Seunghan of boy band Riize will make his comeback in November as a member of the band "after deeply repenting his actions," according to his agency SM Entertainment.

"After careful talks on the future of Riize, we have decided that Seunghan will return to the team," Wizard Production, SM Entertainment's production team in charge of Riize, said Friday.


"Seunghan will make preparations to join the team's schedules starting in November and show himself to the public," the agency said, adding that Seunghan had been "constantly practicing to refine his skills during the break."

Seunghan had been taking time off from team activities since November last year due to controversies surrounding his private life in a severely conservative K-pop scene.

A picture that went viral in August last year showed Seunghan kissing an unidentifiable woman in bed. The picture, first posted on X (formerly known as Twitter), was uploaded with the caption “Riize Hong Seung-han took a teenage girlfriend to a motel.”

Seunghan apologized two days later, but another video went viral on Nov. 18, 2023, showing him smoking and recording himself while doing so, before his debut. He had passed the legal smoking age but his behavior was deemed inappropriate for a K-pop trainee, resulting in Riize fans holding an LED truck protest in front of SM Entertainment headquarters.

"We ask for your warm support on the things that Seunghan has prepared to show everyone," the agency said. "We apologize once again for the confusion we have caused every fan. We ask that you trust our judgment."

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]