Leessang's Gil Denies Producer's Claims Of Assault, Intimidation, And Exploitation Of Labor

Leessang’s Gil has responded to allegations made by a producer named Tank that Gil exploited and assaulted his staff and colleagues.

On February 17, singer and producer Tank (real name Ahn Jin Woong) posted a video on his YouTube channel. Tank has produced songs for Lee Hi, Verbal Jint, Baek Ji Young, Ong Seong Wu, and more.

In the video, Tank referred to Gil as a former top hip hop producer and variety show star in Korea who was charged three times for drunk driving. Tank accused Gil of violence against women, assaulting his manager, and exploitation of labor of his staff. He said that Gil had dated four women at the same time and gone to nightclubs to have one-night stands and treated colleagues like Tank like slaves without signing a contract.

Tank explained that he had met Gil for the first time at a place called Kwak Studio, not long after he stepped down from “Infinite Challenge.” Tank claimed that he and three other producers were essentially imprisoned in the practice room for “Infinite Challenge” and given a check card with 1.2 million won (about $1,084) on it to cover their food fees for four months. Tank further alleged that there was no other monthly payment and if the producers didn’t come up with songs that Gil liked, Gil would verbally abuse them and even physically assault them.

Tank also said that Gil had physically and verbally assaulted his stylists and managers to the point that it affected filming for “Infinite Challenge” and he was given a warning by Yoo Jae Suk and HaHa. Tank also said that when Gil was in danger of being sued for plagiarism for the song “Horangnabi,” Gil told Tank to take legal responsibility. Tank admitted that he had been the one to come up with the first draft of the song, but added that he had nothing to do with the chorus, the final lyrics, the melody, or the arrangement. Tank claimed that Gil had plagiarized Kim Heung Gook’s “Horangnabi” himself without getting permission from the copyright holders.

Tank also alleged that Gil had verbally abused Oh In Hye, his girlfriend at the time, an actress who passed away in September 2020. Tank furthermore claimed that Gil had also insulted IU after he saw a video of her singing to Leessang’s songs at karaoke.

As of February 18 at 11 p.m. KST, the video has been deleted.

On February 19, Gil and his legal representatives, Oracle, shared an official statement responding to Tank’s allegations.

In the statement, Gil denied all the claims that Tank made in his YouTube video. He explained that he had worked with Tank as part of a producer team for about a year, and that this was not on an employer-employee basis but as a partnership. As a result, payment would be a division of profits from the music the team created. Gil claimed that although the producers on the team were supposed to divide expenses as well, Tank only claimed the profits without paying for expenses.

Gil said that Tank’s claims about exploitation of labor were false because Tank received three times more profit from “Horangnabi” than Gil did. Gil also questioned how he would have been able to imprison people in the “Infinite Challenge” practice room, which was shared by multiple members.

Gil also stated that he had negotiated the copyright issues of his song “Horangnabi” with Lee Hye Min, who had written and produced Kim Heung Gook’s “Horangnabi,” after the song was released on “Show Me the Money.” Gil added that he had contacted Tank about the results of this negotiation, but that there was no intimidation or threats involved.

Gil also said that prior to the YouTube video being uploaded, Tank had sent him and his acquaintances messages claiming to be treated for mental illness and threatening suicide. Gil also said that he had heard other artists being sent messages like this as well as requests to work together and buy him drinks.

The statement said, “Despite this situation, Gil endured this treatment because he felt pity for someone who was his senior in life and once his teammate. But this YouTuber has continued his outrageous behavior, even going so far as to bring up the name of the deceased solely to bring Gil down, and mentioned celebrities who have no connection to this issue whatsoever. Therefore, Gil decided he could no longer stay silent.”

The statement announced that Gil would be taking legal action against the spread of false rumors in both criminal and civil lawsuits for damages, and that he had no plans for lenient treatment against the offenders.

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