George Nash
YouTuber KSI has been spotted at a mosque in Bradford, just days after publicly apologising for using a racist slur.
In a recent video made with his group the Sidemen, KSI, who is also a musician and boxer, used a four-letter derogatory word for someone of Pakistani origin during a game of Countdown.
It quickly caused outrage online, prompting the 29-year-old with than 20 million subscribers to his personal YouTube channel to issue an apology and reveal he is taking a break from social media platforms for a while.
Advert
The video has since been removed from the Sidemen YouTube channel.
“I wanna apologise for saying a racial slur in a recent Sidemen video,” he said on Twitter on Monday.
"There's no excuse, no matter the circumstances, I shouldn't have said it and I'm sorry.
Advert
"I've always said to my audience that they shouldn't worship me or put me on a pedestal because I'm human.
"I'm not perfect, I'm gonna mess up in life, and lately I've been messing up a lot. So I've decided I'm gonna just take a break from social media for a while."
The post also prompted a scathing tweet from fellow YouTuber-turned-boxer, Jake Paul, who used it as an opportunity to take a swing at his rival.
Paul wrote in a quote-tweet: “Fake guy with fake apologies every other week. I hope you take this more seriously than taking a break off social media so you can focus on training and then reappearing two weeks before your fight saying you’re a new man.
Advert
“Meet with British South Asian community leaders, get with the right charities and give back. I made my own mistakes in my early 20s but we are too old for this behaviour. I look forward to knocking you the f*** out on behalf of all South Asians around the world.”
On Wednesday, however, photos and clips emerged online of KSI attending Bradford’s Al-Hikam Institute mosque, posted with the tagline: “KSI at Al-Hikam Institute mosque, learning and educating himself.”
The footage was met with a mixed response online, with some users questioning the integrity of KSI’s visit.
Advert
“Amazing PR stunt,” one Twitter user wrote.
Another added: “Lmao whatever you gotta do to not get cancelled.”
A third wrote: “He said something against a culture, not a religion. No idea why he’s in a mosque.”
Others, meanwhile, expressed their support for the influencer.
Advert
“Why is it that a guy who tries to right himself being abused? I'm happy he wants to learn, leave him be,” one user posted.