JWalkerz, are you guys ready to see Jay Park (박재범) perform live? After announcing that Malaysia is also included for his “SEXY 4EVA World Tour” in June, fans are thrilled to witness his first ever solo concert.
In conjunction with his debut show here this coming September, we have compiled 7 fun facts for fellow JWalkerz out there. Think you guys really know Jay Park? If you don’t, fret not because we’ve got you covered.
1. Beginnings in Seattle
Jay Park was born on 25th April 1987 and was raised in Seattle, USA. He showed growing interest in Hip-hop music and that landed him as one of the earliest members in the Seattle-based B-boy crew, Art of Movement (AOM), prior to travelling to South Korea to pursue a career there.
2. Career With 2PM
He then became a trainee under JYP Entertainment in 2004, before making his debut as the leader for boy group 2PM four years later.
However, his career with 2PM was cut short due to a huge scandal caused by a number of negative remarks in South Korea that he posted on his MySpace account prior to his official debut. As a result, he left 2PM in early 2010 and returned to the US.
3. Successful Korean Comeback
Jay Park then returned to Korea in July 2010 and signed a contract with SidusHQ. In May 2011, he released his first mini-album “Take A Deeper Look”, which went multi-platinum.
Additionally, he also set a new record as the first artist to win a music program award on a debut stage, when he took home first place on KBS “Music Bank”, with the song “Abandoned”. Apart from that, he also took home the “Bonsang” award at the 2011 Golden Disk Awards.
4. Founding AOMG & H1GHR Music
Following success as a solo artist, Jay Park took his career to a whole new level by setting up his own label. The record label, AOMG, was established in 2013 and became the home to South Korean R&B and hip-hop acts including Simon Dominic, Ugly Duck and Loco.
Additionally, Jay Park owns H1GHR Music, which he founded in 2017, and it’s co-owned with American producer Cha Cha Malone. Their independent record label manages artists like Sik-K and GroovyRoom.
5. Signing to Roc Nation
Jay Park made history by becoming the first ever Asian-American to sign with Roc Nation, home to artists including Jay-Z, Rihanna and DJ Khaled in July 2017. The announcement was made official by the people at Roc Nation themselves, when they released a statement on their official Twitter account announcing that they have signed Jay Park as their recording artist.
How dope it is when you get to rub shoulders with icons like Jay-Z and Beyonce?
6. Variety Shows & TV Programmes
The entertainer has made a number of appearances in variety shows and programmes throughout his career. His appearance as a regular cast on shows include KBS “Immortal Songs”, “Saturday Night Live Korea” as well as “Show Me The Money”.
In addition to appearing on Korean TV shows, he also got the chance to become one of the judges for “Asia’s Got Talent” for two seasons. You may have also catch him on the MTV Asia programme “Yo! MTV Raps Asia”.
7. Collaborations
The triple threat is well known for his collaboration with other artists, regardless of country. He is no stranger to collaborating with our local artist, including Mizz Nina for the song “Around The World” back in 2013. His latest collaboration project would be with songstress Yuna for the song “Does She” which is taken from the Malaysian singer’s newest studio album, “Rouge”.
To date, he has collaborated with approximately 181 recording artists throughout his career, and counting! The data was compiled by his fans on Twitter, and even Jay Park himself acknowledged the list.
Do you have any other fun facts to share? Hit us up in the comments section ;)
Source: Kpop Profiles, MyKpopHuntress.
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