While it’s more common for idols to cultivate their image, both personality-wise and visual-wise,
before the official debut as the public doesn’t usually prefer an idol whose vibe is not consistent,
there are still some rare cases of completely switching up the way they present themselves
in the limelight post-debut, though that meant they could irk lots of old fans off for “not
being the person who they were.”
Jang Wonyoung (IVE)
As observed by those who have watched Jang Wonyoung grow from a nameless fourteen-year-old
girl to the most successful female idol of gen4, her current version is said to be too
different from the original image and while that does her good in lots of aspects, some
still prefer Jang Wonyoung of several years ago.
Yet to touch on the inner side, the noticeable difference has already been seen in her appearance
and according to fans, it seems that Wonyoung has become so obsessed with looking perfect
that she has forced herself to change drastically at the expense of her health.
The first and most controversial change in Wonyoung’s appearance is her weight and
it’s not an exaggeration at all to say everyone has lost count of the times she made headlines
for her weight only.
While Jang Wonyoung was already super-duper slender in IZ*ONE, she was still seen following
a rigorous diet for probably years.
Though a reporter once said he was sure IZ*ONE didn’t starve themselves before each comeback,
he was still taken aback to see Wonyoung become way smaller than the last time he saw her.
Fast forward to the Secret Story of The Swan era, fans noticed her legs were at the point
of bony skinny yet probably because her facial babyfat still stood out, Wonyoung was later
seen doing intermittent fasting as in one Vlive in August 2020 where the members brought
her food, she excitedly said it was her very first meal of the day.
Then, she was seen even more shredded in the Panorama promotion and while fans thought
she wouldn’t lose anymore weight, after IVE’s debut, Wonyoung freaked people out
even more after becoming thinner in After Like promotion.
Besides forcing herself to lose as much weight as possible, Wonyoung was also seen to undergo
various beauty procedures to better suit South Korean beauty standards.
As analyzed by a Youtuber who has closely followed Wonyoung since day one, it was concluded
that she had had lips filler, lips corners injection, lips grafting, nosejob, double-eyelids
surgery, buccal fat removal and masseter botox.
Especially regarding her young age, many said such procedures might pose considerable harm
to her health and while she did all of this for the public’s validation, lots of antifans
have also attacked her for looking so different from her previous self.
Besides a noticeable change in her visual, Wonyoung has also shook people with her dramatic
change in personality.
In Produce48 where she eventually won the center position thanks to the public's massive
love, many said that one of the biggest reasons leading to her sound success was the bubbly
and lively characteristic.
As the maknae of IZ*ONE and also the youngest idol of the industry at the time, Wonyoung
used to be extremely playful and whenever having a chance, she would always tease other
members and be the naughty maknae as she should be.
This moment of her mischievously pushing and laughing at Yuri just to end up falling victim
to her own joke has become super well-known.
She also did lots of silly things like making faces or acting quirky, and sometimes when
laughing, she didn’t even bother to cover her mouth.
When doing livestream with other members of IZ*ONE, Wonyoung also didn’t crave attention,
instead, she just joked around to entertain fans.
She also often showed her naughty, sarcastic side without the fear of being judged or damaging
the flawless image.
In fact, she even freely ate without caring about her image and in one livestream, she
was even eating while talking, spilling the yogurt and making fun of herself for eating
so messily.
Now, after blowing up everywhere and being under the strict scrutiny of netizens 24/7,
Wonyoung has become a completely different person.
Many fans said they almost didn’t recognize her personality-wise since Wonyoung has not
only become super-duper cautious in everything she does but also exaggerated every action
to look as perfect as possible.
For example, when eating, people noticed she would take a sniff first then eat slowly.
Or as you have already known through her strawberry-eating controversy, rather than enjoying the food
in a normal manner, Wonyoung used both hands to hold the strawberry and looking around
while chewing.
After doing the CF for Papa Johns, Wonyoung was also bashed for the way she ate pizza
as according to netizens, her obsession with looking pretty even when eating was ridiculous
and too cringy to handle.
Wonyoung’s alleged obsession with looking perfect and being the center of attention
also irked people as they believed she was not only spoiling the group’s performances
but also the solidarity.
For example, to ensure the spotless visual, Wonyoung was seen skipping moves in IVE’s
choreography and ruining the group’s synchronization.
Or as in one video where I talked about all the reasons making Wonyoung the most hated
female idol of Kpop, she also ticked netizens off for intentionally speed-running into the
center position at the airport, walking past Gaeul to make sure she was the one to stand
in the middle and asking Liz switch the center position to her right on stage.
