It appears IShowSpeed needs to brush up on his K-pop knowledge … ’cause the popular gamer and YouTuber recently referred to Stray Kids member Bang Chan as “BTS” — and the whole awkward moment played out in front of thousands of viewers.
18-year-old Speed — who has tens of millions of followers across all platforms — was scrolling through videos on his phone as his loyal fanbase tuned in to the stream earlier this week … when he stumbled upon a clip of the popular group’s leader discussing his admiration for the internet superstar.
“Speed is so funny,” Chan said in the vid … adding he has “mad respect for him.”
“I feel like the effort he puts out to what he does is just phenomenal. I think it’s just really, really cool.”
Chan even revealed he watches Speed’s vids with fellow groupmate Felix “all the time.”
Speed was understandably pumped about the shoutout … and asked those watching if Chan was a member of BTS before tracking down his Instagram page.
Speed then slid into the DMs … leaving him a personal video as a “thank you” for the kind words.
“Yo brother Bang Chan, BTS, bro. I just seen the video that said you was a big fan of me, bro,” Speed said … also including some words of encouragement to “keep grinding.”
Despite several people in the chat trying to correct Speed on his flub — and the fact Chan clearly lists “Stray Kids” in his bio — it was too late … and he hit “send” on the video message.
STAY (the group’s fanbase) quickly got wind of the mistake … making jokes about Speed’s confusion and how Chan would react to it.
Others didn’t take it lightly … pointing out the fact Speed assumed Chan was a member of BTS could be considered racist.
While BTS is undoubtedly the most famous male K-pop group to crack into massive mainstream success in the States, Stray Kids has gained momentum in their own right … even performing at the Billboard Music Awards in November.
In other words, if Speed didn’t already learn the difference … he’ll know sooner than later.
