Korean singer Choi Sung-bong who faked having cancer dies by suicide at 33

Korean singer Choi Sung-bong, who rose to fame from Korea's Got Talent, was found dead by police at his home in Seoul on June 20. Choi was 33. The K-Pop industry has been plagued by a succession of death by suicides of young artists and Choi's suicide is the latest one. 

• According to reports, the police found Choi's body at his home at around 9.41 am. Seoul police concluded Choi's death as a suicide based on the circumstances of his body being found at home. 
• He had also uploaded a note to his YouTube channel apologising for the controversy he had caused. 

Choi Sung-bong left this note on the community section of his YouTube channel:

The controversy

• Choi Sang-bong's career went downhill after he resorted to collecting donations in 2021 on the false pretext of having been diagnosed with cancer. It was later revealed that he was not terminally ill. 
• In his note, Choi apologised for his mistake and said that he has repaid back all the donations.
• Choi Sang-bong came from an underprivileged background and had to drop out of music school due to a lack of funds to pay his tuition. 
• He worked for several years as a labourer and got his big breakthrough in 2011 through Korea's Got Talent. 
• He even came second place on the reality show. His performance of Ennio Morricone's "Nella Fantasia" got the attention of K-Pop stars like BoA and even Justin Bieber. 

The string of deaths in K-Pop

• Recently in May, singer Haesoo died by suicide. She was 29. Before her, K-Pop boy band Astro's member Moonbin also reportedly died by suicide in April. 
• South Korea is often known as the suicide capital in the developed world. South Korea ranks at the top among OECD countries when it comes to the number of suicides. 

There are several factors contributing to South Korea's high suicide rate including a lack of social security, immense academic and job pressures, and more. It is especially brutal in the Korean entertainment industry known for its cutthroat competition.