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YG Entertainment has announced that all six members — Jay, Song, Bobby, DK, Ju-ne, and Chan — of the boy band iKON have mutually agreed to end their exclusive seven-year contracts with the agency.
iKON’s contract termination
“Apart from the end of the contract, all six members will act as a group: iKON,” the statement read on iKON’s Weverse. “In addition, iKON will continuously interact with fans through their official channels including Weverse, the fan community service, as usual.”
iKON band debuted in 2015 with ‘My Type’ and rose to stardom with the 2018 hit, ‘Love Scenario.’ The K-Pop boy band was initially a septet but its leader B.I., whose legal name is Kim Han-bin, announced his departure in 2019 amid drug-related allegations. In September, he was sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for four years, for violating the Narcotics Control Act.
Other YG artists’ departure
The news comes on the heels of other YG artists announcing their departure from the Korean agency. In a separate statement, actor Kang Dong Won also revealed to have parted ways after almost seven years with YG. He starred in various films such as ‘Master’ (2016), ‘Peninsula’ (2020), and ‘Broker’ (2022).
Earlier this week, Taeyang and Daesung of BIGBANG left YG, although the agency confirmed that the boy band will continue releasing music as a group. Two members, Bang Ye-dam and Mashiho, of the boy band Treasure also parted ways in November.
New girl group
Following the departure news, YG Entertainment announced it will debut a new girl group, consisting of seven members.
The Korean agency shared a poster with the words ‘YG Next Movement’ and the date ‘2023.01.01 0AM’ on social media. The name of the band and members have been revealed.
It will be YG’s first girl group in around seven years since BLACKPINK.