Chuseok or the Korean Thanksgiving is known to be a celebration of family. To celebrate the event, ABYSS Company took their “first family picture” with its roster of photos. However, it was met with backlash as one of their groups, Urban Zakapa, was nowhere in the photos.

On Saturday, September 28, entertainment agency ABYSS Company posted photos of their artists wearing hanbok for the Chuseok holiday. Among them were singers Sandara Park, BamBam, Sunmi, Jukjae, Park Won and folk duo Melomance.

“ABYSS’ first family photo that is reassuring just to look at. The first family picture of ABYSS that makes you feel warm just by looking,” they captioned the post. Moreover, the company also posted individual photos of the celebrities alongside their personal messages for fans.

However, netizens were quick to notice that Urban Zakapa, the vocalist trio under ABYSS, were not in the “family photo.” Which led to fans raising complaints and the company releasing an apology statement.

“Due to the termination of the contract of former artist Hyun-Ah, we decided that it would be difficult to feature the entire Urban Zakapa in the content,” ABYSS explained. “As a result, we are concerned about the many fans who love Urban Zakapa, we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused,” they added.

Hyun-Ah of Urban Zakapa airs disappointment towards ABYSS

When the “family photo” was released, Jo Hyun-ah, the vocalist of Urban Zakapa, did not hesitate to voice out her honest thoughts. 

“Wow, we’re not in this picture. Couldn’t even tell us about it, huh? Lol, the singer boldly remarked in the comments section. 

In the company’s apology statement, ABYSS also mentioned that they regretted proceeding with the photo shoot without notifying Urban Zakapa first. “We have reached out to the group and apologized to them, explaining what had happened,” they stated.

In response, Hyun-ah once again expressed her disappointment. “Is it just enough to publish an apology, and we should accept it? It feels somewhat coercive and pressuring”, she commented.

Earlier this year, the singer left ABYSS to establish her own agency, Andrew Company. On the other hand, the trio’s other members, Kwon Sun Il and Park Yong In, decided to stay with ABYSS.

Urban Zakapa is known as one of the artists who have been with the company since their humble beginnings. Throughout their career, the trio has released numerous hit tracks including “I Don’t Love You,” “Wish,” “You’re the Reason,” among many others.

Featured image: Artists of ABYSS company come together for a Chuseok group photo. Credit: Twitter/ABYSS