Featured Image Credit: Bong Bong Company/YouTube/Korea’s Got Talent
Topics: Film and TV, Music, Celebrity
Claire Reid
Topics: Film and TV, Music, Celebrity
South Korean pop star Choi Sung-bong has died aged 33.
Choi was found dead by police at his home in the Yeoksam-dong district in southern Seoul on Tuesday morning (20 June), South Korean news service Yonhap reports.
He rose to fame after appearing on Korea's Got Talent on tvN in 2011 - coming in second place and landing himself a record deal with Bong Bong Company.
Choi blew viewers away with his performance of Ennio Morricone's 'Nella Fantasia'.
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A clip of the performance went viral online after, and his voice was praised by numerous celebrities, including Justin Bieber - who posted the clip on his Facebook page and wrote: “This is awesome. Never say never, and good luck to this kid. Great story.”
While appearing on the talent show, Choi opened up about his difficult childhood, saying he lived in an orphanage after being abandoned aged three.
He also claimed to have run away from the facility after experiencing physical abuse - and said he turned to selling items such as chewing gum as a youngster to survive.
Choi became an honorary ambassador of ChildFund Korea, who helped him from the age of 17 and supporting him while he was trying to make a better life for himself after leaving the orphanage he grew up in.
Although he made his way to the final, he was beaten - by just 280 votes.
Despite not winning, he was signed up to South Korean record label Bong Bong Company and he also released a best selling memoir about his journey from impoverished childhood to world-wide viral fame.
Choi was hit with controversy in 2021, after he claimed to have been diagnosed with cancer but later admitted to making it up.
In a statement shared with South Korean media in November of that year, he said: "All diagnoses of thyroid cancer, colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, lung, liver, and kidney metastasis, excluding major depressive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, are false."
He went on: “I deeply apologize, and I bow my head and deeply apologize to the countless cancer patients who are still living in pain and to the bereaved families who passed away from cancer.”
Choi also vowed to pay back donations he had received from fans - adding: “I am currently working at a local restaurant to return the donations I received from you.
“Even if it takes some time, I will repay the donations I received from you for the rest of my life and live my life repenting for my sins of hypocrisy.”