Today, 26th of April 2021, the singer of BIGBANG, DAESUNG celebrates his 32nd birthday. On this occasion, we propose you a retrospective of his long career.
Name : KANG DAE SUNG/강대성
Stage name : DAESUNG/D-Lite
Birth Date : April 26, 1989
Birth Place : Incheon
Height : 178 cm
Blood type : O
Zodiac signs : Taurus/Snake
Talents : Singing, dancing, drums
– Childhood –
DAESUNG grew up in the Itaewon Seoul’s distric with his parents and sister.The ambition to become a singer grew up very early in his life. But his parents are against his choice and refuse that he takes this way.
DAESUNG isn’t intimidated by this ban and runs away from home for a week. After this event, he made an audition at YG Entertainment and joined the agency as a trainee. He kept his first name as his stage name, while he was associated with G-DRAGON, TOP, TAEYANG, SEUNGRI and HYUNSEUNG to start the survival, Documentary, which will determine the final members of the future group BIGBANG.
Shortly before the band’s official debut, DAESUNG suffered a hard blow. He was diagnosed with a vocal cord problem that prevented him from singing. Fortunately, he was able to regain the full use of his vocal cords thanks to many efforts and the help of the singer GUMMY who had already been through this, a few years earlier.
– Debut –
DAESUNG made his debut in 2006, as the singer of the new group BIGBANG. Along with G-DRAGON, TAEYANG, TOP and SEUNGRI.
The group made its first appearance on August 19, 2006 at the 10th YG Family concert.
Their first album, “BIGBANG VOL.” was a success with the titles “BigBang, BigBang is V.I.P” and “BigBang 03”.
The album also contains DAESUNG‘s first solo song, “Try smiling“.
The group received a very good reception during its first performances but its popularity exploded with the release of the EP “ALWAYS” in 2007. Especially thanks to the song “Lies”. It was supposed to be G-DRAGON‘s solo but YANG HYUNSUK saw its potential, and decided to make the whole band sing. He was right, because “Lies” became a huge hit in Korea. The band stands out because it’s the leader who composed and wrote the song. A rare thing for a Kpop idol. The band imposes its style and succeeds thanks to its talent to hit the top of the Korean charts.
– Career –
2007
After a remarkable entry in the Korean music industry, the group continues its momentum with “Last Farewell” (2007) which will know a similar success to “Lies”.
2008
In 2008, G-DRAGON composed “Haru haru”, once again, it became a unmissable song in the Korean music. BIGBANG is, once again, at the top of the charts. DAESUNG is interested in trot, and with the help of the leader who will compose a song for him. The title “Look at me, Gwuisum” will be released followed by an MV.
Same year, he joined the show Family Outing on SBS, as a permanent member. The show featured the channel’s “family” who had to discover the four corners of South Korea by taking care of houses, elderly people on vacation
Later in the year he was cast as Rum tum Tugger in the musical “Cats”. You can find videos of his performances on YouTube. He also joined the musical show “Show! Music Core”. This show is broadcasted on Saturdays on MBC, artists of all generations come to perform live on stage.
2009
In 2009, DAESUNG produced his second trot single, “Big hit”.
He also joined the musical “Shouting” with the maknae SEUNGRI.
However, in August 2009, DAESUNG was injured in a car accident just before the show, preventing him from participating. While he was in his van on the highway, returning to Seoul from the filming location of the show Family Outing. The driver lost control because of the heavy rain and hit the bodyguard. His injuries on his arms and face required surgical treatment forcing him to take a break in his career.
2010
At the end of January, DAESUNG released his third solo single that he wrote himself. “Cotton candy”.
That same year, he began his acting career. He got one of the main roles in the drama “What’s up”, broadcasted the following year on MBN. The soundtrack of the drama is sung by DAESUNG, the title “Lunatic” is revealed the first day of the first broadcast of the drama.
In November, DAESUNG joined a new show, “Night after night”. He will also record a song, “How did we get” with LEE HYORI, for the show Family Outing.
2011
2011, a dark year for the singer, it had however started well in February with the release of the solo track, “Baby don’t cry”. DAESUNG will sing it for the first time at the Big show 2011 the same month.
But on May 31, everything changed.
A drunk biker hit a lamp post while driving and fell on the road. Passing cars on the same road see the body on the ground and avoid him. But at 1:40 a.m., DAESUNG didn’t see the body and hit him, possibly resulting in his death. DAESUNG was charged with manslaughter and speeding. The YG Entertainment suspends all the activities of the singer until 2012 while the investigation is done.
A dark moment in the history of DAESUNG since it’s deprived of the band activities but also of its television activities since he is removed from all programs in which he is part. DAESUNG, remains locked in his room night and day, and doesn’t speak to anyone. He even confessed, that he had thought of suicide during this period. The singer apologized to the family of the deceased, which was very understanding. In addition, the singer insisted on paying for the funeral expenses.
Finally on August 23 of the same year, he was cleared. The evidence didn’t show whether the biker died as a result of the collision with the street lamp or as a result of the collision with DAESUNG‘s vehicle. The singer also submitted to alcohol and drug tests, it was proven that he was not under the influence of any of these substances. Shaken by the scandals, the group is quiet at the beginning of the year. However, DAESUNG finally made a comeback with the entire band at the YG Family concert and participated in the MTV EMA Awards in Europe.
2012
2012, marks the BIGBANG‘s comeback.They are back with the album “ALIVE”, supported by the track “Fantastic baby” composed with TEDDY PARK. The album is once again a huge success in Korea but not only because for the first time a Korean album reaches the “Billboard Top 200”.
DAESUNG, performs in this album, a solo song, “Wings”. A track composed by G-DRAGON and written by DAESUNG.
