DJ says she was told to change out of ‘offensive’ pants on American Airlines flight

(NEXSTAR) – A popular South Korean DJ was instructed to change an “offensive” piece of clothing before she was allowed to fly from New York to Los Angeles earlier this week.

Hwang So-hee, known professionally as DJ Soda, had initially claimed she was removed from the American Airlines flight — and “harassed and humiliated” — because she was wearing a pair of sweatpants printed with various phrases containing the f-word.

“I have never had an issue with wearing this pair of pants before in my many months of touring in North America and they did not have any problem with me wearing it at the time of check-in nor when I sat down at my seat,” Hwang told her Twitter followers on Tuesday.

According to Hwang, she was already seated on the aircraft when a member of the flight’s crew asked her to pack her belongings and leave the plane “without any kind of explanation.” Hwang said she was then escorted from the aircraft and informed that her pants were “inappropriate” and “offensive,” and that she would have to catch the next flight.

Instead, Hwang took off her own pants, flipped them inside out, and was eventually allowed back on the plane. The flight also experienced no significant delay and departed on time, according to data from Flight Aware.

Hwang, however, claims she spent the rest of the flight “mortified and trembling” as a result of being “half-naked” while removing her pants. She also said she did this in front of the crew.

She later shared a short video on social media which shows another person — who identifies as her manager — speaking with an airline crew member after the flight. In the video, Hwang is wearing the offending pants.

Hwang, who is currently touring the U.S., was not immediately available to offer additional comments.

American Airlines has since issued a statement in response to Hwang’s claims, reiterating its Conditions of Carriage for customers, which stipulate that travelers dress “appropriately” for flights. The airline also said it provided Hwang with the opportunity to change her pants.

“American Airlines policies prohibit offensive clothing,” the carrier said in a statement obtained by Nexstar. “During the boarding process for American Airlines Flight 306 at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), our team members informed Ms. So-hee of our policies and provided her the opportunity to change out of clothing displaying explicit language. The customer complied with requests and was allowed to continue travel, as planned, to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).”

American Airlines added that its customer relations team was reaching out to Hwang to discuss the incident.

Hwang, meanwhile, said she plans to stop flying with American in the wake of the incident.