1) Kara's Hara

In addition to growing up with financial difficulties, Hara saw her parents divorce when she was 7 years old. She was then sent to live with her grandmother, but faced bullying in school for her family situation. 

2) Super Junior's Leeteuk

Despite his constantly smiling exterior, Leeteuk comes from a painful family background. While witnessing his parents' constant fighting, he was also often physically reprimanded by his father, whom he grew to fear and hate. Unfortunately for Leeteuk, his family problems did not end after his debut as news of his father's and grandparents' death shook the K-pop world. 

3) Yoon Mi Rae

Born to a Korean mother and African-American father, Yoon Mi Rae often faced prejudices and discrimination because of her mixed identity and her dark skin tone.   

4) Wonder Girls' Sun

When Sun was young, her mother passed away. Her grandmother took her in and raised her since her father distanced himself from them. Despite his distance from her, Sun continued to be concerned for his well-being. During her trainee days at JYP Entertainment, however, the stress from trainee life as well as her worsening family situation resulted in a suicide attempt. 

5) Girls' Generation's Tiffany

During the early days of her idol career, Tiffany would talk about both of her parents and how she missed them. However, she would later tearfully publicly state that her mother had actually passed away earlier when Tiffany was only 11 years old. It was actually because of her mother that she adopted the stage name "Tiffany." 

6) ZE:A's Taeheon

Taeheon tragically lost both of his parents to cancer when he was a young age. He was then raised by his sister, the only close family member he has left.  

7) Big Bang's Taeyang

Before his debut, Taeyang's grandfather was his biggest fan, always voicing his hopes of seeing his grandson on TV. However, he passed away the day after Big Bang's showcase, before he could see his grandson on the television screen. 

8) G.NA

As a 6-year-old, G.NA lost her father after he passed away. Because of the ensuing financial situation, her family members had to separate, and G.NA went to live with her grandmother and aunt. In fact, throughout her whole life, G.NA has lived with her mother for only the first 6 years of her life. 

9) Girls' Generation's Sunny

At a young age, Sunny was exposed to traumatic imagery that no child should ever experience. Sunny and her parents moved to Kuwait, a country in the Middle East. Despite her youth, she became a Gulf War refugee, surrounded by war and explosions. In fact, she continues to experience pyrotechnic trauma from this experience, as seen in a performance of "Gee" when an exploding stage prop left her visibly shaken throughout the rest of the performance.  

(Watch from 0:18) 

10) San E

After the IMF economic crisis hit Korea, San E's family immigrated to the United States in hopes of having better lives. However, the family continued to struggle financially, as San E watched his parents constantly working demanding jobs to make ends meet. 

11) Insooni 

Born to an African-American father and Korean mother, Insooni faced racist and prejudiced backlash for her heritage and dark skin as she grew up in Korea. 

12) Sunmi 

Sunmi's father passed away when she was young, leaving behind Sunmi, her brother, and her mother. The family found themselves living in financial difficulty, with Sunmi often having to turn down chances to study in Seoul. 

13) Lee Hyori 

While today she's one of Korea's most recognizable celebrities with a long, illustrious career, Lee Hyori's earlier days weren't so easy. Growing up in a poor family posed numerous difficulties for the young Hyori as the family was unable to enroll her in kindergarten, leaving her unable to develop her early interests in music. 

14) T-ara's Soyeon 

Despite investing all of her effort, Soyeon eventually withdrew from the Girls' Generation lineup before their debut. To add onto her stressful burdens, her grandmother and her uncle, also known as her two biggest supporters, both passed away in the same year. Before they passed, they both told her, "Become a singer," leading to her determination to pick herself up and try once again. 

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