After all the buzz surrounding BIG BANG rapper T.O.P's current drug scandal, there is a lot of breaking news spreading like wildfire! With news and rumors flying left and right, let's take a moment to review the facts and separate the truth from the lies.
How it started: In June, before his mandatory military enlistment, T.O.P was reported to have been illegally smoking marijuana in his home on 3 different occasions between October 9th -12th of 2016 with a trainee by the name of Han Seo Hee, who was a high ranking contestant of MBC's 'The Birth of a Great Star 3' in 2012.
Soon after a tip was sent, allegedly from the trainee, that T.O.P was smoking the drug, on June 1st the Seoul Drug Criminal Investigation Department brought up charges upon the member as a result of a hair test that was conducted, indicating positive.
"It wasn't marijuana," said T.O.P, "It was an electronic cigarette." However, his acquaintance admitted to the crime. Police also stated the acquaintance had multiple drug offenses on file as well. After that, T.O.P came clean and admitted his regrets in a handwritten apology letter. It read the following;
"This is Choi Seung Hyun (T.O.P's real name).
First of all, I want to apologize with all my heart for disappointing many and causing a controversy through my fault.
I am too embarrassed of myself even to apologize in person... I do not have any excuses and I have many regrets. I am now cautiously writing while I am afraid of everything...
I believe I should be rightly punished for hurting the members, the label, the public, the fans who cherished me, and my family in a way that cannot be fixed. My heart hurts, and I am very disappointed in myself.I will look back on myself thousands of times and reflect and reflect and think on my actions...
I will not make the same irresponsible mistakes again. I apologize once again for not being able to go apologize personally one on one to everyone, and I will reflect more deeply. I am very embarrassed of myself.
I'm sorry."
The Results: T.O.P was immediately expelled from his military police division. The police stated, "In the 41st article of military police management laws, there is a law that states a soldier can be expelled if he is not fit to fulfill the duties. We will soon be ordering him to leave the division." If T.O.P isn't imprisoned, he will have to re-enlist.
On June 5th, T.O.P made his first public appearance since the controversy while leaving the Gangnam service station in Seoul, where he was then criticized for the small smile on his face. This lead many friends to degrade him questioning if he is "happy with his scandal?"
The Aftermath: The next day (June 6th), T.O.P was found unconscious at his base after overdosing on anxiety medication around 5pm KST. He was immediately rushed to the ICU where doctors stated, "He's still undergoing testing, and the results are not yet out. However, it seems a drug overdose is suspected. With recent events, he's been going through a hard time and has been very stressed. We hope he awakens quickly."
It was later revealed that the rapper may even suffer from brain damage due to the severe overdose.
T.O.P's family was present at the hospital where his mother revealed that there are many false rumors being spread about his condition and disrespecting her son.
T.O.P's mother told reporters, "Is it the hospital who reported that T.O.P was sleeping? The police told me that they never said that he'd regained consciousness. But why are there articles saying he did? The doctors told us that his tongue was drying, and that he is lacking oxygen input, so he could have problems with his brain. He has an oxygen mask over his nose right now."
She continued to express her anger stating, "When he came to the hospital, he was unconscious. He is still unconscious, but the media is being told wrong things."
T.O.P's Current Condition: As the doctors had predicted, two days later (on June 8th around 1pmKST) T.O.P awoke from his drug-induced unconsciousness. When press approached his mother, who mostly disregarded them, she responded that he was able to recognize her and is "doing a lot better."
Later on T.O.P was transferred to a different hospital (from the Ehwa Womans University Hospital in Mokdong to an undisclosed hospital) and on the 9th his company, YG Entertainment, released an official statement on the matter. "We deeply apologize to the patients who've been inconvenienced for the past few days.The hospital's medical staff recommended T.O.P be moved from intensive care to the general ward. However, his guardian has requested he move to a different hospital with single patient rooms, so visiting him would be an easier process. We won't be releasing the name of the new hospital as we'd like to avoid the situation at the first hospital. We ask for your understanding."
Conclusion: T.O.P is in some deep, hot water - in regards to both his career and his health!!! There are various rumors spreading around that stated malicious things such as T.O.P's hospital transfer was because he wanted privacy and that he purposely did this to avoid/ruin his enlistment. He was even furthered criticized when it was revealed that he was only able to eat cup ramen after regaining consciousness, with netizens responding, "Are we supposed to feel sorry for him?" and "We can't even eat cup ramen at the army base."
According to other sites, such as allkpop.com, there is even information regarding the company's previous artist's drug scandals and going unpunished due to their connections with the government. "Rumors are alleging Choi Soon Shil, the aide and friend of recently impeached South Korean President Park Geun Hye, has a financial stake in YGE and YGE-affiliated buildings.
Allegedly, this connection is why YG Entertainment labelmates, including Park Bom and G-Dragon, got away with their perspective drug scandals. Furthermore, there are speculations that T.O.P was charged for his drug use because YGE no longer has the protection of Choi Soon Shil, who was officially charged for intervening in state affairs last November."
For now, this is all the official news that has been released in regards to T.O.P's scandal. KpopStarz and the author hope this post provides some clarity, separates the facts from the rumors and keeps all who are concerned in the loop of this series of events.
