To be promised so many amazing things; fame, fortune, and loved by fans worldwide. Who could possibly resist that? Getting started in the entertainment industry back in the day was no easy feat. It takes more than just talent to get noticed and it’ll take even more hard work to become successful.
However, we’ve heard many stories about the dark side of the business. From time to time, artists and idols will come forward to reveal the abuse and mistreatment they’ve endured to a point where they simply cannot take it anymore. After being loyal to his entertainment agency for 18 years, who knew that Lee Seung Gi (이승기) has not been paid a cent for his music? Here’s the scoop:
It was recently reported that singer and actor Lee Seung Gi (이승기) was not paid by his company Hook Entertainment for 18 years! According to Dispatch, the agency has not paid the singer throughout the entirety of his music career since he made his debut back in 2004. The “You and Me” artist reportedly earned 99.6 billion KRW (RM339.6 million) in music revenue between October 2009 and September 2022 but was not made aware of this.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Dispatch also released an alleged audio recording of Hook Entertainment CEO Kwon Jin Young threatening to kill the 35-year-old hitmaker. “He even sent a request for certification of revenue content. He’s like doing this to make me go all out. I will swear on my name I’m going to kill him. I’m going to use the rest of my life to kill Lee Seung Gi, that prick. You leave too,” she said during a discussion with the singer’s manager.
Lee Seung Gi’s manager recently told media outlets that he was done working for the company and even revealed that the Asia Artist Award recipient was gaslighted by the CEO to never question his music revenue saying that his fans did not spend money on his music throughout his career.
As for legal actions, the “Little Forest” star’s legal representative released a statement saying that they will take action against Hook Entertainment. “So far, Lee Seung Gi has forwarded several legal documents demanding that Hook Entertainment release transparent records of all of his entertainment activity earnings. Lee Seung Gi’s side sincerely hopes that the agency will fulfill all demands dutifully,” the statement reads.
Kwon Jin Young responded to the allegations saying that she is ashamed but did not clarify if they were true. She told StarNews that the company will further investigate the matter. We hope this issue will be resolved in a more peaceful manner and that Seung Gi will be paid fairly for his hard work over the years.
Listen to the alleged audio recording of the CEO here:
Sources: Allkpop (1)(2), StarNews, YouTube, AsiaOne
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