BLOCK B : Did the group disband ?
What happened to BLOCK B? Did the group BLOCK B disband? Many questions have been asked for several years now; we trace the history of the group to its current activities and those of its members.
BLOCK B, a name that most K-Pop fans identify with a second generation group that left its mark on the K-Pop industry with an original, provocative style and iconic music such as « NILLILI MAMBO » or « HER ». The group – consisting of 7 members TAEIL, B-BOMB, JAEHYO, U-KWON, PARK KYUNG, ZICO, and P.O – debuted on April 15, 2011 with the tile « Freeze! » under the agency Stardom Entertainment but did not stay there for long. Indeed, several incidents led the members of the group to file, on January 3, 2013, a complaint against their agency requesting the suspension of their contract because, according to them, Stardom Entertainment had not paid them for nearly a year and a half after their debut. In response to this, the agency presented different facts, such as a mutual agreement that would have been made between the agency and the members on their payment, through a press release the next day. We had to wait several months before knowing the court’s verdict on this matter, on June 7, 2013: BLOCK B lost the lawsuit filed against its agency.
However, after numerous negotiations, the two parties finally managed to reach an agreement in August 2013, which is to transfer the exclusive rights of the members to a new agency: Seven Seasons, known since June 2016 as KQ Entertainment. A new page then turns on the future of the group BLOCK B which will continue its activities within the agency Seven Seasons, which had also declared « That it would do its best to help BLOCK B, which went through a difficult time, to return to the music industry and let its talent shine. »
BLOCK B then returned to the music industry, under a new agency, with several album and single releases such as the SINGLE « Yesterday », which had a great success in South Korea, reaching number one in the korean rankings « Gaon Music Chart », or the EP « MONTAGE » released in 2017 with its title track « Shall We Dance » which demonstrated the group’s musical versatility by offering a touch of house. The group then received popularity following the release of its EP « MONTAGE » until 2018 and began to slow down its activities from that same year.
BLOCK B since 2018: Between departures from the agency, military enlistment, and solo activities
Since 2018, the members have each (with two exceptions) left the agency and also have begun their military service, which is compulsory for all South Korean men before the age of 28 for a period not exceeding two years (depending on the specializations chosen).
ZICO, leader of BLOCK B, was the first member not to renew his contract and left the agency on November 23, 2018, unlike the other members. On his side, ZICO created his own label in January 2019 called KOZ Entertainment (which the group BOYNEXTDOOR belongs to; and that became HYBE‘s label on november 2020) and continued his solo activities – we especially remember his SINGLE « Any song » released in January 2020 which known an international success, through music charts but also on social networks, especially on TikTok with the « Any song Challenge ». ZICO enlisted in the military on July 30, 2020 and completed his military service on April 29, 2022.
P.O, rapper and vocalist of BLOCK B, was the second member to leave the agency after his contract expired on September 11, 2021. P.O is not only known for his singing career, but also for his acting skills. The month after his departure from Seven Seasons, P.O seemed to be shifting his career towards an acting career by joining the agency Artist Company alongside actor Lee Jung Jae, known for his starring role in the Netflix series « Squid Game ». P.O has appeared in several dramas such as « Hotel Del Luna », « Mouse », « Encounter » or « Love Alert ». Recently, he appeared in the movie « New Normal », released last November 8, 2023. P.O enlisted in the army on March 28, 2022 and completed his military service on September 27, 2023.
JAEHYO, B-BOMB and U-KWON were the next members to leave the agency following the expiration of their contracts earlier this year on January 4, 2023, after 10 years with Seven Seasons.
JAEHYO opened his own luxurious restaurant in October 2021 named « Forest » in Seoul. According to his personal Instagram account, JAEHYO seems a priori to focus on his personal life and his passion for fishing, a passion which is also not unknown to the BBCs (name of the fandom). Furthermore, he appeared in 2021 in the show « City Fisherman 3 », focused on a fishing competition with other artists such as Jooyeon of The Boyz or Yunho of ATEEZ. JAEHYO enlisted in the military on December 18, 2018 and completed his military service on December 6, 2019, which he completed ahead of schedule due to chronic knee injuries that made it difficult to continue his military activities.
Regarding his musical career, B-BOMB had started his solo career in July 2019 with his SINGLE « Dawn ». B-BOMB opened his own cafe in Seoul named Mujabee, and a personal YouTube channel in 2021, having a series called « Daily B-Bomb Vlog » in which he films his daily life in a vlog form. At the same time, in the same year, he appeared as a lead actor in the web drama « My 100th Election » with Nayun of MOMOLAND. B-BOMB enlisted in the military on October 10, 2019 and completed his military service on April 27, 2021.
Regarding his music career, U-KWON started his solo career in December 2019 with his SINGLE « FUEGO (feat. RGP) ». He joined the agency 5 seconds, in which he released his second SINGLE named « Wanna Do (feat. Woosoo) » on January 6, 2023. Recently, he appeared in a musical called « The Show 신라하다 ». U-KWON enlisted in the army on May 18, 2020 and completed his military service on November 21, 2021.
Finally, PARK KYUNG and TAEIL are the only two remaining members of BLOCK B who have renewed their contracts in 2018.
Regarding his music career, PARK KYUNG had started his solo career in May 2019 with his SINGLE « Gwichanist (귀차니스트) ». Furthermore, PARK KYUNG was the subject of controversy following a tweet that he published on his personal account on November 29, 2019, and which was immediately deleted. In the latter, PARK KYUNG had allegedly accused five South Korean artists of manipulating their album sales figures through group purchasing of albums by their own respective agencies, in order to secure them a good place on the music charts. In response to this, the agencies of these artists, whom PARK KYUNG had accused, decided to sue him for defamation. The member of BLOCK B was then condemned, a year later, to pay a fine amounting to 5 million won (or approximately 3,500 euros). As the case is still ongoing, very recently, on September 5, 2023 the court decided that PARK KYUNG must compensate singer Lim Jaehyun 30 million won (or approximately 21,000 euros) for defamation and dissemination of false information. PARK KYUNG enlisted in the military on October 18, 2020 and completed his military service on September 21, 2022.
TAEIL had started his solo career in 2015 with his single « Inspiring » and was the lead singer of the OST « Magical: Make The Princess Laugh » from the animation movie « Love Is Magic ». He made several appearances, in 2021 and 2022, on Watcha‘s show « Double Trouble » in which several duet performance battles are made between male and female idols. TAEIL collaborated with singers Minzy, Hyolyn, Choa and Jeon Jiwoo. TAEIL also made an appearance in October 2022 on the show « Immortal Songs 2 » with artist MADDOX, both being part of the same agency. TAEIL enlisted in the military on June 10, 2019 and completed his military service on December 4, 2020.
What is actually happening to the group BLOCK B and what is its future? To tell the truth, the group never officially disbanded because no announcement was made from KQ Entertainment (Seven Seasons) on this subject. By the way, the agency spoke out following ZICO‘s departure, informing fans that « the members will focus on unit and solo activities for a while. Regarding the future activities of BLOCK B, we are examining and discussing all possibilities from different angles with the members. ». The members effectively focused on their solo activities, or in units (particularly with the release of the third MINI-ALBUM « I’m A Mess » from the BASTARZ unit, consisting of P.O, U-KWON and B-BOMB, on March 28, 2019) but to this day have still not made a reunion or comeback in an « official » way.
Nevertheless, a reunion was possible thanks to P.O on December 14, 2022. Indeed, P.O was still in military service and, as a member of the Marine Corps, he had opportunities to participate in concerts of the Republic Marine Corps from Korea as an MC but also as an artist. As a result, BLOCK B came together for one evening to perform several of their songs like « Very Good », « HER », « YESTERDAY » and « Shall We Dance », which was the group’s first reunion after four years, and a touching moment for the BBCs.
The members on their sides publish from time to time photos on their personal Instagram accounts spending time together, or to celebrate the group’s anniversary, which reassures the BBCs.
However, there are some indications that the group’s activities within KQ Entertainment (Seven Seasons) may be uncertain, especially since ZICO, P.O, JAEHYO, U-KWON and B-BOMB left it. BLOCK B was removed from KQ Entertainment‘s website this year, although it was still there on January 13, 2023.
KQ Entertainment follows BLOCK B on the social network Twitter until now, but the account’s biography no longer mentions BLOCK B among its artists despite the fact that PARK KYUNG and TAEIL are still under the agency, which is contradictory. On Instagram, KQ Entertainment does not follow BLOCK B and the group’s official Instagram account (@blockb_official_) has not been updated since August 10, 2022, for over a year. Furthermore, BLOCK B appears until today in the intro video of KQ Entertainment on YouTube, alongside ATEEZ and xikers.
To this day, it is therefore difficult to know with certainty whether BLOCK B will disband or, on the contrary, be active again for a possible future comeback after its long hiatus. But we sincerely hope that the group will reunite again soon.
Journalist: Myriem
Translator: Myriem
Sources: SNS KQ Entertainment, SNS BLOCK B and members’ SNS, (1),(2),(3),(4),(5),(6),(7),(8)
