Is Wonbin silently screaming “RIIZE is 7” along with the rest of the fans?
On October 19, the 22-year-old gave a subtle nod to his former bandmate Seunghan and the RIIZE OT7 lineup with a Weverse update. Since Seunghan’s exit was announced, fans have shown a strong reaction with protests and boycotts.
Nearly a week after his departure, no RIIZE member has shared their feelings about SM Entertainment reversing its decision to reinstate Seunghan.
To show his support for his former bandmate, Wonbin changed his Weverse bio and added an emoji that represents “7” in Korea.
Previously, he was the only member to share his feelings when SM Entertainment announced that Seunghan would resume activities in November. He mentioned having discussions with the company over a long period for his return.
Following his return, the letter was suspiciously deleted from his Weverse, which made fans furious.
Fans are boycotting RIIZE by unfollowing them on social media and criticizing SM Entertainment for supporting bullying. Not only has RIIZE lost nearly half a million followers across social media, but fans have also been rolling out protest trucks to demand Seunghan’s return.
On October 18, many fans protested outside SM Entertainment headquarters to demand his return.
SM Entertainment announced legal action against malicious content targeting Seunghan to address the growing outrage. However, many fans are seeing the label’s latest move as “empty promises” and “just talk.”
Frustration grows as fans eagerly await SM Entertainment to reinstate Seunghan. On the other hand, RIIZE is not listed as a 6-member group on SM’s website, and Seunghan as an artist under the label.