Kangta

This is a Korean name; the family name is Ahn.
Kangta

Kangta at 'The Voice' in February 2012
Born Ahn Chil-hyun
(1979-10-10) October 10, 1979
Seoul, South Korea
Occupation

Musical career

Genres
Instruments
Years active 1996–present
Labels SM Entertainment
Associated acts
Website Official Site
Kangta
Hangul 강타
Revised Romanization Gangta
McCune–Reischauer Kangt'a
Birth name
Hangul 안칠현
Hanja 安七炫
Revised Romanization An Chil-hyeon
McCune–Reischauer An Ch'irhyŏn

Ahn Chil-hyun (born October 10, 1979), better known by his stage name Kangta, is a South Korean pop singer. He is a former member of the boy band H.O.T. and a solo singer since their disbandment in 2001.

Biography

Pre-debut and H.O.T.

See also: H.O.T.

Kangta was discovered at Lotte World, a theme park, when he was only 13 years old. He debuted as a back-up dancer together with future band member Moon Hee Jun for singer Yoo Young-jin. Kangta eventually decided to become a singer with Moon Hee Jun and three others, Jang Woo Hyuk, Tony An, and Lee Jae Won to form H.O.T. in 1996.

He is an experienced songwriter and composer, having written over 100 songs[1] for H.O.T.'s albums as well as for other groups and singers like NRG and Fly to the Sky. When H.O.T. disbanded in March 2001, Kangta was the first member to debut solo. He released his first solo album "Polaris", which became a huge hit; it was followed by his second album "Pinetree" in 2002. His first solo concert took place in the summer of 2003.

In 2006, Kangta was chosen as a runner up for Best Korean Singer overseas, according to Arirang International Broadcasting. A poll was issued over the internet, allowing only people outside of Korea to vote. Shinhwa's song "Once In A Lifetime" won by 60% of the vote, beating Kangta, who came in second with 20.3 percent.

2004-2010: Acting and military service

Kangta received several offers and has accepted a drama offer in China. In 2004, he starred in a drama called Magic Touch of Fate together with Taiwanese actors and actresses, Ruby Lin and Alec Su. Kangta portrayed the role of the evil magician Jin-Xiu

Soon afterwards, Kangta returned to Korea and released his much-awaited third album. In 2005, Kangta released "Persona", which included tracks that were very different from his previous two albums. The main single of the album, "Persona" had a similar melody to Babyface's "The Loneliness". Kangta surprised his fans when he said he wanted to become an actor. A month later, he starred in a KBS drama, Loveholic.

Kangta also acted in his second Chinese drama,[2] Love In The City 2. In Love In The City 2 Kangta portrayed the life of a successful CEO with a dull life. In March Kangta was announced to be starring in JTBC's 2012 drama Happy Ending as Kim So Eun's love interest.[3]

In 2007, he filmed two dramas and Love in the city 2 aired on October 1, 2007. In January 2007, Kangta took part in the Hallyu Festival in Osaka which also featured Jun Jin and Lee Min-woo of Shinhwa, SG Wannabe and actor Song Seung-heon at the Osaka Dome.[4]

Kangta enlisted for mandatory military service in April 2008 for 21 months of active duty. During which time he starred in military musical, Mine with rapper Yang Dong-geun. It is about the true life story of Lieutenant Lee Jong-myung, who lost his legs in a land mine explosion near the demilitarized zone, in June 2000, when he saved fellow soldier, Sul Dong-seob from the minefield.[5]

2010: Chinese debut

After two years and five months of hiatus from the entertainment industry due to Korean military service, Kangta comes back with his first Chinese mini album entitiled "静享七乐 (Rest in the Seven Tunes)", with its lead single, Love, Frequency (Breaka Shaka).[6] The digital single was released online on September 13, 2010. The mini-album marked Kangta's entrance to the Chinese market. Meanwhile, the teaser for the single, as well as the digital mini-album, was released through SM Entertainment's official YouTube page on September 9, 2010.[7] The mini album and the music video was released September 13, 2010.[8]

2015: Comeback news

In September 2015, it was reported that Kangta will be released new album in next year.[9] A rep from SM further related, "Kangta has been steadily working on new music, but the release date has not been been [sic] set yet."[10]

Group projects

S (Supreme)

Main article: S (group)

After planning for years, Kangta worked with his celebrity friends Shin Hye Sung from Shinhwa and Lee Ji Hoon to form the project group "S", standing for "Supreme". They released their first solo project album called "Fr. In. Cl." or Friends in Classic (2003). They have won several awards since then. Their title track, "I Swear" was written, composed, and arranged by Kangta while Shin Hye Sung wrote the English lyrics.

On 14 October 2014, it was announced that group 'S' would be making a comeback after over a decade with a new mini-album titled Autumn Breeze, scheduled to be released on October 27. SM Entertainment stated that "Kangta wrote and produced all the songs on the upcoming album. Kangta’s unique music style and the trio’s harmonious voices will create beautiful ballads that will satisfy the fans". On October 18, the group performed their new song Without You (하고 싶은 거 다) at SM Entertainment's agency-wide concert SM Town in Shanghai.The music video for the song Without You was released on October 24, starring Yuri of Girls' Generation. The group is slated to be on Korean singing program Immortal Songs 2 on November 3 as part of their promotions.

