On 9th July 2026, ENHYPEN leader, Yang Jungwon, speaks up on the member line-up on a Weverse livestream after their Peru stop of their BLOOD SAGA tour.
Jungwon stated that he started the live solely for the reason to speak up about the recent controversy within the fandom. The translation of what he spoke about in his live is shown below:
There is a lot of uproar on social media regarding his statement. Jungwon said, “..people have been saying we haven’t given them a proper statement, and they’ve continued to bring up the number of the members.” Fans were not given a clear statement about the ex-member’s departure – that is factual. The only thing fans were given was a notice with no prior warnings. Moreover, Jungwon did not mention his name at all, but everyone knew who he was talking about – Lee Heeseung.
Jungwon is not wrong for speaking up, it just sparks confusion and more conflict within the fandom. For example, on the 4th July 2026, ENHYPEN performed in Brazil and the fans were recorded singing the original fan-chant very clearly during their song Go Big Or Go Home. The members were seen smiling throughout, no signs of discomfort. Although nobody can prove how they actually felt. If they did feel uncomfortable with it, why did they choose that song for encore where they did the 7-chant again? One of the other members (Kim Sunoo) even caught Heeseung’s representative plushie happily and placed it on the stage with them, when he could have thrown it back to the fan – view here.
Fans in Peru also did the 7-chant, the concert the 6 performed at before Jungwon went on live. This can be seen in a clip posted on X here.
His statement started to make little sense when he said, “I’m not saying that our concerts in Brazil and Peru were bad. They were amazing.” It is confusing because he just touched on how it makes them uncomfortable and the known highlight of these concerts were the fans representing themselves as “ot7 fans”. It is strange that this is being said now, rather than when there was clear conflict in the crowds at their concerts and the fan-chant being an inaudible mix of the old and new one.
As mentioned above, fans were conflicted by this and with each other. They flooded social media with their thoughts, theories and responses to his statement.
Time will tell whether the fans will adhere to this statement with their other tour stops, but it is very clear that this only separated the fandom even more.
On 22nd June 2026, ENHYPEN’s official Instagram posted a reel insinuating a change in their theme and ended in their new logo which used to be “EN-” to now “EN” encased in a black box.
On the 21st June 2026, fans noticed ENHYPEN’s profile picture on all platforms to have become intentionally blurry – speculations involved it being coincidental for this to happen the day the ex-member of the group debuted as a soloist.
@/enhypen blurry profile picture on all platforms on 21/06/2026
The post that was uploaded the next day left fans in confusion and excitement. Many fans believe this rebrand is happening due to the departure of a member, so that instead of him “haunting the narrative”, they are making a new impression as a 6-member group.
On 27th June 2026, BELIFT released a Brand Renewal Film, visually presenting the change in logo and how it has changed. Instead of them previously being “connected” with the hyphen, they have entered a new dimension and became one inside the hyphen (the logo).
NEW DIMENSION BEYOND HYPHEN Screenshot taken from the Brand Renewal Film.
The official rebranded ENHYPEN logo/s Screenshot taken from the Brand Renewal Film.
There are speculations about whether this will weaken their vampire storyline or enhance it – with this new era in motion, fans can only wait in anticipation for what ENHYPEN will release next.
On 22nd June 2026 at 6PM KST, Evan, also known as Lee Heeseung, dropped his first solo album – RIDE OR DIE.
His solo debut album consists of two tracks – Overflow and Ride or Die, both with contrasting themes. Overflow has a soft, sentimental vibe, whereas Ride or Die is more hyperpop.
Evan on Weverse live (22/06/2026) about the making of Overflow:
I wrote it during a difficult period of my life. It was a period when countless emotions surrounded me, yet they simply wouldn’t resolve. The verse starts as if there is no hope, but in the hook, the line “Here we go again” is repeated, looking towards hope. In the end, it is a story about overcoming hardship.”
The music video for Ride or Die compliments the song’s themes through a symbolic narrative. In the opening scenes, Evan is shown alone, disconnected from and ignored by those around him, while a mysterious car follows him throughout the city. The imagery creates a feeling of uncertainty and restlessness that matches the song’s energetic sound.
The turning point arrives when Evan enters the very car that has been chasing him. Accompanied by the lyric, “It’s gonna be alright,”. This moment suggests a shift in mindset, from being pursued by uncertainty to confronting it head-on. The atmosphere changes noticeably afterwards – rather than ignoring or judging him, the people around him begin dancing around him as he is on-top of the car. This contrast between the beginning and end of the video reinforces themes of self-acceptance and confidence. As Evan has described his music as reflecting himself, the narrative can be interpreted as a journey towards embracing one’s identity and moving forward with conviction.
