FIESTAR's Hyemi, despite 5 years of activities as an idol, earned zero income

Former FIESTAR member, HyeMi, has shared her current status as a businesswoman and solo singer after the group's disbandment.

FIESTAR debuted in 2012 with the single album "VISTA" and released songs like "One More" and "Apple Pie." However, despite their efforts, the group did not achieve significant success and announced their disbandment after six years.

Recently, HyeMi appeared on YouTube channel that introduces updates on famous celebrities and showed herself in front of the camera after a long time. She shared, "It's been about 5 to 6 years since FIESTAR's activities ended. Now, I'm running a business that rents out practice space. I personally handled all the interior work. The income is about the same as what office workers earn."

She reminisced about her time as a member of FIESTAR and her friendship with IU, saying, "IU promoted us a lot when I was active with FIESTAR. We lived together in the same dorm as trainees and became close. IU bought me a luxury bag after her first payment. She's a very loyal friend. She used to give gifts of that price range to people around her."

In contrast, HyeMi revealed that she did not receive a payment during her five years as a FIESTAR member. She explained, "I need to surpass the break-even point to receive a payments, but we couldn't achieve that. Nevertheless, the company provided us with allowances and took care of us well. Upon reflection, there are quite a lot of idols, and many of them may not achieve significant profits compared to the investments made, and knowing this, it still feels regrettable."

She continued, "No matter how hard I worked, it seemed unrelated to whether we succeeded or not. I've been in the industry for 10 years, but I feel like I didn't achieve success as a singer, which is disappointing. At that time, I was overly conscious of others' perspectives. I didn't have a stable income, and I struggled because I was conscious of the opinions of people around me."

Despite feeling anxious and confused after the disbandment, HyeMi resolved to work harder. Currently, she works as a vocal trainer, teaching Kep1er's Yeseo, DKZ's Mingyu, and CLASS:y's Hyungseo.

Moreover, she hasn't given up on her dream as a singer and established her one-person agency to embark on a new challenge as a solo artist under the name "Yel." She plans to release a solo album this year.

HyeMi expressed her desire to perform on stage and meet the audience. She said, "I want to do things that showcase myself. I'm also planning various business ventures. I realized that doing what I love and living happily is the best. Please look forward to my upcoming album."