There are growing voices of Chen's withdrawal from the group EXO. Some EXO-Ls have begun to turn their backs as Chen earlier informed fans of his love, pregnancy, and marriage on the 13th. The agency said that Chen would repay him with his unwavering hard work as an artist, asking him to bless and congratulate Chen a lot. As a result, there has been mounting resistance as the government has taken direct collective action recently.
EXO's fan club EXO-L ACE on Friday posted an electronic message via a mobile vehicle near its agency's SM Entertainment office in southern Seoul. The electronic board included "a lot of rumors and speculative articles that don't go well with EXO, which has been actively working as the nation's top idol, and this has dealt a huge blow to EXO's brand image," and this message showed how some Korean EXO-L ACE thought that would urge Chen to leave. The affected electronic board vehicles will be touring the area until the 31st of January.
However, just hours after being set up, it was immediately towed away due to illegal parking, which is a serious road violation.
"The primary purpose of the advertisement is to give the entertainment company a strong message from the fans who support the withdrawal of Chen," the fan club said. "We will strongly respond to the threat of damage to electronic billboards and the act of actually harming them." They believed to have taken direct action when they warned earlier that if the party does not respond to the request by the 28th, EXO-L ACE will carry out any form of direct and indirect protest.
In a statement, the coalition demanded EXO member Chen's expulsion from the team, notice any of the changes due to Chen's announcement of his activities as an EXO group, protect artists, and manage search terms on portal sites. Still, SM Entertainment did not give an official answer.
This commotion is not the first time that a protest has made. Last Wednesday, fans held a rally in front of the COEX Artium in Samseong-dong, demanding Chen leave the team. They participated in the demonstration using various banners and hand pockets containing messages from Chen's withdrawal. Those who attended this demonstration also gave a schedule to abandon the MD related to Chen with pickets such as "There is no Chen in the future we draw" and "Exit Chen." Some have even discarded their albums and official products related to Chen.
As such, some fans are voicing their opinions with protests and hashtags, claiming that "EXO has suffered damage to the image he has accumulated over nine years due to Chen's announcement of his marriage." On the other hand, some fans support Chen's team activities, saying, "Even an idol singer should have their respect from their fans for his private life such as marriage," which is causing a growing conflict within the fandom.
While internal divided fans are demanding Chen's feedback through SNS hashtags such as "#Kim Jongdae_Silence_Stop," EXO member Chen delivered the news of his collaboration with Dynamic Duo in his first step since the wedding announcement.
On its official SNS on Tuesday, Amoeba Culture posted a music video teaser for Dynamic Duo's new collaboration single "You" and reported Chen's participation. The "Lone Alone" with Dynamic Duo and Chen will be released on local and international music sites at 6 p.m. on the 23rd of May.
News of Chen's collaboration was carried only through SNS by Amoeba Culture, Dynamic Duo's agency, and not promoted on the official SNS of SM Town and EXO.
