Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
Fly To The Sky member Brian Joo seems to be making a bit of a comeback in the entertainment world these days*, and he recently appeared on an episode of Don’t Forget Your Breakfast 2 to talk about all sorts of shit. However, one thing that stood out was him opening up about the conditions he and member Hwanhee had to deal with under SM Entertainment, in addition to revealing that he only got paid once he left.
*I’ll do a post on the cleaning show that’s mentioned later.
He shared that when he became a singer, he had to board with Hwanhee and 4 other managers in a small apartment.
He revealed, “6 men shared an apartment with two bedrooms and 1 bathroom. So we had to share the bathroom in the morning to get ready. One person would use the toilet while another person would shower. We had no other choice in the morning.”
Host Jang Sung Kyu had the same reaction to that information I did, which is surprise because Fly To The Sky did quite well for themselves, winning a bunch of Bonsangs and what not.
MC Jang Sung Kyu asked, “But then Fly to the Sky made it big as soon as you debuted, you guys had to live in such a small space together?” Brian replied, “At the time, we barely had any money.”
He continued to elaborate, “We were rookies. But people don’t know this because on stage we wear a lot of fancy outfits and we look bright. So people think, we made a lot of money and live well but everything was sponsorship or rented.”
Jang Sung Kyu then asked, “Then were you not able to receive payment?” Brian answered, “Think of it this way. It’s like being paid for a part-time job.” He continued to share, “When I return home (back in the States), I should give my parents an allowance but I didn’t have money so I got paid in advance. So, my debt kept increasing from there.”
Brian shared that he was first paid in 2006 when he filmed his first advertisement, and he added, “That’s why I wasn’t able to renew my contract (with SM Entertainment).”
Well, I hope he got advanced a lot to put up with that, because FTTS had a packed schedule of comebacks, performances, and variety show appearances (to the point where he was criticized for not taking singing seriously enough). Not getting paid while all of that was happening over the course of five years seems insane.
Plus, I figure the lack of payment couldn’t have all been his doing if he got paid immediately after leaving the company, and given SME’s track record … well, no real reason to give them the benefit of the doubt.
