By Lila Tran
Staff Writer
On March 10th, 2026, an announcement from HYBE shook the world. Heeseung, a well known K-pop idol, made the decision to leave and break his contract with Enhypen. Enhypen, a leading 4th generation seven-member (now six-member) K-pop group, was at their peak when Heesung left. To fully understand how dire this situation is, let’s recount how Heeseung joined Enhypen.
On June 26, 2020, Mnet and BeLift Lab aired I-land, a competitive K-pop reality show. Twenty-three trainees went through intense competitions that included dance battles, vocal competitions, and live performances that were observed and evaluated by judges. In the end, only seven contestants were chosen to become the group Enhypen, while the rest were eliminated. On September 18th, 2020, Enhypen was officially formed. Shortly after, on November 30th, 2020, they came out with their first album, Border: Day One. Their title track, “Given-Taken,” introduced a gothic, vampire theme for the group.
Over the next five years, while in Enhypen, Heeseung participated in 80+ concerts, three albums, eight mini albums, and multiple hit songs that reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Chart. Some of their trending songs include: “Drunk-Dazed,” “Bite Me,” “XO,” and “Daydream.” Additionally, they performed at Coachella in 2025, showing their global growth and becoming the K-pop group to hit the festival stage in the shortest time after their debut. The momentum only grew from there, and Enhypen’s popularity exploded even more as they came out with a Billboard topping album and EP within the past year.
Yet, unexpectedly on March 10th, 2026, Enhypen’s company, BeLift Lab, sent out a Weverse notification informing fans about Heeseung departing from the group. The group would therefore transition from seven to six members. The notification claimed that after long, thorough discussion, Heeseung’s reason for leaving was to focus on his own “musical vision”.
Fans were shocked by this unexpected departure. Just two days before, Enhypen had an in-person fan signing event in Shanghai, China. All members, including Heeseung, had participated. Additionally, the group was also scheduled for multiple other events, such as a world tour and upcoming album, which depended on Heeseung’s vocals; his departure caused the other six members to have to adapt quickly.
The sudden departure of Heeseung also caused many questions about the reason why, and many rumors and theories emerged. Many agree that Heeseung’s departure could not have been planned and was actually a sudden decision. Usually when members are about to or are planning to leave a group, there are long-term, noticeable signs like hiatuses, member disagreements, or not enough member inclusion. Yet, Heeseung had never shown any of these signs.
Two days after he officially left Enhypen, a petition asking for Heeseung to rejoin was signed, and within a week, it was submitted to HYBE with over 2 million signatures worldwide. Multiple protest signs and trucks were sent and put up in front of the HYBE headquarters in Seoul until the end of the month.
While it took time for former fans to accept his departure, many support this decision as he begins a new chapter of his musical career. Since leaving Enhypen, Heeseung has debuted as Evan, and on September 7th, 2026, he came out with his debut album Death of Me.