Jeon Jungkook : Golden Maknae of BTS
K-pop’s biggest boy group, BTS, is celebrating its 10th anniversary since its debut! The 7-member group has paved the way to success these last ten years and has played a massive role in changing the industry for other groups! BTS wouldn’t be the group it is today without its members, specifically its golden maknae, Jeon Jungkook. Keep reading to learn more about the life and career of BTS’ youngest member Jungkook!
Jungkook’s Path to Debut:
Born on September 1st, 1997, in Mandeok-dong, Busan, Jeon Jungkook comes from a family of four, including himself, his mother, his father, and his older brother making him the youngest in his family and BTS.
As many ARMYs know, Jungkook has been recognized for his vocal abilities, performing talent, and visuals. While he didn't always dream of being a singer, he changed his mind when Jungkook became a fan of G-Dragon's music in his first year of high school and decided that's what he wanted to do!
He auditioned for Superstar K in 2011, singing IU's 'Lost Child,' despite not passing the elimination round, he was offered to join eight different agencies on his way home! After being impressed by RM's performance, he decided to join Big Hit Entertainment and became the fifth member to join BTS, coming after Jin, RM, Suga, and J-Hope!
Since he debuted so young, Jungkook attended the Seoul School of Performing Arts for high school and graduated in February 2017. Like many of his older members, he also attended Global Cyber University!
BTS’ Golden Maknae’s Career:
As some of the group’s members have enlisted for their mandatory military service, they have each participated in solo activities since releasing their anthology album Proof last year. While Jungkook has yet to release his solo album, which will come out this July, he hasn’t shied away from collaborations with other artists and talking with fans live and performing for them!
Below you will find Jungkook’s solo releases under his group name and his songs and collaborations with other artists, many of which have broken records!
Begin
Jungkook’s first solo song, ‘Begin,’ was released in 2016 on the group’s Wings album. The track is arguably the most meaningful of the member’s solo songs on the album since it is about his hyungs and how they have helped him become who he is.
Euphoria
Euphoria is one of BTS’ most popular solo songs, becoming the first and only K-pop idol solo song to chart for 85 weeks on Billboard’s World Digital Song Sales Chart, which is the longest-charting K-pop solo song ever!
The track was first released under the ‘Love Yourself: Answer’ album in 2018. It is an upbeat song with heavenly vocals, which explains why it is so popular, not to mention the performance of Jungkook flying above thousands of ARMYs in sold-out stadiums!
My Time
Coming after Euphoria is My Time, released in 2020 under the album ‘Map of the Soul: 7.’ The song has an R&B sound, showing the group’s versatility in song production and writing! This song also had immense success, ranking 84th on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart after being released, which was BTS’ highest-charting solo song then!
‘My Time’ also achieved #1 on US iTunes and Billboard’s World Digital Song Sales Chart, and taking after ‘Euphoria,’ spent over 70 weeks on the chart!
In addition to these three solo releases under the group’s name, Jungkook has also collaborated with his bandmates and other artists and shared his unreleased songs with ARMYs!
Still With You
This unreleased song was shared initially with ARMY via SoundCloud as a gift from Jungkook for BTS’ 2020 Festa, their debut anniversary celebration!
The song was later added to the 2022 album Proof, but only on the physical CD version, and was released as an acapella track, showcasing Jungkook’s insane vocals.
My You
Similar to ‘Still With You,’ this track was released by Jungkook for BTS’ 2022 Festa as another song dedicated to ARMYs! Check out the video below to listen!
Stay Alive (Prod. SUGA of BTS)
Stay Alive was released on February 11th, 2022, as a soundtrack for HYBE’s Webtoon Series 7FATES: CHAKHO, which is based on the members of BTS! Each member has a character that represents them in the series, making it a hit among ARMYs, and the song even earned Jungkook his first spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart as a soloist!
Left and Right (feat. Jungkook of BTS)
Left and Right were released on June 24th, 2022, by Charlie Puth for his album, ‘CHARLIE.’ This song is not the first time the pair have collaborated, as Jungkook performed his song ‘We Don’t Talk Anymore’ with him in 2018 at the Genie Music Awards after covering the piece with BTS member Jimin for 2017 Festa!
Dreamers
This past November, Jungkook traveled to Qatar to perform at the FIFA World Cup 2022 Opening Ceremony with the song ‘Dreamers,’ making him the first kpop idol to do so! Check out the opening ceremony performance below!
Jungkook’s Solo Album When?
With all members of BTS having released their solo albums besides V, Jungkook’s highly anticipated solo debut is up next, with his album set to be released on July 14th, 2023!
Other Updates about Jungkook:
Jungkook is known for being off the grid compared to his members but has kept fans entertained with lives on Weverse, especially the ones where he has fallen asleep in front of the camera!
He is also known for having friendships with the many members of the 97 line in the K-pop industry, including Seventeen’s Mingyu, The8, and DK, Astro’s Cha Eunwoo, GOT7’s Bambam and Yugyeom, and NCT’s Jaehyun to name a few. Most recently, Jungkook teamed up with Seveteen’s Mingyu to do the ‘Super’ challenge after sharing his love for the song!
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