Song Ji-A, a Korean influencer better known by her online alias Freezia, was one of the biggest stars in the Asian nation not long ago. She shot to a celebrity in South Korea as a result of her appearance on the streaming service’s South Korean dating program as one of the gorgeous young women.
Due to Freezia’s outspoken personality, stylish attire, and ostensibly opulent lifestyle, which was all featured on the popular Korean dating show Single’s Inferno, viewers fell madly in love with her.
She was praised not only for her good looks and sense of style but also for being a ‘golden spoon’ – a Korean term for someone born into a wealthy family.
She boasted about her residence at the Seoul Forest Trimage, one of the country’s most coveted apartment complexes and a favorite among K-pop idols and celebrities. She also attended Hanyang University, one of Korea’s top schools, which only added to her popularity in the education-obsessed country.
Rise and fall: The Korean Netflix star, however, has been “canceled” in Korea after viewers learned that her extravagant lifestyle as a fashion influencer was made possible by the use of brand knockoffs.
And following the designer scandal, some fans performed some research and found that she was only a dance major at Hanyang, while others asserted that her residence may have been rented by her Chinese management company.
Not only did she wear counterfeit designer clothes on Single’s Inferno Ji-a had gone even further by featuring dodgy knock-offs in sponsored Instagram posts and YouTube fashion haul videos
In one sponsored advertisement for the company’s Miss Dior perfume, she flaunted a replica Dior purse.
Although it’s typical for influencers to embellish their life on social media for attention, Ji- a’s fakery has angered fans particularly because her entire persona was built on luxury and wealth.
She gained more than three million Instagram followers as a result of her appearance in Single’s Inferno, and as a result of her allegedly luxurious lifestyle, she became the series’ breakout star.
Influencers on social media have a reputation for making inflated statements and projecting an inflated sense of self. However, as Freezia’s entire reputation is predicated on her access to wealth and power, her falsehoods severely upset her fans.
Her followers are no longer interested in watching her material or interacting with her posts on the social media platforms of her choice now that they are aware that everything she said was a lie.
Several fans now criticize the former Inferno celebrity, with one Korean fan saying, “‘At this rate, she needs to just delete her Instagram account.”
“Why did she lie about being a golden spoon celeb… all that arrogant sass about beating anyone on Single’s Inferno. With what? With your luxury brands?”
Another wrote: “These influencers get paid thousands for these brand ads, she basically committed fraud by showcasing a fake Dior bag on a Dior ad.”
“It’s a problem that she lied to raise her views and earn financial gain from said lies. That’s a scam, isn’t it? It’d make no sense for viewers to stay calm when they were played by her lies,” added another.
“It’s embarrassing, because why not be honest? It seems like she is embarrassed about her upbringing. She could’ve made videos about affordable good dupes, but she didn’t, which says something about her too,” complained another.
She’s also under fire for what’s seen as pro-Chinese sentiment, after a video on one of her Chinese social media channels saw her refer to South Korea’s national dish kimchi as ‘pao cai’, a Chinese term for pickled vegetables.
With one rage Korean fan said, “Kimchi is pao cai? Are you kidding me? Just go to China already.”
Sources: AWM, Dailymail, Kdramastars