The debut of the soloist garnered lots of expectations and reactions online due to his previous music presence in the K-pop group, ENHYPEN. Many fans (known as EVER) even had theories to what the Ride or Die music video was trying to convey:
The posts online range from high praise to deep analysis of Evan’s debut.
As this marks a new era, Evan is expected to appear on various music shows and broadcasts, including KBS and M-Countdown, as the promotion cycle begins to unfold. And with this new era in motion, fans can only wait in anticipation for what Evan will do next.
The Grammys have announced 5 new categories for 2027. Two of these being, “Best Asian Pop Music Performance” and “Best Latin Song”.
Best Asian Pop Music Performance will acknowledge artistic excellence within Asian markets including K-pop, J-pop, C-pop and more.
Best Latin Song will acknowledge songs sung predominantly in Spanish (at least 51%).
At a glance, this seems inclusive, as if the Grammys are open to exploring cultural diversity by adding a category dedicated to them. However, it may also seem that it is a subtle move at cultural segregation.
I believe the mass popularity of the film K-pop Demon Hunters had a part in the Best Asian Pop category’s decision as the song Golden, from the film, won Best Song Written for Visual Media. Previously, BTS and Rosé (BLACKPINK) were nominated for Grammy awards but their music didn’t win, this was the first win a K-pop performance had ever gotten. Ironically following this win, there had been an update for the next Grammys for a category dedicated to Asian performances.
On one hand it may give light to performances which believe that they will have a safer bet of winning, and that it may be similar to competing in their home countries for awards. Personally, I do not believe this is as great as it may seem due to the fact that the US, where the Grammy Awards are held, is a multi-cultural country. Diversity is very prominent in the US, so why should a certain region of rising industries be singled out? Bad Bunny, a Puerto Rican who sings in Spanish, won Album of The Year for the Grammys 2026 and previously won others e.g. 2021 he won a Grammy for Best Latin Pop Or Urban Album. There has been no European category introduced since his wins, yet strangely there is a category introduced (Best Latin Song) for when another non-white piece – K-pop Demon Hunters, a song from a children’s film – won one.
To me, it seems as though the Grammys are trying to keep Western music dominant in the overall Grammy statistics by creating a separate Asian and Latin category, rather than allowing these pop artists to compete within the same award counts.
Despite all of this, I will never truly know the intent behind this decision.
On 18th May 2026, the K-pop soloist Evan had a Weverse account opened for him for his upcoming project announcements and to connect with his fans. He held his first livestream on this account shortly after the account was established.
This caused an emotional conflict for fans across social media platforms.
Fans shared their opinions of this on the social media platform X:
From the tweets provided, fans are more accepting towards his solo career than they have been before when they had first heard of this transition. For them to actually see Evan on a livestream interacting with them, it was some kind of closure for them, as most of the fans are now speaking excitedly of his upcoming debut and wishing the best for him, rather than reminiscing with heavy hearts. Although some are still quite upset and some fans are even at conflict with each other, the overall demographic of fans are looking up to see what’s actually in store for Evan’s future as it is actually moving in real-time rather than just words i.e. the departure of ENHYPEN and a solo career was mentioned with no solid, visual evidence or reassurance.
ENHYPEN were initially a 7-member group under the HYBE BELIFT LAB company. The group consisted of: Jungwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo and Ni-ki. However, as of 10th March 2026, the company and he had released a statement about him departing the group to pursue solo activities. Despite fan protests and conspiracies to bring him back into the group whilst pursuing solo activities, it seems as if nothing has worked and their 2026 tour, continuing into early 2027, is going forward with 6 members for the first time.
ENHYPEN, now a 6-member Korean boy-group, started their Blood Saga Tour today in Seoul and fans have mixed opinions. Every song on the setlist features Heeseung as they have not got an album without him. This received a mix of backlash and support, although the support had no correlation to the member, whereas everything that even had the slightest link was negative towards a 6-member tour. Across platforms like X, fan reactions quickly reflected this divide.
A somewhat portion of fans responded positively, praising the members for maintaining their performance standard despite the change in line distribution and choreography:
As usual, there were fan posts admiring their visuals and such. However, this was only a small percentage compared to the sea of other posts that were ENHYPEN-based.
With evidence provided above, it is clear that ENGENE’s are still mourning Heeseung’s departure from the group. This is similar to a situation that occured with a different group called RIIZE under SM Entertainment; a member had left in 2023, after only being active in the group for roughly 2 months. Even now, fans comment under RIIZE posts that “RIIZE is 7”, despite the member (Hong Seunghan) being in a different group under the same label (XngHanAndXoul).
For many fans, this shift is not simply about performance, but about emotional attachment to the group’s original dynamic. The continued reactions suggest that, for some, the identity of ENHYPEN remains closely tied to its original line-up.
