Photo: Screenshot of Hong Kong singer Karen Mok's MV

Hong Kong singer Karen Mok’s studio apologized late Saturday afternoon for negligence to deeply investigate a brand after Mok is mired in wide outrage on Chinese mainland social media following the release of a music video in which she was spotted wearing Italian luxury brand Dolce & Gabbana. 
Her studio has asked the video be taken down from all platforms.
In an MV from her new album, Mok was spotted by netizens wearing a gaudy bathrobe of Dolce & Gabbana, and she even changed her profile picture on Sina Weibo, China’s Twitter-like platform, with the picture of her in the robe. 

This move soon made the singer the most trending topic on Weibo, with the hashtag “Karen Mok, Dolce & Gabbana” attracting 260 million views in just a few hours on Saturday. Overwhelmingly netizens questioned why she wore clothes produced by a brand that publicly insulted China. The netizens also claimed Mok had “trespassed” their bottom line.

“It is true everyone can choose whatever they want to put on. But a celebrity who makes money in the Chinese mainland wearing in public a brand that has insulted the country is not acceptable,” said a Sina Weibo netizen, adding anyone who disrespect China is not welcomed. 

Another netizen urged Mok to offer an explanation, saying as Mok’s major market is in the mainland, her move is beyond disrespect. “In another word, how do you feel when the one you spend most of your money on brags about someone you hated the most in your face?”

“A celebrity without basic political sense should get out of the Chinese mainland,” said another Weibo user.

Her studio later published a statement on Sina Weibo, apologizing for and “neglect[ing] to deeply investigate the brand, which stirred bad impression among the public.” The studio said it had ordered takedown of the video from all platforms, and the picture won’t appear in any publicity of her new album. 

The apology seems to have worked, as many netizens commented under the post that Mok has been devoted in public welfare, and has been vocal about her love for the country.

 “Hopefully Karen’s team can pay more attention next time,” said one netizen.

Mok is the first celebrity publicly spotted wearing Dolce & Gabbana after the brand’s crisis in China in 2018. The singer hasn’t made any statement about the incident so far. But she took down her previous profile picture. Some netizens also pointed out that Mok did not criticize the brand during its scandal in 2018. 

The Italian brand irritated Chinese people in 2018 when it released a series of adverts showing a Chinese woman struggling to eat pizza and spaghetti with chopsticks. The blunder was compounded when screenshots were circulated online that appeared to show co-founder Stefano Gabbana making negative remarks about China, even though the designer said his account had been hacked.

After a public fury, many Chinese celebrities ended their cooperation with Dolce & Gabbana. 

Global Times