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Seunghan leaves RIIZE controversy explained: From pre-debut dating, girlfriend photo-leak, to hiatus and exit
Former RIIZE's member Seunghan announced his departure from the group two days after confirming return from hiatus. Here is an explanation of the whole situation.
Seunghan made his debut as a part of RIIZE in September 2023. Just 2 months following his debut, the idol was embroiled in various controversies leading to a temporary hiatus from activities. While RIIZE continued as a six-member group, on October 11 it was announced that Seungan would be resuming his activities. Shortly after that, SM Entertainment revealed that the idol would be parting ways with the group following the backlash.
Here is the full story.
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Pre-debut leaked footage with speculated former girlfriend
In August 2023, a month before RIIZE's official debut, Seungahn was hit with the first controversy as one of his acquaintances leaked pictures of him kissing his former girlfriend. One of the pictures showed him and the girl in bed cuddling and kissing. Some rumors speculated that Seunghan took his former girlfriend who was a minor to the hotel. But these were never confirmed.
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RIIZE's debut
RIIZE is a rookie boy group which debuted with 7 members including Shotaro, Eunseok, Sungchan, Wonbin, Seunghan, Sohee, and Anton. They made their debut in September 2023 with the single Get a Guitar which quickly went viral among K-pop fans. Their latest release was their first repackaged EP Riizing: Epilogue which was released this September marking their 1 year anniversary.
Even before his debut, in August, former member Seunghan was embroiled in controversies.
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Allegedly badmouthing LE SSERAFIM's Eunchae
An old private Instagram live between Seunghan and TOMORROW X TOGETEHR's Soobin was leaked on the internet in November 2023. However, the video started catching attention for the wrong reasons as a mistranslated version of the video started circulating. The wrong translation made it seem like Seunghan was joking with Soobin and also dragged Eunchae into the conversation who had co-MCed with the TOMORROW X TOGETHER member.
This was later proved to be false and Seunghan was cleared of the allegation of him badmouthing Eunchae. But the damage was already done and the idol received a lot of backlash for the leaked video.
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Alleged smoking pictures
The very next day, more photos and videos of Seunghan were leaked. These videos allegedly showed Seunghan smoking. In the pictures, a man was seen with a cigarette in his hands, close to his lips.
In South Korean culture, smoking is not seen with kind eyes especially if it involves an idol.
The incident became bigger when an alleged friend talked about their experience with the idol on their Instagram stories. This person claimed that Seunghan used to smoke and drink publically and also used to do livestreams without the company's knowledge.
They also mentioned that Seunghan used to discriminate against other trainees and also used to engage with females from other agencies.
But these accusations were never confirmed and only remain as rumors.
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Temporary hiatus
Following several controversies, SM Entertainment announced in November 2023 that Seunghan will be taking an indefinite hiatus and reflecting on his past actions.
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Confirms return from hiatus
On October 11, SM Entertainment confirmed that RIIZE's Seunghan will be officially ending his hiatus and rejoining group activities in November 2024. The agency revealed that Seunghan acknowledges his past actions were wrong, and has deeply reflected and feels apologetic to the other members and his fans.
They reassured that they wished for RIIZE to continue as a 7-member group and after much deliberation, they decided for Seunghan to rejoin. They also asked fans to receive him warmly as he still has a lot to show and has been practising his skills.
The news of his return was met with extreme backlash by some people as they wished for RIIZE to continue with 6 members.
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Seungahn's exit from RIIZE
As announced on October 13, Seunghan decided to part ways with RIIZE. In his letter, this idol wrote that he was thinking too much about himself and that this was causing harm to the members and the company, which led him to wonder if it was okay for him to continue.
The 21-year-old decided that it was the best to leave RIIZE.
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