EXO’s Lay skips fan meeting due to “personal reasons”
EXO’s Lay has officially left South Korea, confirming he was absent from the group’s recent fan meeting. On December 14, 2025, SM Entertainment officially revealed that Lay departed for China earlier that morning, though the agency initially declined to share further details. “We sincerely apologize for the sudden change in participating members after such a long wait and support from our fans.” The company only mentioned “personal reasons,” but kept details under wraps.
SM Entertainment announces LAY won’t participate in EXO’s upcoming fanmeeting ‘EXO’verse’:
— “Due to unavoidable circumstances, member Lay will unfortunately be unable to participate in the fan meeting.
We ask for your understanding regarding this sudden change in participating… pic.twitter.com/6H93SoIEmd
— Kpop Charts (@kchartsmaster) December 14, 2025
Four EXO members absent from the fan meeting
Lay’s absence sparked heavy speculation among fans. Their fan meeting, titled EXO’verse, was held on December 14 at Inspire Arena in Incheon, with shows at 2 pm and 7 pm. This marked EXO’s first fan meeting in one year and eight months and was expected to feature six members (excluding Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin, who are going through a legal battle with SM Entertaiment, and Chinese member Lay, who skipped the event). Instead, only Sehun, Chanyeol, DO, Kai, and Suho appeared on stage, where they reassured fans not to worry.
Political reasons might be involved in these cancellations
Lay later addressed fans directly on Weibo, explaining that he urgently returned to Beijing to attend an important event at the National Theater of China, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. He apologized to fans, members, and staff for the inconvenience. However, some are speculating that the Chinese authorities might have intensified cultural and entertainment restrictions, following the rising Chinese-Japanese political tensions. This measurement could have been extended to other cases, such as Chinese artists working in South Korea.
Other similar cases this year
LE SSERAFIM'S fansign canceled in China due to Japanese members in the teamhttps://t.co/LOBUFx1GVj pic.twitter.com/r4w2LSKeQX
— pannchoa (@pannchoa) December 12, 2025
This marks yet another unexpected cancellation involving artists from South Korea, China, and Japan. For example, on December 14, it was confirmed that LE SSERAFIM canceled their Shanghai fan signing event for their single Spaghetti, originally slated for December 14. LE SSERAFIM includes Japanese members Sakura and Kazha, which has drawn attention to the Japanese-Chinese tensions. On a similar note, Japanese singer Otsuki Maki, 52, was forced offstage mid-performance in Shanghai. Amid this uncertainty, EXO confirmed that they will release a full-length album, titled “REVERXE,” on January 19, 2025.
