Producer and singer Zico admitted that he had never read HYBE's provocative internal report containing insults to many artists, especially underage idol group members. The internal report contains industry trends that are shared weekly with HYBE's corporate leaders.
Meanwhile, Zico is the founder of KOZ Entertainment, which has been a sub-label of HYBE since November 2020. "Not only did I never see the document, I never even read the email," Zico said on his personal Instagram account. "I just found out that I was on the email list through a news article.
I asked KOZ Entertainment to confirm that I never opened the file before making this statement," Zico continued. He made the remarks after local media outlet Hankyoreh reported that HYBE CEO Bang Si-hyuk ordered Zico to be included on an email list that receives market "analysis" from other K-pop artists.
Many people think that Zico was also aware of the report containing harsh and inappropriate words. The internal report even came under fire earlier this month during a parliamentary audit when HYBE was caught compiling content denigrating artists under other agencies and sharing it with executives.
Min Hyung-bae of the Democratic Party of Korea also continued to grill HYBE COO Kim Tae-ho, who was present as a witness, during the audit. He revealed a document titled Weekly Music Industry Report containing an overview of industry trends. In the report, Hyung-bae highlighted the use of harsh words in describing other idols, especially their physical issues.
The report contained phrases such as, “Too much plastic surgery,” “Too ugly,” and “Too short and looks pathetic.” The insults in the report were even directed at HYBE’s subsidiary artists. Culture Minister Yu In-chon also expressed concern, saying, "The statements are too harsh.
It is excessive, especially considering that employees and their families may be able to see these documents." HYBE CEO Lee Jae-sang immediately issued an apology on Tuesday October 29, 2024 for the document and has removed the author, one of the company's executives, from his position.
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