IVE Yujin faces backlash over “Golden” cover amid Netflix hit KPop Demon Hunters
IVE’s Yujin is in hot water after sharing a cover of “Golden,” one of the soundtracks from the Netflix top-charting movie KPop Demon Hunters. The cover stunned many fans with Yujin’s clear vocals on the notoriously high-pitched, tough song.
IVE’s official YouTube channel flooded with praise for Yujin’s cover:
“Between two Lollapalooza shows and a comeback in Japan, plus a schedule in the U.S., she still did this for us… She probably didn’t even have time to practice It’s admirable how she wants to do everything for her fans no matter what.”
“This song is perfect for her.”
But the positive vibes did not carry over to all corners of the internet. A theqoo post quickly racked up hundreds of comments critical of heavy post-editing and auto-tuning on the cover.
Critics argue the use of digital tuning was excessive, masking Yujin’s natural vocals:
“Yujin has the vocal range and power to handle it just fine… It’s just disappointing that they added unnecessary tuning.”
“With this much tuning, can you even say she sang it herself? It just sounds like a machine did it.”
“I don’t really want to hear auto-tuned stuff. Even if there are a few cracks in the voice, I want to hear it raw…”
“I listened to it with earphones, and the robotic sound is giving old-school ‘Heartbreaker’-era auto-tune levels… seriously.”
As the controversy heats up, fans remain divided between admiration for Yujin’s effort and disappointment over the heavy vocal editing.
Listen to the cover here on IVE’s YouTube channel.
