Jinusean’s Sean, one of YG Entertainment’s founding stars, has revealed a surprising chapter of his past. The singer, now celebrated as a model citizen and philanthropist, admitted he ran away from home at just 16 years old and never returned.
Sean (Credits: YG Entertainment)
The revelation came in a video posted on October 19 titled “I ran away from home at 16 and never went back │ From runaway boy to donation angel.” During the conversation, host Lee Sung Mi noted that fans often wonder what Sean was like as a teenager — whether the squeaky-clean star was ever rebellious, or if he ever “cheated or stole.”
“My mother says I was naturally well-behaved. And I admit, there were times like that,” Sean confessed, adding that he tried alcohol for the first time on his 18th birthday in Guam, though smoking never interested him. “If I’m not interested, I just don’t do it.”
From a Fight With His Mother to $50-a-Day Labor
Sean explained that at 16, after arguing with his mother, he stormed out for a couple of days — and then made a life-changing decision. “When I realized I needed clothes to live on my own, I packed some and said, ‘I’m going to be independent,’ and I haven’t been back home since,” he recalled.
The future star supported himself in the United States, where manual labor paid the best. “Forty years ago, I earned $50 a day. I saved that money to go to school and worked at grocery stores and restaurants,” he said. With his savings, he found a roommate and kept working, eventually putting himself through school.
“Once I Make a Decision, I Don’t Look Back”
Sean admitted his teenage self didn’t grasp how his parents felt. “My personality is such that once I make a decision, I don’t look back. From my parents’ perspective, it was probably heartbreaking. At the time, I didn’t really understand that,” he reflected. “I don’t even remember much” about those early hard days, he added.
Today, the Jinusean member is famous in Korea as a “donation angel” for his relentless charitable work — a remarkable arc from a runaway teenager doing manual labor to one of K-pop’s most respected elder statesmen and a key figure behind YG Entertainment’s rise.
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Source: Koreaboo — read the full story there.
