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Jeon Jung-kook (; born September 1, 1997), known mononymously as Jungkook (stylized as Jung Kook), is a South Korean singer. He is the youngest member and vocalist of the South Korean boy band
BTS BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010 and debuting in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment. The septet—consisting of members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook—co-writes and co-produ ...
. Jungkook has released three solo tracks as part of BTS discography: " Begin" in 2016, "
Euphoria Euphoria ( ) is the experience (or affect) of pleasure or excitement and intense feelings of well-being and happiness. Certain natural rewards and social activities, such as aerobic exercise, laughter, listening to or making music and da ...
" in 2018, and " My Time" in 2020, all of which have charted on South Korea's
Gaon Digital Chart The Circle Digital Chart, previously known as the Gaon Digital Chart, is the music industry standard record chart ranking the 200 most popular singles in South Korea. It provides rankings on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis, which is based o ...
. He also sang the soundtrack for the BTS-based webtoon ''7Fates: Chakho'', titled "
Stay Alive ''Stay Alive'' is a 2006 American supernatural horror film directed by William Brent Bell, who co-wrote it with Matthew Peterman. The film was produced by Joseph McGinty Nichol, and released on March 24, 2006 in the United States. It was the first ...
". In 2022, he was featured on the single " Left and Right" by American singer-songwriter
Charlie Puth Charles Otto Puth Jr. (; born December 2, 1991) is an American singer and songwriter. His initial exposure came through the viral success of his song videos uploaded to YouTube. Puth initially signed with the record label eleveneleven after p ...
, which peaked at number 22 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Later that year, he became the first South Korean singer to release a song for the
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
soundtrack, with " Dreamers", which he subsequently performed at the
2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup is an international association football, football tournament contested by the men's national teams of FIFA's member associations. The 22nd FIFA World Cup is taking place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022 ...
Opening Ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.
. Jungkook's tracks as a soloist have also seen success on
Spotify Spotify (; ) is a proprietary Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 456 million monthly active us ...
charts, with " Dreamers", "
Stay Alive ''Stay Alive'' is a 2006 American supernatural horror film directed by William Brent Bell, who co-wrote it with Matthew Peterman. The film was produced by Joseph McGinty Nichol, and released on March 24, 2006 in the United States. It was the first ...
", and " Left and Right" all breaking records as the highest-debuting songs by a Korean soloist on the Spotify Global chart.


Early life and education

Jeon Jung-kook () was born on September 1, 1997, in
Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...
, South Korea. His family consists of his parents and an elder brother. He attended Baekyang Elementary and Middle School in Busan. When he became a trainee, he transferred to Singu Middle School 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 ...
. Jungkook initially had dreams of becoming a badminton player when he was younger, but after seeing
G-Dragon Kwon Ji-yong (; born August 18, 1988), also known by his stage name G-Dragon (지드래곤), is a South Korean rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur and fashion designer, known as the " King of K-pop". G-Dragon is the recipi ...
perform "
Heartbreaker Heartbreaker(s) or The Heart Breaker(s) may refer to: Film and television *''The Heart Breakers'', a 1916 film starring Andrew Arbuckle *''The Heart Breaker'', a 1925 film directed by Benjamin Stoloff * ''Heartbreaker'' (1983 film), an American f ...
" on television, it influenced him to want to become a singer. In 2011, Jungkook auditioned for the South Korean talent show ''
Superstar K ''Superstar K'' ( ko, 슈퍼스타 K) is a South Korean television talent show series which is held yearly. First held in 2009, Superstar K has increasingly gained more attention, considered the biggest audition program in South Korea. Superstar ...
'' during its auditions in
Daegu Daegu (, , literally 'large hill', 대구광역시), formerly spelled Taegu and officially known as the Daegu Metropolitan City, is a city in South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; it is ...
. Though he was not selected, he received casting offers from seven entertainment companies. He eventually chose to become a trainee under
Big Hit Entertainment Big Hit Music (; formerly Big Hit Entertainment) is a South Korean music label established in 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk. It was re-branded and re-structured into an independent label under Hybe Corporation (formerly Big Hit Entertainment Co., Ltd.) ...
after seeing RM, now his fellow band member and leader in
BTS BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010 and debuting in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment. The septet—consisting of members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook—co-writes and co-produ ...
, perform. To work on his dance skills in preparation for debut, he went to
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
during the summer of 2012 to receive dance training from Movement Lifestyle. In June 2012, he appeared in
Jo Kwon Jo Kwon ( born on August 28, 1989) is a South Korean singer, television host, actor, entertainer and the leader of South Korean boy band 2AM. He has starred in multiple musicals such as ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' playing the role of King Her ...
's "I'm Da One" music video and also worked as a backup dancer for Glam before his debut. He graduated from
School of Performing Arts Seoul School of Performing Arts Seoul ( ko, 서울공연예술고등학교), colloquially known as (SOPA) in South Korea, is an arts high school in Gung-dong, Guro District, Seoul. History SOPA was founded on March 6, 1966 as Jeonghui High School ...
, an arts high school, in 2017. In November 2016, he decided to forgo taking the CSATs, Korea's nationwide university entrance exam. In March 2022, he received his degree from Global Cyber University's Department of Broadcasting and Entertainment. He was awarded the President's Award, the school's highest honor.


