South Korean actress Song Yoo-jung dies aged 26

A 26-year-old actress was found dead in Seoul, South Korea on Saturday, the latest loss for a young artist in the country’s entertainment industry, who has had to deal with the mental health burden of her glamorous stars .

The death of actress Song Yoo-jung, who appeared in several television dramas, was confirmed in a statement from the company representing her, Sublime Artist Agency. The agency did not disclose the cause, but the suddenness of Ms. Song’s death was reminiscent of the string of suicides that plagued Korean pop music in recent years.

Alarms have long been raised over pressure from South Korean collecting societies on young artists, many of whom are prepared by their teens to become pop idols. Their appearance is closely scrutinized, and their tightly choreographed lives are often broadcast on social media platforms that expose them to both adored fan mail and hateful comments.

For many, their time in the limelight is limited, if they ever achieve star status. In their late twenties, some are considered replaceable.

A number of K-pop stars who have taken their own lives have spoken about their mental health issues and the consequences of cyberbullying. Ms. Song, a promising actress, had not publicly mentioned such issues.

Ms. Song began her acting career at age 20 and appeared in commercials for Estée Lauder skin care products and for the Baskin-Robbins ice cream chain. In her breakout role in 2019, Ms. Song played a fresh-faced architecture student with a pixie cut, looking for her soul mate, in a web series titled “Dear My Name.” She has also appeared in music videos.

She was an advocate for people with disabilities, acting as an ambassador for a South Korean group called Warm Accompaniment.

Ms. Song’s agency called her a “great actress who performed with passion.” He did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

South Korea’s suicide problem is not confined to the entertainment industry. The country has the highest suicide rate among the 37 developed countries that make up the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

But celebrity suicides, involving actors and others, have been a fixture in South Korean news media for the past decade or more. In recent years, deaths in the K-pop industry, one of the country’s most successful cultural exports, have received the most attention.

In 2017, singer Kim Jong-hyun committed suicide at age 27 after leaving a note saying he had been overcome by depression.

In 2019, Sulli, a 25-year-old K-pop star, took her own life after complaining about the relentless cyberbullying she faced while joining a feminist campaign that advocated not wearing bras .

About six weeks later, her friend Goo Hara, 28, also committed suicide, leaving a handwritten note about her despair.

Ms Goo had tried to reason with online critics, asking them to refrain from any vicious comments.

“Public performers like me don’t have it easy – we have our privacy more scrutinized than anyone and we suffer from the kind of pain that we can’t even discuss with our family and friends,” she wrote.

If you are having suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK) or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources.