Koreans Wildly Divided Over LE SSERAFIM's Eunchae "Mocking" Other Students Her Age (2024)

LE SSERAFIM‘smaknae memberEunchaehas found herself in another hiccup over an old Weverse clip that resurfaced.

In the clip, snipped from a 2023 Weverse live broadcast held the night before their fan meeting event, Eunchae can be heard addressing the viewers. While talking about high school students having to wake up early in the morning, Eunchae commented, “That must be tough.”

Oh, you all are in school. Huh? That must be tough. So tough… I know what it’s like. I also had to wake up at 7.

— Eunchae

Her demeanor and tone, however, didn’t sit well with some netizens who found it to be “condescending” and/or “disrespectful.”Soon, the unimpressed netizens accused Eunchae of mocking students her age—as an idol living a different life after having dropped out of high school.

A tweet calling out the idol in the clip went mega-viral, gaining close to 18M+ views overnight:

님은 학교가 필요해보여요 https://t.co/OCw33LOqRi pic.twitter.com/UNyFvBvmzg

— 왕촌농 (@chonnong_s) March 15, 2024

It sounds like YOU could use some schooling, too.

— @chonnong_s/X

The clip resurfaced in response to another tweet criticizing Eunchae’s latest Weverse post that contained a grammatical error which ended up disrespecting Red Velvet‘s Wendy.

LE SSERAFIM’s Eunchae Accidentally “Disrespects” Red Velvet’s Wendy

Forcing the two unrelated incidents to defame Eunchae to be “uneducated,” netizens trolled the idol…

원트보고 왤케 욕을 먹나 했는데…잘못한건 아니지만 https://t.co/gr8g7xkunq pic.twitter.com/ZTJOXALkw8

— 이밍힝 (@TFSD_) March 16, 2024

At first, I wasn’t sure about Eunchae getting all the hate over a single clip… And I still don’t think she did anything wrong. But it’s best not to brag about it if you have it easy.

— @TFSD_/X

남들처럼 학교안가고 11시에 매니저가 픽업하러 오는 삶 개꿀인건 알겠는데 왜자꾸 라이브에서 시비를털어 뭐어쩌라고 https://t.co/5KaA9APgfz

— 챱스테이크 (@chyabseuteikeu) March 16, 2024

Like, fine. I get that her life is f*cking sweet and she has it easy, not going to school, waking up at 11AM, and having a manager pick her up all the time. But what’s up with her rubbing it in our faces on live broadcast all the time? What are we supposed to think about it?

— @chyabseuteikeu/X

얘는 전부터 왜 자꾸 학교나 수능같은 케이팝하는 소녀들 나이대에 제일 예민한 문제가지고 지랄하는거임? 남미새니 애기라이팅이니 이런건 둘째치고 애가 걍 존나 저능한것같음 https://t.co/yEnnNeqYcx

— 삐삐 (@bbibbi87) March 16, 2024

What is up with this girl? She keeps f*cking up over topics like school, SAT, and other sensitivities that would affect K-Pop fans her age. I’m not hating on her because she’s a girlie and I’m not falling for people defending her for being a kid. What I do think, though, is that she’s turning out to be f*cking dumb.

— @bbibbi87/X

아이돌 상당히 만족중이신거 같은데 얘네 독기컨셉은 왜잡는거임? 다음 컴백땐 꿀빨아서좋아♡ 노래ㄱㄱ https://t.co/FdDTR9IqP7

— 낙두 (@qkdxasl) March 16, 2024

Sounds like she’s well satisfied with her idol life. So how come this group keeps going for the ‘rising from the ashes, overcoming difficulties’ concept? Next comeback, let’s hear something closer to ‘we love being idols and our lives are sweet and simple.’

— @qkdxasl/X

…which has since sparked LE SSERAFIM and other K-Pop fans to step up in Eunchae’s defense.

Attaching the full version of the clip in question, another X user @alljot1 pointed out that all of LE SSERAFIM members agree with Eunchae’s comment about how“tough” it is to be in high school and that it’s a moment of the idols rooting for their student fans—not one of Eunchae having a dig and making fun of students her age.

아니뒤에보니까은채포함다들걍공감해주면서등교할때너무힘들엇다어케7시에일어낫지하는데
힘내세요하면서너무힘들겟다해주는거잖아
그기분뭔지알죠7시에일어나는거저도7시에일어맜어요이게그렇게한국고등학생을내리치는거같으세요?ㅠ https://t.co/BNj4JdrQA8 pic.twitter.com/eGg3uylJMO

— 니 을지비티가? (@Alljot1) March 16, 2024

Watch the whole clip. All members, including Eunchae, are relating to the students having to wake up for school. All of them are talking about how hard it was to get up at 7 in the morning. And then, the members take turns rooting for their student fans. Eunchae even adds that she knows what it’s like and that she still does wake up at 7. How is this mocking all high school students her age?

I can’t believe people are attacking Eunchae over this, calling her entitled and blaming a 17-YO over how unfair life is. WHY ARE YOU ALL SO MAD? This is f*cking frustrating.

— @alljot1/X

A theqoo post with close to 60K views also sided with Eunchae, calling the hate unwarranted and ridiculous.

• “C’mon… It’s common for idols and fans to tease one another. There’s nothing controversial about this clip. Yes, she’s being a bit cheeky but the message is that she can relate. What’s so wrong about that? And idols, too, have to get up early and do things they don’t want to do. In what world would she be taking a dig at students her age, like, ‘Hehe! I don’t have to go to school, so it doesn’t suck for me!’ Whoever clipped the video to portray her like this is malicious-AF.”
• “Eunchae got hate over… this?! I’m mind blown.”
• “I’m shocked that anyone would try to start sh*t with Eunchae over this. So what if she really was poking fun at people who have school or work or whatever? It’s a joke. Don’t take everything so seriously.”
• “This was all over my feed… And the negative reactions did feel a bit different from other ridiculous hate toward female idols. But I think that’s because the heat came from students her age. Such raw, unfiltered jealousy. I checked out some of the troll accounts and they all belonged to teens born 2006 or 2008, etc. People from online communities are old enough to know she was kidding. Or they can brush it off as a cute mistake. But people her age are failing to take it as a joke and they’re roasting her over it.”
• “LMAO. People will drag idols over literal nothing. This is so extra.”
• “Isn’t it obvious Eunchae is poking fun? It’s not like she doesn’t have her own work to do.”
• “I mean, I get why kids her age found the comment to be so annoying. LOL. But they’re all so genuinely offended. It’s because they’re so young. It’s all stemming from pure jealousy.”

Unbothered, Eunchae was spotted at Korea’s Gimpo Airport, departing for Japan.