A scene in the debut music video for the SM Entertainment’s new girl group Red Velvet has upset many Japanese netizens.

An article reported on Japanese Yahoo News discusses a scene in the music video which highlights  American newspaper headlines detailing the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.

While the video for “Happiness” can best be described as a colorful, psychedelic homage to eighties artist Lisa Frank, the use of newspapers highlighting the defeat of Japan by Allied Forces can be considered inappropriate.

Beyond references to the atomic bomb, the headlines include the derogatory term “Japs” to reference the nation of Japan.

A representative from SM Entertainment has stated that the photos utlized were part of stock footage and that the error was not previously caught. As reported by media outlet allkpop, SM Entertainment has addressed fans concerns by stating, "we will remove material that caused the misunderstanding as soon as possible.  We will make sure not to let this kind of this happen in the future."

The Yahoo article questions the inclusion of a scene which directly targets Japan and notes that this is not a friendly act by a Korean entertainment company towards their neighbor.

One of the top netizen comments on the Yahoo article stated that Red Velvet should not consider promoting in Japan after this music video.

The relationship between Korea and Japan has always been one that is strained.  

Beyond what could be considered offensive references to Japan, the video also features a scene involving a toy plane crashing into a skyscraper. The Yahoo article illustrates that this scene could be considered a reference to the American tragedy, 9/11.

References to World War II and 9/11 are not the images most K-Pop fans would consider to be consistent with the genre. “Happiness” is an upbeat song with a fun concept, but these two scenes go against the good natured image of Red Velvet.  The swift response of SM Entertainment to address this issue should be applauded.