‘Great Talent’ winner keeps donation promise

Baek Cheong-gang, winner of the MBC’s star search program “Great Talent,” kept his promise that he would donate the half of his prize money to a welfare center to help underprivileged people.

The broadcaster said on Wednesday that Baek visited Sangrok Orphanage in Seoul and donated 50 million won worth of cash, clothes and socks.

Baek and MBC discussed which organization would be the beneficiary, MBC said.

Baek was announced as winner of the “Great Talent” final competition on May 27 at the Korea University’s Hwajeong Gymnasium, receiving 100 million won in prize money and 200 million won funding a recording with a label.

Just before going into the final competition, Baek told reporters that if he won, he would donate half of the prize money to people with more difficult lives than he had.

Baek comes from Yanbian, China, where a large number of ethnic Koreans live. His winning of the audition program has often been called a “Korean dream come true.”

Earlier in the day, Baek also visited amusement park Everland with other “Great Talent” finalists.

By Kim Yoon-mi (yoonmi@heraldcorp.com)