JAKARTA - Since confirming the fraudulent number of votes he has done at the Produce competition, Producing Director (PD) Ahn Joo Young has received repeated blasphemy from fans. How could it not be, the voting system that incurred these fees was known to have several agreements with certain parties in passing trainees who participated in the competition.
PD Ahn Joo Young previously confirmed he had cheated on the Produce 48 and Produce X 101 competitions, namely the third and fourth series of the Produce competition. PD Ahn received bribes allegedly in the form of night entertainment services from the agency more than 40 times in 2018. He also received more than 100 million won and this entertainment service was given to him in the Gangnam area.
Even so, there are many parties who feel aggrieved by this incident including the groups dropping out of the Produce 48 and Produce X 101 competitions, namely IZ * ONE and X1. This incident had an impact on the careers of both groups and it is not impossible that both of them are in danger of disbanding.
IZ * ONE, a group that has been running for a year, is about to make a comeback with a new album titled BLOOM * IZ. However, because of this incident, they immediately canceled the showcase where they were supposed to perform a new song for fans and media crew. Initially, only the showcase was canceled, but because the backlash received was quite large, IZ * ONE officially postponed the release of BLOOM * IZ which was scheduled to be released Monday, November 11.
It didn't stop there, IZ * ONE's appearance on Korean variety shows such as My Little Television, Amazing Saturday, and Idol Room was confirmed not to be broadcast because of cases that occurred. Except for Netflix Korea's variety show, Busted! 2 who confirmed that they continued to broadcast episodes where several IZ * ONE members were present. IZ * ONE's documentary film Eyes on Me: The Movie has also been postponed.
IZ * ONE (# 아이즈 원) - 1st Album [BLOOM * IZ] OFFICIAL PHOTO 'I WILL' ver. # IZONE # ア イ ズ ワ ン #BLOOMIZ # 20191111_6PM pic.twitter.com/BmGRD9bP6i
- official_IZONE (@official_izone) November 1, 2019
X1, the newest group to graduate from the Produce X 101 event, is in a sad position. Reportedly, group X1 has not signed any contracts with the agency that will oversee their activities. In fact, they have debuted since August and are undergoing promotions outside of South Korea. Their debut album immediately increased sales, reaching 570 thousand albums.
This condition was experienced by IZ * ONE at the beginning of their debut where it took them 6 months to sign a contract. X1 as the winning group is planned to sign a contract with CJ ENM with a duration of 5 years which is divided into 2.5 exclusive contracts and the rest are non-exclusive contracts which means X1 members will be able to participate in promotions with their previous group.
This case really hangs the careers of IZ * ONE and X1 for a while. Industry representatives said that it is difficult to know the fate of the two groups at this time.
"With a situation like this, it does not guarantee proper payment will be made for activities carried out until now," he said, quoted by Soompi.
However, a source from one of the members' agencies clarified the report by saying X1 had not yet received payment because it had only been debuting for three months.
"It even takes time to receive profit from sales of digital and physical albums. Not receiving payment as it is now is a normal condition," explained the source.
[# X1NOTE] 뜻 깊은 자리 에 엑스 원 이 함께 할 수 있어서 영광 이 였고, 응원 해주는 원잇 이 곁에 있어서 더욱 행복 했던 순간 이었습니다. 오늘도 감사 합니다! # X1 # 엑스 원 pic.twitter.com/f6mPMkwDH1
- X1 (@ x1official101) October 4, 2019
Mnet as the television channel where the Produce competition is broadcast also makes comments. “We discussed future plans for IZ * ONE and X1. However, nothing has been confirmed regarding the disbandment of the group. Since the investigation is still ongoing, we are waiting for the results. "
Meanwhile Off The Record as the agency IZ * ONE and Swing Entertainment for X1 responded that they would release an official statement after confirming the plans of the two groups to come.
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