Diplo has declared that New Zealand "sucks" due to the country's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The DJ appeared on the First/Last Party on Earth podcast earlier this month, but his comments about the Labour Government's 'hard and early' reactions to coronavirus cases have recently resurfaced.
Host Tiga began the interview by telling Diplo: "I've been at home for a year so I don't know if I'm even like mentally all there right now but for a while there was no one to be jealous of. Do you know what I mean?”
"Maybe New Zealand, but they suck!" Diplo replied.
"Honestly they have one case, the whole country locks down.
"We [the United States] did lockdown for two weeks then we have just been open basically the whole time, the whole year. You just can't go to movie theatres.
"Everything else people are doing, getting sick, not really caring, people are dying so I don't know."
While Diplo's remarks were made before New Zealand was plunged into a COVID-19 alert level 4 lockdown on Tuesday night, they're timely as Aotearoa springs into action to attempt to contain a community outbreak of the Delta variant.
The US has to date recorded over 37.1 million cases of COVID-19, while more than 623,000 people have died from the virus in the country.
New Zealand has had less than 3000 cases total and 26 deaths since the pandemic began. Before the case of Delta was discovered on August 17, the country had gone nearly 200 days with no community transmission, and Kiwis were able to go to the cinema, attend festivals and sports games and throw weddings and parties with little to no restrictions.
New Zealanders reacting to Diplo's comments on the George FM and The Edge Facebook pages were outraged by the Grammy winner's rant.
"Imagine being from America and criticising NZ's COVID response after being from one of the world's most affected countries, all while you make trash AF music," one comment read.
"Idiot! Look at the suffering of many in the US and the selfishness of individuals there!" said another.
"[New Zealand] doesn't nearly suck half as much as [Diplo's] Mt Smart stadium performance a couple years ago!" said a third.
