It’s going to be “RII7E” again real soon.
OT7 fans of the Korean boy group RIIZE are in jubilant mood as they received today, October 11, the formal announcement from the band’s label SM Entertainment regarding member Seunghan.
Seunghan, who has been on a controversial hiatus since November 2023, will finally resume his idol activities with the group soon.
In a statement, as translated by Korean news website Soompi, the Wizard Production group of the company plans for Seunghan “to gradually participate in some of the group’s scheduled activities for November and greet the fans once again.”
The company also honestly told the public that there were internal debates on whether the member should be brought back to the limelight, citing the controversy surrounding his personal life.
“Seunghan acknowledges that his past actions were wrong, and he has currently halted activities for nearly a year while deeply reflecting [on his actions] and feeling apologetic to the other members and his fans,” and also added that the company viewed these acts as “not appropriate as an artist.”
They also disclosed that during his break from public engagements, Seunghan has also been training to further develop his skill, which the label hopes to be received “warmly” by fans and onlookers.
The company also expressed their apologies towards fans for “causing confusion and difficulty” during the nearly 1-year-long hiatus of the K-pop idol.
To end, they asked for support towards all seven members as they resume their activities as a complete group starting next month.
It was on November 22, 2023, SM Entertainment said that Seunghan decided to pause his activities to reflect on his past actions, which he was “apologetic” about towards the team and members, and fans.
RIIZE was first revealed to the public in August 2023 and made their official debut as a seven-member team on September 4, 2023 with their debut single, the viral sensation ‘Get A Guitar.’
Prior to which, they dropped the pre-debut single titled ‘Memories,’ which was unveiled weeks before their official debut song, and a performance of ‘Siren’ — which was released as a full track earlier this year.
They have also dropped more singles in the following months, such as ‘Talk Saxy,’ ‘Love 119,’ ‘Impossible,’ and ‘Boom Boom Bass,’ which are all part of their extended play ‘Riizing’ that was released last June 2024.