On April 20, Bang Si-hyuk posted a photo on his personal social media with the caption, “@le_sserafim You’re fearless! #easy_crazy_hot_in_incheon #sourcemusic #HYBE”, alongside members Kim Chaewon, Sakura, Huh Yunjin, Kazuha, and Hong Eunchae.
In the photo, Bang Si-hyuk is seen visiting LE SSERAFIM’s concert at Inspire Arena in Unseo-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon, creating a warm atmosphere with the members. Striking a V-sign in the middle of the group, Bang Si-hyuk confidently poses with his noticeably smaller face and healthier appearance, showing off an improved physique.
Back in July last year, Bang Si-hyuk drew attention when he was spotted walking with BJ Juice Seyeon in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles. Their outing appeared in a YouTuber’s street video, featuring Bang Si-hyuk, Juice Seyeon, and her older sister crossing the street and chatting, sparking curiosity about their relationship.
At the time, Bang Si-hyuk faced speculation over his health due to his visibly large stomach and was also caught up in dating rumors with Juice Seyeon. HYBE clarified the situation, stating, “They happened to meet at a gathering of acquaintances where he offered advice regarding a case of impersonation. Later, when the two visited LA, they asked for recommendations on tourist spots and restaurants, so he helped make reservations and guided them.”
BJ Juice Seyeon also addressed the matter during a livestream a few days later. To start the livestream, she said, “It’s Juice Seyeon that every Korean got to know in a month. There were articles about me in the U.S. as well. Hi, I’m world star Juice Seyeon.“
Juice Seyeon then mentioned the suspicions related to her having a date with Chairman Bang Si-hyuk, saying, “First of all, I’ve been sorting out what you’ll be curious about.“
First of all, Juice Seyeon explained about her relationship with Chairman Bang Si-hyuk, “I got a DM (direct message) last year by a person impersonating HYBE. My sister said something was strange about this message, so she asked the chairman because she knew him. Turned out it was an impersonator. So, HYBE caught the impersonator and punished him. The impersonator has already been jailed, and it is a serious case where there were many victims other than me, so I got to know Bang for the first time when I helped HYBE collect data on the impersonator.“
Regarding the explanation that she accidentally met Bang in the U.S., Juice Seyeon said, “How could I meet him by chance? That doesn’t make sense. The keyword ‘accidentally’ is misleading. What happened was that when I wanted to go to a good restaurant with my sister, she asked the chairman, and he introduced a restaurant called XX restaurant that is really difficult to make a reservation. The restaurant told us that it was impossible for us to make a reservation as well,” adding, “But the chairman gladly helped us because we helped in the impersonator case last year. He said that if he accompanied us, we could enter the restaurant. It is a really popular restaurant in the U.S., so I asked him to go there with us because we really wanted to, and he willingly helped.“
“I didn’t know that either. I found out on the Internet,” Juice Seyeon said of the photo showing that Bang taking pictures for her. “On the day we went to the restaurant, my stomach hurt so much that I went to the bathroom. Chairman Bang Si-hyuk was taking pictures of my sister while I went to the bathroom so I didn’t know. He said that the photo would look good if we took it there. The person he took the photo for was not me, but my sister.”
Lastly, regarding the photo of them walking on the crosswalk together, Juice Seyeon said, “I became a celebrity because of the photo of us walking together on the way to the restaurant. I’m promoting Netflix and can make a comeback to broadcasting. This makes me think, ‘I am successful?’. Such a splendid return, I just laughed. An article called me the ‘3 billion per year BJ Juice Seyeon.’ So I thought, ‘It’s not bad?'”
She added, “I am grateful. I think there is no one in Korea who doesn’t know me now. I think my mom, my dad, and my grandfather also know about it,” positively.
Source: Sports Chosun