Stray Kids' Hyunjin Breaks Down During Fan Meet; Some Speculate It's Because Of His Alleged Bullying Past
Hyunjin, a member of the new Korean boy band Stray Kids, has been gaining attention on his own. He was recently spotted crying during a band's fan meeting. This fuels speculation that it could have something to do with the rumors about his past that have been circulating lately.
During a fan meeting, Stray Kids member Hyunjin was caught crying while the group was singing "Grow Up." In a clip shared online, it can be noticed that Hyunjin's voice cracked at first and then he started to cry while singing his part in the song. His bandmates comforted the singer as he cried. After few seconds, the 18-year-old singer tried to look happy and brave in front of their fans, but he couldn't hold his emotions and continued to cry.
Since he is the only member who shed tears in the event, some speculate that the song may have reminded Hyunjin of a sensitive event in his life. There are also speculations that the K-pop idol cried because the rumors about his past may have already reached him.
The rumors about Hyunjin's unpleasant past stemmed from an online community platform conversation between two people which was translated into English by AllKPop. One of them claimed that Hyunjin and his friends bullied her in school during their middle school days. The person also claimed that Hyunjin used to smoke during his high school days.
Stray Kids' Fans Slammed Hyunjin's Haters
The K-pop group's fans are quick to defend their idol against anti-Stray Kids who they claim are fabricating stories to upset Hyunjin. Many think that the young artist is being targeted by haters because he is the most popular Stray Kids member.
Some also appeal to the band's agency, JYP Entertainment, to make a statement about the crying incident and the rumor concerning Hyunjin. Neither Hyunjin nor JYP have yet addressed the issue.
"Hyunjin is a sweet and happy child. All he wants is to perform on the stage. Make people happy and be noticed by Jinyoung [GOT7]... Hyunjin be strong! Haters can choke," one fan commented.
Hyunjin, Bang Chan, Woojin, Lee Know, Changbin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, and I.N. recently dropped their debut mini-album titled I am NOT. It was followed by the music video for their lead track, "District 9." The MV broke a K-pop debut record earlier set by Wanna One by garnering more than 4.2 million views on YouTube in just 24 hours.
The band's "Grow Up" song is also from the I am NOT album. The official music video of the track was released on March 30. "Grow Up" is all about the band members' search for identity and their desire to speak for the younger generation.