Sometimes i feel like peoole on allkpop are a bit out of touch with what is really going on within the korean entertainment industry. Daniel is literally one if the most successful male idol soloists. He is the second best selling soloist with other 1 million accumulate sales in 1 year, own his own company, has lots of cf deals and collaborations with big brands like puma, givenchy, kakao friends, pepsi, mexicana and all of those were acquired thanks to his own reputation because he doesnt have any big company to back him up.
For the people believing the brand reputation, he is topping them too (was second in the last one for example) and gets a magazine cover almost every single month.
Daniel is literally an household name in korea.
He is lacking in western international recognition but it doesnt make him a nugu. International fame is pretty much useless for the moment and does not bring that much money.
If you feel bad for him you should feel bad for 99% of idols too because he is among the top idols.