During the recent Idol Star Athletics Championship 2022 (ISAC), Stray Kids' fans, or STAYs as they are called, were poorly treated by JYP Entertainment. In response, the agency released a statement on the matter. Keep on reading for all the details.
JYP Entertainment Apologizes to Stray Kids Fans' Following Poor Treatment in ISAC 2022
JYP Entertainment posted an apology to Stray Kids' V Live channel following accusations of poor treatment against the group's fans.
Their whole statement reads,
"Hello, this is JYP Entertainment.
We would like to apologize that the procedures during this year's '2022 Chuseok Special Idol Star Athletics Championship' did not go smoothly.
First, regarding the issue of the cost of the fan club banner, we apologize for hurting the fans with the agency's incorrect procedures when we should have been grateful for the fans' efforts. We have offered a separate apology via email to the fan who took part in creating the banner, and we would like to use this opportunity to express our apologies again.
Furthermore, we would like to address the issue regarding certain comments made by staff during the 'ISAC' recording and apologize.
Earlier, we discovered on socil media that one staff threatened fans by stating that they would 'read fan letters out loud' if the fans did not stop filming, and our fan marketing team confirmed this to be true. In schedules involving a large number of participants, including outdoor events or broadcasts, the agency typically enlists the help of external staff to ensure that fans can participate in events safely and cooperatively. We have now discovered that the above issue resulted from an inappropriate decision made by an external security company staff member.
Nonetheless, the agency believes there is a greater fault in our inability to handle external staff properly. So we would like to take this opportunity to offer sincere apologies to all fans who felt discomfort and those unable to enjoy this event to its full extent due to such an occurrence.
From now on, the agency promises to take further caution so those who send their warm love to Stray Kids do not experience discomfort.
Thank you."
Before ISAC 2022
The apology came following the incident before and after ISAC 2022.
Before the show began filming, STAYs were against Stray Kids joining ISAC 2022. They felt the members were overworked and overfatigued, as they just released a surprise song "Time Out". They were also embarking on their world tour "Maniac" at the time.
Plus, there are members who have injuries. Specifically, Hyunjin with his knees, Chan and his wrist, and Felix with his back pain. Moreover, some members also just recovered from COVID-19. Hashtags were trended, and many fans joined the plea.
However, their plea ended on deaf ears as JYP Entertainment announced Stray Kids would appear on the said show.
Stray Kids ISAC 2022 Banner
One incident that stood out was when a fan passed a banner to be used for ISAC 2022, and the company asked them to shoulder all expenses for it. The fan did so, thinking she would have a guaranteed seat at the sporting event for idols. However, that was not the case; she was not given any ticket or special entrance for the said banner.
This angered more STAYs as the fan shared her experience with JYPE.
STAYs hope that JYP Entertainment will treat the members more humanely after the incident.
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Written by Jaswinder Singh
