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EXO's Baekhyun appeared on the latest episode of the YouTube talk show The K-Star Next Door on September 24, 2024, to promote his latest release, Hello, World. The show host, Jonathan, mentioned how the EXO singer was the first K-pop artist to have pre-filmed multiple content for his fans before his enlistment.
For the unversed, Baekhyun began his mandatory military service on May 6, 2021, and was discharged on February 5, 2023. Although the idol dropped a few K-drama soundtracks before and after joining the military, his last official solo release was Bambi, in March 2021.
Meanwhile, Baekhyun responded to Jonathan's question on the talk show and elaborated that despite his release of non-profitable pre-filmed content, several viewers reported those videos.
"I heard there were so many complaints. There was a lot of controversy," he said.
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In 2021, Baekhyun's pre-recorded video content was released once every month on KyoongTube YouTube channel. However, some netizens saw it as a breach of military law and reported those videos. SM Entertainment then declared taking down the videos and halting further posting till the idol was discharged from the military.
More about EXO's Baekhyun solo activities post his military discharge
After returning from the military, the Pineapple Slice singer terminated his solo contract with SM Entertainment along with his bandmates Chen and Xiumin. On June 23, 2023, he founded his label called INB100, and officially began his solo activities under the same in January 2024.
Chen and Xiumin also signed with INB100 for their solo endeavors. However, the three are still under contract with SM Entertainment for their group activities.
In June 2024, INB100 (Baekhyun, Chen, and Xiumin) filed a counter-lawsuit against SM Entertainment for allegedly violating their contracts and unfair distribution of profit. They stated:
"At our press conference on June 10, we criticized SM for demanding 10 percent of our revenue while not fulfilling their promise of a 5.5 percent distribution fee. [...] Additionally, at that press conference, we actively proposed an agreement of paying a fee for SM’s music, assets, and name instead of 10 percent of our revenue, but SM ignored this proposal."
They also filed a complaint to the Fair Trade Commission against SM Entertainment for unfair business practices and said:
"Additionally, regarding the distribution of profits that we had always doubted, we will file a lawsuit against SM over the distribution of profits. Through this lawsuit, we will assert our just rights by receiving accounting and profit-distribution data as decided by the law and our exclusive contracts. We will also reveal to the court that SM’s profit-distribution system is wrong."
Meanwhile, on September 6, 2024, EXO's Baekhyun dropped his comeback EP, Hello, World, with the title track Pineapple Slice. It came after more than 3 years since his last release Bambi, which arrived in March 2021.
According to Hanteo Chart, Hello, World became Baekhyun's first solo album to ever sell over a million copies in its first week of sales between September 6 and 12, 2024. Previously, his album Bambi also became a triple-million seller on the Hanteo chart in 2021.
