Amidst the controversies YG Entertainment and some of its artists are facing, founder Yang Hyun Suk has officially resigned. In a statement released through the firm's website, he said that he won't be playing any role in the company.
"For the past 23 years of my life, I have built YG Entertainment. It brought me immense happiness as I have supported the best music and the best artists. I thought of it as the only thing I could offer fans and society. However, from today, I will step away from all of my roles and work at YG," he remarked.
His resignation comes after reports have surfaced that YG allegedly colluded with the police regarding former IKON leader B.I.'s alleged illegal drug use.
In an earlier report, B.I. had admitted to attempting to purchase marijuana and LSD back in 2016. However, things got more complicated when Korean media network KBS reported that the police did not open an investigation despite finding signs of transactions.
A witness, which media outlets have revealed to be former YG trainee Han Seo Hee, was also said to have changed testimonies back then -- from saying that she handed over illegal drugs to B.I. to directly overturning her statement.
The KBS report further accused Yang to have forced the witness to change her statement.
In a deleted Instagram comment, Han revealed: "Everything will come to light in a proper interview. If the police decides to reinvestigate this case, I plan to participate in the investigation diligently. The one thing I'm worried about is that the key point in this case is that Yang Hyun Suk personally became involved in this case through threatening and dealings with the police..."
Earlier in January, YG also faced controversy when former BIGBANG member Seunggri got involved in the "Burning Sun" scandal. Yang himself was accused of soliciting prostitution in order to gain favors for his business. This is on top of the tax evasion cases filed against the K-pop mogul.
With his recent stepping down, Yang "sincerely [hopes] that there [will be] no further harm to the YG agency celebrities and to the fans who love them."
According to reports, Yang's younger brother and incumbent YG CEO Yang Min Suk has also resigned from his position. Since the younger Yang took over the CEO role, the elder one has served as the firm's creative director and record label head.
Combined, the two brothers have the largest share in YG at 19.42 percent.
Yang Hyun Suk first rose to fame in the 90s as one-third of the pioneering K-pop boy group Seo Taiji and Boys. He founded YG Entertainment in 1996, and has since produced some of the biggest names in the K-pop scene including BIGBANG, 2NE1, and BLACKPINK.
