Singer and model Harada Rin, who professionally works under the stage name Harin, has recently been at the centre of a heated online debate after an old interview started circulating online. During the interview, Harin revealed that she was a trainee at HYBE and Source Music in the past and, as she claimed, was included in the debut line-up of NewJeans before being suddenly cut just as their official debut was announced. However, her comments have drawn a lot of criticism from the girl group’s fans. Read on to know more
What Did Former NewJeans Trainee Harin Say
Harin’s comments quickly spread on social media, prompting questions about NewJeans’ original lineup before their debut and the trainees who might have been involved. Although her comments were later removed, they raised questions among fans about the actual changes that take place before a group’s final debut.
There was a pre-debut roster called the “N-Team,” which Harin’s official profile once described before a recent update excised the reference. The N-Team supposedly consisted of different trainees who trained together with the eventual members of NewJeans, and Harin is believed to be part of this specific team.
Users, however, spotted Harin liking several comments on her latest Instagram post, one of them stating that she should be thankful she wasn’t part of the current ADOR vs. NewJeans court case. While many defended her, claiming it could have been an accidental like, others called the action shady, perceiving it to be an insult to the group.
Harin then quietly disliked the controversial comments, and some NewJeans fans felt that it was her admission of guilt. While Harin’s supporters believed it was just a mere misunderstanding blown out of proportion.
Who Is Harin?
Born in 2003, Harin was a member of the Japanese local idol group Shibu3 Project before passing an audition for HYBE’s subsidiary Source Music in 2020. N-Team was managed by Source Music until their debut was upturned, and Min Hee Jin took a few key members to her newly established label ADOR, where she produced NewJeans. In a recent interview, Harin also revealed that after being sent home from Source Music, she has now given up on her dreams to become an idol.
The former Source music trainee has responded to the backlash that her comments and actions have caused by releasing an apology statement. Her statement read,
“What I shared in the interview was simply my deeply personal feelings of frustration and disappointment from the past, not an attempt to criticise or expose any specific company or individual.
It was certainly a difficult time for me, but at the same time, it was also a valuable opportunity and period that made me stronger. Even now, I continue to support the members I laughed and cried with back then! I’ll work harder to improve on my shortcomings and show you a better side of me.”
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Reactions to Harin’s apology are still mixed; however, netizens urge NewJeans fans to look past this situation and look forward.
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