Eun Ji-won
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Eun Ji-won
Hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The le ...
: 은지원,
Hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, ...
: 殷志源, (born June 8, 1978) is a South Korean rapper and entertainer. He is the leader of the first generation idol group
Sechs Kies Sechs Kies (pronounced as ; ko, 젝스키스) is a first generation South Korean boy band. Making their debut on April 15, 1997, they are one of the first K-pop idol groups, credited with pioneering the idol scene and fandom culture. The grou ...
(젝스키스). He is recognized as an ancestor of the K-pop world, paving the way for hip-hop in the Korean pop scene. He is also considered an entertainment icon, popularly known as "Eun Choding" (Elementary Eun) for his childish on-screen persona on ''1 Night 2 Days''. In addition to his music, he continues to appear in shows like ''
New Journey to the West ''New Journey to the West'' () is a South Korean travel- reality show that airs on tvN. This program started broadcasting on September 4, 2015 and has currently aired for 8 Seasons. New Journey to the West's cast members are Kang Ho-dong, Le ...
.''


Early life

Eun Jiwon was born in
Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...
, South Korea on June 8, 1978. His mother, Kim Seong Ah, was a singer from the female duo, the "Lily Sisters". Eun studied abroad in Hawaii, attending the
Hawaiian Mission Academy The Hawaiian Mission Academy (HMA) is a private coeducational day and boarding school in Honolulu, Hawaii. HMA is the only Academy that provides international dormitory housing on the island. It is a part of the Seventh-day Adventist education sy ...
, from Grade 9 to 12. He was schoolmates with former
Sechs Kies Sechs Kies (pronounced as ; ko, 젝스키스) is a first generation South Korean boy band. Making their debut on April 15, 1997, they are one of the first K-pop idol groups, credited with pioneering the idol scene and fandom culture. The grou ...
member, Kang Sung-hun. As a teen in Hawaii, he worked part time as a cafe DJ, where he picked up an interest in music and was recruited under DSP Media. He is related to Park Chung-hee and
Park Geun-hye Park Geun-hye (; ; often in English ; born 2 February 1952) is a South Korean politician who served as the 11th president of South Korea from 2013 to 2017, until she was impeached and convicted on related corruption charges. Park was the fi ...
, who both served as the President of South Korea.


Career


1997–2000: Sechs Kies

Eun Jiwon debuted under Sechskies on April 15, 1997 with their first single, "School Anthem" on the program KMTV Show! Music Tank. The team was met with positive reception and rose to fame with their hit songs ''PomSaengPomSa'' and ''Couple''. Eun described his time with Sechs Kies as hectic due to back-to-back schedules paired with little rest. In 1998, Eun made his on-screen debut, playing the lead role in the film ''Seventeen'', which also featured fellow Sechs Kies members. On May 18, 2000 Sechs Kies announced their disbandment. Despite their success, the group collectively to disband with hopes to succeed in the future. Following the disbandment, the group released a final track online, titled "Thanks". For more details regarding Sechs Kies' history see
Sechs Kies Sechs Kies (pronounced as ; ko, 젝스키스) is a first generation South Korean boy band. Making their debut on April 15, 1997, they are one of the first K-pop idol groups, credited with pioneering the idol scene and fandom culture. The grou ...
.


Solo career


2000–2004: Solo debut and breakthrough

Eun began his solo career on October 27, 2000 with the self composed mini album ''G''. He continued to release dance music with the album ''G Pop'', which was released on March 29, 2001. After the success of his first full album, Eun began to refine his style with his second album, ''Heavy G'', his first full hip-hop album. Under Waltz Music Entertainment he released his third album, ''Drunk in Hip Hop'' (including title track "Drunk in Melody") in September 6, 2003. The album was Eun's breakthrough into the hip-hop scene, solidifying his status as a rap artist and shedding his idol image. "Drunk in Melody" won Eun the Hip Hop Award at the 2003 SBS Gayo Awards and the KMTV Korean Music Awards. Eun repackaged his third album, including an alternate version of "Mi Casa Ro" and "Never, Ever" from his first solo album.


