Stand-up comedian Lee Sang-jun has shared his thoughts and a renewed commitment to his activities following controversies surrounding his US tour.
On August 5, Lee took to his Instagram to address criticisms regarding his performances, writing, "Starting in June 2025, I grew too fast and received so much love. Because I was growing so fast, I half-jokingly and half-seriousness said in the middle of my shows since two months ago that I felt like I was going to hit rock bottom soon. Expecting that some kind of incident would inevitably blow up at some point, I am actually not hurting that much right now."
Previously, an audience member who attended Lee's show in Los Angeles wrote a post claiming that Lee arrived 10 minutes late and that the sound quality was poor, making it difficult to understand the content.
Regarding this, Lee explained, "I was behind the curtain 10 minutes before the show started, but the audience seating wasn't organized yet, so we started about 10 minutes late, but I was never late. I arrived in the morning and finished sound checks and all rehearsals." However, regarding the sound issue, he apologized again, stating, "After the show, I confirmed that the sound was bad in the front rows on both sides, and I am reflecting on why I couldn't check that thoroughly and feel very sorry about this part."
He also responded to criticisms about his show content. Addressing the criticism that he did not rehearse properly because he visited a baseball stadium right after arriving in LA, Lee stated, "I have never lived in LA, so I purposely walked around to find relatable topics for LA. I wanted to do comedy jokes about LA to you guys at the venue." Citing his New York show last April, he explained his creative process, saying, "I ran 10 kilometers in Central Park—something I don't normally do—right after arriving, purposely went to get a foot massage, and walked around to gather stories from New York. I turned those feelings and experiences into comedy on stage."
Regarding the level and quality of the performance, he said, "If you talk about the content, level, and fun of the rest of the shows, this is just my current level. I am constantly studying and researching. People who like this level are the ones who come, and if you don't, you don't have to come. You can come and see it, and if you like it, you can come again, and if not, you don't have to."
He added, "I plan to gather your reviews and comments and turn this into comedy as well. I'm getting older, so I don't have time to be frustrated. If the comedy I'm doing right now fails, someone else among us has to start over like this. As of today, I'm going back to being a troublemaker. In the evening, I'm going to watch soccer and head over to Atlanta. I'll start with the LA story in Atlanta."
Regarding the ticket price reaching 170 dollars, Lee also added, "The rest of the US and Canada schedules are left, so please come and check for yourselves. If you think the tickets are expensive, come to Korea and watch. Tickets in Korea are 45,000 won, and they are completely sold out right now. We will open additional tickets soon. I am truly sorry to the people who first posted in the US, and I will make good, fun use of the posts you uploaded."
Meanwhile, after stepping down from a segment on "Gag Concert," Lee has been taking on the challenge of stand-up comedy out of a longing for the stage, presenting the "Lee Sang-jun Show."
(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Kyung-youn)
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