Will Soojin return? Fans dream of OT6 as (G)I-DLE drop hints while announcing rebrand to i-dle for seventh anniversary
SEOUL, May 2 — Fans of (G)I-DLE were full of speculations after the K-pop girl group marked its seventh debut anniversary today.
The group announced that it will now drop the (G) from its name, after years of confusion among Korean and international fans on how to pronounce the word.
The five-member group — comprising Soyeon, Minnie, Miyeon, Yuqi and Shuhua — will now be known as i-dle.
It also announced that a special mini album would be released today, followed by its eighth mini album on May 19.
To accompany the announcement, i-dle dropped a teaser video titled 'for (G),' a black-and-white clip featuring a remixed version of its 2018 debut single 'LATATA'.
Many fans of the group, called Neverland, however expressed their hope that former member Soojin will return — citing imagery from the clip, such as the coffin, and the focus on the vocalist's line in the video.
Fans also backed their theory by pointing out how i-dle's new logo features an asterisk — but with only five points, which they suggested signifying the absence of Soojin.
Soojin left (G)I-DLE for a solo career after a five-month hiatus in 2021 due to bullying allegations from former classmates. She was later found to be innocent, but her contract was terminated nonetheless by its agency, CUBE Entertainment.
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How spaces shape cliquishness Describing Dongtan as a 'gated community,' Kim Jina, a research associate professor of the College of Liberal Studies at Seoul National University and an expert in anthropology and landscape architecture, explained that planned areas like Dongtan are structurally designed to create a sense of cliquishness, which often leads to feelings of alienation among outsiders. "Dongtan is structured around large brand-name apartment complexes with high walls and security systems that keep them separate from the outside. "This setup makes residents feel safe and gives them a sense of belonging, while also creating communities of people with similar backgrounds," Kim said. She also pointed out that Dongtan's homogeneous commercial landscape, including large shopping malls, cafe streets and clusters of private academies, encourages residents to develop similar spending patterns, further reinforcing its cliquishness. Living and spending in such similarly structured spaces naturally fosters shared lifestyles and creates the impression that the community is difficult for outsiders to enter, she added. 'In planned cities that lack historical or cultural roots, people tend to express identity through lifestyle and consumption. This is often portrayed in misleading ways online.' Kim analysed the Dongtan memes as an indication of a shift in Korean regionalism, from stereotypes linked to one's birthplace to class distinctions based on current residential areas that function as markers of socioeconomic status. Widely used distinctions such as Gangnam and Gangbuk, old city centers and new towns, and apartment and non-apartment housing often imply class differences. Memes about Dongtan are seen as an extension of these region-based social divisions, according to Kim. 'Online memes often target areas like Dongtan or Seoul's famous Daechidong in Gangnam District, where the cost of living creates a significant barrier to entry. To those unable to afford to live in such areas, online memes provide a way to express frustration behind the mask of anonymity.' She warned of the negative psychological effects that online memes targeting certain regions may place on their residents. "Social stigma fuelled by region-based memes often leaves residents feeling the need to defend themselves, which can weaken their emotional attachment to the community. In some cases, people may begin to conform to the stereotypes, or react in exaggerated ways to reject them," she said. - The Korea Herald/ANN
