There have rarely been any days in the past few months when RIIZE Seunghan hasn’t made headlines for various controversial rumors. Even before his debut, allegations and rumors related to him began appearing through anonymous posts. These have now accumulated and K-fans are demanding his withdrawal from SM Entertainment’s boy group.
When the fire is still burning, I wish we could take a step back from discussing, alleging, and defending to know what are we dealing with. Are these rumors a product of someone’s malicious intent, a by-product of fame, and whether their continuous surfacing shows the negligence of management?
What are the allegations against RIIZE Seunghan?
It is difficult to miss the allegations against the rookie K-pop star when they are being bombarded on social media timelines, and neither are they easy to keep up with. If you have missed them then here’s a quick run down of what the star is dealing with:
Former friend exposes #RIIZE #Seunghan's pre-debut behavior, alleging bad-mouthing and forced hierarchical dominance over other trainees https://t.co/Q7zjVhSXuh pic.twitter.com/Gb2NhzHFYH
— allkpop (@allkpop) November 19, 2023
Firstly, his private pre-debut photos capturing an alleged romance were leaked on a web portal. The publisher claimed that one of the images captured him visiting a motel while the couple were underage. Later he was accused of smoking and allegedly dragging LE SSERAFIM‘s Eunchae in a private Instagram live with TXT Soobin.
Following this, another anonymous publisher posted a string of images on Instagram accusing Seunghan of ‘gapjil’ (asserting authority over other trainees), and frequently bad-mouthing other trainees. He was also accused of meeting female trainees, smoking, and creating a fake public persona after debuting.
SM Entertainment’s stand on the rumors and allegations
The managing label of Seunghan had released an official statement when his private photos were leaked. They apologized for the controversy and alerted that they would be taking legal action against the anonymous publisher. The company is also known for taking action against people who spread malicious rumors and they will do the same for Seunghan as well.
Additionally, the singer also released an apology about the issue when it happened. However, the K-pop Idol and his group have continued to remain in controversies. At one point, fans started to wonder whether SM Entertainment was using the negative press to garner more support for their group. Read some of their current reactions below:
exactly where's the "controversies" ๐ญ ppl coming at seunghan for doing teenage things as a teenager. seeing this crap happening to seunghan has me like ?? cause didnt yall go through the teenage phase ? nothing he did before he became a public figure is our business https://t.co/E78G3q2Qb4
— wiz (@jhyngae) November 19, 2023
https://twitter.com/wnhnjy/status/1726338024395690236?t=pIKEDsmT32T3SdCHGyhCNQ&s=19
They need to leave him alone oh my god! I love Seunghan so much, and this is absolutely ridiculous. The controversies they are hung up on aren't something detrimental. Sometimes people get worked up over something that doesn't call for it. For example so what that he smoked. https://t.co/oo26TS4qfA
— ๐ฐ๐๐๐โท ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ด๐ด๐ (@angelica_bailey) November 18, 2023
Why are RIIZE Seunghan’s controversies harassment?
As per the latest reports, some fans are organizing a protest demanding RIIZE Seunghan’s withdrawal from the boy group (you can learn more about it here), let’s take this moment to see the issues from a distance.
Nobody deserves to have their privacy invaded this much like Seunghan did in the past two months pic.twitter.com/jIZA4hVNah
— lisa๐ซง (@songargente) November 18, 2023
If you step back then you’ll notice that all the controversies of Seunghan have one thing in common- his privacy was compromised. From leaking private photos, his Instagram live, and alleged smoking video were published to ‘disclose the true identity of the K-pop Idol.’
Additionally, most of his allegations are normal behavior of someone his age. Some of the issues wouldn’t even make it to the headlines without his celebrity status. In such a tricky situation, it is important to stop engaging with content that violates an artist’s privacy, especially in matters that are not morally or legally wrong.
