Riize's Seunghan leaves the K-pop group: Confusing news follows two days after the agency announced his return

It's not a golden hour at the headquarters of K-pop label SM Entertainment.

RIIZE's Seunghan is leaving the boy band for good. The shocking news comes just days after the music artist's agency confirmed that he would be resuming his post after a long break.

On Sunday, October 13, Wizard Production – the SM Entertainment division that manages RIIZE – officially announced that Seunghan will no longer be a part of the group. The 21-year-old artist reportedly expressed his desire to leave the band to protect the feelings of his bandmates and fans. Ultimately, he also published a handwritten letter on Weverse explaining his side of the story.

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Check out Wizard Production's official post and Seunghan's handwritten letter:

Official announcement from SM Entertainment's Wizard Production:

“First of all, we sincerely apologize to all BRIIZE fans for the heartache and confusion caused by the announcement of Seunghan's return on the 11th. We deeply regret that we have prioritized the attitude of production over the growth that the six members of RIIZE have worked so hard to achieve.”, the invaluable support of Breeze, which has been their greatest source of strength, and the precious time, which was shared between RIIZE and Breeze fans.

We initially made the decision in the hope that it could bring even more joy to both the artist and the fans if Seunghan reflected on his past mistakes, returned to the group, and once again contributed to RIIZE's growth as a team. However, as we carefully reviewed all of the fan opinions and reactions following the announcement, we realized that our decision only resulted in further confusion and pain for all of you.

At the same time, Seunghan expressed his intention to leave the team for the sake of his teammates and fans. We respect his decision and inform you that Seunghan will not rejoin RIIZE but will leave the group. We will support Seunghan to continue pursuing his talents and dreams in the future.

Above all, we deeply apologize for the difficulties and confusion caused to the six members of RIIZE, who have always given their best to the fans since their debut and who, more than anyone else, have constantly thought about and worked hard on RIIZE to bring it to market to where it is today.

We will continue to support RIIZE members in every way so that they can grow even further. “Wizard Production promises to exercise greater caution in all matters going forward and ensure that the time RIIZE and BRIIZE spend together is long-lasting and joyful,” PopBase reports.

Seunghan's full letter:

“Hello, this is Seunghan.

I know that many people were seriously considering my return, and I was deeply aware of the gravity of the situation. When I thought about whether I was only thinking about myself and whether I was causing significant harm to the company and members, whether it was appropriate for me to be in a group that deserved so much love, the only emotions I had experienced, following I feel worried and sorry.

I believe the best decision for everyone is for me to leave the group.

I no longer want fans to feel confusion or pain, nor do I want me to cause any more harm to members and the company.

I would like to express my gratitude to the company and members for making the effort to give me another chance, and I sincerely thank and apologize to everyone who supported me despite my shortcomings. I don't want the bond between RIIZE and BRIIZE, who have always supported each other and grown together, to be damaged. I also don't want the fans to fight because of me, even though they just have to keep loving RIIZE.

From the bottom of my heart, I will continue to support the group I love and wish that RIIZE receives even more love in the future,” AllKpop quoted.

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Brief overview of Seunghan's RIIZE connection and controversial past

RIIZE debuted last year as a seven-member group (Shotaro, Eunseok, Sungchan, Wonbin, Seunghan, Sohee and Anton). However, Seunghan found himself in several controversies after his pictures ahead of his debut were leaked online. In numerous clips and other media, he was seen smoking, spending time with girls and allegedly slandering a K-pop idol. Afterwards, the K-pop agency forced a ten-month break for Seunghan for the benefit of the other group members, while the remaining six singers continued to release new music and perform live.

On October 11, 2024, it was announced that Seunghan would resume his activities as a RIIZE member. However, not all fans were happy with it. Some Korean “OT6” enthusiasts initiated protests by sending “mourning wreaths” and urging the group's company to remove the singer so that the other members would not be linked to his past scandals.

Reactions to Seunghan's exit from RIIZE

A large majority of international RIIZE (BRIIZE) fans have sent social media into a frenzy, accusing management of handling this case “unprofessionally.”

One fan expressed outrage in the comments: “Accepting bullying, normalizing delusional and sasaeng behavior and failing to protect a 21-year-old artist while simultaneously putting another member in an uncomfortable position 30 minutes before his performance.” Completely useless .”

Another heartbroken fan commented: “I REALLY HATE YOU. ALL OF YOU OT6.” A third wrote: “Once again a bow to bullying! You don't know how to protect your artists! They are just promoting this sick culture of bullying against innocents!” Numerous others even started trending the hashtag “SMSupportsBullying.”

This is a developing story.