As the Blood Saga Tour continues, fan responses are likely to evolve, reflecting both support for the current members and an ongoing sense of what has been lost.
It is 31st March 2026, a day that was supposedly meant to be filled with good news from HYBE BELIFT LAB.
Previously, on March 10th 2026, BELIFT announced the oldest member, Heeseung’s, departure from the once 7-member group. This broke out chaos within the fandom; protests happening internationally, trucks being sent to HYBE’s Seoul location, being the number 1 trending topic on X and even a petition which gained 2 million signs for Heeseung to return to the group whilst pursuing solo activities. Sadly, it seems as if our efforts have gone to waste.
The reality of this outcome is that ENHYPEN is now be a 6-member group, regardless of how they are in our hearts. We are no longer Heeseung’s ENGENE’s because he is no longer in ENHYPEN. At award shows, for the fans choice award, it will be ENHYPEN versus Heeseung. New ENGENE’s will learn the group as 6 members and question who Heeseung was for the group, not knowing he was the backbone of their entire discography. BELIFT knowing that Heeseung already has a fan-base (whether that’s ENGENE’s or solo stans) makes it a perfect business strategy for them to gain more revenue, which is the sad truth. A company will forever look for more ways to increase their profit, and they just discarded the social aspects of it. To them, it is a win either way because they know the fans care for all 7 members and that majority of them will not boycott a soloist, who had previously been buzzing when talking about his album to his fans. I want Heeseung back, but chances are lower than ever now, so all we can do it support his solo career, so that I don’t feel like I’ve failed as a fan. In some way, I am excited for him, but the way he left was dealt with horribly – we didn’t even get a goodbye! When I used to think of ENHYPEN, I would think “comfort space”, but now it is just associated with sad connotations. They did amazingly in 2025 – released their first English single “Loose“, performed at Coachella, released their album “Desire: Unleash“, went on their Walk The Line tour and even won the grand prize (daesang) when BTS had one every single year before them! How has it came to this?
I will continue to support ENHYPEN and Heeseung, but Home will always belong to the version of them that had seven.
LNGSHOT is a four-member South Korean boy-group under the company MORE VISION. The group consists of: Kwon Ohyul, Kim Ryul, Jung Woojin and Louis Elliot Jordain Lim. They officially debuted on January 13th 2026 with the EP “SHOT CALLERS“.
THE EVENT:
The event was hosted by SOKOLLAB at their store at 14 Rathbone Place, London, W1T 1HT on 9th February 2026. The actual event started at 3pm, though they asked fans to line up from 2-3PM to check-in. During the fan-sign, fans could greet artists and have a brief 30-second conversation during their turn with each of the members (Ohyul, Ryul, Woojin and Louis) till they are prompted by staff to move along.
Fans album unboxings:Cece C, a fan who attended the LNGSHOT fansign:
“It felt like a really intimate interaction… you could connect with them on a different level.”
Her words reflect the emotional value fans placed on the opportunity to interact with the group in a more personal setting.
REFLECTIONS:
As fan-sign events are still relatively rare in the UK, the success of this event suggests there is a clear demand for more opportunities that allow fans to engage with artists in a more personal setting. Beyond fan engagement, events like this also serve as an effective way for artists and organisers to strengthen fan loyalty while supporting album and merchandise sales.
There are many types of tickets – one of them is a VIP ticket (sometimes referred to as VVIP or VVIP+). This is the ticket people usually fiend for as it allows fans to interact with the members after the concert ends. It is typically coordinated by staff, who take these ticket holders into a separate room where interactions happen in rows, depending on the venue’s management. These tickets range from £300-500 for this treatment.
Data Analysis
For this specific enquiry, I conducted my own research with an online survey to find out what people really think of VIP send-off.
56% of participants said they do like that VIP send-off is an opportunity for concert-goers, whereas 44% disagree. Although 55% like the concept of it, only 5% of participants have actually purchased a ticket. Why is that? Well, good thing I asked 😉! I asked participants how the experience was if they attended, or why they didn’t purchase a VIP ticket.
From the figure, the common themes identified are all negative besides one of them which is the positive experience and fan connection, though it is one of the lowest ranked themes (7.7%). Over a quarter of respondents (25.6%) cited cost as the primary barrier, while concerns around value, access, parasocial pressure, and safety each accounted for roughly a tenth of responses.
While the chart highlights the most common reasons respondents have not engaged with VIP send-off, it does not capture the intensity or reasoning behind these views. To explore this further, participants were asked directly for their opinions on VIP send-off pricing and the experiences they have seen which have influenced their responses.
The prices of these tickets were repeatedly mentioned to be excessive and disproportionate with the time spent with the artists:
“Literally outrageous.”
“Paying an extra £100-200 to spend maybe 3 seconds with each member of the group (if you’re lucky) is so unfair.”
“Daylight robbery.”
