Seungyoon from Winner has one of K-pop’s best voices, he acts and likes to try different things

Seungyoon of K-pop boy band Winner has dramatically boosted his following this year by securing a stunning six wins in the latest season of the hit South Korean singing competition reality show King of Mask Singer.

From his humble beginnings as a 16-year-old singing talent show contestant, Seungyoon has earned a reputation as a hard-working K-pop star with a unique voice. Here’s a look at his life so far.

His early life

Kang Seung-yoon was born in January 1994 in the South Korean city of Busan as the only child of a single mother. He started his journey as a singer aged 16 as a competitor on the television singing contest Superstar K. His final performance on the show, a cover of Korean singer-songwriter Yoon Jong-shin’s Instinctively, shot him to fame.

Several idol agencies approached Seungyoon after Superstar K, some trying to lure him with money and others with promises of fame. Seungyoon chose to join YG Entertainment because he believed the agency treated him seriously and would equip him with the necessary skills.

He decided on becoming a singer during high school, but before that he considered going into politics, or becoming a scientist, a billiards player or even a comic book author. But the young Seungyoon was most serious about becoming a classical guitarist.

He fell in love with the guitar in eighth grade, but stopped playing the instrument after YG Entertainment’s CEO complained that the guitar playing made his compositions sound old-fashioned, Seungyoon said during the variety show Knowing Bros.

After three years of training at YG, he debuted in 2014 as a member of boy band Winner after his team won the idol survival show Win: Who Is Next? He has not played the guitar much since he debuted with Winner, but fans say he rediscovered his sound and style during King of Mask Singer.

His role in Winner

As the main vocalist of Winner, Seungyoon has one of the most dynamic voices in K-pop. His powerful baritone voice not only shines during rock ballads, but can cross into the falsetto range, giving a soft, breathy texture to his performances, as seen in his covers of South Korean singer Kim Jin Ho’s Family Portrait and Sam Kim’s Who Are You during King of Mask Singer.

He is also Winner’s leader, despite being its maknae, or youngest member. Seungyoon became the leader while the Winner members were still competing for their chance to debut, when then-leader Mino was injured.

Becoming the leader of Winner made Seungyoon more responsible and hard-working, he said on South Korean radio show Volume Up. Seungyoon is known to be a workaholic with high work standards.

One of his goals is to break the stereotype that K-pop idols lack artistic skills, he told entertainment news website Newsen.

His solo career

Seungyoon didn’t wait until his debut to develop his solo career. He released the single You Are Heaven, the main theme of South Korean drama Midas, a month after signing with YG Entertainment.

He also made his acting debut in the 2012 South Korean sitcom High Kick 3: Revenge of the Short Legged, playing a secondary character who believes the Earth is a cube and wants to become the president of South Korea.

He made his solo singing debut with the singles It Rains and Wild and Young in 2013. It Rains was an instant hit and topped multiple music charts in South Korea.

Since debuting with Winner, Seungyoon has continued to act in web dramas, including the 2015 romance We Broke Up as the male lead, and the 2017 black comedy television series Prison Playbook, as a prisoner with kleptomania.

Seungyoon’s run on King of Mask Singer this year also marked a departure from his usual upbeat hip hop sound in Winner and gave him the freedom to explore different sounds.

“I got to sing songs of various genres in my time as the ‘king’. That gave me confidence, and made me realise that the public will enjoy my music, whatever the type,” he said during his exit interview on the show.

His image

Seungyoon dresses in hipster fashion, often sporting a bucket hat or a beanie. His Instagram feed is filled with photos of him showcasing his personality and his life with other members of Winner, whom he treats as his brothers.

In his own words

Ten years after stepping onto the stage of Superstar K as a schoolboy, Seungyoon said during an interview with Elle Korea that he still felt a constant drive to better himself in any situation, be it singing or acting.

“Not committing to your main role and trying other things never felt right. I had my acting debut in a sitcom when I was still a trainee. After that, I turned down invitations to join other projects,” Seungyoon said, “because it felt sinful to be unprepared and to try new things before I was properly recognised as a singer.”