Lee Seung Gi Testifies in Court

Attending the second hearing of his lawsuit at the Seoul Central District Court on May 24, singer Lee Seung Gi testified against his former agency, Hook Entertainment and its CEO Kwon Jin Young.

Made to Believe He was a “Minus Singer”

Last year, the popular singer, actor and host sent shock waves through entertainment when his agency’s treatment of him came to light, and it was revealed that Lee Seung Gi had been kept in the dark about the music-related revenue he made through 137 songs from 2004 to 2022, which amounted to about HK$57 million.

He told the court, “I have been with Hook Entertainment from my teens to my 30s. If they had honestly handled the existence and settlement of royalties, I don’t think this would have happened”.

He continued by adding that he did not know how to ask for his “basic rights” despite being a well-known celebrity, and had been “verbally and physically abused” by his boss, who told him that she could “find anyone off the streets and raise them better than you”. The abusive treatment continued for many years and when he first knew about the existence of his royalties in 2021, and enquired with his boss if he could see the settlement statement, the latter mocked him for being a “minus singer”, and told him she had in fact not brought up the matter in order to “protect his self-esteem”.

The singer, who welcomed a baby girl with wife Lee Da-In this February, added that he hopes junior singers would not be unfairly treated the way he was.

According to Lee Seung Gi’s lawyer, Hook had continuously rejected requests to hand over settlement statements, citing “business secrets” as a reason, while the court has since ordered for Hook to submit all relevant data.

Source: HK.On.CC