260404 #HAECHAN#해찬 instagram live
🐻: i think I’ve been spending my time thinking about what’s next. i have been resting, but I’ve also been taking vocal lessons, and i have been preparing for the next album comeback.. just constantly thinking about the future. because of that, i figured you might be worried, so i thought it’d be better to come and talk to you face-to-face like this. i also wanted to share some of my thoughts and feelings.
first of all, thank you so much to everyone who’s been worried about me. it's been really been over 10 years, right? if i am being exact, since i was 14… it’s been more than 13 years now. so yeah, it’s been 13 years.
during those 13 years with mark hyung, i relied on him so much. i learned so much from him.
whenever i was shaken, he held me together.
honestly, other than during concerts, i have almost never seen him cry but there were times he called me while crying. to me, he was more than just a member… he was truly like a real older brother.
in his family, he’s the youngest, and I’m the oldest in mine, but to me, he was my hyung. really. more than any other “hyung,” he felt like a real one to me. so after spending 13 years together, i depended on him a lot.
i think that’s why many of you are even more worried, because you know that too. thank you so, so much.
as soon as the article came out, i sent Mark hyung a long message. i told him: everyone knows how hard he worked while living as part of nct. all of that will surely become meaningful steps on the path he’s going to walk. and at the same time, everything he’s done in nct will also become good steps for nct's future path. so i told him to work hard in a way that he won’t regret the choice he made.
now that i am the only one doing two teams, of course i feel sad and worried too. but all the things i built up while working with him… how should i even describe it? the energy and strength I gained from being with him are still with me. so now, i have become someone who can walk forward even without him.
of course, even if he hadn’t been there from the start, i might have still made it this far…
but i don’t think that path would have been easy alone. still, because he was there, he gave me comfort, strength, and support. an all of that has built up into the strength that allows me to keep going now.
that is something ireally wanted to tell all of you, that you don’t have to worry too much.
mark hyung wasn’t my only pillar of support. i have the other members too, and i have czennies who support me. so i am not scared. i am not worried.
i don’t know yet what choices or decisions i will make in the future, but no matter what, the 10 years i have walked and the many people who’ve been by my side will continue to be with me. so i am not afraid.
and when it comes to Mark hyung’s decision… i know his personality well. i know he must have thought about it deeply. he probably went through a lot of stress and pain while making that choice.
of course, we can’t say whether that decision was right or wrong… but i do feel a bit regretful about the way it was delivered to you all.
i knew about it at the time too… but honestly, there was nothing the members could do.
it was such a helpless moment, we really couldn’t do anything except feel frustrated and cry. that part is still really frustrating.
but still, thank you all so much. and going forward… i hope you’ll continue to stay with us like you are now.
260404 #HAECHAN#해찬 instagram live
🐻: the fact that one person isn’t by our side… no matter how many times you go through it, it’s not something you ever really get used to. but even so, i found myself wanting to support him.
i don’t really have the place to tell you all, ‘please support him’ or ‘please trust him.’ honestly, i don’t feel like i should say that. that’s truly your choice.
but for me… since he’s making a decision that i might never be able to make in my lifetime, i think it’s really admirable, and at the same time, i worry about him too. still, i just hope that his choice turns out really, really well, that everything he wants comes true. and that the people who believed in that choice, including me, can also be happy.
i think many czennies are still in the process of letting go… or trying to accept it. It took me a long time too. so rather than saying too much, i think it might be better for us to just let time pass.
i will come often to comfort you so it won’t feel too hard, so let’s walk through this together. thank you so, so much, everyone. really.
seven in ilichil, and six in dream… it probably feels very unfamiliar and awkward, right? i still can’t fully imagine it either. but that just means we have to work even harder, the members, all of us. i think that’s the only way we can ask for your trust.
my beloved czennies, mark lee hyung, the members, and even me, let’s all be happy
😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
tbh for mark to leave sm on his own terms without scandal, with such a strong career behind him since debut, for him to choose himself and put forth the truth that his goal and his happiness comes first... its a good thing to see in the current industry. endlessly proud of you
You won't be able to see NCT 127 with Mark for a while, but I will prepare and plan hard if there perhaps comes a moment when we can stand together again.
FROM MARK LEE 💌
#MARK#마크
“hello, this is mark. hi, czennies…
i debuted with nct u on april 9, 2016, and now that it’s april 2026, ten whole years have already passed. during those ten years, so many things happened, we performed on so many stages, and most of all, i think we made countless memories together. i know there are czennies who have supported me since the sm rookies days, so if i include that time, it’s actually been over ten years.
how have the past 10+ years been for you, czennies…? for me, i think i’ve truly, truly been nothing but happy.
now that ten years have passed, and since you’ve made me happy every single day without fail throughout that long time, i wanted to personally write and share with you my new decision and the beginning of a new chapter.
i know this may feel very sudden to everyone… but actually, since my trainee days maybe even before that i’ve always had a dream in my heart.
i wanted to walk around busking on the streets with just an acoustic guitar, and I loved writing in english so much that I even dreamed of becoming a writer. i was too young to fully understand and clearly picture that dream back then, but because i loved music and performing, i auditioned in canada 14 years ago, and started my musical path at sm, beginning with nct.
because my beginning was with sm and nct, i was able to get to know myself more and find the best version of myself. i’m truly just filled with gratitude.
through nct, it feels like i’ve experienced the sky, the land, the sea, and the mountains at their fullest. after spending ten years seeing and experiencing the world in the best way, and going on such an incredible journey, i naturally began to think about what the greatest dream i could have is what the greatest purpose and calling i could have as a person named mark.
as my 10-year contract comes to an end, i awakened all the senses i had kept inside me and thought deeply for a long time. eventually, i became curious about what the complete and true form of that dream really looks like, and i felt a strong desire to fully dive into it.
what will my music be? what kind of fruit will i bear? and how can i bring that into the world… i truly want to find those answers and achieve them.
i talked a lot with each of the members, and it honestly brings me to tears just thinking about it every single one of them told me they support me.
i feel endlessly sorry, but more than anything, deeply grateful.
to the older members who see me as their cute younger brother, and to the younger ones who see me as a leader, i want to say thank you again, so, so much.
to all the members who listened closely to my concerns, understood my heart, thought about me, shared their opinions, and had such meaningful conversations with me, i’m truly thankful and i love you all.
we’ve been on the same ship for over ten years and had an incredible journey together. i’ve always loved going underwater, and now that i’m saying i want to swim on my own, the members are supporting even my deep dive with love. i will continue to support and love them as well.
since i was selected through a global audition in 2012, i want to sincerely thank all the teachers from the training team, the company staff, managers, directors, executives, and every department, everyone who has raised me to who I am today.
my beginning was sm, nct, and czennies. no matter what kind of music i create moving forward, i will never forget where i started.
but… no matter how big of a decision i’ve made, i fully understand that it doesn’t ease everyone’s worries, concerns, or pain just because i see this as a personal challenge.
by announcing this big decision for a new chapter in my life, i know that for czennies who have loved me as “NCT’s Mark,” for markfs, and for the public, this change can feel like a huge shock and even a source of hurt. i also know that this handwritten letter alone cannot soften all of that.”