“We all have lots to pitch in, there’s no knowing what will come but hard work will get us somewhere.”
–Jung Kook, 2017.04.03, United States
Jeon Jeong-guk (전정국), better known by his stage name Jung Kook (정국), is a South Korean singer-songwriter and record producer under Big Hit Music. He is a vocalist, the center, a dancer, a visual and the maknae of BTS.
As a solo artist, he has released first self-produced song “Still With You” in 2020.Early life and education
Jeon Jung-kook (Korean: 전정국) was born on September 1, 1997, in Busan, 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. Jung Kook initially had dreams of becoming a badminton player when he was young, but after seeing G-Dragon perform “Heartbreaker” on television, it influenced him to want to Jungkook become a singer.
In 2011, Jung Kook auditioned for the South Korean talent show Superstar K during its auditions in Daegu. Though he was not selected, he received casting offers from seven entertainment companies. He eventually chose to become a trainee under Big Hit Entertainment after seeing RM, now his fellow band member and leader in BTS, perform. To work on his dance skills in preparation for debut, he went to Los Angeles during the summer of 2012 to receive dance pelatihan from Movement Lifestyle. In June 2012, he appeared in Jo Kwon’s “I’m Da One” music video and also worked as a backup dancer for Glam before his debut. He graduated from Seoul’s School of Performing Arts, an arts high school, in 2017. In November 2016, he decided to forgo taking the CSATs, Korea’s nationwide university entrance exam. As of 2020, he is enrolled at Global Cyber University, majoring in Broadcasting and Entertainment.2013–present: BTS
On June 12, 2013, Jung Kook made his debut as a member of BTS (also known as Bangtan Boys) with the release of the single dua Cool 4 Skool Under BTS, he released two solo tracks; the first was a pop track entitled “Begin” on the 2016 album Wings, about moving to Seoul to become an idol and meeting BTS members. The second, a future bass track entitled bts merchandise “Euphoria”, was originally released as part of a BTS short film entitled “Euphoria: Theme of Love Yourself 起 Wonder” and later on Love Yourself: Answer. Euphoria, co-produced by DJ Swivel, charted #5 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart and has charted for 11 weeks on the Gaon Digital Chart, the longest out of BTS members’ solo songs.
Jung Kook has also been credited as the main producer on a few of BTS’ songs, including “Love is Not Over” and “Magic Shop”. On October 25, 2018, Jung Kook (together with the rest of the BTS members) was ordained with the fifth-class Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit by the President of South Korea. members of the group.2015–present: Solo activities
In September 2015, Jung Kook participated in the “One Dream, One Korea” campaign, taking part in a song collaboration alongside numerous Korean artists in memory of the Korean War. The song was released September 24 and presented at the One K Concert in Seoul on October 15.
In 2016, Jung Kook was cast in the pilot episode of Flower Crew. He also appeared on Celebrity Bromance, and competed in King of Mask Singer under the name “Fencing Man,” appearing in episode 72.
On November 6, 2018, Jung Kook performed “We Don’t Talk Anymore” with original singer Charlie Puth in a special collaboration stage during the MBC Plus X Genie Music Awards. The song was one he had previously covered twice, solo and with fellow BTS member Jimin.
On June 4, 2020, Jung Kook released the song “Still With You”, for free on platforms such as SoundCloud as a part of BTS’ yearly debut celebrations. Billboard described the song as having “tinkling synths and gently strummed guitars and brushed drums”. Jung Kook produced the piece himself.Impact and influence
In a 2019 berita umum conducted by Gallup Korea, Jung Kook 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, Jung Kook placed first for 10 weeks in a row for magazine Hi China, under the most beloved celebrities list in China. Jung Kook 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 and Hyeongseop X Euiwoong. Jung Kook has cited Justin Bieber, Justin Timberlake and Usher among his musical inspirations.
Jung Kook’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 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. Korean media reported that Jung Kook had created a “Modern Hanbok” fashion isu terkini in the Korean entertainment industry when celebrities such as Jun Hyun-moo, Jang Do-yeon, Gong Hyo-jin, MC Oh Seung-hwan and The Return of Superman’s Park Joo-ho began wearing similar clothing after he was photographed wearing it.
Jung Kook was 2019’s most-searched male K-pop idol on Google according to their mid-year chart. He topped the chart again in 2020, and was the most searched K-pop idol on YouTube in 2019 and 2020. On Tumblr, he ranked 1st in ‘Top K-Pop Stars’ for tiga consecutive years. On Twitter, he had the most retweeted tweet of 2019, and the 2nd most retweeted tweet of 2020. In March 2021, Jung Kook set a jimin new all-time record for the most real-time viewers in V Live 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 Jung Kook’s fame for political purposes.Discography
See also: DiscographyDigital singles”Perfect Christmas” (with Jo Kwon, Lim Jeong-hee, Joohee and RM) (2013)”One Dream One Korea (Original Ver.)” (with Various Artist) (2015)”I’m In Love” (with Lady Jane) (2016)Songs credited under BTS
See also unit songs credited under BTS: Units”Begin” from Wings (2016)”Euphoria” from Love Yourself: Answer (2018)”My Time” from Map of the Soul: 7 (2020)Unofficial songs
See also: Unofficial songsOriginal songs”I Know” (알아요) (with RM) (2016)”So Far Away” (with SUGA and Jin) (2017)”Euphoria (DJ Swivel Forever Mix)” (2019)”Still With You” (2020)Adapted songs”Like A Star” (with RM) (2013)”Graduation Song” (with j-hope and Jimin) (2013)”Beautiful” (with j-hope, Jimin and V) (2013)”Working” (2014)”Christmas Day” (with Jimin) (2014)Cover songs”SOFA” (2014)”Lost Stars” (2015)”Paper Hearts” (2015)”Fools” (2015)”Purpose” (2016)”If You” (2016)”Beautiful” (2017)”We Don’t Talk Anymore” (2017)”We Don’t Talk Anymore Pt.2″ (with Jimin) (2017)”2U” (2017)”Oh Holy Night” (2017)”Breathe” (2018)”Only Then” (2018)”All Of My Life” (2019)”Ending Scene” (2019)”Ending Scene Ver2″ (2019)”Look At Me” (2019)”Perhaps That Was Love” (2020)”Never Not” (2020)”10000 Hours” (2020)FilmographyFilmVariety showsYearTitleNetworkNotes2014After School ClubArirang TVGuest with RM and Jimin (Ep.68,70)2016Flower CrewSBSCast (Pilot Episode)Star KingGuest with RM and j-hope (Ep.447)Celebrity BromanceNaver TV CastCast (Ep.35-39)King of Mask SingerMBCContestant (Ep.72)2017Let’s Eat Dinner TogetherJTBCGuest with Jin (Ep.50)Music showsYearTitleNetworkNotes2016Show! Music CoreMBCSpecial host (Ep.504)Special host with Jimin (Ep.515)Special host with j-hope (Ep.526)Music video and short filmsCredits