[Sportschosun Reporter Kim So-hee] Singer Tae Jin-ah opened up about his heartbreaking past. After overcoming the pain of growing up desperately poor, he bought a home for each of his siblings after achieving success.
In a Chuseok special video released on the CGN YouTube channel on the 22nd, Tae Jin-ah, a towering figure in the Korean music industry who is celebrating his 55th anniversary since debut, appeared and candidly shared a wide range of stories from his life.
That day, Tae Jin-ah recalled his difficult childhood. He said, "There are seven of us siblings. Four boys and three girls, and I'm the fourth," adding, "My mother died young, and I even had to help support my father."
He then shared painful memories of being unable to complete his education because of poverty. Tae Jin-ah confessed, "I only attended elementary school. We had no money. On school sports day, I ran a race and finished in the top three, so I received a new notebook," adding, "That was how little money we had at home." His story stirred sympathy.
After debuting as a singer and achieving major success with "Ok Kyung-yi" 16 years later, he entered his prime. The first people he thought of were his siblings, who had endured hardship alongside him. Tae Jin-ah recalled, "Once money started coming in, I called all my siblings together. I asked everyone to raise a hand if they owned a home, but no one did. Not even one person was living in a jeonse-lease home. They were all living in monthly-rental rooms."
Recalling the time he made a major decision for his struggling brothers and sisters, Tae Jin-ah said, "I decided to buy each of them a house. I started with my oldest brother and bought them all houses one by one," moving viewers with his generosity.
Reporter Kim So-hee yaqqol@sportschosun.com
This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.
