Global Courant 2023-04-20 17:54:39
Moon Bin, a lead singer of South Korean boy band Astro, has been found dead at his home in Seoul, his management agency said Thursday.
The 25-year-old, who was also known professionally as Moonbin, was reportedly found by his manager, who went to the singer’s home on Wednesday evening for not responding to messages. Police are investigating his death, but have so far found no signs of foul play, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency. Officials from Seoul’s Gangnam District Police Station did not respond to calls for comment.
Moon Bin’s management agency, Fantagio, confirmed his death in a statement, saying he “suddenly left us and became a star in the sky”, and that fellow artists and company officials mourned him with “very deep sadness and shock”.
Fantagio said Moon Bin’s funeral will be held “as quietly as possible”, with attendance usually limited to family, close friends and colleagues, based on the wishes of his relatives.
Fast success
Moon Bin debuted in 2016 with six-member boy band Astro, which was launched shortly after the singers appeared on a TV reality show. The group quickly found success in South Korea and Japan and that year made the top 10 on Billboard’s list of new K-pop groups, with the magazine praising them for their “bright, synthpop sound that has attracted K-pop aficionados from all over the world”. won over the whole world.”
According to Billboard, Astro had seven albums on the magazine’s World Albums Chart with Moon Bin as a member, peaking at No. 5 in 2017 with Dream Part.02.
Members of Astro will be featured at the 2021 Asia Artist Awards in Seoul. Moon Bin is third from the right. (Jung Yeon-je/AFP/Getty Images)
Fans flooded Moon Bin’s social media accounts with comments expressing grief and shock at his death, which came months after he renewed his contract with Fantagio along with four other Astro members.
“It’s hard to believe,” radio host Jang Seong-kyu wrote on Instagram. “We only met a few times during broadcasts, but every time we met, Moon Bin was always cheerful and expressed his immense love for his family. I can’t imagine the pain he went through.”
Moon Bin had also performed as a member of the duo Moonbin & Sanha with Astro bandmate Yoon San-ha. Indonesian event promoter Lumina Entertainment announced on Wednesday the cancellation of the duo’s performance in Jakarta due to “unforeseen circumstances beyond our control”.
Helix Publicity, a US-based PR firm that has represented Moonbin & Sanha, issued a statement on Twitter that it was “absolutely heartbroken”.
“We send our thoughts, prayers and deepest condolences to Moon Bin’s family, friends, loved ones and to AROHA who always cheered for and supported him,” it said, referring to the name Astro’s fans call themselves.
Child actor
Moon Bin entered the entertainment industry as a child actor and landed a role in the 2009 TV series Boys Over Flowers which was hugely popular in Asia. His sister, Moon Sua, is also a K-pop artist, a member of the girl band Billlie.
Several South Korean singers and actors have committed suicide in recent years.
Last week, 26-year-old actress Jung Chae-yull was found dead in her home. Her agency has not said what caused her sudden death.
