(G)I-DLE's Soyeon recently shared some insights on idol income and royalties.

On July 16th, the YouTube channel Mimiminu posted a video titled "It took 3 years to clear the debt. Singing Queencard in a living room karaoke in front of (G)I-DLE's Jeon Soyeon."

In the video, YouTuber Mimiminu asked Soyeon about idol income. Soyeon said, "Singers earn a lot when their songs and albums do well. Good songs also mean higher advertising fees."

Soyeon explained the impact of chart rankings, saying, "Being in the top 100 makes a huge difference. If a song is in the top 1000, you can at least make a living. If it's in the top 100, you can live comfortably."

When asked about having number one hits, Soyeon said, "Even if a song is number one, it doesn't bring in a lot of money. 'LATATA' was in the top 20, and the revenue felt similar to what it would be now if it was number one. Sometimes it even felt like more. Since you only get 1,000 KRW (about $1) per play, it doesn't feel like a pension."

Soyeon addressed the idea that celebrities live comfortably on royalties, saying, "Royalties are divided among company revenue, distributor revenue, and co-writers. So, only about 3% comes to me."

She added, "Every company has different contracts. Some require you to pay off debts, some clear your debts, and some even gift you your debut album. In our case, we had to pay off our debts. It took three years to clear the costs of being a trainee and debuting, even though we were successful from the start."

Soyeon also revealed that her earnings could vary greatly, from making 1 billion KRW (about $1 million) in a month to as little as 100,000 KRW (about $100).

(G)I-DLE, with Soyeon as a member, made a comeback on the 8th with their new song "Klaxon."

Source: [1]

BLACKPINK’s Jisoo shared a surprising story from her trainee days!

On January 29, the latest episode of Dex’s Fridge Interview was released on YouTube. During the chat, Dex asked Jisoo if she ever rebelled or broke the rules as a trainee. She confidently replied, “Not at all. The only rebellion I had as a trainee was eating.”

Dex then jokingly imitated her younger self, saying, “I’m perfect, so why are they telling me not to eat? I’m going to eat tteokbokki!”

Jisoo laughed and admitted, “Actually, I was really chubby back then. They kept telling me to lose weight, but I always said, ‘No, I need to eat. I like myself chubby.’”

She even recalled a moment with YG Entertainment’s founder, Yang Hyun Suk:
“The boss told me to lose weight, and I responded like that. He just walked away, thinking, ‘She’s a weird one.’ I literally said, ‘No! I like myself chubby!’”

Jisoo then revealed that after she debuted, she naturally lost weight. She added, “Later, after I debuted and naturally lost weight, he was like, ‘You didn’t lose weight when I told you to, but now that you debuted, you did.’”

Fans are loving Jisoo’s confidence and honesty! Meanwhile, her full interview on Dex’s Fridge Interview is now available on YouTube.

Source: [1]