The thing I find odd is the weird sense of betrayal some fans are feeling about his words. I think if anything he said was a surprise to you, then you haven’t been paying attention much to what he’s been saying, because he’s always been completely transparent. I think after 10 years working nonstop in a career he chose to pursue at such a young age, I think anyone would want to take a step off the breaks and focus on what they find more important to them. For Haechan, it was simply the music. He’s constantly promoting and making appearances when he’s with his respective units, so perhaps now he wants to take the time to focus on his own interests. If his own interests means not having anything related to variety shows, then so be it. He’s an artist and as an artist HE is the one who decides how he wants to express himself.

I think many fans that are truly upset have become too emotionally invested into his career endeavors that they see him choosing to avoid any kind of major promotion like variety shows as some sort of loss in investment. But he’s not some toy that you get to choose what he should or shouldn’t do, and I think fans need to wake up to that reality and actually start paying attention to him.