Shinhwa’s Lee Minwoo had plenty to say during his recent appearance on 'Radio Star,' which aired on November 26.
On the show, Lee revealed how earnings were divided during Shinhwa’s early days. “Back then, stationery shops used to sell member postcards, and the sales differed for each of us. When I looked at the settlement statement for those goods, I thought, ‘I sold this much, but we’re dividing it equally?’ So I told the director, ‘I’d like to request individual settlements,’” he said.
Lee said the team eventually shifted to individual payouts, and his numbers turned out to be “overwhelmingly” higher. “The member who wasn’t popular was, surprisingly, Eric. The U.S.-raised members, Eric and Andy, had very low sales,” he shared. Kim Gu Ra responded, “He came all the way from the U.S. and worked so hard, but to have his payout suddenly drop like that, he must have been upset.”
Lee also recalled a moment involving Junjin. “Jun Jin filmed a sportswear commercial in the desert, and after shooting, they split the payout equally with us. I told him, ‘There’s no need to do 1/N. You should keep what you earned.’ But he said, ‘What do I do? The settlement probably already went through.’ When I told him about the suggestion I had made, he said, ‘Brother is that why you made so much?’ And I told him, ‘It’s not even that much. The gap was just big.’”
Kim Gu Ra then asked, “So did the members have to give back what they received? Eric and Andy didn’t even get many postcard photos. Did they have to return the money, too?”
Lee replied, “Eric did well later on. Firebird was a big success,” referring to Eric’s breakout drama.
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