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| Rapper Chang Yong-joon, known as NO:EL, left, and his father Rep. Chang Je-won a member of the Liberty Korea Party./ Korea Times files |
By Lee Gyu-lee
Rep. Chang Je-won's rapper son NO:EL was arrested by the police Saturday for drunk driving. The singer is accused of having attempted to use his father's name and to bribe the victim to avoid punishment after being caught.
NO:EL, whose real name is Chang Yong-joon, crashed into a motorcycle with his vehicle sometime between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. Saturday in Mapo-gu, western Seoul. According to police, his blood-alcohol level was 0.08 percent, high enough to get his license revoked.
A local media outlet reported later that day that the 19-year-old tried to stop the victim from reporting the accident by mentioning his politician father and offering ten million won ($8,370). It also said that Chang denied driving the vehicle to police. It wasn't until his mother came to the station with a lawyer and confirmed his involvement that he admitted the allegations.
The rapper's father Rep. Chang is a member of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP). He recently participated in the confirmation hearing of justice minister nominee Cho Kuk as a member of the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee.
Rep. Chang posted on his Facebook account, Saturday morning, saying he "deeply regrets that his son caused trouble with such a shameful incident," adding that "Yong-joon will fully take responsibility for his misconduct."
The rapper also released a statement through his agency Indigo Music's Instagram account, apologizing for his actions.
"I will fully cooperate with the ongoing investigation and will take any legal consequences accordingly," he wrote, adding that he deeply regrets and has no excuses for what he has done.
He also announced that he will suspend his music activities and he apologized to all the staff and artists at his label for causing such trouble.
NO:EL is no stranger to trouble.
No:El appeared on TV as a contestant on Mnet's rapper audition show "High School Rapper," in 2017. He dropped out of the show when his past tweets about his attempt to solicit prostitution were disclosed.
Shortly after the scandal, Rep. Chang publically released an apology for his son's tweets and vowed to take responsibility. He resigned as spokesman of his party ― at that time the Barun Party ― and chairman of the party's Busan city committee.
Later that year, he switched his party membership by joining the LKP.
Rep. Chang is one of the politicians suffering the fallout from the actions of their spoiled children.
Despite the solicitation scandal, No:El continued his music career after he left the show and signed a contract with Indigo Music, run by rapper Swings, in March 2018. He has worked consistently since then, releasing singles and featuring on albums of other rappers such as Giriboy and Hanhae.
