Anne-Marie apologizes to fans for hosts wearing Rising Sun flags

British singer-songwriter Anne-Marie issued an apology for staging a performance on the ITV variety show “Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway” while the two hosts were wearing headbands with the Rising Sun flag on them.

After the show aired, fans criticized Ant and Dec for wearing the symbol of imperial Japan’s wartime aggression and militarism.

The singer quickly took to Twitter to say sorry for the performance.

“I sincerely apologize to all those who were affected and hurt by my appearance last night on” TV, the singer wrote on Sunday. “I want you to know I had nothing to do with the costumes on this sketch. Unfortunately, education on this part of the history wasn’t done and I am also hurt by the pain this signifies for so many people. I’m truly sorry and I promise you that this will not happen again.”

The singer also said that her team is working to take down the footage so that it “does not cause any more pain” to the viewers.

Anne-Marie’s 2018 song “2002” was a hit among Korean listeners and shot to the top of the local streaming charts for weeks. She visited Korea to perform at the 2019 V Live Awards V Heartbeat last November and also gave a touching performance for fans at the Paradise City hotel in Incheon last July after her Holiday Land Festival performance was canceled by organizers due to bad weather.

By Lee Jae-lim