Career


2013–present: BTS

On June 12, 2013, Jungkook made his debut as a member of
BTS BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010 and debuting in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment. The septet—consisting of members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook—co-writes and co-produ ...
with the release of the single ''
2 Cool 4 Skool ''2 Cool 4 Skool'' is the debut single album released by South Korean boy band BTS on June 12, 2013 through Big Hit Entertainment and distributed by Loen. The album was supported by the singles "No More Dream" and "We Are Bulletproof Pt.2". Commer ...
''. Under BTS, he has sung three solo songs. The first, a pop track titled "Begin", from the 2016 album ''
Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...
'', tells his story of moving to Seoul at a young age to become an idol and expresses his gratitude towards his bandmates for taking care of him during that time. The second, a
future bass Future bass is a style of electronic dance music which developed in the 2010s that mixes elements of dubstep and trap with warmer, less abrasive rhythms. The genre was pioneered by producers such as Rustie, Hudson Mohawke, Lido, San Holo and Ca ...
song titled "
Euphoria Euphoria ( ) is the experience (or affect) of pleasure or excitement and intense feelings of well-being and happiness. Certain natural rewards and social activities, such as aerobic exercise, laughter, listening to or making music and da ...
", was released with an accompanying nine-minute short film on April 5, 2018, as the introduction to the third part of BTS' "Love Yourself" series. Produced by
DJ Swivel Jordan Young (born 14 December 1984), known professionally as DJ Swivel, is a Canadian music producer, mixer, audio engineer, and DJ. He is a prominent audio engineer best known for working with Beyoncé as her personal recording engineer. He ...
, the song charted at number five on the ''Billboard''
Bubbling Under Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...
. Its full studio version was included on BTS' '' Love Yourself: Answer'' compilation album, released on August 24. The third solo, "My Time", off the band's 2020 studio album '' Map of the Soul: 7'', is an R&B song about forgoing teenage experiences because of his career, and charted at number 84 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. "Euphoria" and "My Time" are the first and second longest-charting solo tracks among K-pop singers on the ''Billboard''
World Digital Song Sales The World Digital Song Sales chart (formerly World Digital Songs) is a weekly record chart compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published by '' Billboard'' magazine. Established in 2010—with the issue dated January 23—as one of 21 genre-specific s ...
chart, having spent a record 90 and 85 weeks respectively on the ranking. Aside from singing, Jungkook has also helped produce two songs for BTS: "Love is Not Over", from the band's 2015
extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.
(EP) '' The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 1'', and "Magic Shop", from the band's 2018 album '' Love Yourself: Tear''—he is credited as the main producer for both tracks. In October 2018, Jungkook was ordained alongside his bandmates with the fifth-class Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit by the
President of South Korea The president of the Republic of Korea (), also known as the president of South Korea (often abbreviated to POTROK or POSK; ), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Korea. The president leads the State Council, and is ...
,
Moon Jae-in Moon Jae-in (; ; born 24 January 1953) is a South Korean former politician, civil servant and lawyer who served as the 12th president of South Korea between 2017 and 2022. Prior to his presidency, he served as Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs an ...
. He was appointed Special Presidential Envoy for Future Generations and Culture, again alongside his bandmates, by Moon in July 2021, in order to help "lead the global agenda for future generations, such as sustainable growth" and "expand South Korea's diplomatic efforts and global standing" in the international community.


