YouTuber Kim DDOLDDOL moved viewers with his story of growing up as a sexual minority in Korean society.
Well-known as popular gay celebrity Hong Suk Chun's "right hand man", Kim DDOLDDOL appeared as a guest on the November 6 broadcast of MBC's 'Radio Star' along with Yeo Esther, Lee Dong Jin, and Kim So Hyun.
On this episode, Kim DDOLDDOL revealed why he chose to be a diligent student in school from an early age. He said, "I learned about my sexual orientation quite early, in the 4th grade. During that time, I was already being made fun of by my friends for being 'Hong Suk Chun'. So it occurred to me that if things went on like this, I might live a difficult life."
While the MCs expressed amazement at DDOLDDOL's mature way of thought, the YouTuber continued, "From that point on, I started studying. I decided that I would fulfill my filial duties to my parents when I could, to prepare for the future when I would fail them as a son."
Kim DDOLDDOL then explained his academic achievements, sharing, "My parents both majored in computer engineering. So that was the path they wanted me to follow. In elementary school and middle school, I earned 11 certifications related to computer programming. I eventually got accepted through priority selection as an electrical engineering major at Sungkyunkwan University. My parents wanted me to work for 'Samsung', so I followed their wishes and chose my major."
When asked what major he would have chosen if not electrical engineering, DDOLDDOL revealed, "I love foreign languages, so I actually wanted to become a foreign ambassador. I always felt that it suited me."
Later on, Kim DDOLDDOL shared his "coming out" story, to his friends at first, then his YouTube subscribers, and finally, his parents.
"The first time, it wasn't intentional. It was in my first year of high school," the YouTube began. He went on, "My closest friend at that time, a girl, had received an anonymous text message that read, 'Kim XX from X High School class X, year X is a disgusting gay freak'. She showed me that text and asked me, 'Are you gay?'. So I answered her honestly, saying, 'Yeah'. But then she said, 'That's not important right now. You need to catch this person who sent this text!'. With help from my friends, I eventually found out who did it. It was actually someone I had never met before in my life, but someone who had the same sexual orientation as me. They said that they did it because they were envious of me for having a good life with so many friends. When I heard that, my wish to get revenge just vanished. After that incident, I came out to all of my closest friends whom I could trust."
Next, DDOLDDOL confessed that his parents found out about his sexual orientation not directly from him, but through his YouTube channel. He explained, "In autumn of 2018, I held a live broadcast to celebrate reaching 10,000 subscribers. During that broadcast, there were a number of anonymous viewers asking me in the chat, 'Are you gay?' or saying, 'He is totally gay'. I decided to just confront them head on, and answered, 'That's right. Is there a problem?'. So I ended up coming out to the public on YouTube. The next day, I got numerous calls from my parents. Because my parents heard the news through YouTube and not directly from me, they were very disappointed. For a time, I became a 'traitor' to my family, and cut off contact with them. It wasn't until very recently that we got in touch again, and found peace. I think we needed some time. After we reconciled, my father said to me, 'I was worried that you would be living in shame after coming out. But you actually seem much happier, which is reassuring'."
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