Fallen Angel/ ATEEZ 9th Member

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Ateez Ryu opens up about her experience after Sixteen, her elimination and her relationship with her brother.

Before debuting with Ateez, Ryu was more famously known for being a contestant on the survival show Sixteen. The program that created the global sensation girl group Twice. After Ryu's elimination on the final episode Ryu terminated her contract with JYP Entertainment the very next day and was never seen again by the media until 2018 where she debuted in Ateez.

Ryu has never once spoke out Sixteen and her experience with the survival of what she did after she left, until this week where she had an interview with Vouge.

She spoke out about her experience and reaction to being eliminated.

" Though I have made peace with it now, I don't think I could ever go through something similar to it again. I felt betrayed, disappointed and used, I was told by many people around me. Sunbaes, staff, JYP himself and countless others that this was going to be my debut. That this was going to be what I have dreamed of every single day. I remember being... confident? To be honest I felt many things during those hours of filming. I remember thinking this was going to be my dreams coming true! I remember thinking that all the things I gave up were leading up to this very moment."

Ryu later goes into heavy detail about her emotions finding out that she was eliminated.

" I remember it very well, I remember the last member announced. I was biting the inside of my cheek, I was nervous and everyone could tell. I remember that I looked up and made eye contact with JYP, he looked at me and said  You Ryu are too ambitious, self centered and you can't express your emotions enough to be part of a group, so that's why you won't be debuting alongside them.”

“ It felt like my entire world was crashing down, I remember it was like all the 7 years I trained in the company was thrown out the window and I just got hit by a truck. I wanted to scream, I wanted to cry. Instead I stayed quiet and let him keep saying the things he said to me. I remember there was a point where I was called untalented, not pretty enough and too confident that I needed someone to put me in my place. All I could think about was the disappointment I became, not only to my family but to the people who believed in me and trusted in me to debut. I remember I was also in a statement of mind where my only goal was to debut before my brother. To become better than him. I was holding the mic and nodded and gave a thank you. I never looked back at that moment, I was so angry and embarrassed. I was angry with everyone and the false hope they gave me. Most of all I felt like I was never going to be good enough to debut."

Ryu then goes on to talk about her experiences with trying to enter a company after being eliminated.

" It was difficult, it was really difficult to find a company. I got multiple offers but most of them wanted the name Ryu Nakamoto. They never wanted me for my talents, I was offered to join the company that my brother is under but I couldn't. I couldn't go into a company that just wanted my name for the 100th time. Until I was offered to join KQ, they treated me with the respect that anyone who was struggling needed. They wanted me to take my time deciding whether I joined the company or not. I met with them and then two days later I signed. And I couldn't be happier with my choice."

" Joining KQ Entertainment was the best thing I ever did, I look back at my journey and think it was a good thing I got eliminated. I'm glad that I didn't continue to be in a company that wouldn't have worked with me well. I'm happy that I was able to grow up and learn, learn from my mistakes and my challenges. I get to be with the people I'm most comfortable with."

When Ryu was asked if she would do something similar to Sixteen she responded with...

" No, no never. Even if I did I don't think I would have done it willingly. It wasn't an enjoyable experience for me. But it did bring me here, to where I am now."

Ryu also revealed that she hasn't spoken to any of the contestants in Sixteen since she left. She hasn't spoken to TWICE at all.

" Some of the members reached out to congratulate me with my debut. But...at the time I was still bitter, now I couldn't care less. It just hurts a little."

How do these news make you feel?

This made me sad for some reason :(

Ryu has had a stressful journey just to debut with our boys, she deserves the world.

I love how she never mentions Yuta by name

I hate the fact that JYP literally EMBARRASSED HER IN FRONT OF THOUSANDS AND EXPECTED HER TO STAY?! LIKE WHAT?!

Nah if I ever see JYP it's ON SIGHT

Bruh wasn't she on good terms with JYP when she was a training there?!

I'm proud of Ryu, she has a hard time expressing her emotions. But I feel like she's getting better at!

This just breaks my heart, 7 years and she wasn't able to debut

Ryu literally said it was a good thing that it happened, or else she would have never with Ateez or become the icon she is.

Ryu is becoming such a positive person, I think I might cry

Ouch...when she said she felt like a disappointment to her parents...

I think what hurts the most is that many of the artist in JYP at the time believed Ryu would make it...and she didn't.

I'm glad she went to a company that wanted her for her talent and not her name

Okay, but like imagine Ryu in twice.

Imagine Ryu in SM Entertainment 💀