Kim Junsu Opens Up About Post-SM Struggles: “For a While, I Felt Like a Criminal”
On the May 5 episode of Channel A’s Best Friends Documentary: Table for 4, singer and musical actor Kim Junsu delivered an unusually candid reflection on his emotional journey following his legal battle with SM Entertainment — a turning point that reshaped not only his career but also his sense of identity.
A Rare Reflection: Kim Junsu Opens Up About Life After SM Entertainment
Joined by musical actor Son Jun-ho, SS501’s Kim Hyung-jun, and trot singer Jeong Dong-won, Junsu spoke about how his experience as a former K-pop idol and legal battler has informed his leadership style as CEO of his own agency.
“I always tell my artists they can leave whenever they want,” he said. “Keeping someone tied down with a contract after their heart has left isn’t right. I know that pain all too well.”
Junsu was referring to his high-profile legal dispute in 2009, when he and two other members of TVXQ filed for an injunction to suspend their exclusive contracts with SM Entertainment. The fallout from that decision led to his departure from the group and his re-debut as part of JYJ in 2010.
But while the move allowed him creative freedom, it also came with heavy emotional costs. “For six months to a year after leaving SM, our names were splashed across newspapers like we had committed a crime,” Junsu shared. “I felt ashamed, even guilty toward fans. I ended up hiding at home for a long time.”
Musicals, Healing, and Quiet Resilience
During those isolated and emotionally taxing months, musical theatre became an unexpected salvation for Kim Junsu.
“I had always wanted to try musicals, but I hadn’t even properly seen one before. I was scared,” he admitted. “But it was the only blade I had left. If I let it rust, I’d have nothing else.”
He was just 25 or 26 years old when he took his first steps onto the musical stage — not out of ambition, but necessity. Determined to succeed, he pushed himself to the brink.
“I didn’t want to be a burden to the other actors, so I gave everything I had. But behind the scenes, I cried a lot and fought through so much,” he recalled.
Junsu also touched on his absence from broadcast television following the dispute. “I didn’t try to return to TV because even if I did a recording, it often wouldn’t air,” he said. “I didn’t want to get hurt anymore.”
Having first debuted in 2003 with TVXQ, Kim Junsu rose to become one of K-pop’s biggest stars. But it’s through adversity — and reinvention on the musical stage — that he found both artistic freedom and emotional healing. Now charting a course on his own terms, Kim Junsu’s story stands as a powerful reminder of the cost of industry conflict — and the strength it takes to rebuild not just a career, but a life.