IU is from a poor background (“She and her younger brother lived apart from their parents in a studio room with their grandmother and cousin for over one year in conditions of great poverty.”, “She attended 20 auditions but failed to succeed in any of them, and was also scammed by fake entertainment companies.”, “Due to her poor living conditions at the time, IU stated that she “loved being at the studio”, where she could eat as much as she wanted and had a place to sleep.”). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IU_(entertainer)
Debuting at 15 as an ordinary K-Pop idol, she found success quickly before breaking free of industry restraints to become a proper singer-songwriter who writes, produces, and composes her own music. She broke the idol mold and became beloved by all demographics; she is a rare example of a soloist who is more popular than most boy and girl groups.
Furthermore, she successfully moved into acting and shattered the stereotype of idol-turned-actors being poor performers (she is the lead in one of the best Korean series of all time, When Life Gives You Tangerines). She was even awarded by the National Tax Service as an Exemplary Taxpayer. Finally, she is a prolific donor, having contributed $650k in 2025 alone and donating nearly $1 million every year. https://www.soompi.com/article/1386237wpp/lee-seo-jin-iu-and-gray-receive-awards-for-being-exemplary-taxpayers
David Attenborough
The man’s spent SEVENTY YEARS educating people about the world in which they live. He’s been a relentless campaigner for environmental reform for literally decades. He has almost certainly done more to bring global empathy to the British than anyone else, and yet he’s still remarkably humble.
Today is his 100th birthday, and he’s still doing the thing he’s been doing almost since he joined the BBC back in 1952. He’s never sold out, never changed his tune, never aligned himself in any way that won’t go some way towards helping to educate people.
And that’s exceptionally rare.