1. Bang Yong-guk made his musical debut in 2008 as a member of an underground hip hop group called Soul Connection under the alias of "Jepp Blackman".
22 Facts About Bang Yong-guk
1. 2.
Bang Yong-guk was born in Seoul, South Korea, on March 31,1990.
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Bang Yong-guk is the youngest out of two sons and one daughter in his family.
4.
Bang Yong-guk has an identical twin brother named Yongnam, who has performed as an underground artist, and an older sister named Natasha, who works as a tattoo artist.
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Bang Yong-guk moved with his family to the coastal Ijak islands of Incheon when he was young, living there for a short period of time before moving back to mainland Incheon.
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Bang Yong-guk studied at Gae Woong Elementary School and Gae Woong Middle School, and at 18 graduated from Yuhan High School.
7.
Bang Yong-guk was offered a scholarship for college, which he did not attend.
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Bang Yong-guk first began meeting with other members of Soul Connection when he was in his second year of middle school after posting his rap lyrics on an online forum and being recognized for his skill.
9.
In 2010, Bang Yong-guk was contacted by TS Entertainment to be part of a hip-hop idol group after the duo Untouchable recommended him.
10.
On 4 April 2015 during the hiatus, Bang Yong-guk released a solo song titled "AM 4:44".
11.
Bang Yong-guk returned from his hiatus to join the rest of the boys for the single's promotion, "Wake Me Up".
12.
On July 4,2017, Bang Yong-guk released a solo track titled "Yamazaki".
13.
On June 24,2019, Bang Yong-guk released photo essay book "The Best Is Yet to Come", a best seller on Korean charts.
14.
Bang Yong-guk enlisted in the Korean military as a public service officer on August 1,2019.
15.
On September 2,2019, Bang Yong-guk announced through Consent that "Something to Talk About", a documentary he had directed in conjunction with producer Kim Jinbeom, had been selected for screening at the 2019 DMZ International Film Festival.
16.
Bang Yong-guk officially completed his military service on May 18,2021.
17.
On September 16,2021, Bang Yong-guk established his one-man agency Consent.
18.
On November 23,2021, Bang Yong-guk released the new single "Race".
19.
On March 2,2022, Bang Yong-guk released his first EP, 2 and its lead single "Up".
20.
Bang Yong-guk identifies as a pacifist, and is vocal about his own struggles with mental health as well as his concern for the state of the world.
21.
Bang Yong-guk drew inspiration for his solo album Bang Yong-guk Yongguk from the contents of his own diary.
22.
Bang Yong-guk is credited on his self-titled album as executive producer, lyricist, track producer, and art director, and self-directs videos for his solo work from conception to editing.