Rapper Sleepy (Age 36, real name Kim Sung Won), who previously garnered attention for his financial struggles, has been criminally charged with breach of duty.
According to Star News, on December 9, TS Entertainment, Sleepy's former agency, filed a complaint with the Seoul Jungbu Police Station on November 28 against Sleepy and two of his former managers. The complaint accuses Sleepy of breach of duty, while the two managers are charged with aiding and abetting the breach. The case has since been transferred to the Goyang Police Station in Gyeonggi Province, where Sleepy resides.
Sleepy and TS Entertainment have long been embroiled in a legal battle over their exclusive contract, which escalated to the Supreme Court before concluding in Sleepy's favor.
The conflict between the two parties first surfaced in April 2019 when Sleepy filed a civil lawsuit seeking to nullify the validity of his exclusive contract with TS Entertainment. Although Sleepy also applied for a preliminary injunction to suspend the contract's validity, the court rejected his request. After subsequent lawsuits, their contract was eventually terminated.
At the time, Sleepy claimed he had not received unpaid exclusive contract fees, performance fees from November 2018 to August 2019, first-quarter 2019 settlement payments, and settlement payments from the first quarter of 2013 to the fourth quarter of 2018. He filed a petition with the court, which partially ruled in his favor during the first trial. TS Entertainment appealed the decision, arguing that there were no issues with Sleepy's settlement and even alleging that he had embezzled funds. Sleepy, on the other hand, claimed that TS's failure to provide settlements was the reason he sought to terminate his exclusive contract.
The second trial experienced delays, with court dates being rescheduled 12 times. The trial was prolonged due to fact-checking requests from TS Entertainment and recommendations for evidence supplementation. Sleepy's side also requested a rescheduling of court dates. TS Entertainment accused Sleepy of deliberately stalling the trial, alleging that he failed to comply with the court's requests for the submission of materials related to allegations of "backdoor advertising" or "undisclosed advertising." The court reportedly warned Sleepy, stating, "Do not delay the trial."
Sleepy's side dismissed TS Entertainment's claims as "absurd," telling Star News that "TS is currently a bankrupt company and a bankruptcy administrator is pursuing the lawsuit from a third-party perspective." They added, "Even if we win, it’s unlikely that we’ll recover the 200 million KRW (~139,944 USD), and our requests to reschedule hearings were due to personal reasons. We did not attempt to negotiate a settlement; we merely responded to the court’s inquiry about the possibility of a settlement, stating that we did not want to engage in emotional conflict after such a prolonged lawsuit." After his initial court victory, Sleepy requested a settlement with TS in March 2023, but TS declared they had no intention of reaching an agreement, leading to a formal conclusion of "no settlement" in the case.
TS maintained its position that Sleepy was at fault for the termination of the exclusive management contract in 2019. The agency claimed that "Sleepy deceived the company during the contract period and gained unfair profits through backdoor advertising, social media promotions, and unauthorized events, thereby causing the company financial damage. On top of that, he spread false information for an extended period." TS further stated that "the second trial court ruled that Sleepy had indeed profited unfairly and caused financial damage to the company." They argued that the first trial’s recommendation for the resolution of the exclusive contract dispute was misinterpreted, leading to the second trial court incorrectly concluding that there was no need for separate financial compensation.
In addition to filing a criminal complaint against Sleepy for breach of duty related to "backdoor advertising," TS announced plans to challenge the second trial court’s conclusion regarding unpaid exclusive contract fees. TS highlighted that Sleepy had signed a five-year renewal with them in May 2016, during which the agency agreed to pay him 1.2 billion KRW (~839,916 USD) in additional exclusive contract fees. The payments were to be made as a monthly "salary" of 2 million KRW (~1,400 USD) and 3 million KRW (~2,100 USD) for the final month. TS stated that "Sleepy himself referred to these payments as 'salaries' he received from TS."
Over the years, Sleepy has frequently opened up about his financial hardships on various broadcast programs. He revealed that he experienced eviction after falling behind on rent and utility bills. His electricity and water were cut off, and creditors even seized his broadcast appearance fees. Sleepy's candid accounts of his struggles sparked public sympathy and criticism toward TS.
However, in September 2020, TS Entertainment countered by filing a complaint against Sleepy with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, accusing him of defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act and defamation through published materials.
On a recent episode of Channel A's 'Oh Eun Young's Gold Counseling Center,' Sleepy shared his personal struggles, saying, "I was overjoyed when I found out my wife was pregnant, but I couldn't be completely happy. I didn’t want to pass on poverty to my child." He further explained, "I have been involved in a legal dispute with my former agency for six years. The ongoing legal battle kept increasing my legal expenses, and my health gradually deteriorated. I have too many dependents to support, and at some point, I felt like I was the only one working while everyone else was relying on me."
Sleepy also disclosed, "For 10 years after my debut, I didn’t receive any settlement payments and had no income. Ironically, I made the most money by talking about my financial struggles. That period was the busiest time for me. To be honest, I didn’t want to bring up personal family issues, but I had to disclose them."
Following his legal victory, Sleepy took to his Instagram story, writing, "The truth will be revealed, and justice will prevail."
He also appeared with his wife on SBS's 'Same Bed, Different Dreams 2 - You Are My Destiny' to showcase their everyday life together.
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