Twice member Jeongyeon has officially parted ways with longtime agency JYP Entertainment, becoming the first member of the K-pop group to leave the company.
The 29-year-old singer announced the decision on Monday, August 10, marking the end of an 11-year chapter with the agency under which she debuted with Twice in 2015.
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Jeongyeon has since signed an exclusive contract with Varo Entertainment, an agency that also represents her older sister, actress Gong Seung-yeon.
In a handwritten letter shared with fans, Jeongyeon described JYP Entertainment as her “second home” and reflected on the years she spent there since she was a teenager.
“JYP has been my second home since my teenage years; a place where I’ve spent so much time and created so many cherished memories,” she wrote.
She added that she was preparing to begin “a new chapter in a new place”, admitting that leaving the company initially felt daunting.
However, Jeongyeon made one thing clear to fans: leaving JYP Entertainment does not mean leaving Twice.
“The one thing I truly want to tell ONCE is that even though I am moving on to a new chapter to take on new challenges, TWICE, the center of my life, will remain unchanged,” she said.
She added that continuing to stand before fans as a member of Twice would remain her “very first priority”.
What’s next for Jeongyeon?
Varo Entertainment confirmed that it had signed an exclusive contract with the singer and said it would support both her continuing activities with Twice and her new challenges as an actress.
The move comes as Jeongyeon prepares to expand her career beyond music. She has been cast in the upcoming film New Recruit: The Movie, marking her screen debut.
Reports that Jeongyeon was considering a move to Varo Entertainment first emerged in June, when the agency confirmed that it had met with the singer but said at the time that no contract had been finalised.
JYP Entertainment had also said that Twice was undergoing contract renewal discussions and that it would respect the individual decisions of the members.
Jeongyeon’s departure now makes her the first Twice member to officially leave JYP Entertainment since the group debuted a decade ago.
Twice was formed through the Mnet survival programme Sixteen and debuted in October 2015. The nine-member group consists of Nayeon, Jeongyeon, Momo, Sana, Jihyo, Mina, Dahyun, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu.
Despite her agency change, Jeongyeon’s message suggests the group’s nine-member line-up remains intact as she begins the next phase of her individual career.
Source: Khaleej Times