Cosmic Girls' Dawon takes forced rest over mental distress

By Dong Sun-hwa

Dawon, a member of K-pop girl group Cosmic Girls, is suffering from an anxiety disorder. Korea Times file

Dawon of K-pop girl band Cosmic Girls has been forced to rest due to an anxiety disorder, her agency Starship Entertainment said Thursday.

“The singer was recently diagnosed with an anxiety disorder,” the agency wrote on the group's official fan community. “She will be on temporary hiatus to take sufficient rest and concentrate on recovery. Cosmic Girls (also known as WJSN) will perform as a nine-member band for the time being.”

It added: “We will take good care of the artist and let you know about future plans later. We apologize for fueling worries, but please refrain from making wild speculation on the singer.”

Many other K-pop stars ― including Kang Daniel, Mina of TWICE and S.Coupes from SEVENTEEN ― recently announced they were taking a break because of mental distress.

“K-pop agencies should help the singers receive a helping hand from reliable experts,” comedian-turned-psychologist Kwon Young-chan said. “They also need to ponder whether their current training system is appropriate.”

He also said more stringent regulations were needed to protect the stars from malicious comments.

Cosmic Girls debuted in 2016 and returned with the mini-album “As You Wish” in November. It is a 13-piece group but three Chinese members ― Xuanyi, Cheng Xiao and Meiqi ― did not join the return this time to focus on the Chinese market.