Entertainment
KSI issues apology for using racial slur and confirms social media break in wake of outrage-Aisha Nozari-Entertainment – Metro
KSI has released a statement.
KSI caused outrage over the weekend when he used a racial slur in a new YouTube video (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
KSI caused outrage over the weekend when he uttered a racial slur in a YouTube video.
The YouTuber, 29, made the comment on Sunday when he appeared alongside his Sidemen co-stars in a new clip.
The group was taking part in a Countdown-themed gameshow when KSI, real name JJ Olatunji, used his selection of letters to form the word ‘p**i’.
KSI’s fellow Sidemen were seen giggling but it didn’t take long for social media users to express their outrage on Twitter.
The clip can no longer be viewed on the social media platform, with Deadline noting the footage has been made private.
One person wrote in response: ‘I had this racial slur thrown at me & got physical beats by racists for my entire childhood.
The group was taking part in a Countdown-themed gameshow when KSI, real name JJ Olatunji, used his selection of letters to form the word ‘p**i’ (Picture: YouTube/Sidemen)
‘Genuinely upset that @KSI (a guy my children love) did this & thought it was funny. The rest of them laughing can go f**k themselves too. People dehumanising brown people like it normal.’
Another Twitter user noted: ‘This is unacceptable and racist @KSI You don’t need points, you need to get your priorities in order.’
‘This guy should lose all his sponsorships and step down from @PrimeHydrate and @Sidemen for using this racist slur aimed at Pakistanis and South Asians,’ tweeted someone else.
KSI’s fellow Sidemen were seen giggling but it didn’t take long for social media users to express their outrage on Twitter (Picture: YouTube/Sidemen)
Social media users expressed their outrage on Twitter (Picture: Twitter)
Other comments included: ‘F**k KSI,’ ‘Is this what “content creating” has come to?’ and ‘It isn’t funny, it’s disgusting.’
In the wake of the backlash, KSI released a statement on Twitter on Monday morning that read: ‘I wanna apologise for saying a racial slur in a recent Sidemen video. ‘There’s no excuse, no matter the circumstances, I shouldn’t have said it and I’m sorry.’
The social media star went on: ‘I’ve always said to my audience that they shouldn’t worship me or put me on a pedestal because I’m human.
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‘Im not perfect, I’m gonna mess up in life, and lately I’ve been messing up a lot. So I’ve decided I’m gonna just take a break from social media for a while.’ [sic]
Metro.co.uk has reached out to KSI’s reps for further comment.
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