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On November 10, 2024, fans of the rookie K-pop girl group MADEIN expressed concern over certain changes to member Gaeun's official Instagram handle. The septet's fans aka MABYs, noticed the idol seemingly removed (or archived) all her posts, unfollowed MADEIN's agency, 143 Entertainment, and its CEO, and removed the group's name from her account bio.
The update on the platform made fans worry about Gaeun and wonder about the reason behind these changes. The singer-rapper celebrated her 19th birthday on November 8 and was even wished via a birthday post on the group's official X account. She even greeted fans on the Mnet plus chat+ app with a message on November 9, thanking them for the birthday wishes and pledging to do her best.
Following Gaeun's Instagram activity on November 10, concerned fans were somewhat relieved after receiving a statement from 143 Entertainment on MADEIN's official X account.
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The notice explained that Gaeun is currently facing some health issues and per her medical team's advice, is on a hiatus to rest. It further announced that MADEIN will continue as a six-membered group for the time being, until Gaeun's return.
Fans were quick to extend love and encouragement to the UNO singer through supportive comments and trending hashtags like #MABYstandswithGAEUN and #GetWellSoonGaeun. A fan left the following note on X:
"be strong gaeun, MABYs will wait for you, get well soon. #GetWellSoonGaeun #MABYstandswithGAEUN"
Here are some more comments for Gaeun on the social media platform.
"I hope it is a speedy recoveryand all goes well," one fan said.
"noo get well soon Gaeun, we will always wait for you, take the rest that you need don't worry i love youu," another fan said.
"many MABYS love you, Gaeun. so please rest well and comeback with other member and make it MADEIN OT7," added a MABY.
At the same time, fans could not help wondering what led the artist to remove her Instagram posts and unfollow the agency and the CEO. Meanwhile, someone also pointed out how she continues to follow the group and her co-members on the platform.
"gaeun, please feel better and rest…but idk if this is the whole story illness doesn’t account for the instagram thing … idk :( " a fan wondered.
"I’ve seen this film before," said a netizen.
"She still follows the official madein and the members' accounts,, if she had unfollowed them then it would have been something to ponder on,, let's not overthink,, hoping for her speedy recovery!!" another X-user stated.
143 Entertainment had recently revealed plans for MADEIN before member Gaeun's hiatus
According to X-user @mashirothingz's post on September 7, 143 Entertainment's CEO had recently spoken about MADEIN's plans for the future. In his statement, he acknowledged the group's growing fame in Japan but also believed their main stage to be in Korea. He further voiced hope for working on the group's worldwide reach, saying,
"We will make MADEIN advance globally. First, we will release three albums within a year and show diverse sides of them without a hiatus." (translation via X/mashirothingz)
Plans to travel back and forth between Korea and Japan before the 2024 Chuseok holidays and to focus on active promotions for their new release in Korea after Chuseok were also chalked up. However, owing to the present circumstances, member Gaeun seemingly has to sit out all group activities.
On November 11, 2024, a day after Gaeun made alterations to her Instagram account, the girl group's label 143 Entertainment wrote the following notice on X. They informed fans of the idol's health concerns and the band's plans for the time being, writing,
"Hello. This is 143 Entertainment. We would like to inform you about the activities of MADEIN member Ga-eun. Ga-eun recently visited the hospital for health reasons, and following the medical team's advice that she needs sufficient rest and stability, she has decided to temporarily suspend activities and focus on recovering her health."
It further read:
"Accordingly, MADEIN will continue its activities as a six-member group for the time being: Mashiro, Yeseo, Miyu, Suhye, Serina, and Nagomi. We apologize to all the fans for worrying you with this sudden news, and we ask for your warm support so that Ga-eun can meet you again in good health as soon as possible. Thank you." (direct translation via X/MADEIN_U)
For the unversed, Gaeun first debuted as a member of 143 Entertainment's LIMELIGHT along with members MiU and Suhye back on February 17, 2023, with the EP LOVE & HAPPINESS. Despite this initial line-up for the project, the girl group back then had no set limits for the number of members.
LIMELIGHT was later re-named MADEIN and keeping the original trio intact, four new members were added. The new entrants included former Produce 101 Japan The Girls contestants Serina and Nagomi and former Kep1er members Mashiro and Yeseo. It was on May 30 of this year when the latter two were declared to be parting ways with their previous group.
On July 16, a report by Star News Korea divulged that Mashiro and Yeseo were to join the line-up for the new septet. It was also on this day that 143 Entertainment revealed the official logo and name of the new girl group through re-branding LIMELIGHT's original social media accounts. Having aimed for a September debut, MADEIN brought out their first EP RISE on September 3, 2024.
