BABYMONSTER made its official debut with the single “BATTER UP” on November 27. However, the group consists of six members, Ruka, Pharita, Asa, Rami, Rora, and Chiquita, instead of seven. YG stated that Ahyeon had decided to take a break for health reasons.

BABYMONSTER, whose debut was already delayed once, released its first single amid concern over Ahyeon’s rumored departure just before its debut. Ahyeon was believed to become the center of the group before her debut for her outstanding skills and overwhelming visuals. She was highly anticipated to become BAEMON’s version of Jennie.

Even before YG’s official announcement, there were rumors that Ahyeon would not join BABYMONSTER. In particular, there were various speculations about Ahyeon’s withdrawal or transfer to another agency. However, all such speculations are not true at the moment. Although YG has announced that Ahyeon will postpone her debut, “contract termination” and “team withdrawal” are not mentioned anywhere in its official position. YG’s position has not changed since the group’s official debut.

If so, will Ahyeon join the group in their next comeback? Recently, there have been many cases where KPOP stars suspended their activities temporarily to protect their physical and mental health. However, there are not many cases where a group debuts without one member. This is because it is important for a group to stand on stage as a whole. However, BAEMON had no choice but to proceed with its debut without Ahyeon because its debut had already been postponed once.

We can consider a similar case: Seo Ji-soo of Lovelyz. Both Seo Ji-soo and Ahyeon were in the debut lineup, but their debut was postponed. The difference between the two is that Ahyeon’s debut was postponed due to health problems, while Seo Ji-soo’s debut was postponed due to the spread of malicious rumors. Seo Ji-soo was able to join the team about a year after Lovelyz’s debut.

Ahyeon can also join the team if her health is fully recovered. It is not a strange thing for a new member to join a group that has already debuted. Super Junior’s Kyuhyun, Red Velvet’s Yeri, and NCT 127’s Jungwoo did this in the past. In some cases, the joining of a new member induces opposition from existing fans, but in the case of Ahyeon, she was originally in the debut lineup.

However, among YG’s idol groups, there have been no cases in which members joined in the middle so far. Rather, there were only cases where a member who had been resting for health reasons left the team permanently. This is where many fans are worried. Undoubtedly Ahyeon’s joining will be a great help to BABYMONSTER and all possibilities are still open.

Ahyeon’s Comeback Plans with BABYMONSTER Revealed by Yang Hyun-suk

Recently, a video titled “BABYMONSTER NEXT PHASE | YG Announcement” was published on the official YouTube channel of YG girl group BABYMONSTER.

Here, Yang Hyun-suk, the chief producer and founder of YG Entertainment appears and details upcoming schedules of BABYMONSTER in 2024, starting with a new song on February 1.

Then, when asked, “What are the comeback plans for Ahyeon?”, Yang Hyun-suk responded, “AHYEON had to stop training for a few months due to health reasons. As BABYMONSTER’s debut had to be pushed beyond this year, they had to debut on November 27th as six members. It’s still uncertain when Ahyeon will join, so I will inform you publicly in due course.”

With this answer, Yang Hyun-suk has somewhat confirmed that Ahyeon is not leaving BABYMONSTER and will eventually return as she recovers.

Meanwhile, BABYMONSTER was supposed to debut as a 7-member girl group, but Ahyeon ended up not joining debut due to health reasons.