March 18, a video entitled “Encourage the wings of Wheein, Chungha and Yoon Ji-Sung” It was loaded on the Wheein YouTube channel. The three artists, who had all embarked on solo careers after leaving their respective groups, engaged in a candid and fun discussion.
During the conversation, Wheein smiled and said: The freedom to be without agencies. “ Yoon Ji-Sung agreed, responding, “This is actually the best time.” Chungha, however, exchange with Yoon Ji-Sung and said: “It’s a different story when you signed with a company like us.”
Wheein therefore revealed his frustration, saying, “There is a reason why I had to create a brand new channel.” Chungha, surprised, asked, “Wait, did you make a new one?” Wheein nodded and replied, “You should know, you had to do the same thing.” Chungha’s face suddenly showed recognition while emitting a nervous laugh.
Chungha then joked, “If I start talking about it, I could go on for five hours.” Yoon Ji-Sung sympathized, adding, “Has Chungha not even lost access to your personal accounts?” In this way, Chungha issued an exasperated scream, clearly overwhelmed by the situation. When Wheein revealed that he crossed the same identical ordeal, Chungha’s frustration grew. The two singers, who share a mutual sense of helplessness, end up screaming dramatically together, veragping their repressed emotions in the unjust circumstances.
Yoon Ji-Sung questioned, “Why don’t they only return the accounts? What do they even need it?” When hypothesized, “Maybe for their personal collection?”
From group success to the struggles of the agencies
Wheein made his debut in 2014 as a member of Mamamoo under Rbw Entertainment and actively promoted the group. After the end of his exclusive contract, he moved to the L1ve, but once the contract has expired, he became a free agent and is now managing his career.
Chungha became famous in 2016 in the context of Ioi, a group of projects formed through MNET’s survival “Produce 101.” Initially he was a trainee under Mnh Entertainment but promoted with Ioi under Cj Enm.
After Ioi melted, Chungha established herself as a top solo artist under Mnh Entertainment. However, when his contract ended in April 2023, he discovered that his former agency maintained the ownership of his personal account, which had over 5 million followers. As a result, after joining his new agency, more vision, he had to recreate all his accounts on social media from scratch.
Adding to frustration, Chungha was not able to use his original name Fandom, “Byulharang”, and was forced to rename him to “HAART” under his new management.
This ordeal highlights the ongoing struggles that many artists face during the transition between the agencies, raising concerns about the control companies that maintain on the digital presence of their artists and the communities of fans even after the contractual links have ended.
