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iKON member Bobby’s agency, YG Entertainment, denied widespread rumors of the idol’s exit from the company and the band. Without going into much detail, the agency told a media outlet, Joy News24, that the rumors were false. They said:
"The reports related to Bobby's contract expiration are false."
This comes after KpopHerald exclusively reported on November 15 that Bobby will not renew his contract with YG Entertainment. The report was based on information obtained from an anonymous YG official.
'Rumor is groundless': YG official dismisses Bobby's contract expiration rumors
Amid widespread speculation in the online community regarding the rapper's exit from the agency and iKON, a YG official told Newsen, the rumors were groundless. The official said:
“The rumor is groundless. There is still time left on his contract"
The YG official, however, did not comment on when Bobby's or the rest of the iKON members' exclusive contracts will end or if they have any plans to renew them.
Meanwhile, neither Bobby nor the group's members have reacted to the incident. However, during a press conference for their fourth mini-album Flashback, in May, they said they were yet to discuss their contracts with the agency. They noted:
"We haven't talked about that with the company yet. Although nothing has been specifically decided, of course, we will work hard for our album and iKON."
As per the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) rules, artists can be contractually signed to their companies for a maximum period of seven years, after which the contracts have to be renewed. Since Bobby debuted as a part of iKON in 2015, his contract with the agency is set to expire in the coming months.
iKON's 'genius' Bobby
In 2015, Kim Ji-won aka Bobby debuted as a rapper for iKON with members Jay, Song, DK, Ju-ne, Chan, and former member B.I. Since then, the idol has been best known for winning Mnet's survival show Show Me The Money 3, producing some of the group's songs, and delivering impactful performances.
Bobby co-wrote the lyrics for all six tracks on the group's fourth mini-album Flashback and even helped other members in composing the tracks.iKonics took notice of the singer's contribution to the album and showered praise on him, calling him a "genius". They noted:
"Daamn bobby participated in writing all the songs, wrote one all by himself (dragon) and another together with donghyuk.. man is a writing genius.”
Amid rumors, iKONICS tweeted "In Bobby we trust"
The phrase 'In Bobby, we trust' started trending again, amid rumors of his exit from the group. Some fans reacted by showing their support for the artist and hoped he would continue solo, while others said they would wait for an official confirmation of the news.
Meanwhile, the 26-year-old recently deleted all of his posts except one, unfollowed all iKON members, and made his account private on Instagram, sparking further speculation into the matter.
