Former ZE:A member Taeheon shared how he is financially struggling and Kwanghee sent him money on his birthday.
On July 15th, Taeheon appeared on a YouTube channel and shared how he has been financially struggling. Taeheon opened up, "I have been working at a Coupang (Korean equivalent of Amazon) warehouse. I go to work at 1:30 AM and I get off at 9 AM. I work 6 days a week and earn about 640,000 KRW (about $504 USD). I saw a post on an online community saying 'Taeheon is working at a warehouse. Isn't this crazy?' I thought to myself 'I have to make a living somehow and why am I being called crazy for working?' I don't understand how some people say to me I'm tarnishing ZE:A's name because what is so shameful about working at a warehouse?"
Taeheon said he lost both of his parents when he was young. "Two years ago I worked at a construction site. I literally was so broke that I couldn't pay for my utility bills so I had no heat. I rationed out a pack of ramen noodles for a day's meals."
Taeheon said he was not booked after his discharge from the military so he has been struggling. "I didn't make much through ZE:A. Our group didn't split the earnings as a group. It was you take what you make kind of system. So there was a big discrepancy between each member's income."
He continued, "I was so grateful to hear from Kwanghee in June. It was my birthday too. He sent me money with a message, 'I know you have been working hard these days. Members including Siwan and I are all thinking about you always. But I'm not too concerned about you. Because I know you are a hard-working individual with great potential. I just hope you don't burn out yourself.' I'm so grateful for having them in my life because they always reach out to me first. I know they are stressed out too, trying hard to keep their place. I'm feeling sorry and indebted because I feel like I'm putting extra weight on their shoulders by making them think about me."
At the end, he also shared his plans to return for his fans. "Every so often I get DM's from my fans saying ZE:A made their teens and 20s happy. That's why I can't give it up so easily. I miss those days. I hope I could settle all these out so I could come back by the end of next year."
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