ATEEZ’s Wooyoung faces public scrutiny over his struggle between personal beliefs and idol duties
ATEEZ’s Wooyoung went viral recently for sharing his inner conflict about balancing his personal convictions with his responsibilities as a member of the group.
His messages on the fan messaging app racked up nearly 60,000 views on online community boards, catching fans’ attention.
We only have one life, so I want to be a person who lives with conviction and spreads good influence. But sometimes, while I try to live with my firm beliefs, I hesitate because it’s not just me, but eight members.
— Wooyoung
Wooyoung opened up about wanting to support fans within his limits, detailing a thoughtful gesture involving hot packs for ATINYs he wasn’t able to deliver.
Recently, I organized a pile of hot packs so that I can do something for ATINYs when it’s cold. We were going to go out and leave them, and we put them in the car, but we couldn’t go. But, I want to let you know that I tried to do my best within my boundaries.
— Wooyoung
This came amid ongoing conversations about idols who spoke out during last year’s martial law incident, highlighting the challenges celebrities face.
Wooyoung also expressed his wish for a more open and honest relationship with fans in the future.
“I sometimes think about later…way later after much time has passed…when we can meet not as ATEEZ’s Wooyoung and ATINY but as just Jung Wooyoung and you guys…if we could ever meet up to chat while drinking a beer. What I’m trying to say is that if you can let everything go in one ear and out the other, we can comfortably talk about deep things, like difficult or happy things. We can tell each other what was hard and what made us feel like we had the whole world.
I am so sad that I can’t talk honestly about deep things to the people who support me no matter my beliefs and love me. So I hope that after much time passes, I hope to change this. I hope the time comes when we can chill and drink comfortably, wave goodbye, and make sure you get in your taxi so you can get home safely.”
— Wooyoung
Netizens responded positively, calling him a deep thinker who genuinely cares.
- “I really like him these days…he seems to be a deep thinker. Actually, I already started liking him because of that one video of him calling his mom.”
- “I’m crying in the middle of the night reading this. I don’t know ATEEZ, but I can feel his sincerity.”
- “He seems like a good person.”
- “Hasn’t he already raised his voice? Compared to those that didn’t. He seems like someone who thinks a lot…understanding that he is not the only one responsible for his actions, but also the members and the company. It’s not easy to do something lightly.”
