Aaron Kwak (born May 21, 1993), also known by the stage name Aron, is an American singer, rapper and radio-television personality. He began his professional career in 2012 as a main rapper of the South Korean boy group NUEST. Following his contract expiration with

Pledis Entertainment Pledis Entertainment () is a South Korean entertainment company founded by Han Sung-Soo in 2007. The label is home to actress Nana, Hwang Min-hyun, Baekho, and K-pop groups Seventeen and Fromis 9. Its name originates from the pleiades, a star cl ...

in 2022, Kwak established his career as a freelance radio and television host, appearing in various South Korean programs.

Early life

Aron was born on May 21, 1993, in Los Angeles, California. He attended Loyola High School and was on the varsity golf team, earning the Rookie of the Year Award in 2008 from

Daniel Murphy High School Daniel Murphy High School was a Catholic all-boys high school located in Los Angeles, California. It was located in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. History Daniel Murphy High School was originally the home of Los Angeles College, a Catholic junio ...

. He tested within the top 0.5% on the

SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times; originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, it was later called the Schol ...

s with a score of 2180 out of 2400. Aron had been accepted into

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

and intended to major in journalism but ultimately did not attend after choosing to become a singer.

Career

Pre-debut

While attending the LA Korean Festival in 2009, Aron was invited to take part in the Pledis USA Personal Auditions, where he performed "

So Sick "So Sick" is a song by American singer-songwriter Ne-Yo, written alongside Norwegian production duo Stargate for Ne-Yo's debut studio album, '' In My Own Words'' (2006). The song was released as the second single from the album on November 21, 2 ...

" by

Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...

and participated in a one-week trial boot camp in South Korea. He subsequently signed with

. After finishing high school, he returned to South Korea and trained for nine months. Prior to debuting, Aron appeared as a back-up dancer in After School Blue's "Wonder Boy" in 2011. He participated in Pledis Entertainment's Christmas single "Love Letter" and was also featured in an alternate music video for the song as a member of Pledis Boys. He performed with After School with the rest of Pledis Boys, now dubbed "After School Boys", at the ''

SBS Gayo Daejeon ''SBS Gayo Daejeon'' (, broadly ''SBS'' '' Battle of the Bands'') is an annual televised music festival that is broadcast by the Seoul Broadcasting System at the end of each year. The program first aired in 1997, and awards were given to musica ...

''.

2012–2022: NU'EST

Along with four other Pledis Boys, Aron debuted in the boy band

NU'EST NU'EST (; short for New Establish Style Tempo) was a South Korean boy band formed and managed by Pledis Entertainment. The group consisted of five members: JR, Aron, Baekho, Minhyun and Ren. They debuted on March 15, 2012, with the single ...

in 2012 as a sub-vocalist. From April 8, 2013, to April 19, 2015, he hosted

Arirang Radio Arirang Radio (, stylized as arirang) is an English-language South Korean television network based in Seoul and aimed at an overseas audience. It is operated by the Korea International Broadcasting Foundation and is financially supported by the Mi ...

's ''Music Access'' radio program. In 2014, he was featured as a guest artist on the song "Got it Figured Out" by Chad Future. From August 14, 2015, to April 24, 2016, he hosted his own radio show, ''Aron's Hangout'', on

SBS PopAsia SBS PopAsia is an Australian digital radio station that broadcasts music, most notably from East Asia and Southeast Asia, on digital radio, online and on mobile devices. The station originated as a two-hour segment on SBS youth radio programme ...

. From 2017 to 2018, Aron promoted with the other NU'EST members as the sub-group

NU'EST W NU'EST W was the second subunit of South Korean boy band, NU'EST. The group consisted of NU'EST members, JR, Aron, Baekho, and Ren, promoting in the absence of Minhyun, who at the time was promoting with Wanna One. The group disbanded on Dec ...

in the absence of Minhyun, who was exclusively promoting with

Wanna One Wanna One () was a South Korean boy band formed by CJ E&M through the second season of ''Produce 101''. The group was composed of eleven members: Kang Daniel, Park Ji-hoon, Lee Dae-hwi, Kim Jae-hwan, Ong Seong-wu, Park Woo-jin, Lai Kuan-lin, Yo ...

at the time. During the group's activity, he wrote the lyrics for his solo songs, "Good Love" and "Wi-Fi." He was also featured as a guest artist on the song "Loop" by Raina. From 2020 to 2021, Aron hosted the radio show ''"To.Night"'' on Naver NOW with bandmate Ren. It was announced on February 28, 2022, that NU'EST's exclusive contract with Pledis Entertainment will expire on March 14, 2022, and that Aron (alongside members JR and Ren) will leave the agency, therefore concluding their 10-year career as a group.

2022-present: solo activities

On March 21, 2022, Aron announced he was hosting a podcast titled ''Korean Cowboys'' with South Korean television personality Joel Lane. In May 2022, Aron was introduced as a host for the second season of Real Korea 5, a lifestyle channel. Within the same month, Aron held his first solo fan meeting at the Yonsei University's Centennial Memorial Hall to celebrate his 30th birthday with the fans. In July 2022, Aron became a co-host of the

Arirang TV Arirang International Broadcasting is a South Korean-based broadcasting company operated by the International Broadcasting Exchange Foundation. It began as a cable TV service in South Korea on February 3, 1997, and opened Korea's first overseas ...

talk show ''

After School Club ''After School Club'', often shortened to ''ASC'', is a South Korean interactive music talk show that primarily airs on Arirang TV. Premiering on April 17, 2013, the show is currently co-hosted by Allen and Taeyoung of Cravity and Aaron Kwak. ...

.'' In November 2022, Aron opened his private messaging service thru Wonderwall's "Fromm".

Discography

As featured artist

Filmography

Television shows

Radio shows

Web shows

Awards and nominations

References

{{Authority control 1993 births Living people People from Los Angeles Rappers from Los Angeles Singers from Los Angeles American expatriates in South Korea American rappers of East Asian descent American K-pop singers Korean-language singers of the United States Pledis Entertainment artists South Korean male idols