SM Entertainment was recently criticized for its treatment of its artist NCT’s Haechan. The idol won the Rolling Stone Korea Special vote on the fan-vote platform IdolChamp. The poll's winning prize was a special interview with the publication. However, the interview never took place and was replaced with a generic article.
Per fans, the second winner received a two-page interview while the NCT member was stuck with just an article. As the fandom raised concerns, the platform clarified that they tried coordinating with the artist but failed.
The clarification added fuel to the fire as fans believed that SM Entertainment could have managed the artist's schedule better and given him a chance for a solo interview.
SM Entertainment under fire for NCT’s Haechan’s Rolling Stone Korea interview
Platforms like IdolChamp give fans opportunities to actively participate in gaining exposure with things such as offline LED ads, billboard marketing, fan events, and more. Fans can participate by voting for their favorite idols on the app.
One such vote, called the Rolling Stone Korea Special, promised the winner to land an interview with the music publication. NCT’s Haechan emerged at No. 1, thanks to fans. They then patiently waited for an interview, only to see a generic article about the member.
Moreover, the magazine had accidentally printed Jisung’s photo, mistaking him as Haechan.
After days of waiting, fans were disappointed to see the collaboration of Rolling Stone Korea with IdolChamp not coming to fruition. They were surprised that they neither received the promised interview nor was one of the images correct in the spread. Sunflowers, Haechan’s fans, criticized SM Entertainment for not doing the bare minimum and the magazine for their mistake.
The criticism grew when IdolChamp clarified that they had indeed contacted the artist but couldn’t move forward with the interview.
Due to reasons unknown, the collaboration failed and the publication submitted a special piece instead of the interview. The platform also informed that the publication will rectify their image error and upload the correct version soon.
Learning this, fans expressed their disappointment at SM Entertainment’s way of managing their artists. They believed that the interview was a good way for the idol to get his solo publicity. According to one fan, the agency is “actively turning down activities” that may prove to “help him independently.”
Fans also pulled up receipts to justify their dismay. One fan calculated the amount of Chamsims NCT’s Haechan received to win the poll and converted them into real money. As per them, the fandom had spent more than 17 million KRW.
Chamsims are hearts that are used to vote on IdolChamp. They can be collected in three ways: watching ads, playing game challenges or buying.
Though IdolChamp gave fans advertising options as compensation for NCT’s Haechan’s Rolling Stone Korea interview, there has been no word from SM Entertainment regarding the matter yet.