Some feel the hats are inappropriate, even as jokes.
S‘s Jungkook faced criticism over the message on a piece of clothing he wore. Before his appearance at J-Hope‘s concert, the idol was spotted wearing a hat that said “Make Tokyo Great Again.”
The hat’s message is a spoof of the meaning of MAGA (Make America Great Again), the message used by Donald Trump in his political career.
In the time after, Jungkook faced criticism from netizens, which resulted in an apology and a promise that the hat was disposed of.
It also sparked comparisons between Jungkook and aespa‘s Karina, who recently had a politics-related scandal.
BTS Jungkook and aespa Karina’s Controversy Comparisons Spark Heated Reactions
However, in the time since, more netizens have called out other idols for wearing clothes with similar messages.
BTS RM’s “Make X Great Again” hat was one of the first to resurface, with an image showing the idol wearing a cap that says “Make Comedy Great Again.” The image was included in a post from December 2023 on his Instagram.
aespa’s Giselle was also found to be the owner of one of the spoof hats, the same one as BTS’s RM. The idol has been seen in the hat on more than one occasion, including a video on the group’s YouTube channel.
There has been debate over the appropriateness of wearing spoof hats, as many have an incredibly negative view of the policies represented by MAGA.
Both idols have faced criticism over their wearing of the hats.
GISELLE MAGA😱 pic.twitter.com/lQcgR9esW6
— Aespann_jeans (@a1071364) June 15, 2025
“the most educated k-pop idol” pic.twitter.com/U0oizl84Ox
— roxi (@roxicon) June 15, 2025
so apparently it’s a thing for kpop idols wearing maga themed hats cus i just saw giselle in one too like what the fuck yall pic.twitter.com/pBr4xVNF2Y
— nico -`🕯´- (@floridasapphic) June 15, 2025
