“I Apologise… I Wouldn’t Have Involved Myself If I Knew” – Cyan Boujee Breaks Silence After Controversial Promo

South African influencer and DJ Cyan Boujee has issued a public apology following major backlash for promoting a controversial international program aimed at young women.

A few days ago, a video went viral on social media showing Cyan Boujee endorsing the “Alabuga Start Programme” — an overseas opportunity that encourages South African women aged 18 to 22 to travel to Russia for supposed training, work, and a luxurious lifestyle. In the video, Cyan promised that participants would receive free flights, accommodation, language lessons (including Russian), and well-paid jobs, all while living in a pyramid-shaped building with thousands of other women from different countries.

But not long after posting, the internet reacted — and not in a good way.

Many South Africans raised red flags about the program, claiming it sounded suspicious and possibly linked to human trafficking. Social media users accused Cyan of misleading her followers by promoting something with vague job roles and unclear intentions. Even more worrying were leaked videos online that appeared to show prison-like living conditions at a facility believed to be connected to the program.

In response to the public concern, South Africa’s Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster stepped in. They issued an urgent warning on their official social media channels, telling young women to be careful of “illegitimate and/or unverified ‘opportunities’” like this one. The government also confirmed that an investigation is now underway.

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After days of silence, Cyan Boujee finally spoke up. In a video posted to her Instagram today, she offered a heartfelt apology:

“I’ve been quiet firstly because I’ve been waiting for the program to release a statement on my behalf and it seems like they’re wasting my time. Human trafficking is a very, very, very serious matter and I do not stand with that. I believe that this is a huge learning curve for me and all the other influencers.”

She went on to explain that her involvement wasn’t about money: “I haven’t been paid yet. I had other videos to post, I think four more,  on my YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. I was only going to get paid after posting. So it wasn’t for money. I didn’t get paid.”

Cyan said the moment she started seeing the public’s reaction, she realised she had made a mistake: “Immediately when I saw the comments on my stories and on the first two videos that I posted, I knew that this is not something I stand with. I knew that this is something I have to delete immediately. I didn’t care about the money or the contract that was signed.”

She ended her message by saying she hopes something good can come out of this: “We are humans, we make mistakes. And I think the positivity out of this is that the girls will be helped. That is the main thing that matters at this very moment.”

In the caption of her apology video, she wrote: “I am aware of how serious the situation is, and the team is in communication with the program. I am awaiting a response before releasing another statement, which will include more details.”