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| Singer Lee Jae-hoon said he married in 2009 and has two kids. Capture from Instagram (@ruikki_lee) |
By Dong Sun-hwa
Lee Jae-hoon of mixed gender K-pop group Cool revealed Wednesday he married his girlfriend in 2009 and has two children. It took 11 years for the singer to make the confession.
Lee told a local media outlet that he did not mean to conceal it, but had no place or chance to speak about his private life.
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| Actor Sung Joon. Korea Times file |
The revelation came only two days after actor Sung Joon delivered similar news. The actor, who is doing his obligatory military service, disclosed that he tied the knot with his "love of life" just before joining the army in December 2018 and has a child. He could not hold a wedding ceremony because of his impending military enlistment.
Both stars said they were cautious about going public since their wives are not celebrities and are unaccustomed to opening up about themselves.
But is there another reason for the concealment?
The stars' fear of losing popularity could be a big reason, according to Kwon Young-chan, a comedian-turned-psychologist.
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| Comedian-turned-psychologist Kwon Young-chan. Courtesy of Kwon Young-chan |
"Numerous celebrities believe that marriage will lead to a fall in their popularity," Kwon told The Korea Times, Wednesday. "For them, losing popularity means losing fans who bring them economic gains."
He added: "Many followers, especially those who are young and unmarried, tend to regard their stars as 'dream lovers.' Hence, once they learn that the celebrities are married, they can easily turn away."
Lee has a solid fandom, so this may have been the rationale behind his belated announcement, Kwon said.
"It must have been extremely stressful for Lee to hide his family for 11 years," Kwon said. "He couldn't hang around with his wife and children freely because of the public eye. The singer might also have isolated himself from the others, fearing his secret might be revealed."
But for the stars, domestic bliss is essential.
"Celebrities with a happy domestic life are less likely to get mired in scandals, since the family members provide them stability," Kwon said.
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