[Captured from YouTube channel 'ICU']
[Captured from YouTube channel 'ICU']

Kenta, a former member of the idol group JBJ, has spoken candidly about the financial hardship endured after the group disbanded.

Kenta appeared in a recently released video on the web entertainment YouTube channel ICU, opening up about the struggles faced while trying to make it on one's own.

In the video, Kenta said Kenta had been living alone since a fellow member — someone Kenta had shared a home with for seven years — enlisted in the military. Kenta added that 400 million won ($299,000) in debt accumulated after leaving the agency at the end of an idol career. "I live with the heavy sense of responsibility that I have to pay it back," Kenta said.

"I thought about quitting once — quitting being an idol. I felt it wasn't right for me. I burned out and lost my goals in life for the first time," Kenta said. "But recently I found a new goal: the first thing is to pay off the debt. There's still a lot left."

Kenta described how the debt pushed into genuine hardship. "When the debt piled up, my accounts got seized — suddenly I had no bank account and only a single 1,000-won bill to my name. It got to the point where I wondered what I was going to eat tomorrow. I was just trying to get through each day. Back then, older friends around me sent rice and things like that," Kenta said.

Kenta also reflected on a broader view of debt. "I think there's also a debt of life — I consider receiving help from someone a kind of debt too. I think living to repay that grace is a good life," Kenta said, adding with a positive outlook: "So I'm actually grateful for this debt. It became my driving force. I like that my life hasn't been smooth sailing."

JBJ debuted in October 2017, drawing wide attention as a group formed by Noh Tae-hyun, Kim Yong-guk, Takada Kenta, Kim Sang-gyun, Kwon Hyun-bin and Kim Dong-han — all participants in Mnet's "Produce 101 Season 2." The group rose to No. 1 on music broadcasts with "Fantasy" but disbanded after just seven months.


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