Rumour monday: Juri hiatus from "Rocket Punch" and health concern might be due to a slave contract

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

A speculative article about Juri Takahashi is causing her to trend on Twitter. It is alleged by an insider that her hiatus from "Rocket Punch" is a result of a Korean "slave contract" with a strict diet and a harsh working environment draining her energy. https://t.co/LYNhw3ojRD pic.twitter.com/NKXRl1764I

— J-Pop Project News (@JPopProjectNews) June 5, 2021

Former AKB Takahashi Juri: Korean slave contract "light salary, late night work, dried potatoes and kimchi" behind the suspension of activities https://t.co/zuXeacrxd6

— Poka's Lawyer || like and rt pinned (@lovelyzOUT) June 5, 2021

It's a from a speculative article so take that with a grain of salt

source: @JPopProjectNews, tokyo-sports, @lovelyzOUT, news.yahoo

Comments

[gathyou.livejournal.com]

Honestly this wouldn't surprise me.
Having followed Lovelyz pre-debut, I remember several instances of them talking about food and diets, especially Sujeong who was distraught that she weighted the lightest but her cheeks/rounder face made fans think otherwise. They had insane pressure coming from the company (as well as the fans, competition between groups, etc), and I wouldn't be surprised that Woollim would put the same pressure on their new girl group. And that's just one company among many others with the same pressure.
Because overall the whole idol industry is based on slave contracts - the hours required to train before, and then to promote a song are absolutely insane and I wish there were stronger regulations. Idols put their health at risk to fit unreal beauty ideals. A lot of idols are young people who don't have the experience, whereas Juri has been promoting as an idol for years before moving to SK and probably knows better (I bet the idol industry in Japan has its own issues, but I don't know it well enough to compare).
If this rumor is indeed true, I hope Juri manages to get out of the contract because I doubt she'll be able to renegociate with Woollim.
I worry about the rest of the members.

[aures.livejournal.com]

i retweeted this yesterday!

anyone who has seen her vlogs is not surprised.
when her mom told her to drink soda or even water she told her mom she couldn't because it made her look too heavy. she was complimenting her member "she's good at not eating, she inhales air like it's food".

i already had a feeling it had to do with her diet after the vlogs she posted and the way she almost tried to hide her body, she also kept poking fun of her "chubby" old self (not even close)

i often wonder if it was the right decision for her to come here. she's my favorite in rocket punch, but in the end, is it really worth it if you end up like this? only eating 2 eggs, a sweet potato snack and a soy yogurt is obiously going to give you major health problems, not only in the short but also in the long term.

this is very worrisome. i just want whats best for her and if that means leaving RP i will fully support her even if it's breaks my heart not seeing her perform again

[nudrive.livejournal.com]

she was complimenting her member "she's good at not eating, she inhales air like it's food".
what the fuckkkkkkkkkkkkk. i feel so bad for idols, so many of them end up with eds because of the culture and shitty industry

[aures.livejournal.com]

the worst thing is that they think it's normal and healthy, that it's a sign of hard work and dedication to not eat.
i someimes wonder if they realize they have an ED until it's too late because everybody around them is the same.
it's really really awful. like i said, i love juri and i think she's a really good and kind member, she worked so hard for the group and for herself. without a doubt, she put in 200% of her energy and it's just so sad to see things have come to this. im really sad for her.
if only things were different.........

[nudrive.livejournal.com]

Yeah I'm not surprised, especially with the whole work culture being 'just work harder! you're not working hard until your work is your whole life!'

[aures.livejournal.com]

and for Juri it was already so tough. moving to a different country, not speaking the language yet - not only did she have to learn korean herself, she had to teach/help her members with japanese. plus dieting and losing a lot of her "japanese" weight (where they didn't care as much about her weight as in korea), the added pressure of different beauty standards (she doesn't have), being the older member + the only experienced member so she had to take care of them and teach them everything.
and now with the japanese debut she had to take care of pretty much everything + all the spotlights on her.
combined with not eating.. i can imagine how that turned out

[nudrive.livejournal.com]

holy shit, that is insane, poor girl!
yeah tbh idk about newer gens of akb bc I stopped paying attention after 1st gen started graduating but i don't think they ever had to do weigh ins and stuff :|

[goshipgurl.livejournal.com]

It's sad that slave contracts and unhealthy diets are still a thing in Kpop in fucking 2021. Get these idols professional health & fitness trainers so that they eat enough and stay fit. I can't enjoy performances of kids who look like they're about to collapse or haven't eaten in days.

[madrigalpals.livejournal.com]

Mte, they are actual children.

I wonder how much this stunts their growth and mental stability because this is a horrible thing to go through at any age, but their minds and bodies are still developing :(

[camouflagecat.livejournal.com]

The fact that (most) kpop companies don't have nutritionists and/or fitness trainers working with their idols as a default is just insane for me.

[lightframes.livejournal.com]

100% agree

[thegout.livejournal.com]

this is awful

[madrigalpals.livejournal.com]

This is a big reason why I stopped following kpop, it's too depressing. :(

[chikage-chan.livejournal.com]

Oh no… I was hoping that since she was a seasoned performer and knew the industry she would be able to cope more with the kpop crazy and get herself a better contract too, but I guess not… hope she is at least getting the rest and treatment she needs.

[tsubaki874.livejournal.com]

I know AKB/JPop has its problems, but I am still shocked she chose Kpop over AKB especially with her rising in popularity before Produce..

[audiograms.livejournal.com]

True or not, it's sad that it's believable.