[TW/CW: Mentions of rape and sexual assault]
Following allegations that APRIL bullied their former member Hyunjoo out of the group, Naeun has found herself in a new controversy over an alleged screenshot in which she makes a rape joke pre-debut. Keep on reading to see DSP Media's statement on the matter.
Did APRIL's Naeun Make a Rape Joke Pre-Debut?
Following reports that Hyunjoo was bullied out of APRIL by the members, a screenshot of a chat log between what appeared to be APRIL's Lee Naeun and a friend, who is speculated to be a male student, has resurfaced. The screenshot shows a chat log between the two back in 2013, prior to Naeun's debut in 2015.
In the chat log, Naeun's friend is seen saying, "Not you, but the other girls, hahaha." Naeun replies to his statement with, "Do you also wish to be raped by Go Young Wook?!?!?"
Who is Go Young Wook? Why is What Naeun Allegedly Said Problematic?
Go Young Wook is a former member of Roo'Ra. In 2010, Go Young Wook was found guilty of two counts of rape, with the first count being of rape while the second being of statutory rape. He was found to have lured an underage girl to his studio under the premise of helping her find an agency to sign with and had inappropriate relationships with her.
This time, the girl has consented to sleep with him. At the time, the girl was 18 years old, meaning she was underage in South Korea.
However, during the second time, she had not. Go Young Wook had met with the victim a few days after their first encounter at a subway station and brought her to his home. When they arrived at his apartment, Go Young Wook made her drink wine, scotch, cocktail, and plum wine. While the girl was intoxicated, he stripped her of her clothes and raped her. He met up with her a few days after and had sex with her again.
Naeun's supposed remark was deemed inappropriate by the public, which led to instant backlash over the idol. Many had noted that the case was a serious and huge scandal that showed the power imbalance between a celebrity and a fan. Others mentioned that a rape case is not something to joke about, as it is a very real struggle people deal with.
DSP Media's Statement On APRIL Naeun's "Go Young Wook" Controversy
After the screenshot of an alleged chat log between Naeun and her friend went viral, DSP Media quickly released a statement denying the allegations. They claimed that the screenshot was fabricated a long time ago but has resurfaced once again in 2021.
Their statement reads:
"Lee Naeun has never made such a comment in the controversial chat log. The screenshot was edited. The screenshot was fabricated a long time ago, but it is once again spreading."
Lee Naeun herself has not made a statement on the matter.
What do you think of the situation?
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Written by Alexa Lewis
