6 K-pop idols who got cancelled for bullying scandals: from Lesserafim’s Kim Garam and Stray Kids’ Woojin, to G(I-dle)’s Soojin and AOA’s rift between Jimin and Mina

Jun 16 , 2022

K-pop idols Stray Kids’ Woojin, AOA’s Jimin, T-ara’s Jiyeon, April’s Naeun, and (G) I-dle’s Soojin have all been embroiled in bullying allegations in the past. Photos: Instagram

Drama around Kim Garam stepping away from Lesserafim isn’t the first of its kind in the world of K-pop: (G)I-dle’s Soojin and April’s members also had scandals

Stray Kids’ Woojin, T-ara’s Jiyeon and Eunjung, and AOA’s Jimin have all faced bullying allegations, causing some groups to disband or for the involved idols to leave

K-idol bullying scandals have been popping up here, there and everywhere, much to the shock and dismay of fans. With South Korean stars under huge pressure to keep a clean image, any ripple of controversy can easily ruin their careers.

The latest idol to get caught up in such a scandal is none other than Lesserafim’s Kim Garam. Ever since she announced she was stepping back from the girl group on account of bullying allegations, netizens have not been particularly forgiving towards the new idol.

But Garam wasn’t the first. Over the years, several K-idols have found themselves in deep trouble for alleged mean and violent behaviour in the past, and had their K-pop dreams pulled out from under them. Here are the unfortunate K-pop stars who got pushed out, were forced to disband, or were “cancelled” on account of both true and false claims made against them.

(G)I-dle’s Soojin

In 2021, (G)I-dle’s Soojin was caught up in a controversy when a netizen, identified “A”, claimed online that Soojin once bullied her younger sister.

(G)I-dle’s Soojin eventually left the group after her managers put her on hiatus. Photo: Cube Entertainment

“A” claimed that Soojin would call the victim and the victim’s friend to the bathroom, then make them physically hurt each other before sending group texts calling the victim a loner and an outcast. “A” also alleged that Soojin extorted money from other students, smoked and rode motorcycles with older men, according to a Koreaboo article.

People piled onto (G)I-dle’s Soojin from all sides after a former schoolmate alleged that she was a bully before her idol days, but Soojin and her management denied the claims. Photo: Handout

And it didn’t stop there. Following the accusations, actress Seo Shin-ae joined the fray when she posted an Instagram Story with the words “none of your excuses”. The actress claimed that Soojin had bullied her in senior school too, where the two studied together. Soojin’s fans clapped back at the actress, saying that she was spreading false rumours to gain publicity, and asked her to apologise to Soojin.

The Korea Times followed up on the story, reporting that Soojin had released a statement saying she had never met nor bullied Seo during their school days. Cube Entertainment then released a statement denying all the allegations as well, and added that they would be investigating the initial online user who started the bullying claims.