Former HYBE Idol Confesses To Being Broke Despite Eight-Year-Long Career

A former HYBE girl group member recently stirred up heated reactions after admitting that she earned no income from her eight-year stint as an idol.

The idol in question, fromis_9 member Jiwon, made this shocking revelation in the new episode of the popular YouTube series, Workman. In the video, Jiwon took on a part-time role as a bank employee, talking to fellow workers about their jobs and salaries.

When a senior employee revealed their income, Jiwon remarked that they earned well, to which the employee joked that Jiwon probably made twice or thrice their salary as an established idol. The fromis_9 member left fans shocked with her honest answer, revealing that she made “absolutely no money” even until last year.

Jiwon explained that during most of her idol career, she never received any meaningful remuneration.

I had no income for eight years. I only received my first settlement recently, and I’m just now starting to save a little bit.

— Jiwon

This confession, though shocking, perfectly aligns with Jiwon’s previous revelation during a live broadcast in 2024, where she mentioned that her goal was to receive her first settlement within the year. Given that Jiwon has been active for years, this revelation sparked concerns about surrounding the contract back then.

Jiwon’s candid disclosure of her financial status has triggered a heated debate about the exploitation of K-Pop idols and led fans to call out her former agency, Pledis Entertainment.

When Giselle said this industry is full of scams i feel like this is a big part of what she meant

How do you produce millions of dollars for your company while they overwork you 24/7 only for your pay to still not be enough to live comfortably…

— Aqua🦋 (@NMXXED) June 17, 2026

majority of fromis career is hiatus, the girls had to beg for a fucking cb on live, was happy if they win small money and foods during games… you will pay @MnetKR @pledisnews

— eli (@jisunsdoll) June 18, 2026

this is pretty weird actually. fromis had writing credits on their unlock my world album & memento box single, both were released under pledis/hybe.

so…. did they not get paid their royalty? at least for the album sales? where did the money go?

— C 🍋🍋‍🟩 (@gaothethird) June 18, 2026

unfortunately very typical. She and fromis are lucky they’re even able to make money, most idols stay in debt and never see any of the money they make for their company

— mary (@hiyukiswife) June 17, 2026

Meanwhile, fromis_9 members officially left Pledis Entertainment in 2024, after their exclusive contracts expired with the label. While they have not yet released anything as a full group, they have yet to declare an official disbandment.