Seunghan Confirms Leaving RISE “We Respect His Decision, We Apologize for the Confusion” [Full Text]

Seunghan, who was set to join the group RISE, will be leaving the group.

On the 13th, Wizard Production released an official statement, first apologizing to the fandom Breeze who must have been confused after Seunghan‘s return to RISE was announced on the 11th.

They stated, “We are especially sorry for not prioritizing the growth that the six members of RISE have achieved through their best efforts, the support of Breeze who have been the greatest strength in the process, and the preciousness of the time RISE and Breeze have spent together, and for putting the position of the production first.”, “We thought that if Seunghan repents his past mistakes, returns, and shows RISE growing as a team once again, we can bring greater happiness to the artists and fans, and this was a decision we made after much thought.”.

However, after the announcement of Seunghan’s return, Breeze contacted SM Entertainment. They sent wreaths and trucks, launched a group boycott, and protested to urge Seunghan to leave the group.

In response, Wizard Production said, “After announcing the news of his return, we thought back on all the opinions and reactions fans have sent us, and we realized that our decision has only caused greater confusion and hurt to our fans.” “At the same time, Seunghan has expressed his intention to leave the team for the sake of the members and fans. We respect the artist‘s decision, and we would like to inform you that Seunghan has left Rise, not joined,” and made Seunghan’s withdrawal official.

They said, “We will support Seunghan so that he can pursue his talents and dreams in the future,” and “Above all, we would like to sincerely apologize to the six members who have consistently done their best since their debut, thought about the fans, thought more than anyone else, and worked hard at every moment to make Rise what it is today, for causing difficulties and confusion. He said, “We will do our best to support all aspects so that the members of Rise can grow even further in the future.” Meanwhile, they promised, ”Wizard Production will be careful about everything going forward, and will work hard so that Rise and Breeze can be happy together for a long time.“


SM Entertainment‘s official position on Seunghan’s withdrawal from Rise

Hello, this is Wizard Production.

First of all, we sincerely apologize for causing great pain and confusion to Breeze members with Seunghan‘s return announcement on the 11th.

We are especially sorry for not prioritizing the growth that the six members of Rise have achieved through their best efforts, the support of Breeze members who have been the greatest strength in the process, and the preciousness of the time Rise and Breeze spent together, and for putting our position as a production first.

We thought for a long time that if Seunghan repents his past mistakes, returns, and Rise shows another level of growth as a team, we would be able to bring greater happiness to the artists and fans. It was a decision.

However, after the announcement of the return, after thinking back on all the opinions and reactions from fans, we realized that our decision only caused greater confusion and hurt to fans.

At the same time, Seunghan expressed his intention to leave the team for the sake of the members and fans. We respect the artist’s decision and inform you that Seunghan has left RISE, not joined.

We will continue to support Seunghan so that he can pursue his talents and dreams.

And more than anything, we would like to sincerely apologize to the six members who have consistently done their best for the fans since their debut, who have worried more than anyone else and worked hard at every moment to make RISE what it is today, for causing difficulties and confusion. We will continue to do our best to support all aspects so that the Rise members can grow even further in the future.

Wizard Production will be careful in everything we do in the future and will work hard to ensure that Rise and Breeze can be happy together for a long time.

- Wizard Production General Directors Kim Hyung-kook and Lee Sang-min

Jeong Hee-yeon, Donga.com Reporter shine2562@donga.com