BREAKING: SM Confirms Seunghan Is Leaving RIIZE Two Days After They Re-added Him Back, Explains Why
RIIZE‘s Seunghan has ultimately decided to leave the team. After halting his activities last year due to personal issues, this decision comes just two days after announcing his return to the group.
On the 13 of October, Seunghan took to Weverse to write a personal letter announcing his departure from the group, he was only added back roughly two days prior.
In his letter, he explains that he doesn’t wish to be a burden on his group or his members. You can read it here.
On the 14th of October, Wizard Production, the management center at SM Entertainment also confirmed this and apologized stating, “First of all, we sincerely apologize to Briize for the confusion and pain caused by the announcement of Seunghan’s return on the 11th. Seunghan has expressed his intention to leave the team. We respect the artist’s decision and inform you that Seunghan will be departing from RIIZE, rather than rejoining the group.”
Seunghan debuted as a member of RIIZE in September of last year, but in November, his personal issues from his trainee days came to light, leading him to halt his team activities. Since then, RIIZE has been promoting as a six-member group. On the 11th, Wizard Production announced that Seunghan would return to the group starting in November. However, there was strong opposition among fans regarding his rejoining. Some fans even sent condolence wreaths to SM Entertainment’s headquarters in protest of Seunghan‘s return, showing significant backlash.
In response, Wizard Production issued an apology, saying, “We sincerely apologize to Briize for causing great confusion and pain with the announcement of Seunghan’s return on the 11th.”
They further explained the background of their decision to bring Seunghan back, stating, “We thought that if Seunghan reflected on his past mistakes and returned, RIIZE would show growth as a team, which would bring even more happiness to both the artist and the fans. It was a decision we made after long consideration.”
However, regarding the fans’ reactions, they admitted, “After carefully reviewing the opinions and responses sent by the fans following the announcement, we realized that our decision had only caused more confusion and hurt.”
While Seunghan will leave RIIZE, Wizard Production left open the possibility that he will continue with SM Entertainment or Wizard Production. “We will continue to support Seunghan as he pursues his talents and dreams,” they said.
They also apologized to the remaining six members of RIIZE, stating, “We sincerely apologize for the difficulties and confusion we caused to the six members, who have been working hard and reflecting deeply, constantly striving to make RIIZE what it is today. We will continue to fully support them to ensure their continued growth.”
Finally, Wizard Production pledged, “We will be more cautious with all future decisions and will do our best to ensure that RIIZE and Briize can continue to share happy times together for a long time.”
What do you think of this shocking turn of events?
Source: A