Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
NCT‘s Taeyong, who already has a history of scandals from his past (which he has previously apologized for), is now apologizing again for more scandals. This time he made amends with a classmate who he bullied back in middle school and also reportedly clarified that a homophobic comment controversy that has popped up recently was indeed him writing it but said there was no harmful intent as it was made as a joke to a friend.
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Recently Taeyong was criticized in an anonymous post that said he wrote a homophobic comment about a classmate in their graduation album.
“Everyone was so fun and everyone has such good personalities and I believe that everyone will make it big. But. [Name of student blacked out] won’t make it because [she/he] is gay. I can be sure of that.” – Lee Taeyong
A recent report clarified that Taeyong was close with the person he wrote it about, so everything was cool or something.
“Taeyong was close with the person that he wrote that to, so there were no bad feelings at all from it.” – Wikitree
Additionally, his bullying scandal was also addressed. The victim just wanted an apology, but was made a liar by fans and ignored by SM Entertainment.
“I’ve lived in pain for years after the incident. I just wanted to ask you why you did it, and to receive a sincere apology.” – Victim
“It was a wound that I couldn’t wash away. My feelings were being represented by someone else. I was reduced to being someone who was spreading rumors.” – Victim
However, eventually, the victim got their apology.
The victim sent SM Entertainment an email saying that they would like an apology in person, but there was no reply from SM. However, after Taeyong returned from the United States on October 11, he decided to meet with one of the victims. Here, Taeyong admitted to his actions, and apologized to the victim directly. The two people faced each other for the first time in 10 years. The victim shed tears, while they sat in silence for nearly one hour. After calming down, the victim faced Taeyong again. Taeyong was the first person to say something, bowing his head in apology. He admitted to his past wrongdoings, and sincerely apologized.
“It has been a long time since I saw this friend, and I am upset that I am meeting them over something like this. Honestly, I have never once felt at ease because of this. Every day, dozens of times, I think ‘why was I like that’ and feel regret.” – Taeyong
The victim listened to Taeyong’s every word, and felt sincerity from his apology. Eventually, after more than 2 hours of talking with each other, the victim decided to forgive Taeyong.
“At that time, I was very poor with how I expressed myself. I would like to sincerely apologize for my thoughtless remarks and actions when I was younger. I am very sorry.” – Taeyong
SME also released a statement regarding the matter.
“Recently, Taeyong personally apologized to his friend from middle school that was hurt by his mistakes, including his senseless words and actions. The friend accepted Taeyong’s apology, and they both cheered each other on for their growth in their respective futures. In addition, Taeyong expressed his regret to his friend who was unable to get in contact with him. Taeyong will not forget about his past, and use it as a way to help show him how to grow up and become a better person, and act properly with a humble mindset. Thank you.” – SM Entertainment
It’s almost comical at this point how he seems to constantly get into these scandals, fans defend him and throw suspicion on it, then he and SME end up acknowledging it and/or apologizing. Like just accept that he was a fucking asshole that you’d hate to be in a class with.
Is Taeyong still that person today? Is he only apologizing now to salvage his image? It’s hard to know the answer to that, but while I’m open to him changing, it’s difficult to accept that he was such a ginormous prick and then all of a sudden became a great person within the last few years or whatever, especially when an SME trainee has said he was basically the same guy while he was there.
