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K-pop label YG is literally in crisis after sex and drugs scandals involving Seungri, G-Dragon and others

  • ‘YG is literally in crisis’ was originally a line from a Netflix sitcom about the band, but it appears to have come true for the K-pop label
  • Seungri was charged with procuring prostitutes for businessmen and other members have had drug scandals

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Seungri from BigBang is embroiled in controversy of the date rape drug GHB being used at a nightclub linked to the singer.

By Jung Hae-myoung

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“YG is literally in crisis,” Seungri, then a member of YG’s superstar boy band BigBang, said at a news conference in October last year where the Netflix sitcom YG Future Strategy Office was unveiled.

The show depicts Seungri as a heroic executive who successfully restructures a fictional, dysfunctional unit of the entertainment giant through a set of reform measures.

YG Future Strategy Office was said to reflect the reality YG faced at that time. “Rumour has it YG founder Yang Hyun-suk couldn’t fall asleep without drinking every night after his company was left behind by two rivals, SM and JYP,” Seungri said.

Months later, his comments turned out to be true. But contrary to his role as a saviour in the Netflix drama, Seungri ended up doing the opposite: he has become the epicentre of the biggest crisis YG has faced.

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Seungri seen in Burning Sun in 2018. Staff at the nightclub have been accused of drugging female customers.
Seungri seen in Burning Sun in 2018. Staff at the nightclub have been accused of drugging female customers.
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