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Will Heechul stop being an idol? Fans worried by Super Junior member's reason to miss concert

Heechul was in a car accident in 2006 that fractured his leg despite which he continued to perform with Super Junior

Kim Heechul is everyone’s favorite entertainer and variety show host as his 4D personality puts everyone at ease and makes the atmosphere fun and cheerful. This is evident in the way he almost always bridges the gap between the idol guests and the hosts of the raucous variety show ‘Knowing Bros’. And while most non-fans love him as that hilarious entertainer, older-gen fans know that he is first and foremost a K-pop idol of the iconic second-gen K-pop group Super Junior. But it seems that he will be missing the group’s upcoming concert.

On June 12, Super Junior confirmed that after their winter single in February, they will be making a comeback with their 11th studio album ‘The Road: Keep On Going’. Fans are pretty excited as it is their first full group comeback in almost a year after their 10th album ‘The Renaissance’ released in March 2021. At the same time, Super Junior will be embarking on their ninth world tour ‘Super Show 9: Road’ which kicks off in Seoul with a 3-day concert on July 15. And while fans were excited to see idol Heechul, he will be sitting out of the concert due to his leg injury.

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Why Super Junior’s Heechul can't perform at concerts

There have been injuries in the K-pop industry, but there are very few as severe as the one Heechul went through when he and other Super Junior members got into a car accident in 2006, just a year after their debut. A well-known incident among older-gen fans. Heechul’s left leg was completely fractured and he had to insert iron rods for a period of time. While he continued to participate in group activities for 10 years, his condition worsened. Since 2017, he has been less active. While he continues to lend his vocals for Super Junior’s albums it’s been a while since we saw idol Heechul as again he missed SMTOWN’s ensemble comeback with ‘SMCU Express’.

Well, the new era has some bittersweet news. While Heechul has participated in the preparations of the album ‘The Road: Keep On Going’, he will be sitting out of the Seoul concerts in July. His label shared that he would not be able to perform as his leg is facing issues which makes it difficult for him to practice and dance to movement-heavy choreography. This also leads to the uncertainty of whether Heechul will be able to participate in the rest of the concerts of the ‘Super Show 9: Road’ world tour. While Heechul's leg hadn’t stopped him as he danced in the 2021 comeback, fans are now worried and sending him supportive messages. 

'We miss you Heechul'

While some fans wondered why he couldn’t simply sit and perform at the concerts, one fan pointed out, “Yeah, he can do that, but I don't think Heenim would be able to restrain himself from being active and cavorting around during Supershow like he did in the past. And who knows, maybe not being able to do heavy choreo hurts his psyche more than we know. We also need to factor their age.” Another said, “Wouldn't that hurt his feelings? He must have had a reason for wanting to become an idol. Which is probably to perform on stage? I would love to see him sing a few slow songs with them or even some of his solo stuff. But I think watching his members perform, while he has to wait for his turn in the shadows would hurt a lot.”

Another fan said, “Just heechul always being the first one to stand up so he could wave to elfs after super junior gives the last bow in super shows 🥺we miss you heechul, but your health and safety always comes first. we love you.” Another added, “I bet twas hard for heechul to come up wt this decision. He misses his fans so much that he even cried when he finally got to meet them wt the members. And to not be able to see them must’ve broke his heart just how his fans felt. Let’s all wish him well.” One made a reaction meme, “Suju announce ss9 in seoul on july   but heechul will not join the concert.”

Another couldn’t help but bring back the time when Heechul talked about his last ever performance, “3 years ago , heechul has said it Today could be the last Tomorrow could be the last I don't know when it will be the last.” One fan hoped that Heechul would not blame himself, “i wish heechul could stop questioning his contribution to the group every time this happens🥺 he dedicated over 17 years to them and will continue to, there's no doubt around his importance. it's sad but it's alright, nobody will hold it against him.” One fan was angry, “He's been suffering from that pain since 2006 and still performing during sushows, smtown concerts and fan meetings—he endured everything for us, just to meet us and to be with us. we all know how much heechul loves us but y'all are now attacking him and saying shits about him.”