Malaysia’s Ministry of Health denies criticizing Rosé and Bruno Mars’ song ‘APT.’

American pop singer Bruno Mars (L) and Rosé, a member of the K-pop group Blackpink, in the music video for their song "APT." Photo from Rosé's YouTube

According to AsiaOne, a Facebook page called Public Health Malaysia shared a post featuring a photo of Rosé and Bruno Mars on Oct. 24. The post claimed that the song’s lyrics "clearly advocates a lifestyle that isn’t healthy and normalises Western culture," which quickly drew attention online.

The post, mistakenly believed to be issued by the Ministry of Health of Malaysia, was widely circulated on social media. However, the Malaysian authorities clarified the situation by stating on X on Tuesday: "The Ministry of Health (MOH) Malaysia wishes to clarify that any statements regarding this article attributed to MOH have not been issued or authorized by the Government of Malaysia."

"In this regard, we would like to highlight that the posting was made by an entity which is not linked to the Ministry in any form whatsoever," the statement added.

"APT.," which draws inspiration from a popular Korean drinking game, serves as a pre-release single for Rosé’s upcoming album "Rosie." The song, co-written by Rosé, has achieved global popularity, amassing 100 million views on YouTube within five days of its release on Oct. 23. Additionally, the track helped Rosé reach a new milestone as the highest-ranked female K-pop artist by debuting at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Born in New Zealand and raised in Australia, the 26-year-old Rosé signed with South Korean label YG Entertainment after an audition in 2012. She debuted as a vocalist with Blackpink in 2016 and made her solo debut with the album "R" five years later.

Bruno Mars, 39, was born Peter Gene Hernandez in the U.S. According to The Mirror U.S., he is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, having sold more than 130 million records worldwide.