Lee Seung Gi and his former agency, Hook Entertainment, have both withdrawn their appeals in a dispute over unpaid music royalties, potentially bringing the case to a close.
Star News reported on October 29th that both sides submitted notices to withdraw their appeals through their lawyers ahead of the scheduled appeals trial.
On August 28th, the Seoul Central District Court ruled partially in Lee Seung Gi’s favor in his lawsuit seeking approximately 830 million won ($621,000) in unpaid settlements. The court ordered Hook Entertainment to pay him approximately 690 million won ($516,000). The agency appealed the ruling first, and Lee Seung Gi filed his own appeal on October 8th. Both sides have now withdrawn their appeals, ending the dispute over the first trial’s ruling.
Lee Seung Gi filed the lawsuit in February, claiming that Hook Entertainment continued to earn money from his music even after his exclusive contract ended in December 2022. He argued that the agency owed him a share of those earnings. Hook Entertainment countered that it was not required to pay him unless both sides had reached a separate agreement covering revenue earned after the contract ended.
The court sided with Lee Seung Gi, ruling that Hook Entertainment still had a duty to pay him even without a separate agreement. The court said it would be unfair to allow a company that breached its contractual obligations to benefit more than it would have by honoring them.
However, the court did not approve all of Lee Seung Gi’s requested payment rates. He had sought 70% of revenue earned through August 2024 and 50% of revenue earned afterward. The court instead awarded him 60% of revenue from the contract period and 40% of revenue earned after the contract ended, citing industry practices in which settlement rates decrease after a contract expires.
The dispute dates back to November 2022, when Lee Seung Gi sent Hook Entertainment a formal notice claiming that he had never received music royalties since his debut. The agency later paid him approximately 5.4 billion won ($4 million) based on its own calculations and filed a lawsuit seeking confirmation that it had no further payment obligations. Lee Seung Gi responded with a countersuit.
In April 2025, the court separately ordered Hook Entertainment to pay Lee Seung Gi an additional 580 million won ($433,000) in advertising fees. Neither side appealed that ruling, making it final.
Lee Seung Gi is also currently involved in a separate settlement dispute with Big Planet Made Entertainment, the agency he joined after leaving Hook Entertainment.
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