Seunghan

Hong Seung-han (; born October 2, 2003), known mononymously as Seunghan, is a South Korean singer. He is a former member of the South Korean boy band Riize, debuting under SM Entertainment in 2023. He debuted as a soloist in July 2025 with the release of Waste No Time under the stage name XngHan.

First introduced in July 2022 as a member of SM Entertainment's idol training team SM Rookies, Seunghan debuted in September 2023 as a member of Riize. Amid leaks and criticism regarding his personal life, Seunghan took a hiatus from the band beginning in November 2023, briefly returning in October 2024 only to withdraw permanently two days later amid backlash from a subset of the band's fans.

The circumstances surrounding Seunghan's exit from Riize sparked controversy, with many criticizing what they perceived to be a toxic cancel culture mentality among South Korean fans, and bringing commentary on the cultural expectations of idols, particularly as K-pop agencies attempt to target international audiences.

Early life and education Hong Seung-han was born on October 2, 2003, in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, He graduated from the school in 2022.

Seunghan was cast by SM Entertainment in his final year of middle school, after completing an entrance exam for admission to an arts high school.

Career 2022–2023: Pre-debut activities, debut with Riize, and hiatus Seunghan was first introduced to the public in a pictorial for WWD Korea on July 2, 2022,

As part of SM Rookies, Seunghan participated in the SM Town Live 2022: SMCU Express concert tour throughout August 2022, performing "Outro: Dream Routine" with then-NCT members (and future fellow Riize members) Shotaro and Sungchan. He also starred in Welcome to NCT Universe, a variety show showing Shotaro and Sungchan guiding the rookies through "everything about NCT". The ten-episode series aired from November 2022 to February 2023 on TVING in South Korea, and Nippon TV and Hulu in Japan.

In July 2023, The Chosun Ilbo reported that Seunghan was set to leave SM Rookies and debut in SM's new boy band that September.

Seunghan was officially introduced as a member of Riize on August 1, and made his first appearance with the group in a performance video for "Siren" on August 7. The group made their official debut on September 4 with the single album Get a Guitar, which sold more than a million copies in its first week, becoming the second-highest-selling debut album by a band. The group's follow-up single, "Talk Saxy", was released six weeks later, on October 27. At the same time, Seunghan issued a hand-written apology letter to fans, and SM noted that the leaked photos were "severe defamation" and maliciously edited,

During the hiatus, SM was criticized for their silence on Seunghan's status. Aside from their statement in November 2023, SM did not respond to any questions from fans and press regarding Seunghan's status with the band, and provided no updates on the legal actions it previously announced were being undertaken on Seunghan's behalf.

2024: Return to and withdrawal from Riize On October 11, 2024, in a statement on the group's official Twitter account, the band's management announced that Seunghan would end his nearly 11-month hiatus and return to group activities with Riize. In the statement, they indicated that they had "determined that Riize's next chapter would be even more meaningful if the seven members were together" and that they empathized with fans who were worried or concerned due to the lack of updates over the previous 11 months. Shortly after, Seunghan posted a hand-written letter to his official Weverse fan community, apologizing once again and saying he was "deeply regretful and disappointed" over the controversial photos. He also added that his fellow Riize members were supportive of his return to the group and that he was "filled with gratitude and remorse for the second chance they have given [him]". who felt that Seunghan had betrayed their trust and damaged Riize's reputation. That evening, over 1000 funeral wreaths began appearing on the plaza outside SM's headquarters in Seoul, bearing messages like "soul of the deceased, rest in peace", "freeloaders, get lost!" and "out with Seunghan", and trending hashtags like "#Seunghan_out" and "#RIIZE_exists_as_six" on Twitter in South Korea. with many arguing that Seunghan's hiatus constituted unfair punishment. Immediately after, Seunghan posted another hand-written letter on his Weverse fan community. A fan-created petition on Change.org demanding Seunghan's return to the band had generated over 300,000 signatures in the ten days following his exit.

Within the industry, Seunghan received support from SM labelmate Leeteuk of Super Junior and former Day6 member Jae Park, with the latter criticizing the act of protesting with funeral wreaths, calling the practice "disgusting" and suggesting that those responsible should face legal consequences. Others labeled the use of funeral wreaths as a protest method disruptive to the general public and burdensome for cleanup workers. Press covering the event reported that they were specifically told not to ask Riize about the controversy.

Analyzing the events, Jeff Benjamin of Billboard opined that SM's handling of issues surrounding Seunghan had the potential to set a new industry precedent and a potential dangerous standard for other K-pop idols. He noted that South Korea's pop culture takes a conservative approach to idol behavior, in contrast with SM's perceived plans for Riize to appeal to a global audience.

Writing for The Star, columnist Jan Lee called SM's decision to remove Seunghan only two days after announcing his return "the worst possible course of action", adding that "it is alarming that such a powerful entity would cave with such immediacy to the demands of 'fans', who maliciously send death wishes to an artist, when the industry has lost so many bright, young stars to suicide". Pamela Pascual, writing for Daily Tribune, said that Seunghan was "a case study in cancel culture", and that "K-pop idols often face nonstop criticism that goes beyond their music and targets their personal lives, looks, and choices". She also noted K-pop's history with cyberbullying and its consequences, referring to fellow SM artist Sulli,

2025–present: Solo debut with Waste No Time On November 15, 2024, SM announced that Seunghan was preparing to debut as a solo artist in the second half of 2025. The same day, he opened official social media channels and shared several new photos. In June 2025, SPOTV News reported that Seunghan's solo debut was scheduled for July, with SM confirming the news later the same day. More information was made available over the following days, with SM announcing that Seunghan would be modifying his stage name as to be stylized as "XngHan", pronounced the same way but stylized with an X, which, according to the company, was to signify "infinite potential and crossover." It was also announced that he would be embarking on a new project, XngHan & Xoul, which will see him joined by two professional dancers, with the possibility of future expansion under the "Xoul" brand.

Waste No Time, Seunghan's debut single album, was released on July 31, 2025. The two-song album was promoted under the Xnghan&Xoul brand as a collaboration with two professional dancers.

On April 3, 2026, SM announced the release of his first extended play titled Glow which is expected to drop on the 27th. The EP will include five songs, including the title track of the same name.

Discography

As a member of Riize, Seunghan participated in three singles. The first, "Memories", was released in August 2023, followed in September by "Get a Guitar". Both songs were included on the band's debut single album, Get a Guitar. "Talk Saxy", the final Riize single with Seunghan's participation, was released that October. The song was later included as the seventh track on the group's debut EP, Riizing, released in June 2024. JPN: 2,679

Single albums Title Details Peak chart positions Sales KOR Waste No Time Released: July 31, 2025

Korean singles + List of singles, showing year released, selected chart positions, and name of the album Title Year Peak chart positions Album KORDown. "Waste No Time" 2025 23 Waste No Time "Glow" 2026 19 Glow

Japanese singles Title Year Album "High Dream" 2026 High Dream

Other charted songs + List of other charted songs, showing year released, selected chart positions, and name of the album Title Year Peak chart positions Album KORDown.

Awards and nominations + Name of the award ceremony, year presented, award category, nominee(s) of the award, and the result of the nomination Award ceremony Year Category Nominee / work Result Hanteo Music Awards 2025 Rookie of the Year XngHan & Soul