SM Entertainment officially announced on Oct. 13th that RIIZE member Hong Seunghan, more commonly known as Seunghan, has officially left Riize. Fans are angered as the announcement was made just two days after his return.
On Oct. 11th, SM Entertainment released a statement saying that Seunghan would finally rejoin RIIZE after almost a year of his hiatus. Many were overjoyed as there were several news articles suggesting that he wouldn’t come back. Following this announcement, the singer shared a handwritten letter to his fans, expressing his feelings of regret on the matter. The idol wrote, “[I will work hard to become a good member and ensure I will not hinder the progress and achievements the members have made thus far. I want to become an essential part of the team, RIIZE.]”
However, the positive feedback from fans did not last for long, as just two days after his official return, SM Entertainment made a major announcement. “[Seunghan expressed his intention to leave for the sake of the members and fans. We respect his decision, and we are announcing that Seunghan will be leaving RIIZE instead of rejoining the group.]”
Fans speculate that the decision was influenced by the excessive amount of hate Seunghan received after the announcement of his return, as some “fans” who were opposed to the news went as far to send funeral wreaths to the SM building as an expression of condemnation. Many were enraged as they felt that the response the singer received for his mistakes was not proportionate to the actual severity of what he did.
“As a fan, I honestly feel like this [the funeral wreaths] is too much,” Isabelle Choi (9), avid RIIZE listener, said. “I feel like everyone makes mistakes like these, and that despite it being inappropriate, Seunghan doesn’t deserve all of the negative feedback.”
Many fans also criticized SM Entertainment for the abrupt announcements. They felt that even if it was Seunghan’s decision to leave the group, SM had handled the matter unprofessionally and harmed the artists involved. Some also speculated that SM fully orchestrated the return and removal of Seunghan from RIIZE, but there is no evidence to support those claims as of now.
“I think the way SM handled it is very controversial,” Yena Kim (10), RIIZE fan, said. “It’s alleged that the company planned this entire situation. I think there’s much room for improvement because all of this was very sudden, and fans such as myself felt very upset about this whole situation.”
Fans are concerned about what this incident could mean for the future of RIIZE and SM Entertainment. Regardless, the situation highlights many concerns regarding the standards that are expected to be upheld in the Korean entertainment industry.
