Aespa surrounded by 30 sasaeng fans at airport, 'looked dead inside,' singers Sung Si-kyung and Kim Junsu reveal

Singer Sung Si-kyung has spoken out about the harassment K-pop idols face from sasaeng fans — obsessive followers known for invading artists' privacy.

In a video posted to his YouTube channel Sunday titled "Kim Junsu — From idol singer to first-ever musical acting award winner, I heard the whole story," Sung opened by recounting a recent experience flying back to Korea with girl group Aespa.

"Aespa really had it rough," Sung said. "The sasaeng fans all boarded the same flight." After the group cleared passport control and stood near a wall, roughly 30 sasaeng fans closed in around them. "The manager was in no position to look after all four members at once," he added.

"The Aespa members just looked completely dead inside," Sung said, expressing sympathy. "Doesn't someone have to put a stop to this? They're human beings too."

Singer Kim Junsu, a former member of TVXQ, reacted with a bitter laugh. "It's still exactly the same," he said, noting that sasaeng fans would sometimes sit in seats around the group on flights.

Sung also shared an anecdote about Jung Yun-ho, another former TVXQ member.

"Back in the days of removable phone batteries, Yun-ho used to carry four spare batteries because fans called him every single minute," Sung said. He added that when Jung changed his number, a fan sent a message congratulating him on activating a new phone.

Kim Junsu said he had experienced the same thing. "The moment I got a new number, I got a call in the car on the way back to the dorm," he said. "When I picked up, the person said, 'Did you really think I wouldn't find out?' I felt completely crushed."

Sung then recalled another incident, saying he believed it involved entertainer Lee Hyun-woo. According to the story, the celebrity woke up one morning to find a woman in his home cooking and calling out, "Honey, wake up." It turned out she had used a telephoto camera to capture him entering his door code, broken in, and hidden under his bed before emerging.

Kim Junsu said something nearly identical had happened to him during his TVXQ days. While the members were watching a movie at their dorm late at night, a motion-sensor light at the front door kept switching on and off. When they went to check, they found a woman had gotten inside. They thought they had calmly talked her into leaving and went to sleep — but she had not left. She entered the bedroom where the members were sleeping and kissed fellow member Kim Jaejoong.

Kim Junsu also described fans hiding in toilet stalls and emerging to approach members standing at urinals, asking for autographs. "That kind of thing happened constantly," he said. "It doesn't happen anymore, but it went on all through our 20s."