aespa Giselle’s Latest Instagram Update Reignites Massive Backlash

aespa‘s Giselle appears to have quietly edited an Instagram post at the center of ongoing backlash.

Fans recently spotted that Giselle deleted a photo from an Instagram post she made in late August. The photo in question, which drew massive criticism, featured a T-shirt from the clothing brand Fucking Awesome. While the face on the tee was labeled “Lou Reed,” the image was actually a suspect sketch of Richard Ramirez: the notorious American serial killer and sex offender known as the ‘Night Stalker’.

giselle has removed that photo from her instagram now pic.twitter.com/WuroiXQWHj

— liv 🍌 (@susussupernova) September 17, 2026

While the person wearing the T-shirt appeared to be someone who worked with Giselle rather than the aespa star herself, the photo came alongside several others that sparked controversy among both Korean and international fans. Many accused Giselle of casually and intentionally referencing real criminals and abusers in an effort to be “edgy.”

Following the deletion of the photo, many fans defended Giselle against the recent accusations, claiming the edit proves the idol never intended to post any inappropriate images.

‘i thought she didn’t gaf..’ She didn’t gaf about that fake outrage you all gave to the plastic guns but she took accountability immediately to the thing that was possibly the most serious one…does that make yall mad too?😂

— cico ✮ (@fag4ae) September 17, 2026

y’all were running around calling her a serial killer? i need y’all to realise you can criticize someone without sounding crazy 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

— aley (@nningfan) September 18, 2026

it was pretty obvious that her post was actually focused on the keychain. now that she took down, you people need to leave her alone because this has gone way too far. the amount of energy you’re putting into scrolling through her page and nitpicking for every nonsense things is…

— •ᴗ• (@aeriminded) September 17, 2026

Others, however, pushed back, insisting that fans should not have defended Giselle to begin with.

She knows it was weird and yall were on here defending it

— a s a 💕 VOTE VOTE VOTE (@CARlBDOLL) September 17, 2026

LMFAOOO pic.twitter.com/5wO4XIQhmP

— sultryfilm (@Katwiiaa) September 18, 2026

But I thought she didn’t gaf ? 😭 pic.twitter.com/67okyzi3Pa

— ﹰ (@jkissante) September 18, 2026

While the image featuring Richard Ramirez no longer appears on Giselle’s Instagram, other controversial imagery — such as a clip of XXXTentacion, who faced serious domestic abuse allegations before his 2018 death — remain live.

aespa Giselle’s “Pedophilic, Violent And Abusive” Instagram Sparks Massive Controversy In Korea