Jay Park Walks Back His "Joining Longshot" Post as "Obviously a Joke"

Jay Park publicly addressed the controversy surrounding Longshot, the boy group signed to his label, after a post on X last Tuesday ignited a fan backlash over his role in the group's career.

In that post, Park declared he would "officially join Longshot" — calling it his original goal and warning that "no one can stop" him. He reminded critics that he owns the company and created the group, and told fans who object to online narratives to "just enjoy the music and this journey — or stand on the sidelines and watch." On the group's relationship with him, he wrote that the Longshot members "respect and appreciate" him, and that he would "look after them when needed," describing the arrangement as "an incredible privilege and benefit at the start of their careers."

The friction started with last month's joint mixtape *4Shoboyz Vol. 2: 4Shobil*, after which reports surfaced that Park had taken the center position and the closing spot on music show stages and would join Longshot's world tour starting in September. Some fans complained that the group was being used as a backdrop for him. Park's response was pointed: "Their careers exist because I created something to give them. Don't speak on things you don't know."

The next day, Park posted an Instagram Story pulling back: "It's obvious I was joking to the haters — and now it's a news article."

Longshot is a four-member boy group launched by Park's label More Vision, which debuted in January of this year.

More Vision (모어비전) is Jay Park's Korean entertainment company. Longshot is its first idol group, debuting January 2025 — making Park's dual role as label head and potential performing member an unusual structural tension.

a prop or figurehead; fans used it to accuse Park of reducing Longshot to window dressing for his own spotlight.