2004–2006: Acting and Hip-Hop

Eun starred in the
romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...
''Marrying a High-School Girl (여고생 시집가기)'' , which was released on December 23, 2004. The film was met with poor reviews and was criticized for its absurd plotline. Eun recounted that he was forced into the role, noting how he shaved his head in an act of rebellion against doing the film. Eun was a member of The Movement Crew (무브먼트), a hip-hop crew founded by
Tiger JK Seo Jung-kwon, Hangul: 서정권, Hanja: 徐廷權, also known as Tiger JK (born July 29, 1974) is a Korean-American rapper, record producer and entrepreneur best known as a founding member of Korean hip hop group Drunken Tiger. He has also foun ...
, and performed at the group concert on May 13, 2006. Eun credits Tiger JK as a major influence in his musical style. His songs often feature fellow members including
Drunken Tiger Drunken Tiger () was a Korean hip hop group that debuted in 1999 and has since released several albums and won numerous awards. They are known as pioneers of Korean hip-hop who helped bring the genre into the mainstream. The group's original lin ...
, Tasha (Yoon Mi Rae),
Dynamic Duo Dynamic duo may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups *Dúo Dinámico (Spanish for Dynamic Duo), a Spanish musical duo formed in 1958 and one of the main precursors of pop music in Spain *Dynamic Duo (South Korean duo), a South Ko ...
and
Bobby Kim Kim Do-kyun (; born January 12, 1973), more commonly known as Bobby Kim (Hangul: 바비 킴), is a South Korean hip hop and R&B artist. Music career His father, a trumpet player, influenced and exposed him to music. At an early age, he worke ...
.


2007–2010: Variety Television and GYM Entertainment

Eun returned with a single, "Adios," marking the beginning to his connection to Latin inspired music. His album ''Love, Death, Introspection'' (사랑 死랑 思랑) was released on October 30, 2007 with four new tracks and an instrumental version of "Adios". At this time, Eun joined the 13 Creative Unit, a subsidiary of Eyagi Entertainment. After appearing steadily in small entertainment television roles, Eun joined the KBS
reality Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, r ...
-
variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp ...
''1 Night 2 Days'' as a founding member. The show was met with nation-wide recognition and Eun became a staple household name. He was praised for his comedic personality as "Eun Choding" and continued to explore his career as a variety entertainer. In early 2009, Eun left CH Entertainment and founded his own company, GYM Entertainment. Eun released his fifth full-length studio album, ''Platonic'', an electronic dance album. The title track, "Siren", was a homage to his fans as his "last" dance song ever. However, he would continue to release the single ''While Buzzed'', another electronic dance song.


