The life of a K-Pop idol trainee can be very difficult as they try to make their debut. In addition to constantly working to sharpen their skills to the company’s satisfaction, trainees can also deal with their past actions resurfacing and causing a roadblock in their path to success.
Usually, this happens after debut, but in the case of trainees who appear on reality shows, it can happen even before their official start in the industry.
Park Seobin was kicked out of JYP Entertainment after a scandal. | Mnet
One of the popular Produce series contestants experienced a pre-debut scandal but was surprisingly able to continue his career after.
Han Jong Youn (now known as Park Ha) appeared on Produce 101 Season 2 as a trainee from Maroo Entertainment.
Park Ha | Mnet
Many were attracted to the trainee’s visuals, and he was set to be a front-runner until he was implicated in a bullying scandal.
According to the bullying claims, Park Ha allegedly forced a classmate to masturbate in public, among other acts. The victim in question later uploaded screenshots as proof of the incident occurring.
“I heard you’re appearing on TV. I still wake up crying whenever you appear in my dreams. I still want to die whenever I hear your name or see your face. I worry that once I upload this, you and your friends will harm me and my acquaintances. But come to think of it, I am no longer a young, fearful child who used to have no friends. Produce 101…I hope you rank high.
I’ll pull you back to the ground. All the times in elementary school when you made me masturbate in front of the other kids, when you made me get into fights with other kids calling it Pokemon, when you shoved me into the broom closet not letting me eat lunch, etc., I still can’t forget about them.
But do you even remember me? It’s not only one or two kids who were victimized by you. Because of you, I went back and forth between life and death all throughout elementary and middle school. I’ll give back all the scars that you had given me.
Oh, and if anyone has something to say related to this, please Facebook message me. I will take legal action against any threats.”
— Kangto Lee (Han Jong Yeon’s classmate)
After the claims were investigated, Park Ha was removed from the show as Maroo Entertainment released a statement confirming that he had been a bully but that the masturbation incident did not involve him.
Bullying controversies can be the end of even an established star’s career; however, Park Ha continued his attempts at debut, appearing on the survival show MIXNINE later that same year.
He did not make the final group and left Maroo at some point before making his debut in NOGA Entertainment‘s boy group LUCENTE under his current stage name.
Park Ha while in LUCENTE.
While in LUCENTE, Park Ha joined the Japanese-Korean survival show G-EGG, where he finished in 4th place and debuted in the show’s project group, NIK. From their debut in 2021 in Korea until their contract expiration in July 2023, NIK were primarily active in Japan.
NIK | @NIK_members/X | NIK Website
Since the group’s disbandment, Park Ha has made his musical debut in Japan but seems inactive besides sporadic social media updates.
Park Ha (left) with musical co-star. | X
気に入っちゃいました。。すんごい pic.twitter.com/PXpYu9spIt
— 한종연 (@Pxxk_Ha) January 23, 2024
パクハくん！ストーリー投稿ありがとう
今は何か準備中かな？また素敵なパフォーマンスが見たいな
#パクハ #PARKHA #SVENTERTAINMENT #박하 #한종연 #NIK pic.twitter.com/DadszyhWO8
— nanatsuki (@nanatsukiparkha) March 16, 2024
Check out more updates from trainees who had scandals below.
6 Of K-Pop’s Most Controversial Trainees — Where Are They Now?
