Seunghan to Permanently Leave RIIZE

Update, on October 14, 2024:

Just days after news of Seunghan's return to RIIZE broke, it has been announced that the idol will now permanently leave the group.

Seunghan's departure from RIIZE was made public on October 13, 2024, with a statement posted on the group's official X account signed off by Wizard Production's directors Kim Hyeongguk and Lee Sangmin. (Wizard Production is one of six production centers unveiled by SM Entertainment in 2023, which manages RIIZE, EXO, and Super Junior.)

In the statement, Wizard Production's Kim and Lee apologize for “causing confusion" with the announcement of Seunghan’s return days before. They also shared that they “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,” per a Soompi translation.

The statement claimed that “Seunghan has consistently expressed his desire to leave the group for the sake of the members and the fans” and “out of respect for the artist’s decision,” he would be exiting RIIZE. “We will support Seunghan in the future so that he can showcase his talents and follow his dreams,” it continued.

The same day, Seunghan himself took to the fan platform Weverse to pen a handwritten letter to fans discussing his feelings upon his exit from RIIZE.

“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,” Seunghan wrote, as translated by Soompi.

“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,” he continued. “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.”

JUNG YEON-JE/Getty Images

Seunghan's departure from the group was announced as the rest of RIIZE's members were still on their way back to South Korea after performing at Music Bank in Madrid the night before.

The news of his departure followed a slew of protests from some Korean fans, who, among other things, sent and displayed funeral wreaths demanding Seunghan leave the group outside of SM Entertainment's offices in Seoul.

International fans, on the other hand, are showing their support for Seunghan and campaigning for his return to the group with multiple hashtags on X and even a Charge.org petition with over 100k signatures.

Previously, on October 11, 2024:

K-group RIIZE will reunite as seven members with the return of Seunghan next month.

Seunghan went on an indefinite hiatus last November following a series of viral negative stories about his personal life.

Through a lengthy statement on social media on October 11 in South Korea (October 10 in the US), RIIZE’s management team at SM Entertainment announced his return.

“We poured our heart and soul into planning out RIIZE even before their debut, and we have determined that RIIZE’s next chapter would be even more meaningful if the seven members were together,” reads the statement, as translated by Soompi. “Therefore, after numerous discussions with the staff and members about the direction of the group’s future activities, it has been decided that Seunghan will be returning to the group.”

The statement declares that the past 10 months of hiatus have been a period of reflection and growth for Seunghan. RIIZE debuted in September 2023, and he went on hiatus in November 2023.

The hiatus began after several instances of Seunghan’s alleged bad behavior, including images of him appearing on an intimate date and clips of colorful conversations with friends, gained attention in South Korea.

Shortly after the statement announced the news of the end of his hiatus, Seunghan posted a letter to fan platform Weverse, apologizing for his alleged misbehavior in photos from before his debut with RIIZE.

“First of all, I sincerely want to apologize to the members and the fans. When the photos from before my debut were released, although they were photos of me, I was deeply disappointed and regretful about myself. If even I felt that way, I can’t even imagine how the members and fans by my side must have felt,” he wrote.

“Because I caused such great disappointment, I continued to have more realistic thoughts such as ‘Will I be able to stand on stage again? Can I continue making music?’ During that time, the members held my hand once again. It must have been a very difficult decision, and I am only filled with gratitude and apologetic feelings for giving me another chance.”

The news of Seunghan’s return has been greeted with both support and upset on social media. Some fans have interpreted the move by one of South Korea’s biggest entertainment agencies as a dismissal of controlling fan behavior towards the personal life of stars.

RIIZE released their Riizing: Epilogue album in September. Earlier this month, their song “Memories” was re-released with a new remix by popular K-pop producer Kenzie.