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On Tuesday, March 4, EXO's Xiumin's agency, INB100, released a statement accusing KBS's Music Bank of allegedly banning the K-pop idol's appearance on the broadcasting show. The statement further expressed that despite INB100's request for the broadcasting agency to prioritize the artists and fans to reconsider his appearance, KBS reportedly ignored this request.
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INB100 further highlighted that this might be arising due to Xiumin's departure from SM Entertainment. Both the agency and other fans pointed out that the ban of artists performing at KBS's Music Bank is a repeated tactic from SM Entertainment toward artists who leave the agency on bad terms. Here's part of INB100's statement on this issue:
"We have consistently reached out to KBS, urging them to prioritize the artist and fans. However, even these efforts have been ignored. As a public broadcaster, KBS making such a decision based solely on the stance of a specific company is highly unfair."
The statement continued,
"We have done our utmost to resolve this situation, yet we deeply regret having to deliver such unfortunate news to the fans. Although Xiumin’s appearance on KBS is currently impossible, we will not give up for the sake of the artist and the fans. We also promise to explore alternative ways to create even better events and unforgettable performances in the near future."
Following the release of this statement, many fans and netizens were angered by the alleged actions of SM Entertainment towards the EXO member. Here are a few fan reactions regarding the same:
"How is this even fair?? Like is this even legal??"
"This is beyond unfair 😤 Music should be about talent and passion, not politics and power plays. Fans and artists deserve better" said a fan on X
"Music should be about talent and passion, not politics and power plays." added another fan
"It's disappointing to hear that Xiumin is facing these issues. Artists and fans shouldn't have to suffer because of agency conflicts." commented a netizen
More fans and netizens talked about how the situation was both frustrating and unfair.
"That’s so unfair,I hope they can fix it soon" stated a fan
"anyone still siding with sm keep in mind this could be your fave’s future even if they seem fine today" added an X user
"why are they treating cbx as if they did something really awful. ive never seen a company hate their artists so much as what sm is doing to the exos." said a netizen
"I’m not here to defend any agency, I only care about the artist. Why does it always have to be like this?" commented another X user
INB100 releases statement accusing SM Entertainment for its alleged ban of EXO's Xiumin's appearance on KBS' Music Bank, broadcast agency responds
On Tuesday, March 4, INB100 released a statement on EXO's Xiumin's alleged ban from appearing on KBS' Music Bank due to SM Entertainment. The statement expressed that the idol is expected to roll out his solo album comeback, Interview X, on March 10.
Since this would mark the idol's return to his solo activities after two years and six months, the agency has been preparing for performance opportunities. Therefore, when they tried to reach out to KBS for the idol's Music Bank performance post his comeback, they realized that the idol wasn't permitted to perform at the same. Here's what the statement read:
"Xiumin, who belongs to INB100, will soon release his solo album Interview X on March 10, marking his return after two years and six months. In preparation, we have made multiple efforts to meet with broadcasting stations to secure good performance opportunities."
The statement continued,
"However, KBS has remained completely unresponsive to our attempts to contact them. Recently, KBS unofficially informed us that it would be impossible for Xiumin to appear on programs such as KBS2’s Music Bank at the same time as other artists from SM Entertainment."
On the other hand, KBS, the broadcasting agency, responded to this statement and denied that such a ban was imposed on the K-pop idol. Here's what a representative from KBS stated to the South Korean media outlet, EDaily :
"The claim that KBS informed Xiumin he was not allowed to appear on Music Bank is not true. We have been in ongoing communication with his agency."
Regardless, no response from SM Entertainment regarding this issue has surfaced on the internet. For more context, EXO's Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen, also referred by their subunit name, EXO's CBX, departed from SM Entertainment in June 2023. The three K-pop idols took legal action against their agency by filing a complaint with the Fair Trade Commission.
The two separated and agreed that EXO activities would continue under SM Entertainment while EXO's CBX and the three members' solo activities would be conducted by INB100, Baekhyun's label. However, the agency stated that the agreed upon demand that SM would give 10% of the artist's sales to the members was allegedly ignored.
The agency reported SM's unfair treatment and also held a press conference in June 2024, demanding the agency to be more transparent regarding the member's earnings.
While SM denied these accusations, a few weeks after the press conference, the two parties came to a settlement. However, with the recent statement from INB100, many fans speculated that the conflict might not have been completely resolved.
