Despite internal conflict, EXO released “Let Me In” which is part of their upcoming seventh album
K-Pop boy group EXO kicked off a new era as it unveiled on Monday, June 12, 2023, the music video for “Let Me In,” a pre-release single off its upcoming full-length album.
The video, which now has almost 5 million views and counting, runs for nearly four minutes.
It showed the members in various locations, including in the middle of a field and road, at a beach and café filled with people, and inside a cinema and crumbling house. The scenes are also dotted with black-and-white clips of the members singing the ballad track with a black background.
Notably present in the music video are members Kai, who recently began his mandatory military service, and Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin, who are engaged in a contract dispute with label SM Entertainment.
Fans took to Twitter to celebrate the release, with #LetMeInByEXO topping the social network’s list of Philippine trends.
“Let Me In” is part of EXO’s upcoming seventh album “Exist,” which is scheduled for release on July 10, 2023.
The upcoming album marks the group’s first new music in over two years, following the extended play “Don’t Fight the Feeling” in 2021.
EXO members’ contract dispute
While the group is set to stage its comeback soon, members Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen are reportedly leaving and suing SM Entertainment over issues with the agency, including “unjust” long-term exclusive contracts.
Korean news outlets recently reported that the artists have notified SM Entertainment of their decision to terminate their contracts as of June 1, 2023, after they were asked to sign an agreement that would have them exclusively work for the company for far longer.
READ: Three EXO Members Split From SM Entertainment Due To “Unfair Treatment”
“As if a 12 to 13-year-long contract period is not enough for them, SM is trying to claim a contract period of at least 17 to 18 years by having the artists sign the subsequent exclusive contracts again,” K-pop news website Soompi quoted the three EXO members’ lawyer Lee Jae Hak as saying.
“This is SM repeatedly perpetrating extremely unjust use of power against their artists,” the trio’s statement further read.
Their lawyer also claimed that the EXO members have repeatedly requested SM Entertainment for copies of settlement reports and settlement basis but that the latter allegedly refused to provide these.
Furthermore, their lawyer asserted that if the agency had accurately paid the settlement to the artists, there would have been no reason for them not to accede to the request.
“The fact that SM is unable to provide such settlement reports and settlement grounds is strong counter-evidence that SM did not properly pay the settlement to the artists.
“Thus, the artists plan to take all civil and criminal legal action including a lawsuit for settlement payment against SM in order to check the exact details of the settlement,” he was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen—through their law firm—apologized for causing concern to fans through the issue.
The trio earlier assured fans that they would continue to promote EXO despite their legal issues with SM, according to news agency Yonhap.
Banner Art Paulo Correa
