T.O.P (singer)

For abbreviations, see TOP.
Not to be confused with Tower of Power.
This is a Korean name; the family name is Choi.
T.O.P

T.O.P performing in Alive World Tour in 2012
Born Choi Seung-hyun
(1987-11-04) November 4, 1987
Seoul, South Korea
Occupation
  • Singer-songwriter
  • actor
  • record producer
  • rapper

Musical career

Genres
Years active 2006–present
Labels YG Entertainment[1]
Associated acts
Korean name
Hangul 최승현
Hanja 崔勝鉉
Revised Romanization Choe Seung-hyeon
McCune–Reischauer Ch'oe Sŭnghyŏn

Choi Seung-hyun (Hangul: 최승현; born November 4, 1987),[2] better known by his stage name T.O.P, is a South Korean rapper, singer-songwriter and actor. He is a member of the South Korean boy band Big Bang and has also participated in various dramas and films, such as I Am Sam (2007), Iris (2009), Nineteen (2009), 71: Into the Fire (2010), Commitment (2013) and Tazza: The Hidden Card (2014).

Jeff Benjamin of Billboard K-Town columnist noted that T.O.P is well known for his low-bass timbre rapping.[3]

Life and career

2005–06: Early life and debut with Big Bang

Big Bang at MTV Fast Forward, Thailand, December 2007

Prior to his involvement with YG Entertainment, Seung-hyun was an underground rapper under the name of Tempo, and a childhood friend of G-Dragon, another member and leader of Big Bang.[4] G-Dragon stated that the two were "neighborhood friend[s] from middle school" and would often dance and rap together.[5] Although G-Dragon later moved away and the two "became distant", he contacted Seung-hyun again when YG Entertainment was scouting for candidates to create a boy band.[5] The pair recorded several demos and sent them to Yang Hyun Suk, CEO of YG Entertainment, who later asked Seung-hyun to audition.[4] Seung-hyun was initially rejected by the record label, which deemed him too "chubby" to fit the "idealistic version" of an idol.[4] Seung-hyun later stated that he "went home and exercised really hard because I wanted to join YG Entertainment."[4] Six months later, he returned for another audition and was signed on. He reportedly lost 20 kg in 40 days.[4] Choi Seung-hyun was given the stage name of T.O.P. (Korean: 탑) by fellow YG artist Se7en. He became one of the two rappers in the group Big Bang, alongside G-Dragon. The two were paired with four others: Taeyang, Daesung, Seungri and Jang Hyun-seung and a documentation of their training was aired to promote them.[6] So-1 was dropped by the record label, and Big Bang made its official debut with five members.[7] Their first album, Since 2007, was a fair success,[8] and included T.O.P.'s first solo song "Big Boy." The group achieved mainstream success with the release of the song "Lies" (Korean: 거짓말; Revised Romanization: Geojitmal) from their 2007 mini-album Always, which topped several charts upon its release. The singles, "Last Farewell" (Korean: 마지막 인사; Revised Romanization: Majimak Insa) from the mini-album Hot Issue and "Day by Day" (Korean: 하루하루; Revised Romanization: Haru Haru) from Stand Up, became chart-toppers as well.[9][10]

2007–10: Solo career development, move into acting, and GD&TOP

T.O.P performing with G-Dragon in 2011

Following the release of the band's albums and singles, T.O.P. began working on his solo career. In April 2007, he was featured with fellow Big Bang members Taeyang and G-Dragon on singer Lexy's single "Super Fly" for her album Rush. Later that summer, he appeared as an actor in Red Roc's "Hello" music video.[11] He later became the first member of Big Bang to venture into acting, starring in the KBS2 drama, I Am Sam,.[1] portraying the school's top fighter, Chae Musin. He also took the role of MC of MBC's Music Core on November 10, 2007, only to resign in April of the following year. In 2008, he collaborated with R&B artist Gummy on the song "I'm Sorry" for her album Comfort, veteran singer Uhm Jung-hwa for her single "D.I.S.C.O." and ZiA for her single "I Only See You". That same year, he was also admitted to Dankook University, to the theatre department.[12]

T.O.P later put his solo career on hold while he joined Big Bang for their promotional activities. After more than a year of promoting the group's materials, he returned to acting, playing the assassin Vick in the critically acclaimed[13] Korean television drama Iris.[14] T.O.P. also recorded the song "Hallelujah" for the drama's soundtrack with Taeyang and G-Dragon. Following Iris, T.O.P. and his fellow Bigbang member, Seungri appeared in the teenage suspense drama, 19[15] which they released a song titled "Because".

GD & TOP promotional photo shoot

His appearance in the 2010 film 71: Into the Fire was well-received, earning him several awards including the Hallyu Popularity Award in the 47th Grand Bell Film Awards.[16] The movie also gained 1 million views in a week, making it the first movie of 2010 to do so South Korea.[17] Simultaneously, T.O.P began to prepare for his solo musical debut.[18] During Big Bang's Big Show concert in January 2010, T.O.P. performed his new single "Turn It Up." They later uploaded an official video, which garnered over a million views within a few minutes.[19] He became the first Korean artist to have his song released worldwide on iTunes.