2015–present: Solo activities

In September 2015, Jungkook participated in the "One Dream, One Korea" campaign, taking part in a song collaboration alongside various Korean artists in memory of the
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
. The song was released on September 24 and presented at the One K Concert in Seoul on October 15. The following year, Jungkook was cast in the pilot episode of ''
Flower Crew ''Flower Crew'' () is a South Korean travel- reality show that was formerly broadcast via SBS on Mondays at 23:10 ( KST) from September 5 to November 21, 2016. Starting November 27, 2016, it aired every Sunday at 16:50 (KST), before '' Running M ...
''. He also appeared on ''
Celebrity Bromance ''Celebrity Bromance'' () is a South Korean variety show broadcast on MBig TV , available to mobile users. "Celebrity Bromance" portrays star friendships, and is filmed the "paparazzi - style" from a distance to allow the cast members to feel l ...
'', and competed on ''
King of Mask Singer ''The King of Mask Singer'' () is a South Korean singing competition program presented by Kim Sung-joo, with introductions by voice actor . It airs on MBC on Sunday, starting from April 5, 2015 as a part of MBC's '' Sunday Night'' programming ...
'' under the name "Fencing Man", appearing in episode 72. On November 6, 2018, Jungkook collaborated with American singer
Charlie Puth Charles Otto Puth Jr. (; born December 2, 1991) is an American singer and songwriter. His initial exposure came through the viral success of his song videos uploaded to YouTube. Puth initially signed with the record label eleveneleven after p ...
for a special duet performance of the latter's " We Don't Talk Anymore" single at the MBC Plus X Genie Music Awards. He released the self-produced song "Still With You" for free on SoundCloud on June 4, 2020, as part of BTS' annual debut anniversary celebrations. In February 2022, Jungkook sang the soundtrack for ''7Fates: Chakho'', a new BTS-based
webtoon Webtoons (), are a type of digital comic that originated in South Korea usually meant to be read on smartphones. While webtoons were mostly unknown outside of Korea during their inception, there has been a surge in popularity internationally ...
. Titled "
Stay Alive ''Stay Alive'' is a 2006 American supernatural horror film directed by William Brent Bell, who co-wrote it with Matthew Peterman. The film was produced by Joseph McGinty Nichol, and released on March 24, 2006 in the United States. It was the first ...
", and produced by bandmate
Suga Suga may refer to: * Suga, Iran, a village in Qazvin Province, Iran * Suga language, a language of Cameroon * Suga (rapper) (born 1993), South Korean rapper, songwriter, and record producer * ''Suga'' (EP), 2020 EP by Megan Thee Stallion * ''Sug ...
, the song earned Jungkook his first solo entry on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 with its debut at number 95; his first solo top-ten entry on the ''Billboard'' Global Excl. U.S chart at number eight; and became the first Korean soundtrack in history to debut on the
Official Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
in the UK, at number 89. Jungkook collaborated again with Puth, featuring on the single " Left and Right", which was released on June 24. On November 20, Jungkook released the single "Dreamers" ahead of his performance at the
opening ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.
for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar later that same day—the single will be included on the tournament's official soundtrack album. He headlined the event at
Al Bayt Stadium Al-Bayt Stadium () is a retractable roof football stadium in Al Khor, Qatar, which was opened in time for matches in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which began on 20 November 2022. The stadium's construction contract was awarded to Qatari contractor G ...
and performed the song together with Qatari singer Fahad Al Kubaisi, becoming the first Korean artist to sing an official theme for the
World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
and perform at an opening ceremony for the event.


