Chinese beauty influencer and livestream host Austin Li Jiaqi learned the hard way that hell hath no fury than fans scorned. The 31-year-old who’s known online for his colourful and creative descriptions of the beauty products he peddles, rather insensitively snapped back at a fan after they commented that the eyebrow pencil he’s introducing on livestream was getting more and more expensive. “How is it even expensive? The price has been set to this amount for so many years. Don’t talk such nonsense. It’s difficult for local brands. How is it expensive?..” he said.
But what further got Netizens dropping him like hotcakes was how he seemingly attacked the commenter when he said “look to yourself for the reason why alright. Your salary hasn’t increased after so many years? Did you work hard?” Many felt the statement was completely unnecessary and insensitive especially since it isn’t that easy for normal folks to make money as it is. Not to mention it’s never as quickly and easily as a top influencer like him. As a result, Li Jiaqi lost upwards of 600k followers practically overnight though he still has a whopping 29 million followers on Weibo.
Forgetting Where He Came From
Today, the beauty influencer tearfully apologised for his insensitive remark on livestream promising that he would reflect deeply and do better next time. “I shouldn’t have nor am I qualified to make a comment on anyone’s personal situation. I’ve said it before, Li Jiaqi got to where he is thanks to the support of each one of you. No matter what happens, I must never forget where I came from. I am so sorry I’ve disappointed you all.”
He further apologised for what he calls his inappropriate remarks, and promised to accept everyone’s criticism and suggestions.
