Why Did NATURE Apologize After Their New Song ‘Rica Rica’? Explained
3 min read
Rica Rica
NATURE, a South Korean K-pop band, has spoken out against the cultural misappropriation controversies surrounding their latest track. For a year and a half, the nine-member global band made a return with Rica Rica.
They declared their new album Rica Rica. Via their film and television show NATURE Can’t Go Down Like This on January 13, 2022.
On January 20, the female group released a musical trailer for Rica Rica. Revealing fans bits of the upbeat new single as well as the dance. While fans had been anticipating the group’s return. The track and trailer caught many off guards, with others blaming them for cultural infringement.
The band members in the video were certainly placing a bindi on their foreheads in the short footage. It seems to be a typical South Asian ornament. The guys’ jewelry and headpiece also were also a specialty of South Asian heritage. Apart from South Asia, Rica Rica emphasized Native American and African cultural aspects in their conception.
Moreover, the outfits are to be influenced by the Ivory Coast’s Zaouli dancing tradition. However, this was as per a Reddit member. According to the internet users, the Zaouli effect was highlighted. In the film and television show, NATURE Can’t Go Down Like This. Chaebin, a group member, confirmed this in a conversation with Totally Kmusic.
Nature Apologizes After Their New Song ‘Rica Rica
The band came down and have a conversation to discuss the cultural appropriation controversy during the arguments surrounding Rica Rica. Member Loha noted that the band had no intentions of upsetting any racial or cultural communities. And that they had done everything in their power to prevent cultural appropriation by being “extremely careful.”
Loha pledged that she as well as the rest of the band will strive to do better next time. They just made a mistake this time. Here’s what she has said: “Wait. “We are extremely careful because we recognize that this problem (of cultural appropriation) is indeed a touchy subject nowadays. We seemed to have no intentions of disparaging other cultures. But the bandmates and staff members would ensure that we proceed with prudence next time.”
Meanwhile, NATURE’s exclusive album Rica Rica was out on January 24 in Korea Standard Time. The K – pop girl group made their first appearance with the record Girls and Flowers on August 3, 2018. Its first track Allegro Cantabile, which was by Nodame Cantabile’s opening theme. It earned a lot of praise, along with the Soribada Best K-Music Award for “New Artist of the Year.”
NATURE have dug themselves into a hole they cant get out of. In what world is saying “Rica Rica stands for Af-Rica” okay. In addition to the Zaouli dance moves, and the use of South Asian bindis/makeup, they wanted to create an “exotic” aesthetic by leeching off multiple cultures
— ˗ˏˋ nature pics ˎˊ˗ (@nature_archives) January 22, 2022
Vanshika Batra
Vanshika is a Law student, blogger. She looks at life with endless possibilities and spreads that idea through her writing. She keeps on meandering and connecting with the world through her ideas framing into sentences.