The fact that Wonyoung has turned from a girl with manners and carefree personality to a
totally different one made many fans question their decision to stan her.
But to be fair, if that change is beneficial to her career (as evidenced by the fact that
she is receiving tons of lucrative advertising contracts and offers to be ambassadors for
luxury brands), it's not a pity that Wonyoung is no longer the playful, funny girl she used
to be.
Besides, we can't expect a person to stay the same forever because that is very unnatural
and strange.
Kim Chaewon (LE SSERAFIM)
After debuting with LE SSERAFIM, Chaewon has frequently made headlines for looking so different
from her image in IZ*ONE and because she was one of the top famous members back in the
day for the soft and cutesy visual, many old fans said that they preferred the way she
had presented herself way more than right now.
Just a few weeks ago, Chaewon’s new photoshoot has become a topic of discussion and according
to some, while it was refreshing to see her try on a whole new concept and also receive
lots of public support for this change, they still preferred her previous girly and soft
visual during the IZ*ONE’s era.
Since the act was set to follow the innocent and elegant concept where all members would
perform in flattering dresses and willowy styling, Chaewon’s signature image for a
long time was her pastel-colored long hair, sparkling make-up look with a focus on her
aegyo-sals and feminine dresses.
In the comment section, many also shared the same point of view with the OP, saying nothing
could top Chaewon’s image during the IZ*ONE era in their hearts and while they knew LE
SSERAFIM’s fearless concept wouldn’t let them see the same girly Chaewon of IZ*ONE
anytime soon, they still hoped Source Music could once let her come back in this image.
Basically, since Chaewon was the symbol of innocence back in the day, the fact that she
suddenly changed into a powerful, badass girl shook many old fans.
However, to the general public, this 180-degree switch-up was nothing but an impressive level-up
in Chaewon’s image as it not only portrayed her personality better but also boosted her
reputation at the lighting speed.
Most recently when a female community site voted for the face best representing the identity
of LE SSERAFIM, Chaewon was there at the top with up to 56% of votes, 1.5 times higher
than Huh Yunjin who was ranked second.
Besides, Chaewon’s new image was also assessed to be more trendy and suitable with the current
public preferences and had she still stuck with the same styling during the IZ*ONE’s
phase, she would probably be forgettable and blur among other members of Le Sserafim.
In another post where an old fan said she was still obsessed with Chaewon’s pink-hair
era, many in the comment section was disagreeing with her, saying it was thanks to Chaewon’s
new badass image that they understood the hype around her recent reputation as during
the IZ*ONE era, they only found her an overhyped idol who could debut for the reputation of
her mother.
Lee Chaeyeon
After the departure from IZ*ONE, lots of members have undergone a drastic change visual-wise
as besides Wonyoung and Chaewon, Lee Chaeyeon was also said to look so different that many
couldn’t believe their eyes.
Just a few weeks ago when Chaeyeon updated her Instagram account, she immediately made
headlines for the drastically different visual.
Back in the day, while she wasn’t always the first one to pop onto everyone’s mind
when it comes to the best visual of IZ*ONE, many said they were still impressed by her
natural, bubbly aura.
Especially thanks to the smiling eyes and the dumpling cheeks, Chaeyeon had always radiated
a uniquely vibrant and cheerful vibe.
However, after appearing with a completely new look in her recent posts, netizens said
that Chaeyeon looked exactly like a retired artist in her 40s who has spent a bunch of
money on plastic surgeries to cling to her youth.
Looking at Chaeyeon’s photos, many believed she must have had her eye corners enlarged
and though her nose bridge was already high, she seemingly also got a rhinoplasty and nasal
wing reduction.
Her hair color change was even said to cheapen her look and while she looked more like an
idol with the previous image, she now looked more like a wife of an athlete and active
as an influencer online.
Netizens were so unhappy with Chaeyeon’s visual change that when she updated another
post on her Instagram, they once again flocked into the comment section to bash her look,
saying they found her previous visual way better and expressing that they just couldn’t
understand why she had to completely change her face like that.
Many also pointed out that eventhough Chaeyeon’s inherent appearance was already enough, somehow
she still went all in for the plastic surgery gamble just to end up with a way worse look.
However, haeyeon's fans believe that she underwent plastic surgery not to seek attention or for
any other purpose.
It's just that Chaeyeon was never appreciated for her visual since she was a trainee, while
her peers all possessed beautiful and attractive appearances.
This caused the poor girl to become obsessed with looking as pretty as them.
Thus, when given the opportunity to fix her face, she did without hesitation.
So, do you prefer the new image of these idols or do you think their previous version could
have done them more good?