Impact and influence

In a 2019 survey conducted by
Gallup Korea Gallup Korea () or Gallup Korea Research Institute () is a South Korean research company. Founded by Park Moo-ik in 1974, the company became a member of Gallup International Association in 1997. It is best known for conducting public surveys on ...
, Jungkook ranked as the third most-loved celebrity of the year in South Korea. He debuted on the list in 2016 at 20th, then ranked 17th in 2017, and then 8th in 2018. In 2018, Jungkook placed first for 10 weeks in a row for magazine ''Hi China'', under the most beloved celebrities list in China. Jungkook is also extremely popular on social media amongst fans. In December 2018, a video of him singing in the studio became the most retweeted tweet in South Korea that year. Various artists have cited him as an influence and role model, such as
Kim Dong-han Kim Dong-han (; born July 3, 1998), also known mononymously as Donghan, is a South Korean singer, songwriter and actor. He first became known for competing in the reality survival show ''Produce 101'' Season 2, and later debuted in the boy ban ...
and Hyeongseop X Euiwoong. Jungkook has cited
Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...
,
Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with sales of over 88 million records. Timberlake is the recipient of numerous awards and ac ...
and Usher among his musical inspirations. Jungkook's popularity has earned him the nickname "Sold Out King" as items that he is seen using often sell out quickly. These include shoes,
Downy Downy, also known as Lenor in Europe, Russia and Japan, is a brand of fabric softener produced by Procter & Gamble that was introduced in 1960. Lenor is a brand name of fabric softener and dryer sheets, also produced by P&G, sold in Europe, Rus ...
fabric softener, wine, novels—namely ''I Decided to Live as Me'' by Kim Soo-hyun, which became a best-seller in both Korea and Japan—and
Hanbok The (; term used in South Korean standard language, South Korea), also called () n North Korean standard language, North Korea and China, is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term which is used to refer to traditional ethnic Koreans, Korean ...
. Korean media reported that Jungkook had created a "Modern Hanbok" fashion trend in the Korean entertainment industry when celebrities such as Jun Hyun-moo,
Jang Do-yeon Jang Do-yeon (born March 10, 1985), is a South Korean comedian, signed with KOEN Group. She was a cast member in MBC's variety show, We Got Married, paired with actor Choi Min-yong. Education Jang was a student at Kyung Hee University's Colleg ...
,
Gong Hyo-jin Gong Hyo-jin (born April 4, 1980) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her leading role in the film '' Crush and Blush'' (2008), as well as for her popular television series '' Sang Doo! Let's Go to School'' (2003), ''Thank You'' (20 ...
, MC Oh Seung-hwan and '' The Return of Superman''s Park Joo-ho began wearing similar clothing after he was photographed wearing it. Jungkook was 2019's most-searched male K-pop idol on
Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...
according to their mid-year chart. He topped the chart again in 2020, and was the most searched K-pop idol on
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
in 2019 and 2020. On
Tumblr Tumblr (stylized as tumblr; pronounced "tumbler") is an American microblogging and social networking website founded by David Karp in 2007 and currently owned by Automattic. The service allows users to post multimedia and other content to a sho ...
, he ranked 1st in 'Top K-Pop Stars' for 3 consecutive years. On
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
, he had the most retweeted tweet of 2019, and the 2nd most retweeted tweet of 2020. In March 2021, Jungkook set a new all-time record for the most real-time viewers in
V Live V Live (stylized as VLIVE), sometimes referred to as V App, is a South Korean live video streaming service that allows celebrities based in the country to broadcast live videos such as live chat sessions with fans, performances, reality shows ...
history when his solo live broadcast surpassed 22 million simultaneous viewers—he first broke the record in October 2018, when his broadcast surpassed 3.7 million viewers worldwide. In June 2021, a lawmaker of the Justice Party used photos of him to promote the legalization of tattoos in South Korea, which works under regulations. The posts were widely condemned by netizens, who accused the lawmaker of taking advantage of Jungkook's fame for political purposes. In the same year images of Jungkook were posted by the mayor of
Tagbilaran Tagbilaran, officially the City of Tagbilaran ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Tagbilaran), is a 3rd class component city and capital of the province of Bohol, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 104,976 people. Encompassing a la ...
in the Philippines,
John Geesnell Yap John Geesnell Lim Yap II (born October 16, 1977), more known in Bohol as "Baba", is a Filipino politician and was the mayor of Tagbilaran, Bohol, Philippines from 2013 to 2022 until he was succeeded by his wife Jane Yap. Early life and educat ...
, to convince citizens to receive the COVID shot.


Personal life

In 2017, Jungkook collapsed during a concert in Chile. It was later revealed that he had been feeling unwell that day and there were no underlying issues. He suffered a heel injury on the
Love Yourself World Tour BTS World Tour: Love Yourself, commonly known as the Love Yourself World Tour, was the third worldwide concert tour headlined by South Korean band BTS to promote their ''Love Yourself'' series, including their '' Love Yourself: Her'' EP, '' Love ...
in 2018, preventing him from participating in choreography; as a result, he sang while seated during part of the European leg of the tour. In November 2019, Jungkook was involved in a car accident with a taxi. Neither party had any major injuries and an amicable settlement was agreed upon. Since 2018, Jungkook has lived in
Hannam-dong Hannam-dong is a '' dong'', neighbourhood of Yongsan-gu in Seoul, South Korea. One of the most affluent neighborhoods in the country, it has been portrayed continuously in South Korea's popular culture as a wealthy and luxurious spot, and for this ...
, Seoul, South Korea with his bandmates. In July 2019, he purchased an apartment in
Yongsan District Yongsan District (, ) is one of the 25 List of districts of Seoul, districts of Seoul, South Korea. Yongsan has a population of 231,685 (2020) and has a geographic area of , and is divided into 19 ''Dong (administrative division), dong'' (adminis ...
, Seoul worth
The won sign , is a currency symbol. It represents the South Korean won, the North Korean won and, unofficially, the old Korean won. Appearance Its appearance is "W" (the first letter of "Won") with a horizontal strike going through the cent ...
4 billion, which he gifted to his older brother in December 2020. As of July 2021, Jungkook's net worth was estimated to be US$20 million.


Discography


Charted songs


Other songs


Writing and production credits

All song credits are adapted from the
Korea Music Copyright Association The Korea Music Copyright Association (KOMCA) is a South Korean non-profit copyright collective for musical works, administering public performance and broadcasting rights, and mechanical recording and reproduction rights. Founded in 1964, it i ...
's database, unless otherwise noted.


Filmography


Directing credits


Music videos


Television


Trailers and short films


Awards and nominations


Notes


References


External links

{{Authority control 1997 births Living people Musicians from Busan South Korean male singers South Korean pop singers South Korean singer-songwriters South Korean male idols South Korean tenors BTS members 21st-century South Korean musicians Recipients of the Order of Cultural Merit (Korea) Japanese-language singers of South Korea English-language singers from South Korea South Korean child singers School of Performing Arts Seoul alumni South Korean male singer-songwriters Hybe Corporation artists