LE SSERAFIM Address HYBE’s Dieting Expectations For The Members On Kim Jong Kook’s Channel As He Weighs In On The Issue
LE SSERAFIM recently made a guest appearance on Kim Jong Kook‘s YouTube channel, and he surprised them with knowledge of their documentary, The World Is My Oyster, and he had an opinion regarding the members being forced to diet.
The documentary gave fans a look at the many struggles that LE SSERAFIM faced leading up to their debut, especially Sakura. The idol spilled on everything from her struggle with preconceptions about her age as an “older idol” to the damaging judgment she received for her singing.
She also revealed the reality of the grueling daily schedule that the members followed as trainees, one which often ended at dawn.
But one scene in particular earned Sakura plenty of praise. It showed a meeting between LE SSERAFIM and their management team, and something was making Sakura upset. As it turns out, the subject of discussion at that particular meeting had been the members’ diets.
It is far from uncommon for idols to lead strict, even dangerous diets to maintain their slim figures. In The World Is My Oyster, LE SSERAFIM’s manager seemed to be asking that the members undergo a diet to prepare for their debut—and it did not sit right with Sakura. Amidst tears, she said, “We’ve been working so hard, I don’t want us to have stress about this.”
She added, “I’ve seen members struggle and be criticized for these things.”
Fans praised her for speaking out against her company’s dieting expectations and for standing up for her members. And so did Kim Jong Kook! As it turns out, he was able to watch LE SSERAFIM’s documentary, and he also had his opinion regarding HYBE and Source Music‘s forcing the members to diet.
The subject first came up as Kim Jong Kook and the members discussed their respective debuts. He empathized with LE SSERAFIM, saying,“You must have gone through a lot when you debuted, right?”
He then revealed that he had watched their documentary as he said, “I saw Sakura crying because of her diet.”
He added, “Why are they making these girls diet?” Then, Sakura weighed in with an update on the situation, explaining that nowadays they are eating much more healthily. She said, “Actually, we’re eating quite well now,”
She even hilariously claimed that the members had had soft tofu stew that day.
Seeing as Kim Jong Kook always makes a point of giving helpful advice that prioritizes his guests’ health above everything, if anybody was going to disagree with the dieting expectations for LE SSERAFIM, it was going to be him!
Read further about Sakura standing up against HYBE’s dieting expectations right here.
Watch the full clip on the link below.
