According to him, he was left at an orphanage at the age of 3, ran away at 5 after being beaten, and lived all by himself on the streets since then, doing odd jobs and selling gum and energy drinks.
After watching the video twice, and cried twice, I proceeded to read the comments. Amazingly, up to now, 71 people disliked the video. Sorting through the comments I learned that some people thought Sung-Bong Choi was either a fake or a publicity stunt by the network. One thing's for sure though, his voice and talent is REAL.
I always have the impression that the South Korean Population are all well taken care of, either by themselves or by the government. Adding to the 'all is well' scenario are the Korean Drama with line ups of good looking people, not to mention the K-Pop scene.
However, it doesn't take much to get back to reality and discover that hardship is everywhere. Homelessness is a global issue and kind hearted people are doing their part to help and raise the awareness. In his article, "Sociology of the homeless in Seoul, Korea", Daniel Lim began with...
QUOTE "There are approximately 1 million homeless individuals in Seoul, and 300 at Seoul Station, which is a major landmark in Seoul. That’s very intriguing because the population of greater Seoul is 24.5 million people. That means 1 in every 25 people is homeless in Seoul." END QUOTE
It is an interesting observation from an outreach to the homeless done by his group in Seoul.
So, back to our talented Sung-Bung Choi, I will continue to believe that his story is true until proven wrong. I'm sure there are many curious individuals out there who has the time and resources to prove once and for all whether he's real or otherwise.
In the meantime, grab a tissue and click play.
