BIG BANG’s maknae Seungri is clearly making the most of his time left in the spotlight before he follows the rest of the band into compulsory military duty. He’s currently the face of Korean tinder, and the newest executive of YG Entertainment. Oh, and have you caught his new track 1,2,3! yet?
Seungri, real name Lee Seunghyun, is from Gwangju. He was scouted by YG Entertainment back in 2006 after appearing on an boy group audition show. Although BIG BANG are still one of the most well known bands in Korea, Seungri has built himself a solid solo career since their early days. He was the first one of the band to appear in a musical, and his solo work since has included TV show presenting, movie acting, plus of course producing and choreographing his own songs.
His first extended play, VVIP, was released in 2011, and his second Let’s Talk About Love in 2013. The year between those releases, 2012, saw him take a hiatus from promotions as he was caught up in a dating scandal with a Japanese model/actress. As the scandal is now long behind him, he’s joked about this recently with girl group BLACKPINK, telling them on a recent SBS TV show: “Sometimes, you might want to talk to a boy, and that’s okay. In order to sing about love, you need to have been in love. Just don’t get caught. I’ve gotten caught for everything, but don’t be me.”
Besides dating, acting and music production, Seungri owns a ramen business. After enjoying the cheap and filling noodle dish a lot during Japanese schedules, he opened up his own brand in Korea, Aori Ramen. You can visit his first branch in Cheongdam-dong. If you’re curious about his daily life as an idol/restauranteur, the show I Live Alone has filmed him at work and rest, doing cross-stitch(!) He’s also the current face of Tinder in Korea.
1,2,3! features on his solo album The Great Seungri. He produced and wrote the nine tracks on this album by himself. Follow him on YouTube, or Instagram.
Recommended Watching
Gotta Talk to U
Where are U From
VVIP
What Can I Do
I Live Alone snippet
