While former T-ara member Ryu Hwa-young (stage name Hwayoung during her time in T-ara) revealed her feelings after 12 years on the ‘T-ara bullying incident’ (although it was controversial, we will write it as an incident since the parties involved referred to it as an incident) that caused a stir in 2012, her twin sister Ryu Hyo-young (former member of Co-ed School and Five Dolls, briefly used the stage name Jung Woo-yeon as an actress) also posted a long message a day later.

On the 11th, Ryu Hyo-young posted on her Instagram account, “First of all, I am very sorry for worrying so many people. The reason I am writing this is to talk about my younger sister‘s (Ryu Hwa-young) bullying incident and my text message incident,” and said, “We were about 20 at the time. My younger sister and I left our hometown and came to Seoul. “Since we didn’t have any adults around us to rely on, we were each other’s only support,” she said.

Ryu Hyo-young said, “In that situation, I heard some shocking words from my sister. She said that she was being bullied by the T-ara members, and that she was ‘having a hard time,’ and ‘I miss you.’ The result of trying to stop her from bullying me was my text message incident,” she said. “I think that sending that text message was ‘foolish,’ and I still regret it.”


Ryu Hyo-young said, “I apologized to Areum before for the text message, but I still feel sorry,” adding, “However, I was only 20 years old and there was nothing I could do. I was afraid that my sister would make a bad choice if I just sat back and did nothing. I think you all know that it was the best I could do when I was young and lacking in many ways to protect my precious family.”

Earlier, Kim Kwang Soo, the CEO of Pocketdol Studio (the successor to GM Planning, Core Contents Media, and MBK Entertainment), appeared on MBN’s “Let’s Go” broadcast on the 9th and talked about the various rumors surrounding him. In particular, CEO Kim Kwang Soo claimed that there was discord in T-ara due to Ryu Hwa Young’s injury, and that he terminated Ryu Hwa Young and Ryu Hyo Young’s contracts unconditionally, but this led to the bullying rumors.

CEO Kim Kwang Soo said, “The parents of T-ara came to me and said that we should reveal the truth at a press conference. I thought, ‘What will happen to those friends (Ryu Hwa Young and Ryu Hyo Young)?’ So I died. I think the T-ara members did nothing wrong, so I pushed ahead with the broadcast. That was the most difficult time in my 40 years in the entertainment industry. I still feel sorry toward the members. It’s already been over 10 years, but I still think it‘s ongoing,” he said, shedding tears.

After the broadcast, Ryu Hwa-young, who felt uncomfortable with the broadcast, wrote a long post completely refuting CEO Kim Kwang-soo’s words.

On the 10th, Ryu Hwa-young posted on her Instagram account, “First of all, I apologize for worrying you with an uncomfortable story. Yesterday (9th), I saw a TV entertainment program in which my former agency CEO Kim Kwang-soo spoke about the ‘T-ara bullying incident’, and after thinking it over 100, 1000 times, I have decided to write this with difficulty.” She said, “As a party involved in the so-called ‘T-ara bullying incident’ in 2012, I felt a lot of self-reproach, regardless of right or wrong, as I caused a lot of social controversy and witnessed the disbandment of the group T-ara, which was the foundation of me. I always felt sorry towards all the fans who loved T-ara and the members who broke up with the words “bullying” and “discord.”

Ryu Hwa-young wrote, “It is true that for 12 years, I lived with the stigma of being a party to the “T-ara bullying” incident and did not respond to the various rumors. Although it was a noisy breakup, because T-ara existed, the current Hwa-young exists, so I have remained silent even though I have many traumas and felt wronged.” “However, after hearing the statements made by CEO Kim Kwang-soo on a variety show, I do not understand why he would make biased and distorted statements about an incident from 12 years ago, so I am telling the truth with difficulty because I thought I should correct the wrong parts.”

Ryu Hwa-young wrote, “First, the fact that I was “bullied” is true. It is false that I “cosplayed as a victim” when I was in T-ara, even though I was not bullied. As a new member of T-ara, I tried to blend in with the members with the obsession of not harming the existing members. However, the existing members of T-ara assaulted me and verbally abused me. The reason I endured was because I thought I would get better if I worked harder. Second, I apologized to the members several times after I injured my ankle. Even when I couldn’t perform on stage in Japan because of my sprained ankle, I asked the director to let me sing at least one song. I felt sorry for the members who had to suffer several times because of me, so I thought I had to sing at least one song.”


Ryu Hwa-young said, “Thirdly, it’s true that I got my nails done at a hotel. However, T-ara usually had a nail salon come to the hotel whenever they had promotions in Japan. The fact that I got my nails done was in the same context. “I feel like it’s an unfounded insult to me that they talked about my broken fingernails and getting them fixed before the stage as if I was the only one getting my nails done for my own satisfaction,” she claimed.

She continued, “When my contract with T-ara was terminated, I had a lot of evidence to prove that I was bullied, so I tried to express my position through a press conference, but CEO Kim Kwang Soo suggested that if I kept quiet without a press conference, he would also terminate the contract of my older sister, who was with the same agency at the time. I was only 20 years old, so I thought that was the best option. In the end, I left the group without even receiving an apology, and I’ve kept quiet for 12 years. After that, the members of T-ara appeared on various entertainment shows and made statements that were different from the truth, saying that they had never bullied anyone, and they put an end to the bullying incident among themselves. My parents and I, who were watching that broadcast, cried because we couldn’t do anything.”

Ryu Hwa Young said, “I sincerely want to ask CEO Kim Kwang Soo something. What on earth is my intention in making such completely distorted statements, including mentioning my real name, about a story that happened 12 years ago?”I am currently alone without an agency. I also know that I cannot fight against a CEO who has been consistently influential in the entertainment industry for over 40 years. However, the reason I can say this is because I am confident that I can reveal the truth about that time.”

Ryu Hwa-young is a member who joined T-ara in 2010. When Ryu Hwa-young joined, T-ara was already a girl group with many hit songs. The group went on to success after Ryu Hwa-young joined, but in 2012, due to the so-called ‘T-ara bullying incident’, Ryu Hwa-young left the team and pursued the path of acting. As T-ara was also shunned by the public due to the aftermath of the incident, the members eventually scattered and are either pursuing individual activities or have suspended their activities.

The ‘T-ara bullying incident’ that CEO Kim Kwang Soo brought up 12 years ago is still affecting the hearts of the twin sisters Ryu Hwa Young and Hyo Young. The T-ara members have not made any statements about the ‘T-ara bullying incident’. The ‘T-ara bullying incident’ that destroyed even the team‘s presence. They were once a girl group with many mega hit songs, but they no longer have their former glory. And the ‘T-ara bullying incident’ is still considered a dark history that left its mark on the music industry. It has resurfaced after 12 years, but there are only claims, and only the parties involved know the truth. At the same time, the claims are still conflicting.

Hong Se-young, Donga.com reporter projecthong@donga.com