Other respondents echoed similar concerns, arguing that no concert experience should exceed £200 without a guaranteed meet-and-greet. Several participants compared send-offs unfavourably to cheaper fan interactions such as fan-calls, questioning why significantly higher prices offer less certainty.
Inequality and Hierarchy among fans:
Participants raised concerns that these tickets were only for wealthy fans and a way of showing superiority to other fans:
“Only accessible to people who view that money as pocket change.”
“Pressures other people to spend more due to emotional attachment.”
“Those with more money get special treatment and feel “closer” to the artist.”
Other respondents claimed to know people who have only gone if they have gotten VIP, and if not they don’t go at all, hinting that they view the regular tickets as inferior.
Organisation Failure:
To actually begin the send-off experience, VIP ticket holders are ushered into another area where they wait for the artists to come in and speak to them. However, from the responses given, majority believe that although the artists are there, it is not enjoyable for everyone:
“It’s such a messy way for fans to meet idols.”
“Overselling of the ticket makes it suffocating for both fan and artist.”
To elaborate further, people are called in rows, which are randomised and highlights the intensity of the interaction will be based on luck.
Emotional Labour and Artist Well-being:
After performing for a maximum of four hours, which is dancing whilst singing to the best of their ability, they are expected to act over the moon in-front of their fans. Do not get me wrong, I am certain they love their fans, but after a long day, I’m sure it’s not one of the first things they’d like to do.
“It dehumanises idols – like they’re just products.”
“They have to force a smile after performing for hours.”
“Can be stressful having people waving things at you to sign and phones all around.”
“It’s draining for both sides.”
Most respondents agreed and said their enthusiasm during this time is situational and may not be a great experience for everyone.
Parasociality, Entitlement and Fan Behaviour:
It is no secret that most fans buy these tickets to stand out amongst other fans and have their interaction go viral on X or TikTok.
“Some fans just buy it for a Y/N moment.”
“It pushes unhealthy parasocial relationships and blurs the line between admiration and intimacy.”
“There will always be “fans” that forget their limits and make artists uncomfortable.”
“Fans act absolutely insane and put their idols in danger without realising it.”
It can be frustrating for artists trying to divide their attention to all the fans in front of them whilst they are having their name called left, right and centre.
Anecdote:
For me, I personally do love seeing send-off videos and have wanted to be in the OP’s shoes, but when I actually think about how those people got there, I automatically try to forget about it. I believe spending half a grand on artists, no matter how much they may have helped you, puts them on a pedestal, and makes you seem inferior to them. Also, the artists know how around how much would have been spent to be there. Personally, I’d feel ashamed that I’ve gone to these lengths for an interaction which lasts less than two minutes. However my perspective may be swayed by my religious beliefs.
I believe having fan-meets (ticket-sold, not raffle-won) as separate events would be much more appropriate and hassle-free for both parties.
Before I begin to yap, I am not trying to kill the fun of the show, I thoroughly enjoyed the show, but that doesn’t erase how stressful it is – I was quite literally gripping sofa during Season 3 Episode 4’s game. From the very first season, we are not eased into the horrors it displays, we are flung into high-stakes of violence, with bright colours and eerie music. When did our idea of entertainment become so anxiety-inducing?
DATA ANALYSIS+ ANECDOTE WITHIN
Squid Game didn’t just just torment its characters, also the viewers; according to ScreenRant, the second season of the show garnered 68 million views in the first three days and became number one in every country on Netflix! That is insane – we all know good shows but for them to excel everywhere?? What’s crazy is that it isn’t a lighthearted fun show – people were tuning in to feel tension.
A study by Mathias Clasen and Marc Andersen involved running several experiments in a haunted-house setting in Denmark which they called “Dystopia”. They hooked heart rate monitors to the participants and recorded how scared they felt and how much enjoyment they felt throughout. They found the participants’ results to have an upside-down U-shape; if participants weren’t scared at all, it wasn’t fun, but if they were too scared the enjoyment level dropped. Andersen worded it as “It is as if humans dislike being very far from their normal physical state but we seem to like being out of our comfort zone,”. This makes sense when applying it to Squid Game; we do not want real physical harm but we enjoy the thrill – the feeling of being off-balance.
The last game in Season 3 Episode 4, let’s be so for real, we all KNEW that Jun-hee was going to die before she even got eliminated, so why were most of us bawling? Even after that you continued to watch it at “torture” yourself, when you KNEW it was going to be emotionally scarring. ACTUALLY NOT EVEN THAT – WAS SEASON ONE NOT ENOUGH FOR YOU?! God bless my girl Sae-Byeok, Ji-yeong and Ali 😔- literally became ill from the amount of tears that were shed.
Anyway, so you’re not insane for finding joy in these types of shows !
mominatalks 