(FNC Entertainment)

Han Seong-ho, founder and CEO of FNC Entertainment -- which represents a handful of K-pop groups including FT Island, CNBLUE and AOA, and entertainers such as Yoo Jae-suk and Jung Hyung-don -- said that while plastic surgery was prevalent among Korean celebrities, it was not a must.

“An artist does not necessarily have to receive plastic surgery or look perfect in order to gain popularity or possess that ‘star’ quality,” said Han at a forum for the globalization of K-pop at the Asia Music Network, which is taking place at Seoul’s Sangam-dong on Friday and Saturday.
“An artist can appeal to the public with their individual charms.”

At the same time, Han added that whether or not an artist goes under the knife is a decision “to be made by a team of producers, factoring in each artist’s characteristics, target audience, and so on.”

By Rumy Doo (bigbird@heraldcorp.com)