Ken (singer)

This is a Korean name; the family name is Lee.
Ken

Native name 이재환
Born Lee Jae-hwan[1]
(1992-04-06) April 6, 1992
Seoul, South Korea
Education Baekseok Arts University
Occupation

Musical career

Genres
Instruments
Years active 2012–present
Labels Jellyfish Entertainment
Associated acts

Lee Jae-hwan (Hangul: 이재환 born April 6, 1992),[1] better known by his stage name Ken (Hangul: 켄), is a South Korean singer and actor, signed under Jellyfish Entertainment. He is one of the members in the South Korean boy group VIXX and has been widely praised for his unique, soulful, and husky vocal tone.[2][3][4][5] Ken began his acting career in 2013 in MBC Every 1's comedy drama Boarding House No. 24 as Lee Jaehwan.[6]

Early life

Born April 6, 1992 in Jayang-dong, Seoul, South Korea, Ken's family consists of his parents, himself and two older brothers. He studied at Baekseok Arts University majoring in Practical Music. At a young age, he entered and won many singing competitions at local festivals. He later performed and won more singing competitions in middle school as part of a team with his friends.[7] He has won multiple song-writing awards prior to debuting with VIXX.

Career

2012–2013: Debut with VIXX, acting debut and OSTs

Main article: VIXX

Despite an absence of any of dance experience, Ken was able to pass his audition to Jellyfish Entertainment because of his singing where he trained for five months before debuting with VIXX. During this time Ken was one of ten trainees who were contestants in Mnet's survival reality show MyDOL and was chosen to be a part of the final line-up and the 6-member boy group VIXX finally debuted with "Super Hero"[8] on May 24, 2012[9] on M! Countdown.[10][11]

In 2013, Ken contributed to the The Heirs OST with "In The Name of Love" (Hangul: 사랑이라는 이름으로).[12] He was also featured with J'Kyun on the song "Ponytail".[13]

In 2013, Ken appeared in episode 4 of SBS's television drama The Heirs alongside his group members [14] The singer landed his first acting role when he was a main cast member in the television comedy drama MBC Every 1's Boarding House No. 24 as Lee Jaehwan.[6]

2014–2015: Gap and musical theatre debut

In 2014, Ken contributed to another soundtrack for the Fated to Love You OST with the song "My Girl".[15]

On June 24, 2015, Ken and Hani released a duet called "Gap".

In 2015, Ken was cast in the musical Chess in the lead role of Anatoly Sergievsky, a world champion chess player from June 19, 2015 to July 19, 2015 at the Sejong Grand Theater in Seoul.[16] For the role, he had to sing at a lower register, a sharp contrast from the high notes that predominantly appear in VIXX's music.[17] His powerful vocals were showcased in the music video for one of the songs "Anthem".[18] He also appeared in Chinese singer Lu Yu's music video "The Fourth Dimension Love" as a former boyfriend. A big fan of VIXX, the singer had personally offered the role to Ken who accepted.[19]

In 2015 Ken landed his second musical role in the first Korean production of the musical Cinderella in the lead role of Prince Christopher from September 12, 2015 to January 3, 2016 at the Chungmu Art Hall, Grand Theater in Seoul and Seongnam Arts Center Opera House.[20][21]

2016–Present: Moorim School OST, Over Sleep

In February 2016, Ken contributed to the Moorim School OST with the song "When I See You" (Hangul: 그댈 보면).[22] On May 24, it was announced that Ken would be collaborating with Mystic Entertainment’s Yoon Jong-shin on his monthly collaboration project ‘Melody Monthly’, the project which has included artists like Seventeen's vocal unit and Epik High’s Tablo, the single “Over Sleep” was released on May 30, 2016.[23][24][25]

Discography

For Ken's works with VIXX, see VIXX discography.

Singles

Title Year Peak chart position Sales Album
KOR
Gaon
[26]
Collaborations
"Ponytail" (with J'Kyun) 2013 93
  • KOR (DL): 21,644+
 Non-album single
"Gap" (with Hani of EXID) 2015 25
  • KOR (DL): 92,982+
 Non-album single
"Over Sleep" (with Yoon Jong-shin) 2016 —[upper-alpha 1] Over Sleep (feat. Ken) [From Monthly Project 2016 May Yoon Jong Shin]
Original soundtracks
"In The Name of Love" (사랑이라는 이름으로) 2013 72
  • KOR (DL): 29,986
 The Heirs OST Part 3
"My Girl" 2014 73
  • KOR (DL): 23,205
 Fated to Love You OST Part 5
"When I See You" (그댈 보면) 2016 — Moorim School OST Part. 4
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Notes

  1. ↑ "Over Sleep" did not enter the Gaon Digital Chart, but peaked at number 35 on the Gaon Social Chart.[27]

Filmography

For Ken's Filmography with VIXX, see VIXX videography.

