On October 29, HYBE CEO Lee Jae Sang, on behalf of HYBE Group, apologized to artists, industry colleagues, and fans for the internal documents that appeared in the audit of the Korean National Assembly on October 24.
This 18,000-page document is the weekly “Music Industry Report” circulated internally at HYBE, intended for executives.
Among them, there are many malicious, fabricated, and insulting comments about adultery and the talents of artists from other Kpop companies such as SM, JYP, YG, Cube, StarShip, etc. In addition, there is also controversial content about HYBE's own artists.
HYBE CEO personally apologized, but the group still seems to face backlash. Fans see HYBE's official statement as an excuse rather than an apology.
CEO Lee Jae Sang admitted, “The document contains provocative content and is clearly aimed at K-pop artists, including the personal opinions and judgments of the report writer.”
The staff member responsible for drafting the document was dismissed on the same day. The staff member was identified as Content Director Kang - Editor-in-Chief of HYBE's Weverse Magazine.
HYBE said that this decision is to take responsibility for the provocative and unprofessional content of the document.
However, some in the industry have criticized the group's move, stressing that it is just an attempt to "blame" one person. Questions have arisen regarding the accountability of higher-level executives.
“Even if the editor-in-chief was the one who drafted it, someone must have instructed them to do so and others must have reviewed it afterwards. The problem lies in the explicit content it contains. Punishing just the individual who wrote it will definitely draw criticism,” said music critic Lim Hee Yun.
Seungkwan - a member of Seventeen, an idol of HYBE - is also said to have expressed his dissatisfaction with a long post on Instagram.
Seungkwan expressed, "We are not people who work so smoothly that we can be easily judged. We have endured enough pain and depression and somehow overcame it, and at the same time, we have made persistent efforts to show our fans our best sides on stage. I hope everyone does not look down on idols.
Our story is not for outsiders to interfere. Not only for us but also for other artists. We are not your property. I hope you do not think that you can use us and enjoy us as you wish.”
Carat - the fan community of Seventeen - is calling for a boycott of HYBE on social media. They claim that HYBE's actions are inhumane and must be condemned. Many Carat protested the group by stopping buying Seventeen's albums.
Fan communities of other artists such as V (BTS), Lisa (Blackpink) also pushed the keyword on X together, asking HYBE to directly apologize to their idols.
