K-Pop entertainment companies are not free of criticism or suggestions from fans. Fans are more vocal than ever, letting their feelings be known to companies in various ways, including mass emailing and even sending LED trucks — like international ENHYPEN fans did to show support for the group as Korean fans protested their “Bite Me” choreography.
international engenes truck support for enhypen!!!~~
thank you so much for everyone who donated and ms @ssshhhana for initiating this fansupport!!!
i’m so proud of international engene and @ENHYPEN_members
pic.twitter.com/KoWkBS8XTC
— ellen.🩸 (@peachyksn) May 24, 2023
Idols speaking out about their companies has become much more common recently, something fans are grateful for. In the past, idols sometimes hid their issues and feelings, only speaking up after their company contracts ended.
Recently, WayV‘s Xiaojun and Hendery shaded their company, SM Entertainment, during a live stream.
In the last year, fans (and the artists themselves) have shared their complaints about SM’s treatment of various idols, ranging from the promotions of aespa’s music releases…
Aespa Fans Express Their Bewilderment Over SM Entertainment’s Strange Promotion Style For The Group
… underestimating Red Velvet’s popularity…
SM once again severely underestimating Red Velvet
by u/Z5behappy in
…and many issues involving members of NCT, including Mark and Haechan‘s non-stop schedules and the invasions of privacy by sasaeng fans.
taeyong: please don’t call me… that’s so rude… i’m really scared so please don’t call me if you know my number so please don’t call me… please.
someone from america kept calling taeyong… please stop calling him
pic.twitter.com/nlOUKqEkUl
— 태유연
#SHALALA (@taeyeweon) March 19, 2022
Fans have NCT sub-unit WayV have had their fair share of complaints, primarily with how SM has managed the group in recent years and how they have not held their own concert despite being a four-year-old group.
Following the release of their most recent album, Phantom, which came nearly two years after their last, the group has been able to meet fans in different countries on their 2023 WayV Fanmeeting Tour Phantom.
During a moment of downtime, some of the members went live on Weibo to chat with fans.
In the middle of the live, Xiaojun suddenly says, “If you have any things you’re not satisfied with, let it out now.” Hendery responds by saying he doesn’t “dare to” because “there’s still a few years left” in his contact with the company.
When Xiaojun says he’s thinking about his own dissatisfactions, Hendery continues by saying, “I don’t even dare to think about it, how can you think about it?” before asking if Xiaojun has anything he’s not satisfied with.
Xiaojun turns to face the window, saying, “there are a lot” before they both laugh.
Some of the issues Xiaojun mentions may include the sudden changes to NCT’s line-up, which you can read more about below.
Fans Are Furious With SM Entertainment For Moving Forward With NCT Tokyo
This content was originally published here.
