He was a basketball player

Born and raised in Busan, Nam was passionate about basketball when he was a kid. During an appearance on talk show Radio Star he revealed that he even dreamt of becoming a basketball player during his middle school years. He attended Gyeongnam Middle School in Busan, which was one of three middle schools in the area that offered basketball teams back then. The school was located far from Nam’s home, requiring him to take a long bus ride every day. During that time he took the position of the point and shooting guard. 

Nam showed off his skills on an episode of Welcome Back to School. We might even go so far to say that he’s more than qualified to play professionally. Unfortunately, he had to quit due to getting surgery on both his legs after an injury. Although he eventually pursued a career in entertainment instead, his passion for sports continued – he even got a chance to play basketball with his idol, Stephen Curry, during an episode of MBC’s Infinite Challenge. 

He won a beauty pageant sponsored by YG KPlus 

After quitting basketball, Nam decided to give modelling a shot. When he turned 19, he joined a beauty pageant held by Seoul Hoseo Art College and sponsored by YG KPlus – a model management arm of YG Entertainment. Unsurprisingly, he walked away with the first prize. As the winner, he was also able to enrol in the academy on a scholarship. 

In 2017, he donated 30 million won (US$28,000 USD) to his former high school to support students’ dreams, commenting to Chosun newspaper: “I wanted to become a model but I couldn’t [due to financial issues]. Fortunately, I could get supported by a scholarship, and I also wanted to support my younger generation to get more chances to achieve their dreams.” 

His role model was Jang Ki-yong

Nam walked his very first runway as a model in 2013, showcasing Songzio Homme’s spring/summer 2014 collection. But during his senior year of high school, before he made his modelling debut, he had his own idol: Jang Ki-yong. 

During an interview with Vogue in 2014, Nam revealed that he first saw Jang in a magazine during his senior year, and wanted to become a model like him. Jang is also the reason that Nam had the confidence to wear braces at the start of his career. Nam considered them cute rather than nerdy, since Jang had worn them before too; Jang even encouraged Nam to wear them! Although Nam might have since moved from YG Entertainment to Management Soop, he and Jang remain good friends. 

His first on screen appearances were in AKMU music videos 

Many might think that Nam made his acting debut in his first K-drama, The Idle Mermaid, but his first on screen appearance actually took place six months before that. In April 2014, he was in two AKMU music videos – 200% and Give Love – showing off eye-catching acting skills in the lead roles. (He might have YG Entertainment, which also managed AKMU at the time, to thank for the opportunities.)

The director of The Idle Mermaid, Baek Seung-ryong, was so impressed that he invited Nam to take part in the drama … and the rest is history.

He was good friends with idols Stephanie Lee and Lee Sung-kyung even before his K-drama debut

Two months later, YG Entertainment officially announced that the two were dating, and that they had been friends ever since they were models at the agency together. Fans were devastated when the two announced that they were breaking up after just six months together.

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