After 10 months of “hiatus” for mostly nothing but living as a teenager prior to RIIZE, Seunghan returned to the group officially for a mere three days before leaving again permanently. After massive fan backlash, most of which from RIIZE’s Korean fandom, he has supposedly personally made the decision to leave the group to avoid hurting them, according to both Wizard Production and a personal letter.
Wizard Production
First, we sincerely apologize for hurting BRIIZE [RIIZE’s fandom] and causing confusion through our announcement of Seunghan’s return on October 11.
We feel particularly apologetic for prioritizing Wizard Production’s position, instead of making our top priorities the growth achieved by the six RIIZE members while working their hardest; the support of BRIIZE, who have been RIIZE’s greatest source of strength during that journey; and the preciousness of the times that RIIZE and BRIIZE have spent together.
We made this decision after debating it for a long time because we thought that if Seunghan returned after reflecting on his past wrongdoings and RIIZE showed another level of growth as a group, we would be able to give the artist and the fans greater joy.
However, the announcement of his return, we ruminated carefully on each and every one of the opinions and responses sent in by fans, and we realized that our decision had actually hurt fans more and caused them greater confusion instead.
At the same time, Seunghan has consistently expressed his desire to leave the group for the sake of the members and the fans.
Out of respect for the artist’s decision, we are announcing Seunghan’s departure from RIIZE, instead of his joining the group.
We will support Seunghan in the future so that he can showcase his talents and follow his dreams.
Above all else, we also sincerely apologize for creating hardships and confusion for the six members who have, ever since their debut, always given their all while thinking of the fans and who made the RIIZE of today possible by thinking and working harder than anyone else in each and every moment.
We will continue to do our utmost to support the RIIZE members so that they can grow even further in the future as well.
Seunghan
Hello, this is Seunghan.
I know that many people took the matter of my return to activities seriously, and I too am aware of the seriousness of the current situation.
After pondering deeply whether I’ve been thinking only of myself too much, whether I’m causing too much harm to the members and the company, and whether it’s really okay for me to be part of RIIZE, who should be loved, I only felt worried and apologetic.
So I think that my leaving the group is the right path for everyone.
I don’t want to cause any more hurt or confusion for the fans, and I don’t want to harm the members any further, and I also don’t want to hurt the company any further.
I’d like to thank the company and the members, who made efforts to give me another opportunity, and I’m also both sorry and thankful to the people who have cheered me on all this time despite my many shortcomings.
I truly do not want the relationship between RIIZE and BRIIZE, who were growing together while supporting one another, to be damaged because of me. It also breaks my heart to see the fans, for whom it should be more than enough to just love RIIZE, fighting with each other because of me.
I will sincerely cheer on RIIZE, whom I love, while hoping that they will receive more love in the future.
I guess they anticipated backlash, but didn’t think it would lead to the fandom itself being on the verge of blows over it in front of their building.
Bordering on some first gen fandom mess, but instead of rival fandoms fighting IRL, it’s interfandom beef. https://t.co/yg8ItiLDUq
— (@asianjunkiecom) October 13, 2024
Either way, I just mostly find it sad. Sure, at the end of the day, this is an industry basically built on catering to fans and their parasocial delusions, so companies will usually do whatever the people who pay want. However, when you really look at what this is over, it’s hard not to feel terrible for Seunghan.
Also, I see this narrative forming that Koreans somehow know what kind of terrible “Korean man” Seunghan was, and that’s why international fans just don’t get it. But how many times have we been through this man? Whether it’s fucking around and hooking up as a teenager or committing yourself to holy matrimony for the rest of your life, what really matters to these fucking people is that they are indeed fucking somebody else but them or at all. That’s it, 99% of the time everything else is post-hoc justification.
Also also, shoutout to SM Entertainment for handling all this in the worst way possible and reminding me why they are the OG of this horrific company shit.
