IU Is Famous For Giving Luxury Gifts To People, But She Did This Even When She Was A Rookie — According To IU’s Friend

A former K-Pop idol recently revealed that singer IU gave her a gift with her first paycheck.

IU | @dlwlrma/Instagram

Kim Hyemi, also known as YEL, was a former member of the girl group FIESTAR. FIESTAR debuted in 2012 under Loen Entertainment, which was IU’s company then. After a few years of activities, they disbanded in 2018.

Kim Hyemi | @yesyesyelll/Instagram Members of FIESTAR | Loen Entertainment

On July 18, Hyemi appeared on the YouTube channel 근황올림픽, which translates into “Update Olympics,” a channel that focuses on catching up with people who were famous in the past. She shared that after her idol life, she has been running a business renting out practice studio spaces with a recording studio. She said she makes about as much as an ordinary office worker.

| 근황올림픽/YouTube

Hyemi then talked about her memories with IU from when they were in the same agency—they were very close.

IU and I were in the same agency. IU promoted me, too. The dorm I lived in with IU when I first joined as a trainee was really nice. It was about 60 to 70 pyeong (approximately 198 to 231 square meters) with marble floors… At that time, IU was also a trainee, and we were very close.

— Hyemi

IU and Hyemi | @yesyesyelll/Instagram

Everyone knows by now that IU is incredibly generous with her money and gives lavish gifts to those around her. She once famously said she has so much money that she doesn’t know what to do. From her juniors to her family to her fans, IU never ceases to give gifts to others—but according to Hyemi, IU has been like this since before she made a lot of money. In fact, IU bought Hyemi something after getting her first paycheck.

With the first paycheck, it’s not like you accumulate wealth or anything but IU gave gifts to people around her. She bought me a luxury bag, too… She is a very loyal friend. She gave gifts of that price range to other people around her.

— Hyemi

| @dlwlrma/Instagram

The video showed photobooth pictures of Hyemi, IU, MBLAQ’s Thunder, and HIGH4’s Kim Sung Gu. The four of them would hang out at Lotte World even after IU became popular.

IU and Thunder became famous first. The four of us once went to Lotte World and the two of them were already so famous, so we rode rollercoasters while wearing masks.

— Hyemi

| 근황올림픽/YouTube | 근황올림픽/YouTube