2011–2013: Clover and HotSechGodRG

On March 31, 2011, Eun Jiwon led a new group called Clover, including members Gilme and Mr. Tyfoon. Their debut song "La Vida Loca" was well-received, topping the Cyworld Music Chart just two weeks after the release. On September 29, 2011,
Clover Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus ...
released another digital single, "A Guy Who I Know (아는 오빠)". In January 2012, Clover received Hip-Hop/Rap Award at the 21st
Seoul Music Awards The Seoul Music Awards (; SMA) is a major South Korean music awards show presented by the newspaper ''Sports Seoul''. The award winners are selected based on a combination of criteria, including music sales, popular votes, and expert judges' op ...
. On August 14, 2012, Clover released its second digital single, "Pork Soup (돼지국밥)". On November 18, 2013, Clover's third digital single, "Trickling (주르륵)" was released. In 2013, Eun, Chun Myung-hoon,
Tony An Tony Ahn (; born June 7, 1978) is a South Korean singer, best known as a member of boy band H.O.T. After H.O.T. disbanded in 2001, its ex-members Tony Ahn, Jang Woo-hyuk and Lee Jae-won formed the dance music trio jtL. Eventually, JTL unoffi ...
,
Moon Hee-joon Moon Hee-joon (; or spelled Moon Hee-jun; born March 14, 1978) is a South Korean pop rock singer-songwriter signed under SidusHQ. He initially rose to fame as the leader of former boy band H.O.T. under SM Entertainment. Biography 1996–2001: ...
and
Danny Ahn Danny Ahn (Hangul: 데니안; born December 22, 1978) is a Korean-American entertainer best known as the main rapper of the South Korean pop music group g.o.d. He is notable for his unique rapping. Having made his debut in the entertainment indu ...
appeared on a new show on QTV called ''
Handsome Boys of the 20th Century ''Handsome Boys of the 20th Century'' () is a South Korean variety-reality show which aired on the cable channel QTV ( ko). It began airing on April 16, 2013 and ran for two seasons with a total of 29 episodes. Premise and concept The show feature ...
''. The show was a performance project, forming the group HotSechGodRG — a portmanteau of each member's previous idol group names. The show received much attention and HotSechGodRG and the group continued to work together outside of the main show. They performed on various entertainment programs, such as '' Immortal Songs: Singing the Legend'', '' Happy Together'' and ''Hwasin – Controller of the Heart'' (화신). In May 2014, it was announced that HotSechGodRG would return for a new show in July. Moon Hee-joon, Eun Ji-won, Danny Ahn, and Chun Myung Hoon starred in a new show called ''W.I.S.H. (Where is My Super Hero?)'', which was aired on
OnStyle tvN STORY is a South Korean cable and satellite television channel owned by CJ ENM E&M Division. The channel is targeted to women, originate from OnStyle. Programs * '' Project Runway Korea'' (February 7, 2009 – May 18, 2015) * '' Korea' ...
from July 19, 2014 to August 9, 2014.


2016: Sechs Kies reunion

On the Saturday, Saturday's, I Am A Singer segment of the show
Infinite Challenge ''Infinite Challenge'' (; abbreviated as ''Mudo'') is a South Korean television entertainment program, distributed and syndicated by MBC, that ran from 2005 to 2018. As of January 2013, it had the largest market share for its timeslot; with ...
, Sechs Kies held a reunion concert on September 10 and 11 at the
Olympic Gymnastics Arena The Olympic Gymnastics Arena (), also known as the KSPO Dome since 2018, is an indoor arena located within the Olympic Park in Seoul, South Korea. It has a capacity of 15,000 and can be extended upto 20,000. It was constructed between 31 Aug ...
. The group re-banded and signed a contract under
YG Entertainment YG Entertainment Inc. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency established in 1996 by Yang Hyun-suk. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management and concert production comp ...
. The group's reunion went viral, sparking an influx of old and new fans to gather, resulting in their comeback concert tickets to sell out in only five minutes. On October 7, SechsKies released a new digital single "Three Words (세 단어)" which topped all 8 major music charts shortly after release, achieving all-kill status. It also ranked high in Asian music charts and global iTunes in Taiwan and is among top tracks on iTunes charts in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and more. On November 23, YG announced that Sechs Kies' new album will be released on December 1, 2016. The new album " 2016 Re-ALBUM" contains 10 past hit songs of SechsKies that were rearranged and remastered by YG producers, and is prepared a special gift for fans. At the end of the year, Sechs Kies won several awards including Click! Star Wars Awards Hall of Fame, the 6th Gaon Chart Music Awards The Kpop Contribution of The Year, the 8th Melon Music Awards Hall of Fame, the 31st Golden Disc Awards Best Male Group Performance and the 26th Seoul Music Awards Bonsang.


2017–2018: ''The 20th Anniversary''

On March 18, Eun Jiwon announced the re-opening of his official fan club '1KYNE'. On March 28, he launched the official fanclub at 12 KST and over 30,000 fans logged onto the website, causing the site to crashed before they were able to register. On April 19, YG announced that Sechs Kies' album '' The 20th Anniversary'' would be released on April 28, 2017. Along with the release of the album, the album topped multiple charts around the world, a new mark in their status as hallyu stars. Sechs Kies continued to hold consecutive wins for the title track "Be Well" on MBC Music Core and won #1 on KBS Music Bank. On August 16, YG announced Eun Ji Won has officially signed individual contract with YG Entertainment.


