeat song quickly took a spot on the list of trending videos on YouTube and is currently at No. 5 with over 28 million views since it premiered early this month.

The catchy track also gave birth to a TikTok dance challenge after it racked nearly 100 million views on the app in just a few days after its upload. The song also led to worldwide trending Twitter hashtags early this month as users commented about the video using the hashtags #SuperTuna and #SuperTunachallenge.

The English lyrics of the sea-inspired tune goes, “My heart is beating, flap-flap/Where did my fish go?/ East Sea, West Sea/Where is my fish?”

But the lyrics did not sit well with Japanese listeners with one of them commenting on Twitter, "It is extremely disappointing that Jin dropped a song using the words East Sea instead of Sea of Japan, the one and only name recognized internationally," according to a report by The Korea Times.

Another Japanese Twitter user said, "If the lyrics have been confirmed by HYBE (BTS' agency), it means that the company is taking Japan lightly. We should strongly protest the company to modify the lyrics."

But Korean fans quickly defended the BTS singer/dancer saying that Jin only used the word East Sea as it rhymes with West Sea.

"But whatever his intention was, Jin is promoting the name East Sea globally, and we should thank him for that," a Korean fan wrote on Twitter as cited by The Korea Times article.

Also on Twitter, a Korean internet user showed Kindergarten students dancing to “Super Tuna” which has steadily gained popularity in the nation since its release.

“At this rate, 'Super Tuna' will end up in Nursery Rhymes books of children- our grandchildren will be singing it in school,” the Twitter user wrote.

South Korean nationalist and activist Seo Kyung-Duk said the reaction of Japanese netizens “reflects their fear over the growing influence of Korea on the global stage.”

"This incident shows their fear over the global influence of BTS, and increased cases overseas where the names, East Sea and the Sea of Japan, are used concurrently," the professor of general education at Sungshin Women's University wrote on his Facebook page, according to The Korea Times.

"This seems to be the best moment for us to promote the term East Sea among the international community," he added in his post.

Hybe Entertainment did not comment on the issue.