Rare Disease YouTuber Accidentally Meets Lee Hyori on Plane
Asks About Treatment Journey and Listens Attentively with Serious Expression
YouTuber 'dailyYeoni' coincidentally meeting singer Lee Hyori on an airplane. [Photo by YouTube channel 'dailyYeoni']
Singer Lee Hyori has attracted attention after she happened to meet a YouTuber suffering from a rare disease on a plane and willingly agreed to appear in a video.
On the 13th, the YouTube channel 'dailyYeoni' uploaded footage showing YouTuber A, who runs the channel, sitting next to Lee Hyori on a flight to Jeju Island and having a conversation. The video started gaining word-of-mouth on social networking services (SNS) around the 19th and reached 160,000 views as of 8 a.m. on the 20th.
A suffers from epidermolysis bullosa, a rare skin disease, and shares her battle process through videos. The skin consists of two layers: the inner dermis and the outer epidermis. In normal people, protein bonds made of collagen between the two layers prevent them from separating, but in patients with epidermolysis bullosa, these bonding proteins are absent. Even slight friction between the layers causes blisters, and the pain experienced is comparable to that of a third-degree burn.
The channel had about 30,000 subscribers, but after uploading the video of the conversation with Lee Hyori, the number of subscribers increased by about 10,000.
In the video, A explained, "I boarded the plane and the seat next to me was Hyori unnie. After takeoff, unnie started the conversation, and when I talked about YouTube, she suggested filming our conversation. She also readily allowed me to upload it," describing the situation at the time.
In the video, Lee Hyori, without makeup, comfortably chatted with A. She even adjusted the camera angle herself and joked around, continuing a warm conversation with A for about 20 minutes.
Lee Hyori said, "My face doesn’t look good right now. I think every woman has some kind of appearance complex," adding, "I have one too. People might say they don’t understand, but (I have complexes). In the end, you’re just tormenting yourself. It’s exhausting," honestly sharing her inner thoughts.
She continued, "I also get nervous when I feel someone recognizes me. I think YouTubers feel the same," adding, "Either way, it’s uncomfortable. Ordinary people want to be special, and special people want to be ordinary. When you cut your hair, don’t you want to grow it out?" she joked.
YouTuber 'dailyYeoni' coincidentally met singer Lee Hyori on an airplane. Lee is showing a letter given by a fan. [Photo by YouTube channel 'dailyYeoni']
They also talked about a letter from a fan. Lee Hyori showed a post-it note letter given by a fan on the plane and said, "You know that unnie is more liked by women than men," adding, "I’m grateful that women like me more."
Lee Hyori asked A about the reason for her trip to Jeju Island and her battle process, listening attentively with a serious expression. She said warmly, "Do patients watch (the YouTube videos) a lot? I should watch them when I get home," showing a friendly attitude.
When A confided, "When I was young, I thought medicine would be available when I grew up, but the same situation keeps happening. It’s so sad to think I have to live like this for another 30 years," Lee Hyori comforted her, saying, "It hurts when you’re sick, but when you’re not, everything is happiness. But when you’re not sick, you keep wanting more," adding, "In the end, you just have to love yourself."
When A mentioned she was repeatedly hospitalized and discharged, Lee Hyori empathized, saying, "It must be really frustrating to stay in the hospital for a long time." When A said it was good to be able to continuously receive painkiller injections during hospitalization, Lee Hyori worried, "Doesn’t your body build up a tolerance to (painkillers)?" As the plane was about to land, she warmly encouraged her, saying, "Have a fun trip, and good luck with your hospitalization too."
YouTuber 'dailyYeoni' shared her thoughts on meeting Lee Hyori. [Photo by YouTube channel 'dailyYeoni']
In the video description, A wrote, "Something unbelievable happened to me. I still can’t believe I had a conversation with Hyori unnie."
She added, "Unnie looked at me with sincere eyes and focused when we talked. As a very introverted person, I felt comfortable enough to share my inner thoughts. I’m so thankful to Hyori unnie for creating such an unforgettable memory," she said.
Meanwhile, Lee Hyori debuted in 1998 as a member of the girl group Fin.K.L with the release of 'Fine Killing Liberty.' Later, in August 2003, she made her solo debut with her first full-length album STYLISH…E hyOlee, which sold 70,000 pre-orders and ranked first in album sales at the time. She also gained popularity as a TV personality, appearing on shows such as 'Happy Together Season 2 - Friends,' 'Sunday is Good - Change,' and 'Imagination Plus - Season 2,' where her natural and down-to-earth personality was well received.
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