Big Bang's Seungri under fire for two-timing after release from jail

After being jailed for his involvement in the infamous 'Burning Sun' scandal in 2019, Seungri from the K-pop group Big Bang has done his time but is still in trouble. Let’s recap what happened and its aftermath, as the ex-star is now embroiled in another scandal... this time for two-timing.

Seungri is a K-pop star who was part of one of South Korea’s top selling boy bands, Big Bang, until his retirement from K-pop and later imprisonment.

Image: YG Entertainment

Born Lee Seung-hyun on December 12, 1990, Seungri is a Gwangju native. According to Star News, Seungri has always had a passion for dancing and even participated in a dance troupe prior to entering K-pop.

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Did you know? According to BNT News, Seungri initially enrolled in the reality TV program ‘Let's Coke Play! Battle Shinhwa’ with the hopes of being part of a group to succeed K-pop legendary boy band Shinhwa and was eliminated?

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KBS World reports that YG Entertainment was so impressed with his performance in the TV show that they scouted Seungri to be part of Big Bang, and the rest is history.

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In 2006, Seungri debuted in YG Entertainment’s boy band group, Big Bang, along with other members, G-Dragon, T.O.P, Daesung and Taeyang, with the release of their first album, ‘BigBang Vol.1’.

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In Big Bang, Seungri played the role of the group’s singer. Later on, Seungri doubled up as a songwriter and even managed to release solo albums later in his K-pop career.

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Some of Seungri’s best hits include ‘VVIP’, ‘ 1, 2, 3!’, and ‘What Can I Do’.

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Outside of music, Seungri has also involved himself in acting. He has acted in series such as ‘Did You Come to My House?’, ‘YG Future Strategy Office’ and even starred in ‘19-Nineteen’ alongside fellow Big Bang member T.O.P.

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Despite being famed worldwide as a member of Big Bang, Seungri had particularly enjoyed huge success in the Japanese market since focusing on the country in 2012.

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Other than releasing Japanese music for the market, such as ‘The Feelings Painted in the Sky’, Seungri has also been active in many Japanese TV shows, both hosting and acting.

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Seungri’s success in Japan was unfortunately mired with a major scandal soon after getting a firmer grasp on the market. According to Korea JoongAng Daily, a fan had allegedly exposed Seungri for taking advantage of his star status to bed fans in Japan back in 2012.

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According to the same report, the fan had allegedly shared photos of her with Seungri in a state of undress in the same bed, implying that the two had relations. Allkpop had also included more details that noted the star’s alleged bed habits, adding that Seungri was a selfish lover.

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Another report from Korea JoongAng Daily included that Seungri was slapped with another scandal in the same year when he was photographed in intimate contact with his co-star in ‘Kindaichi, Boy Detective: Hong Kong Murder Case’, Anna Kubo. The two were snapped hugging, kissing and partying together till 3 a.m.

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YG Entertainment issued official statements in response to the two scandals, denying that the photos were of Seungri and insisting that his relationship with Anna Kubo was purely professional.

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However, Seungri became embroiled in his biggest controversy yet when he was heavily involved in the 2019 Burning Sun scandal, which was beyond YG Entertainment's damage control.

Billboard reports that the Burning Sun scandal was one of K-pop’s biggest scandals to date. Many K-pop idols and executives in the K-entertainment world were exposed for their involvement in an underground drug and human trafficking ring.

Other than Seungri, some of the celebs involved were Choi Jonghoon from FT Island, Yong Junhyung from Highlight, Lee Jong Hyun from CN Blue, and singer Jung Joon-young.

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According to a Soompi report, Seungri’s involvement in the Burning Sun scandal was a major one. It states that he was involved in bribery, organised prostitution, embezzlement, and circulating illegal voyeuristic footage.

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Seungri was also the executive director of the Burning Sun nightclub in South Korea's Gangnam district, which served as a hub for the majority of the criminal activities he was charged for.

Despite him initially denying and minimising his involvement in the scandal, Korean news outlet SBS funE managed to expose Seungri as a key figure in the club's criminal activities, according to Billboard.

In the aftermath of the scandal, Seungri announced his departure from Big Bang and from the K-pop industry.

Investigations into the case continued until August 2021, when Seungri was finally arrested and sentenced to a 3-year imprisonment along with a fine of 1.15 billion won, Yonhap News reports.

Despite being sentenced to 3 years, Seungri managed to have his term reduced to 1 year and 6 months. He was released in February 2023, according to Naver.

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According to an 8days report, Seungri has been allegedly spotted in Singapore since his release. This comes as no surprise given his links to Singaporean celebrities such as Kim Lim.

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Also from the report on 8days, it seems that Seungri’s early release has ruffled a lot of feathers. Netizens in Korean forums have criticised his early release and the Korean justice system for being lenient on a high-profile criminal like Seungri.

Although it seems that he will not be returning to the K-pop scene anytime soon, it seems that Seungri’s weight as a celebrity still stands after his release from jail. In July 2023, he was invited to Singaporean socialite Kim Lim’s 32nd birthday event, which was held in Capella Bangkok, L’Officiel reported.

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Many people were surprised to see Seungri at Kim Lim's birthday party. Previously, in 2019, Today Online reported, the socialite had come forward to deny claims that she was involved in the Burning Sun case. Media then assumed that their relationship had ended because he had heavily implied that she was involved in the scandal.

On October 4, Korean news outlet Dispatch released a surprise exposé on Seungri, revealing that he had been two-timing two women whilst on a trip in Bali, with both of them physically present in the country.

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Koreaboo reports that Seungri got caught based on this simple mistake. He had planned the same itineraries for both women on their Bali dates.

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How did he get caught? The same Koreaboo report notes that Seungri had forgotten that both women followed each other on social media and could see each other having the same exact date experience on their Instagram stories.

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This is the second scandal in which Seungri has been involved since his release from prison. He was first seen partying with disgraced Taiwanese stars accused of drug use at Singapore's 2023 Grand Prix, according to Allkpop.

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