Composer Yoon Il-sang delivered sharp criticism of singer Yoo Seung-jun (Steve Yoo), who has been banned from entering Korea for more than 20 years over a draft-dodging controversy.
On the 10th, on his YouTube channel, Yoon Il-sang shared behind-the-scenes stories about singers, and when the production team brought up Yoo Seung-jun, he showed signs of dismay, saying, "Do you want to crash and burn? Why bring that up?" But he soon recalled his past work with Yoo and laid out his candid thoughts.
He said, "His popularity back then was incomparable to even today's G-Dragon. The label even went to meet Michael Jackson in person," adding, "At least onstage performance-wise, he was incredible." He continued, however, "It seems his heart was always in the United States. Korea was business, and it seems he thought the place to return to was the U.S."
He was firm about the draft evasion. Yoon Il-sang said, "If you made a promise to the public and to the nation, you have to keep it. If you couldn't, you should have offered a sincere apology. An apology is something you make until the other side accepts it, but it seems he didn't even start," pointing out, "It was a choice that betrayed the nation."
He added, "Even if Yoo Seung-jun refuses to see me because of the video, it can't be helped. I don't personally hate him, but as the entertainer Yoo Seung-jun, it was clearly wrong."
Yoo Seung-jun debuted in 1997 and rose to top-star status with hits like "Scissors" and "Na Na Na." But after breaking his promise to enlist, he obtained U.S. citizenship in 2002, avoided mandatory military service, and was banned from entering Korea.
Since 2015, he has applied for an overseas Korean (F-4) visa at the Consulate General in Los Angeles but was rejected. After three lawsuits, he recently won consecutive rulings in court, but the foreign affairs authorities are sticking to the stance that "the principle of denying entry for draft evasion remains in place."