Here is all you need to know about the K-pop star.

His early life

BamBam was born Kunpimook Bhuwakul in May 1997 in Bangkok, Thailand. “BamBam” is his Thai nickname – or chue len – that was inspired by Bamm-Bamm Rubble, a character from the cartoon The Flintstones, which his grandmother enjoyed.

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The young BamBam loved to play video games and his early dream to become an interior designer was inspired by his time spent designing houses in life simulator game The Sims. To wean him off video games, BamBam’s mother took him to see a concert by Rain, the K-pop pioneer much loved by his mother.

“He came out in a helicopter on stage and kicked down the door – that was his opening scene,” BamBam said of the 2007 “Rain’s Coming” concert during an interview with FWD Life Insurance. “At the time, I felt the impact. I felt his aura.”

Then 10 years old, BamBam started taking dance classes, and these replaced video games as his new obsession. He won a competition for dancing to Rain songs later that year and appeared on Thai television as “Rain Junior”.

However, his teachers told him that he should focus on studying instead and become a doctor, BamBam said on Loukgolf’s English Room, a Thai talk show.

At 13, he auditioned for JYP Entertainment and was taken on as a trainee. BamBam then went to South Korea alone and started taking lessons in Korean, dancing and singing, which occupied most of his day from 10am to 10pm.

BamBam took part in the idol survival show Win: Who is Next in 2013 with JYP trainees and future Got7 members Jackson, Mark and Yugyeom. BamBam made his debut at 16 as Got7’s second-youngest member.

His role in Got7

BamBam is Got7’s lead rapper and lead dancer.

As a rapper, BamBam can handle a variety of styles. For his lines in Sign and Q from Got7’s 2017 EP Flight Log: Arrival, BamBam used a breathy, laid-back delivery, but a more powerful style on tracks such as Girls Girls Girls from their debut EP Got It?

BamBam is also a versatile dancer. South Korean choreographer Lia Kim, who has worked with K-pop groups from Girls’ Generation to 2NE1, once described BamBam as a dance prodigy.

His solo career

In his free time, BamBam enjoys shooting and editing videos. Two of BamBam’s productions have so far been uploaded to the Got7 YouTube channel. The three-minute video “Feel It, See It” has been viewed more than two million times. It features BamBam by the seaside, plus shots of cityscapes around the world. BamBam also put together a video montage reviewing his travels with the rest of Got7 in 2018.

BamBam is active in philanthropy. In December 2017, he launched the apparel line doubleB and had a two-week sales campaign to raise money for Water.org, a non-profit that aims to bring clean and safe water to those in need around the world.

More recently, BamBam last year helped Unicef Thailand promote the Thai national child abuse helpline. He worked with Unicef again in January, performing in the Blue Carpet Show, a telethon to raise funds for, and awareness of, disadvantaged children, and helped design its mascot, “Teddy Blu”.

His image

BamBam is often called the “skinny legend”; he is 1.7 metres (5 feet 7 inches) tall and weighs 55kg (121lbs). He is also known for his slender legs. BamBam said during an episode of the Got7’s vlog series Got2day that trousers to fit his leg length were usually too big around the waist.

He is also known for a mole under his left eye and his ever changing hair colour. He has dyed his hair every colour from maroon to hot pink, and more recently, bleached white, even after the rest of Got7 had black or dark brown hairstyles for their 2020 comeback.

In his own words

Leaving Thailand for South Korea in his early teens meant he now had few close friends in his home country and had to miss out on school life, he told Thai lifestyle magazine The Cloud.

“The friends I keep in touch with were preparing for their university entrance exams [when I was training]. Friends my age have their freedom and [I sometimes asked ] why I was doing this,” he said during the interview with FWD Insurance.

But becoming an idol has paid off by improving his family’s life. “Before my debut, our house was very small. The roof leaked everywhere when it rained. It was great when I was able to change my family’s environment and our house,” he told The Cloud.