Do we like IU (Lee Ji-eun)?
Our score: 8 out of 10. No harmful words or acts of her own turned up, plus years of quiet giving; the record is thin on explicit LGBTQ+ advocacy.
Lee Ji-eun, better known as IU, was born in Seoul in 1993. Money was tight in her childhood, and she and her brother lived apart from their parents for a stretch. She kept auditioning through a pile of rejections, signed with a label in 2007 and debuted in 2008. 'Good Day' in 2010 made her a household name.
From there she went from pop star to serious actress: Dream High, Moon Lovers, My Mister, Hotel del Luna, then the films Broker and Dream. She is one of the rare Korean stars who has been a top-tier singer and a top-tier actress for over a decade.
Her messiest old stoush is 'Zeze' in 2015. The song drew criticism from the novel's Korean publisher for treating a five-year-old character as a sexual object, and a petition of around 40,000 people asked for it to be pulled from the charts. IU said she never meant that, and apologised for the offence the lyrics caused. Debate over the song has continued since.
The harm check comes up clean. We found no anti-LGBTQ+, anti-women, anti-migrant or climate-denial words or acts from her. In 2024 her single 'Love Wins' drew queerbaiting criticism, and her agency retitled it 'Love Wins All'. Its statement called any phrase contradicting the song's message 'hatred'. That was the agency speaking, not IU, so we can't give her personal credit for it, but she didn't dig in.
She has also been on the receiving end. In 2023 a plagiarism complaint against her was dismissed by investigators, and her side called it a malicious complaint. A commenter who repeatedly posted insulting remarks about her had a fine lifted to a suspended four-month prison term on appeal in 2026. Her agency has kept pursuing others.
The 2026 drama Perfect Crown brought a smaller bother. Viewers picked at the royal coronation chant, crown and tea ceremony as historically off, and IU apologised at a fan screening and online. She wrote that she was “deeply sorry” and had failed to show the responsibility expected of her. It's an own-it apology, not a deflection.