Youngjae from the popular K-pop group Got7 has slammed production house Artone Company over alleged unpaid fees.
The 29-year-old was a cast member of the Korean musical Dream High Season 2, also known as Again Dream High and produced by Artone, which ran from April 5 to June 1 in Seoul last year. He joined the second run from June 17 to July 20 before enlisting for his mandatory military service in November.
In an Instagram Story uploaded yesterday (June 9), Youngjae wrote a lengthy statement and tagged Artone Company as well as its CEO Kim Eun-ha.
“You said you would settle this by June 9, but it seems it still hasn’t been resolved even today. Even from the position of someone who is owed money, whenever I contact you, I keep hearing, ‘Didn’t I say I’d pay you? Please wait a little longer,'” he wrote.
“By August, it will have been almost a full year without this being settled. At this point, it’s becoming very difficult.”
Youngjae acknowledged he had received some money but said “it’s such a small portion that it’s difficult to say the account has actually been settled”.
He continued: “Did I ask for money unfairly? Did the time I spent practising, the effort I put in and the entire process mean nothing? I wanted to resolve this amicably. However, I do not believe we are the ones who made this situation uncomfortable.
“‘We’ll settle it within this month.’ Haha… I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard those words already.”
The musical — a spin-off of the 2011 K-drama of the same name starring IU, Bae Suzy, Kim Soo-hyun and Ok Taecyeon — shows a group of music and dance students after they graduate from high school.
Artone has yet to release a new statement. Their Instagram comments sections have also been turned off.
Fans have taken to the CEO’s comments section to slam the company.
“If Youngjae’s words are true, then we demand that he be treated fairly. Please don’t forget that he has fans all over the world,” said one supporter.
“Are you not ashamed as a CEO? You hire people but you can’t even pay them?” said another.
Another labelled them as “shameless”.
Season three to open while payment issues unresolved
Earlier in January, Youngjae filed a lawsuit against Artone, highlighting how he performed in the production from April to July of last year but never received his appearance fees.
South Korean media reported in December 2025 that majority of the cast had yet to receive their performance fees. The company is said to owe hundreds of millions in Korean won.
At the time, Artone released a statement claiming they had been trying to resolve the issue and planned to finalise the remaining payments.
“As it is a creative musical, the number of personnel is too large, and the budget exceeded expectations, leading to unpaid issues,” it said.
Dream High Season 2 also starred idols such as Ze:a’s Dongjun, Astro’s JinJin, Infinite’s Dongwoo, Block B’s U-Kwon and Victon’s Sejun.
The controversy recently resurfaced after the announcement of a Dream High Season 3 musical, also produced by Artone, while the payment issue remains unresolved.
Titled Dream High Season 3: Reboot, it is scheduled to run from July 18 to Sept 27 at Coex Artium in Seoul, starring Se7en, Dongwoo, U-Kwon, Sejun and Victon’s Seungsik.
Sejun and Seungsik, together with Luna from girl group f(x) and Kim Dong-hyun from boy band Golden Child, were in Singapore in March to perform songs from Dream High Season 3 musical at the Korea Travel Fair 2026.
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