Kangta & Vanness

Main article: Kangta & Vanness

Early 2006, Kangta collaborated with Vanness Wu of F4 from Taiwan, and formed Kangta & Vanness. Their debut was in Thailand ending the ceremony for the 2006 MTV Asia Awards. They released their single "Scandal" and have been busy promoting their single all over Asia. "Scandal" was a success over Asia and a repackaged version was released in mid-July. On September 12, they held a showcase in Malaysia, Berjaya Times Square.

On Arirang TV's talk-show "Heart to Heart", Kangta announced that he would be entering the Army in early 2008, so activities have been put on hold.

Discography

Main article: H.O.T. discography

Korean

Studio albums
Live albums
Compilation albums

Chinese

EP's

Other appearances

Year Song Album Other(s) Artist
2001 I Want Promise Fly To The Sky & BoA
White Christmas Winter Vacation in SMTown.com – Angel Eyes None
The First Noel None
2002 Seom (Gajuno's Song) Resurrection of the Little Match Girl OST None
Perguntas (질문) Air City OST None
Blue Summer Vacation in SMTown.com None
여름날의 추억 None
보내는 글 2002 Winter

Vacation in SMTown.com – My Angel My Light

None
Silver Bell Hye-sung & Isak N Jiyeon
2003 연가 2003 Summer Vacation in SMTown.com None
그림으로 떠나는여행 Lee Ji-hoon, Dana
The Christmas Song 2003 Winter Vacation in

SMTown.com

None
2004 미쳐가나봐 2004 Summer Vacation in SMTown.com None
Just One Moon Hee Jun & Isak N Jiyeon
2006 한 여름밤의 고백 (Summer Night Love) 2006 Summer SMTown None
White Christmas 2006 Winter SMTown – Snow Dream None
2007 할말이 너무 많아요 (Something To Tell You) Vol. 2 There's So Much I Want To Say Chu Ga-yeoul
지난 여름밤의 이 야기 (Last Year Summer Night Story) 2007 Summer SMTown – Fragile None
7989 Girls' Generation Taeyeon
Still My Heart Dear My Love OST None
White Wonderland 2007 Winter SMTown – Only Love None
2011 For The First Time 2011 Winter SMTown – The Warmest Gift None
2012 Dear My Family I AM. OST SMTown

Lyrics and Composition

Year Song Artist Album Note
2002 Waiting BoA No.1 lyrics
Beat It
2007 7989 Kangta & Girls' Generation's Taeyeon Girls' Generation

Produced album

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2002 Emergency Act 19 Cameo
Resurrection of the Little Match Girl Special Guest Star
2012 I AM. Himself Documentary of SMTown in New York
Secret Garden (China Version) Oscar
2015 SMTown The Stage Himself Documentary film of SM Town [11]

Television dramas

Year Network Title Role Notes
2005 CCTV Magic Touch of Fate Jin Xiu (金修)
KBS Loveholic Seo Kang Wook
2007 CCTV Love In The City 2 Zhang Wei Qi
2011 Pepper and Kimchi (辣椒与泡菜)
BTV Di Jin (帝锦)
2012 JTBC Happy Ending Goo Seung Jae [12]

TV series

Year Title Role Network
2012 The Voice of Korea Judges Mnet
2013 The Voice of Korea Season 2 Judges Mnet
2013 I Live Alone Himself MBC
2015 Ding Ge Long Dong Qiang Himself CCTV

Awards

Mnet Asian Music Awards

Year Category Work Result
2001 Best Male Artist "Polaris"[13][14] Won
Best Ballad Performance Nominated
2002 Best Male Artist "Memories"[15] Nominated
Best Ballad Performance Nominated
2005 Best R&B Performance "Persona"[16] Nominated
Overseas Viewers' Award "Mask"[17] Won

References

  1. "페이지를 찾을 수 없습니다.". Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  2. "페이지를 찾을 수 없습니다.". Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  3. "김소은, 드라마 '해피엔딩'서 최민수 딸로 활약 '기대' :: THE STAR". Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  4. Lee Yong-sung "Osaka concert features Korean Wave stars" Korea Herald. 25 January 2007. Retrieved 2012-04-10
  5. Lee, Eun-joo (2 October 2008). "Military musical mines true story of loyalty and sacrifice". Joongang Daily. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
  6. "OMONA THEY DIDN'T! Endless charms, endless possibilities ♥ - More info on Kangta's upcoming EP". Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  7. "KANGTA_愛, 頻率_Teaser Movie". YouTube. 8 September 2010. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  8. "KANGTA_愛, 頻率_Music Video". YouTube. 10 September 2010. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  9. "Kangta reported to make his comeback next year". Allkpop. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  10. "SM Entertainment confirms Kangta is working on new music for his return". Allkpop. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  11. (Korean) 'SM타운' 공연실황 다큐, 8월13일 국내개봉 확정
  12. Hong, Lucia (5 April 2012). "Kangta confirms role in jTBC's upcoming TV series". 10 Asia. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
  13. "2001 M.net Korean Music Festival Winners list". MAMA. Retrieved 2014-06-12.
  14. "2001 MMF part 1". MAMA. Retrieved 2014-07-23.
  15. "2002 MMF part 1". Mwave. Retrieved 2014-08-17.
  16. "2005 MKMF part 1". Mwave. Retrieved 2014-08-28.
  17. "2005 M.net Korean Music Festival Winners list". MAMA. Retrieved 2014-06-12.

External links

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