South Korean artist agency Hook Entertainment says it has paid singer-actor Lee Seung-gi 5.4 billion received (RM18.2mil) in an try to settle their dispute.
“In the hopes of bringing this legal dispute to an end as soon as possible with Lee Seung-gi, an artiste who has had a long relationship with Hook Entertainment, the agency paid Lee Seung-gi a base earning of 1.3 billion won, unpaid earnings from music distribution amounting to 2.9 billion won, as well as an interest of 1.2 billion won,” it stated in an announcement printed by media outlet Allkpop on Friday (Dec 11).
It was revealed in November that the 35-year-old had not obtained “even one won” from his agency Hook Entertainment, regardless of releasing seven albums since his debut in 2004.
This led Lee to take authorized motion, requesting “details of sales and settlement of accounts” pertaining to his final 18 years within the music trade.
He reportedly nullified his contract with Hook Entertainment as of Dec 1.
On Friday, Lee lastly spoke up in regards to the state of affairs on his Instagram account. He admitted – in accordance to a translation by media outlet Allkpop – to combating psychological well being points due to the dispute.
“I haven’t exactly been well recently. I was swept up in anger after experiencing betrayal, I became deeply depressed after facing disappointment, I lived in resentment, I lived in self-blame, and these emotions repeated in a cycle day to day.”
Lee stated he had taken authorized motion in opposition to Hook Entertainment due to his conviction that “the value of a person’s effort, the value of that sweat, should not be used to feed another person’s greed”.
He confirmed that he obtained the cost from Hook Entertainment and stated he would use the cash – minus authorized charges – to assist individuals who want monetary or medical help.
“Next week, I intend to meet a humanitarian organisation to set up plans. There are people who cannot even go about their daily lives because of illnesses. There are people who give up their dreams because of financial difficulties,” he wrote. “This 5 billion won may not be enough to help all of those people. But it could be one small step towards something.” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
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