HYBE Plans to Leverage Kim Garam to Elevate LE SSERAFIM, Competing with aespa and IVE

The South Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism has recently made an internal audit document from HYBE available to the public. Within this internal report, the scandal involving former LE SSERAFIM member Kim Garam was discussed:

“Upon her debut, Garam was lauded for her stunning appearance, drawing comparisons to actresses Go Youn Jung and Go Min Si. However, a controversy erupted just a day later, leading to a wave of negative reactions. Despite the absence of solid evidence supporting bullying claims, rumors suggesting her removal from Starship due to ‘attitude issues’ intensified the situation. The most severe allegation involved a photograph depicting the word ‘s*x’ written on a board, which raised concerns about inappropriate nicknames being associated with her, despite the clarification of the rumors.

Prior to aespa’s debut, rumors circulated on Instiz, which ultimately acted as a promotional tool for aespa. Furthermore, the phrase ‘defeat IVE’ displayed on the board created an unofficial rivalry with IVE, even before LE SSERAFIM made their debut, inadvertently benefiting the new group. Regardless, the divide between Jang Wonyoung & An Yujin and Sakura & Kim Chaewon had already emerged. If this could be cleverly reframed into a competitive storyline, it might enable LE SSERAFIM to outshine other rookie girl groups, leading to a favorable outcome.

Additionally, the contentious photo was taken prior to Garam’s school transfer, suggesting no direct link to her. If the claims regarding her exclusion from IVE’s lineup prove untrue, it could lead to inventive scenarios, like covering IVE’s songs, thereby countering the rumors.

Competing against Wonyoung on Music Bank might effectively enhance Garam’s public image. In reality, the overshadowing of Sullyoon during this process could also present some unexpected advantages.

In 2022, shortly after her debut, Kim Garam faced accusations from alleged former classmates who claimed she had engaged in school violence and used inappropriate language towards both seniors and idols outside her company. HYBE and SOURCE MUSIC consistently refuted these claims, arguing that Kim Garam was, in fact, a victim of school bullying. Nevertheless, their statements failed to sway public opinion, as netizens leaned towards the accusations after a series of past photos of Garam surfaced as supposed evidence.

Eventually, on July 20, 2022, HYBE and SOURCE MUSIC released a statement via LE SSERAFIM’s Weverse page, announcing the termination of Kim Garam’s contract, officially marking her departure from the group.

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