2019: Solo comeback

On June 6, 2019, it was revealed the Eun would make a solo return to the music scene with his sixth album '' G1'' on June 27. The lead single "I'm On Fire", featuring female vocalist Blue.D, was produced by YG producer Future Bounce and label-mate
Winner Winner(s) or The Winner(s) may refer to: * Champion, the victor in a game or contest *The successful social class in winner and loser culture Film * ''The Winner'' (1926 film), an American silent film starring Billy Sullivan * ''The Winner'' ...
's
Mino Mino may refer to: Places in Japan * Mino, Gifu, a city in Gifu Prefecture * Mino, Kagawa, a former town in Kagawa Prefecture * Mino, Tokushima, a town in Tokushima Prefecture * Mino, an alternate spelling of Minoh, a city in Osaka Prefecture * Mi ...
, with lyrics written by Mino and Eun Ji-won himself. 2020–Present: Current Lineup and Future Plans On January 28, 2020,
Sechs Kies Sechs Kies (pronounced as ; ko, 젝스키스) is a first generation South Korean boy band. Making their debut on April 15, 1997, they are one of the first K-pop idol groups, credited with pioneering the idol scene and fandom culture. The grou ...
returned with their first mini album "All For You" following Kang Sung-hoon's withdrawal from the group. The group began to take a slower approach to music, leaning into ballads and old school R&B. The song won first place on Mnet M Countdown. With their appearance on the variety program ''Three Meals for Four'' and with the help of
Yoo Hee-yeol You Hee-yeol (; born April 19, 1971) is a South Korean singer-songwriter, radio disk jockey, and the host of ''You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook''. He is the founder of the record label Antenna Music and the sole member of the project band Toy. Biogr ...
, the four starred in the project, ''Don't Look Back'', documenting the making of the digital single "Don't Look Back," which was released on on February 5, 2021. The song topped major music charts in Korea, including Bugs, Genie, and Vibe. As of 2022, Eun continues to work as an entertainer on variety television, currently a fixed member on shows including ''Master in the House'', ''Things That Make Me Groove'' Season 2, and ''Naked World History''.


Personal life


2010: Marriage

In February 2010 Eun announced that he would marry his first love, a woman two years his senior. The two knew each other since 1994 and reunited 13 years later, eventually getting married on April 20, 2010. By marriage, Eun Jiwon and soccer player
Lee Dong-Gook Lee Dong-gook (, ; born 29 April 1979) is a South Korean former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is a record scorer in the K League 1, and had brief spells in Europe with Werder Bremen and Middlesbrough. He also played for ...
became brother-in-laws.


2013: Divorce announcement

On February 28, 2013, Eun announced that he and his wife divorced in August 2012 due to differences in personality.


Criticism

Eun is the only member of Sechs Kies to face criticism since the disbandment for changing his musical genre from
pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former descri ...
to hip hop.하드보일드 매치, 맞짱 문희준 VS 은지원 2부
''YTN Star''. Retrieved January 4, 2008.


Discography


Albums

* 2001: ''G Pop'' * 2002: ''Money'' * 2003: ''Eun Ji-won Best'' * 2003: '' Drunken in Hip Hop'' * 2005: ''The 2nd Round'' * 2009: ''Platonic'' * 2019: '' G1''


Music credits


Filmography


Music Videos


Solo career


Film


Dramas


Host


Variety Shows


Endorsement


Radio career

Notes: Eun Jiwon was the first DJ on MBC FM4U (친한 친구), from 2002 to 2003.


Awards and nominations


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Eun, Ji-won 1978 births K-pop singers Living people DSP Media artists South Korean male idols Sechs Kies members South Korean Buddhists South Korean male film actors South Korean male television actors South Korean male rappers South Korean pop singers South Korean singer-songwriters YG Entertainment artists Haengju Eun clan Rappers from Seoul South Korean male singer-songwriters South Korean hip hop record producers