Quran resemblance row forces K-Pop boy band Kingdom to change album cover

K-pop boy band Kingdom faced criticism over the striking similarity between their new album cover and the sacred Muslim book, the Quran.

As a result, the album has been withdrawn from circulation, and GF Entertainment, Kingdom's management agency, unveiled a new album cover on September 26.

What is the history of Kingdom EP?

Kingdom is a South Korean boy band formed by GF Entertainment in 2021, originally comprising seven members: Dann, Arthur, Mujin, Louis, Ivan, Jahan, and Chiwoo.

However, Chiwoo terminated his contract with the agency and left the group. Three months later, a new member named Hwon joined.

An extended play (EP) is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

• In February 2021, Kingdom made their debut with their first EP, "History of Kingdom: Part I - Arthur."

• Currently, there are six installments of "History of Kingdom": Part I - Arthur, Part II, Part III - Ivan, Part IV - Dann, Part V - Louis, and Part VI - Mujin.
• Each member is named after a historical king, and each album is centered around a specific member.

The forthcoming EP is History of Kingdom: Part VII - Jahan

Backlash surrounding History of Kingdom: Part VII - Jahan

• On September 18, Kingdom shared a preview of their upcoming EP, "History of Kingdom: Part VII - Jahan," across all their social media platforms.

•  This installment draws inspiration from the 5th Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan, and the entire album is dedicated to him.
• However, when the album cover was unveiled, fans and the wider audience quickly noted its resemblance to the Quran.

• This resemblance ignited a significant backlash, prompting fans to call for a change in the album cover. They argued that the design was disrespectful to the Muslim community and could potentially upset Muslim K-pop enthusiasts.
• Originally scheduled for presale on September 21, the agency decided to postpone the release and initiate a redesign of the cover.

Kingdom's agency issues apology:

Hello, this is GF Entertainment.

We've recently received feedback concerning the cover of KINGDOM's 7th mini album, which was originally scheduled for pre-order on the 21st. It has been pointed out that the design bears some resemblance to the Islamic scripture.

KINGDOM is a group that strives to showcase the richness of world cultures through Kpop,
with a strong commitment to promoting cultural diversity and coexistence. We deeply regret that this controversy has arisen due to our lack of awareness and oversight, and we acknowledge our shortcomings in this matter. We offer our sincere apologies to the Muslim community and anyone else who may have felt discomforted by this situation.

We humbly express our regret and take this opportunity to assure you that we are committed to taking steps to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future.

In light of this, we have made the decision to recall and discard all 70,000 copies of the initial album edition and proceed with a reissue. Pre-orders for KINGDOM's new album will recommence at 11 a.m. on the 26th, and the official release will proceed as originally scheduled on October 18th.

We extend our heartfelt apologies to the dedicated fans who love KINGDOM for any inconvenience this may have caused.

The new album cover was unveiled on September 26 via Kingdom's official social media channels.

Additionally, they released a schedule for the upcoming album, detailing release dates and schedules.