2013
In 2013, DAESUNG focused on Japan. In February, the singer unveiled his Japanese solo album, “D’cover” including “Singer’s ballad”, “Dear you” featuring GUMMY and the Japanese version of “Wings”. The album is a real success and ranks second in the Oricon chart.
The end of the year will be dedicated to the tour that precedes this new album.
2014
DAESUNG continues his Japanese career, he released a mini-album “RAINY RAINY”, containing several of his songs in Japanese and two unreleased tracks. The new opus of the singer is ranked at the top of several Japanese charts like Itunes or Mu-no. A second tour in Japan will then begin.
Later in the year, in July, DAESUNG revealed a new album, “D’slove”. Just like “RAINY RAINY”, it ranked 1st in many music charts, it sold more than 30000 copies during the day of its release. A single will also be released featuring TARO HAKASE, “I love you”.
In October 2014, DAESUNG‘s second Japanese mini-album was released, “DELIGHT”, a pun on his stage name mainly used by the Japanese, D-lite. The album will reach exceptional sales as 79000 albums will be sold.
2015
The year 2015 marks the comeback of the entire band with “MADE”.The album is supported by tracks such as “Loser” or “Bae bae”. This album is perhaps the most successful of the group. It quickly hit the top of the charts, and its titles quickly become a reference in the korean music world.
2017
DAESUNG begins a solo dome tour in Japan in April, called “D-lite japan dome tour 2017”, then a second tour begins in August, the “DNA show Vol.1” with 28 concerts. His second Japanese EP is released in Korea and Japan in April. “D-Day” consists of seven songs composed by Japanese producers mainly but also by DAESUNG himself. The album went directly to the first place in the Oricon albums chart and in the Billboard japan albums. The singer collaborated a lot with Japanese artists for this album, like the group DREAMS COME TRUE with whom he shared the song “Egao no Yukue”.
In October, the digital mini-ablum, “DELIGHT 2” is released, including three covers and an original song. It will be so successful that a few months later the agency will announce the physical release of this second EP.
2018
After the single “Flower road”, a farewell to their fans, the members of BIGBANG are heading to the army. DAESUNG enlisted on March 13, 2018 for their mandatory military service in the 27th Infantry Division in Hwacheon Camp in Gangwon Province.
During his service, in 2018, the “Burning Sun” affair shook the VIPs, SEUNGRI‘s alleged involvement in this affair forced him to leave the YG Entertainment as well as the entertainment world in general. The fans do not know then if the group will return on the front of the scene after this hard blow.
2019/2020
The young man is demobilized on November 10, 2019, rejoicing his many fans who came to wish him and his colleague TAEYANG a safe return since they were demobilized on the same day.
But scandal lurked, DAESUNG is in turmoil in July. Before joining the army, DAESUNG had bought a building in a posh district, Gangnam. It’s revealed that the building would host restaurants practicing illicit acts including prostitution. A case that made a lot of noise after the huge repercussion that had the Burning Sun case. The next day, DAESUNG claims his innocence by explaining that he does not manage the building, he is just the owner. After investigation by the Gangnam police station, he will not be prosecuted by the justice since his innocence was proved.
A comeback will be announced in January 2020, the group BIGBANG is announced to the programming of the festival Coachella however because of the health crisis due to COVID 19, the event was postponed. Although rumors about their comeback are circulating and G-DRAGON confirmed during a live show for his collaboration with Nike that he was working on a new album. Nothing is officially announced yet.
– A member like no other
–
DAESUNG is very discreet about his private life, much more than the other members of BIGBANG. While G-DRAGON, TOP or even TAEYANG let VIPs see how they live through various posts on social networks. DAESUNG doesn’t even have an Instagram account. The only pictures that circulate are often taken by lucky fans or his friends.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGLqUBGHMSV/
However, some informations have been revealed by him or the members of the group. We know that he likes to play drums, from the morning. TAEYANG joked about this in an interview on Radio Star. He also played this instrument on stage during concerts with the whole group.
The young man is very invested in the Champyungan church especially since his accident in 2011, he found there a haven in his faith, which guided him in his reconstruction after this terrible event. You can find an interview he gave to the church on the relationship with his mother and his religion.
http://champyungan.com/blog/archives/1688
Or about his accident and how his religion helped him to rebuild his life.
http://champyungan.com/blog/archives/1670
A life that seems to be very different from those of the other members of BIGBANG, but this is not the only point that differentiates him from his colleagues. The group is very famous in Japan, but DAESUNG is an exception in terms of popularity. He is surely the most popular member. Besides the fact that he speaks the language almost fluently, a special bond has been created between the Japanese people and the singer.
It’s undoubtedly for this reason that the singer has focused on this country to expand his solo career. Many of his songs have been translated into Japanese, and many Japanese albums have been released.
The Japanese VIPS gives back to him well to him, he has reached sales records, his albums are reaching highs for a foreign artist. Moreover, his tours are always sold out, the tickets posted online are never enough to satisfy the demand, forcing YG Entertainment to add additional dates. He is the first Korean solo artist to have managed to gather more than 100,000 fans on his tours two years in a row. This shows the incredible popularity of DAESUNG in Japan.
He is considered, in Japan, as the sexiest member of the group. As a proof, molds of his mouth and nose have been commercialized. The Japanese fanbase nicknamed him Daesung Jolie in reference to the lips of the American actress ANGELINA JOLIE.
DAESUNG a simple man, for whom it’s important to preserve his private life. Drummer in his spare time, and living his faith with devotion. He has charmed the hearts of his fans with his sincerity and constant good humor.
We hope that this retrospective will have allowed you to discover or better know this multi-faceted artist who is KANG DAESUNG.
Journalists : Mmmrci & Ipadje
Translator : Mmmrci
Sources : SNS YGENTERTAINMENT, BIGBANG.
