When K-pop star Zico produced a song titled "Turtle Boat" for the rap competition show, "Show Me The Money: 4", it generated awe.
The rapper's friend Mino congratulated him and even said he was surprised by it. Nevertheless, Zico has now found himself entangled in a plagiarism scandal.
According to allkpop, Zico once said about this song, "t could be too hot to the touch, so blow on it as you listen." And we're sure that he didn't imagine the song would earn the ire of people who have accused him of copying the beats of Qulinez's "Hookah".
Now, Zico has hit back at the accusations with a long instagram post. In his post, he clarified his fans' doubts by saying that the oriental source for "Turtle Boat" was taken from a sample CD. He further said that perhaps, Qulinez also sourced his beats from the same CD.
While Zico's post could clear the air about his alleged plagiarised song, fans of the star have taken to his side.
This is not the first time that the K-pop industry is rife with allegations of plagiarism. A few months ago, singer Hyomin was accused of plagiarising Zico's lyrics. On 1 July, Hyomin defended herself in a tweet saying, "In the beginning of the writing process, I got help from various people, including Taewoon (Zico's brother). The part of the song in question was actually the part that Zico helped me with."
Furthermore, Zico also defended her, saying that the singer asked his permission earlier.
Here's the full text of Zico's post on Instagram:
I'm here to briefly explain the speculations that say the main loop and certain parts used in 'Turtle Boat' are very similar to some parts of one DJ's mix track
First of all, the oriental source that makes up the top line of 'Turtle Boat' are sounds from a sample CD from 'For Samples', and it was cut and fit to suit the trap beat vibe that I made and embodied in a slightly different method. Of course, we'll have to confirm to see if the 'Hookah' track used the same sampling that I did, but I think it can be overall interpreted as a different genre than 'Turtle Boat'.
If I am to borrow the explanation that's written on Duble Sidekick's sample CD, once a purchaser acquires a sample source, then that sample can be used freely. You can think of the sampling as a type of instrument that anyone can use, and that it's not only tied to one specific song just because it has been used in one individual's song."
