KUALA LUMPUR, May 8 — K-pop star and White Lotus actress Lisa faced online backlash over her Met Gala outfit, which some online users claimed showed the face of US civil rights icon Rosa Parks.
The Blackpink member made her debut at the annual fashion event in New York on May 5, wearing a sparkly Louis Vuitton blazer and a lace bodysuit embroidered with faces.
According to CNA, the ensemble was meant to reflect the theme of the evening, “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion,” and more specifically, a subtheme titled “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”
“The faces seen on this look, as well as on previous LV garments featuring Taylor’s artwork, are all drawn from his personal life — family members, friends, and neighbours,” a representative for artist Henry Taylor told Vulture following the event.
Thai singer and actress Lalisa Manoban known as Lisa arrives for the 2025 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 5, 2025, in New York. — AFP pic
Online users had criticised the look as “disrespectful” and “disappointing,” claiming one of the embroidered faces, located on the bodysuit’s crotch area, resembled Parks.
Parks was a central figure in the American civil rights movement, best known for refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955.
The moment led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott and is widely recognised as a turning point in the fight against racial segregation in the United States.
The representative confirmed that none of the illustrated individuals on Lisa’s outfit were civil rights figures.
Lisa, whose full name is Lalisa Manobal, is a member of the globally popular South Korean girl group Blackpink.
She is also known for her solo music career and recent ventures into acting, including an upcoming role in the third season of HBO’s The White Lotus.
This year marked her first appearance at the Met Gala.
