Danny Im (born May 6, 1980), better known by

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Taebin (

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 let ...

: 태빈), is a Korean-American singer and television host. He debuted as a member of the hip hop group 1TYM in 1998, and he released his first solo album in 2004. Im began hosting the Mnet America talk show ''Danny From L.A.'' in 2012.

Early life

Danny Im grew up in

Diamond Bar Diamond Bar is a city in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2010 census it had a population of 55,544, and in 2019 the population was estimated to be 55,720. It is named after the "diamond over a bar" branding iron re ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. He attended

Diamond Bar High School Diamond Bar High School (DBHS) is a public high school located in Diamond Bar, California, as part of the Walnut Valley Unified School District. Diamond Bar High School's mascot is the Brahma, and the school colors are purple and gold. Diamond Ba ...

with future fellow 1TYM member

Teddy Park Teddy Park (born Park Hong-jun on September 14, 1978), is a Korean–American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Born in Seoul, South Korea, Park moved to the United States with his family as a young child. When he was 17 years old, ...

, and graduated in 1996.

Career

Im debuted as a singer in 1998 as a member of Korean hip hop group 1TYM. Im promoted under the

Taebin, which his grandfather chose when Im asked him for a Korean name. While he was the leading vocalist for 1TYM, he also rapped like the rest of the members of the group in various songs such as 'What You Gonna Do,' and 'One Time For Your Mind' . After the release of 1TYM's fourth album ''Once N 4 All'' in 2003, Im returned to his fans with the release of his solo album “TAEBIN of 1TYM”, which showcased the full range of his sound potential rather than hip-hop sounds to which his fans were accustomed. The main track of this album "The Reason Why I Close My Eyes" is a mid-tempo song featuring mellow vocals and string arrangements. His album also features songs composed by Kim Do Hoon with lyrics by

Wheesung Choi Whee-sung (; born February 5, 1982), known professionally as Wheesung or by the stage name Realslow, is a South Korean R&B singer, record producer, and musical theatre actor. Career 1982: Early life and education Wheesung was born on ...

. The second track, "The Reason Why I Close my Eyes", is the only song on the album with a music video made for it and stars Koo Hye Sun. The twelfth track, "TaBu (featuring Park Teddy)" was banned in Korea due to the song 'being thick with sexual intentions.' A music video was supposed to be filmed for the song, but as it was banned, the video was never made. Taebin expressed his disappointment on this ban by stating that "TaBu" was one of his favorite tracks on the album, and that he only wanted to show an amazing love through his voice. In 2012, he began his own TV show, "Danny from LA", which premiered on

Mnet M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

America in September. The show talks about the latest trends in Kpop, as well as his time in 1TYM.

Personal life

On December 1, 2012, Danny officially revealed a photo of himself and his son through his personal Twitter account @Dannyim. The news of Danny having a son first broke out through one of Seungri’s Diary entries. Danny then officially confirmed his marriage and child at ''Danny From LA''’s episode with Big Bang. After mistaken reports of the birth of a son, Danny announced the birth of a daughter on a ''Danny From LA'' special for

CN Blue CNBLUE ( ko, 씨엔블루) is a South Korean pop rock band formed in 2009. The band consists of Jung Yong-hwa (leader, main vocals, guitar, keyboard, rap), Kang Min-hyuk ( drums), and Lee Jung-shin ( bass). First bassist Kwon Kwang-jin left the ...

Blue Moon World Tour 2013 CNBLUE Blue Moon World Tour was the 2013 live concert tour of South Korean rock band CNBLUE in support of their fifth EP, '' Re:Blue'', which was released on 14 January 2013. The world tour commenced, at the conclusion of promotional activ ...

concert, which aired on February 20, 2014.

Discography

Studio albums

References

{{Authority control 1980 births Living people American male rappers 1TYM members YG Entertainment artists American musicians of Korean descent 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians