PHOTO: REUTERS
While South Korea’s pop culture mostly projects a wholesome image on stage and screen, it has recently been marred by a series of untimely deaths and criminal cases that revealed a darker side of the industry.
A police official told Reuters Cha, 27, was found dead on Tuesday and that the cause of the death was not immediately known.
PHOTO: REUTERSCha, whose real name is Lee Jae-ho, made his film debut in 2017 and was previously a member of the five-member boy band Surprise U, which released two albums.
The singer-actor had left an Instagram post the day before he was found dead, telling his fans to take care in the cold winter.
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His talent agency Fantagio in a statement expressed “the deepest mourning for his passing” and asked the public and the media to refrain from spreading stories about his death.
Cha’s death comes after a K-pop singer, Koo Hara, 28, was found dead at her home last month. She had been subjected to personal attacks on social media.
PHOTO: REUTERSHer death followed the apparent suicide of a fellow K-pop idol star, Sulli, a former member of girl group f(x), in October. Sulli, 25, had spoken out against cyber bullying.
The cases have cast a dark cloud over the K-pop craze, one of South Korea’s most successful soft power exports, and brought a renewed focus on personal attacks and cyber bullying of young stars that goes largely unpunished.
The industry has also been hit by a series of sex scandals. Last week, two male former K-pop band members were convicted of sexual assaults and sentenced to prison terms.
REUTERS
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