Jo Kwon Recalls 8 Years as a Trainee and a First Settlement of Just 240,000 Won

2AM's Jo Kwon is opening up about his split from JYP Entertainment after nearly two decades, along with the modest first paycheck he received after years as a trainee. His first settlement, he revealed, came to just 240,000 won, or about $170.

The singer appeared in an episode of the YouTube channel "Saego_F5," posted on the 30th of last month, alongside Jun. K of 2PM and JAY B. The episode was titled "The SM vs. JYP dance showdown finally goes head-to-head [Deokbapjip Store 2 EP.5 Jo Kwon & Jun. K & JAY B]."

Jo Kwon looked back on his roughly 18 years at JYP Entertainment. "I joined in 2001, and I even watched the JYP sign go up," he said. "I think I was there for about 18 years." Jun. K recalled the reaction when Jo Kwon left the company. "Everyone was shocked when Kwon left JYP," he said. "But Kwon told me, 'Hyung, it feels so good being out of JYP. I'm making more money and it's really great.'"

Jo Kwon explained his decision without any bitterness toward his former label. "It would have been nice if it had been an environment where I could have stayed longer, but it was a time when I really needed a change," he said. "A new opportunity happened to come around when my contract was up. I don't regret the choice. That doesn't mean JYP was a hard place to be."

He also opened up about his trainee years and the long wait for his first payout. "I spent about eight years as a trainee, and there were costs the company had invested in me," he said. "Around 2008, after I debuted, the rules tied to the Fair Trade Commission changed and companies started covering trainee investment costs. But that wasn't the case for me and Jun. K hyung."

Jo Kwon said his first settlement came three years after debut, during one of the busiest stretches of his career. "That was when I was really well known as 'Kkapkwon' and doing 'We Got Married,' when everything was going well," he said. "When I saw the settlement statement, there was no minus sign, so I called my mom and said, 'I think I've finally paid off all the debt.'"

The actual number was smaller than he expected. His first check came to 240,000 won, or roughly $170. "I was still so grateful," Jo Kwon said with a laugh. "The next day I ran straight to a phone store and paid my cell phone bill with my own money. That was my first settlement."

Jun. K shared his own first-payout story as well. "I was a trainee for about four years," he said. "2PM debuted and got a lot of love with '10 Points Out of 10,' but I still hadn't been paid by the time we were promoting 'I Hate You.' I got my first settlement around the "I'll Be Back" or "Without U" era, and it was about 5 million won."