Television dramas

Year Network Title Role Notes
2014 MBC Every 1 Boarding House No. 24 Lee Jaehwan Main cast
2016 SBS Entertainer Special MC/The Show Cameo

TV Appearance & Variety Shows

Year Network Title Notes
2013 tvN Perfect Singer VS Episode 16
2015 JTBC 100 People, 100 Songs Contestant.[28]
MBC King of Mask Singer Contestant as Cracked Egg and Noodles (Episode 11-12)
KBS World Hello Counselor Guest with Shin Sung-woo, CNU (B1A4) (Episode 227)
2016 MBC Duet Song Festival Contestant with Choi Sang Yeob (Episode 3-7 & 16-17)
Special Guest Duet with Sandeul (B1A4) (Episode 28)
MBig TV Oh My God! Tip Web series
KBS World Hello Counselor Guest with Hongbin (Episode 297)

Music video appearances

Year Music video Artist(s)
2015 "The Fourth Dimension Love" (四次元爱情) Lu Yu

Musicals

Year Title Role Notes
2015 Chess Anatoly Sergievsky Main role, Korean Version
2015-16 Cinderella Prince Christopher Main role, Korean Version

References

  1. 1 2 Ken Official Profile
  2. ↑ "My Dear VIXX" (in Korean). CECI Magazine. Jan 2014.
  3. ↑ "VIXX's Ken and Leo receive praise from Sung Shi Kyung and Park Hyo Shin". Allkpop. 2012-05-24. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  4. ↑ "Another contestant reveals his idol identity on "King of Masked Singer"". Koreaboo. 2015-06-21. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  5. ↑ "VIXX's Ken Blows the Audience Away with His Singing on "The Last Song"". Soompi. 2015-05-12. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  6. 1 2 "VIXX's Ken Attempts His First Acting Role for ′Boarding House No.24′". Mwave. 2014-08-13. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  7. ↑ "[My Name is]빅스(3) 켄텐아시아 | 텐아시아". 10Asia (in Korean). 2013-05-02. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  8. ↑ "VIXX to watch the last episode of 'Mydol' with their fans at a movie theater". allkpop. 31 May 2012.
  9. ↑ "Upcoming group VIXX releases 3rd video teaser for "Super Hero"". allkpop. 20 May 2012.
  10. ↑ "VIXX to share download links for their music and teasers on Twitter". allkpop. 20 May 2012.
  11. ↑ "Finalists from 'Mydol' reveal official group name, Vixx". allkpop. 10 May 2012.
  12. ↑ "'Heirs' releases 3 OST songs from 2AM's Changmin, VIXX's Ken, & Park Jang Hyun". Allkpop. 2013-10-23. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  13. ↑ "Hip hop artist J'Kyun releases 'Ponytail' ft. VIXX's Ken". Allkpop. 2013-10-01. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  14. ↑ "VIXX to Cameo on "The Heirs"". Soompi. 2013-10-17. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  15. ↑ "VIXX's Ken declares she's 'My Girl' for 'Fated To Love You' OST MV". Allkpop. 2014-08-06. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  16. ↑ "SHINee's Key, 2AM's Jokwon, B1A4's CNU, and VIXX's Ken Cast in Musical "Chess"". soompi. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 2015-04-05.
  17. ↑ "공연의 모든 것 - 플레이DB". PlayDB (in Korean). 2015-06-08. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  18. ↑ "VIXX's Ken Simply Sounds Amazing in Musical "Chess" MV". Soompi. 2015-06-05. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  19. ↑ Dong-Joo, Kim (2015-06-05). "VIXX's Ken participates in filming MV of Chinese singer Lu Yu's new song". StarN. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  20. ↑ "VIXX Ken cast as prince in musical 'Cinderella'". dkpopnews.net. 2015-07-31. Retrieved 2015-08-03.
  21. ↑ "VIXX's Ken, B1A4′s Sandeul, Baek Ah Yeon, and Others Cast in Musical "Cinderella"". Soompi.com. 2015-07-31. Retrieved 2015-08-03.
  22. ↑ "[Mnet] 무림학교 OST Part 4 - Various Artists". mnet.com.
  23. ↑ "VIXX's Ken The Next Feature Artist In Yoon Jong Shin's Monthly Project!". dkpopnews.net.
  24. ↑ "VIXX's Ken is next to work with Yoon Jong Shin's monthly project!". allkpop.com.
  25. ↑ "VXX's Ken yawns like a puppy for his upcoming collab with Yoon Jong Shin!". allkpop.com.
  26. ↑ "Gaon Digital Chart". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  27. ↑ "South Korean Gaon Chart: 2016년 23주차 Social Chart". Gaon Chart. Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  28. ↑ "VIXX's Ken kills it with high note on "The Last Song"". koreaboo.com. 2015-05-14. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
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