Two stars have suffered the consequences of their political views critical of the Moon Jae-in administration: One lost his job and the other was criticized by some supporters of Moon.
Singer JK Kim Dong-uk, best known for his 2002 mega hit song “Life Sentence,” was recently let go by the Ulsan-based broadcasting company UBC. For the past 10 years, he had been the MC of UBC's evening music show, “Open Art Stage Dran,” better known by the short name “Dran”. UBC fired him on Jan. 26, days after he appeared on a YouTube channel run by right-wing journalists.
Disclosing his forced resignation from the TV show, Kim said on social media that he was not convinced by UBC's decision.
“I hope what happened to me never occurs again, so that there will be no other victims like me,” he wrote on his social media account on Monday, days after he was laid off. “I thank those who have supported and sent me encouraging messages over the past few days. After news articles about my forced departure, several journalists contacted me for interview requests, which I declined to take. I hope they can understand my position.”
Kim said he would like to meet his fans through his music, but revealed his worries that he was not so sure whether his career as a singer could continue.
“As I did in the past, I would like to deliver news about myself through music. But I'm not sure whether I will ever get the chance to sing again,” he wrote.
Unlike other celebrities who try not to reveal their political views out of concern for a possible backlash, the singer has been openly critical of the government.
In 2019, he urged then Justice Minster Cho Kuk, who was embroiled in several allegations about himself and his family, to step down to take responsibility for his past deeds. “Hey Cho Kuk. Come on. Please apologize to the public (for what you and your family did). Do the right thing,” he wrote on social media.
Kim uploaded a satirical comment about President Moon's other pick for justice minister, Choo Mi-ae, by mocking her last name. “She's so Choo-ish,” he wrote on his social media. Choo is used as a surname and also as an adjective meaning, “ugly” or “terrible.”
Kim criticized the government last year when media reports about exports of face masks to China created a stir. “A nation exists for the people. Korea exported masks when the people are queued to purchase masks? What kind of government is this?”
There's no evidence that can support the notion that Kim was ousted from UBC because of his critical standpoints of the government. But one thing that is clear is that his firing came out of the blue following his critical comments and appearance on a conservative YouTube channel.
Kang Won-rae, a former member of the popular dance duo Clon, which dominated the music scene in the 1990s with numerous hit songs, is another celebrity who suffered fallout for his critical remarks of the government.
During a meeting with minor political party leader Ahn Cheol-soo on Jan. 20, Kang said “K-pop is world-class but the Korean government's social distancing measures seem to be the world's worst.” He made the remarks as a representative of self-employed people who were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Kang opened a bar in Itaewon, Seoul in 2018. According to him, his business suffered the fallout of the pandemic, as it was open only for 20 days but he had to pay the full amount of rent every month.
Kang was quoted in media reports, which infuriated some Moon supporters. Some of the supporters made fun of him for his physical condition ― he's been in a wheelchair after his two legs were paralyzed following a traffic accident in 2000 ― asking him to shut up. Some people visited his social media account and left malicious comments for his remarks.
Pressured, Kang apologized to the public, saying he was sorry for causing trouble.