In November 2010, YG Entertainment announced T.O.P and bandmate G-Dragon would release a collaboration album under the name "GD&T.O.P".[20] Preceding the release of the album, the duo held a world-wide premiere showcase for their album at Times Square in Yeongdeungpo of Seoul, South Korea,[21] which was also broadcast live on YouTube.[22] To promote their album, the duo released three singles: "High High," "Oh Yeah," and "Knock out."[23] All three singles preceded the release of the album. The singles attained commercial successes: "Knock Out" was a chart topper[24] while "Oh Yeah" and "High High" both peaked at No. 2 and No. 3 respectively.[25][26] The album was released on Christmas Eve, and debuted at number one[27] with pre-orders of 200,000 copies.[28]

2011–present: continued acting

T.O.P in 2012

During 2011, Big Bang halted their activities following the release of their Tonight extended play because of Daesung's car accident & G-Dragon's marijuana scandal. He attended 2011 MTV EMAs with his group Big Bang, which they won the category for Best Worldwide Act.[29]

In 2012, T.O.P starred in the film Commitment (also known as Alumni), playing the son of a North Korean spy who is falsely accused.[30][31] During filming a combat scene for the movie, he injured the back of his hand on a glass fragment and was later admitted to the hospital for surgery. Filming of the movie was delayed for several weeks, though despite his injury he continued to appear with Big Bang throughout their world tour.[32] For his role, he won Rookie Award at the Asia Star Awards, held during the Busan International Film Festival, the only Korean actor who won an award in the ceremony.

T.O.P was named one of the hottest sex symbols in 2013.[33] In November, he released a digital single, "Doom Dada"[34] which he himself regarded it as strange and weird. It was his latest single after 3 years with the release of "Turn It Up" in 2010. The song was performed for the first time at the Mnet Asian Music Awards 2013 in Hong Kong[35] He was later featured in English artist Pixie Lott's Japanese album along with G-Dragon for the song "Dancing on My Own".[36] In 2014, T.O.P portrayed the role of main character Ham Dae-Gil in the South Korean gambling film Tazza 2: The Hidden Card, sequel to Tazza: The High Rollers.

After debuting as a furniture designer in 2015 in collaboration with Vitra,[37] he was awarded the Visual Culture Award at the Prudential Eye Awards.[38]

Discography

Main article: Big Bang discography
Collaboration albums

Singles

Year Single Peak position Album
KOR
[39]
2006 "Big Boy" (T.O.P solo) — Since 2007
2007 "Friend" (Feat. Taeyang) — MBC TV Drama [Friend, Our Legend] OST
"Act Like Nothing's Wrong" (Feat. Kim Jieun) — Always
2009 "Hallelujah" (Feat. G-Dragon & Taeyang) 18 Iris OST
2010 "Turn it Up" 11 Digital Single
"Because" — 19 OST
2011 "Of All Days" 89 GD & TOP
"Oh Mom" 27
2013 "Doom Dada 4 Digital Single
2015 "Hi Haruka" — Secret Message OST

Featured and collaboration singles

Year Title Peak positions Album
KOR
[40]
2006 "Forever with You" (with G-Dragon Ft. Park Bom) — Bigbang Vol.1
"We Belong Together" (with G-Dragon & Vxp Ft. Park Bom) —
2007 "Buckwild" (NBK Gray Ft. T.O.P) —
2008 "I'm Sorry" (Gummy Ft. T.O.P) — Comfort
"D.I.S.C.O" (Uhm Jung-hwa Ft. T.O.P) — D.I.S.C.O
"All I See is You" (ZiA Ft. T.O.P) — Road Movie
"We Belong Together" English version (with G-Dragon Ft. Park Bom) — With U
2010 "Digital Bounce" (Se7en Ft. T.O.P) — Digital Bounce
2011 "High High" (with G-Dragon) 1 GD & TOP
"Oh Yeah" (with G-Dragon Ft. Park Bom) 2
"Knock Out" (with G-Dragon) 3
"Intro" (with G-Dragon) —
"Baby Goodnight" (with G-Dragon) 13
"Don't Go Home" (with G-Dragon) 22
2012 "Dancing on My Own" (Pixie Lott Ft. T.O.P & G-Dragon) — Young Foolish Happy (Deluxe Edition)
2013 "Bubble Butt" (Major Lazer Ft. Bruno Mars, G-Dragon, T.O.P, Tyga and Mystic) 78 Free the Universe (Asian Edition)
2015 "Zutter" (with G-Dragon) 2 Made
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Filmography

Movie

Year Title Role Notes
2008 Story of Men Himself Cameo appearance
2009 Nineteen Seo Jeong-hun
2010 71: Into the Fire Oh Jang-beom
2011 Iris the Movie Vick Film adaption of Iris for Japan
2013 Commitment Lee Myeong-hoon / Kang Dae-ho
2014 Tazza: The Hidden Card Ham Dae-gil Sequel of Tazza: The High Rollers
2016 Out of Control[41] Tom Young Chinese movie

Television drama

Year Title Role Network
2007 I Am Sam Chae Mu-sin KBS2
2009 Iris Vick KBS2
2010 Haru T.O.P
2015 Secret Message[42] Woo-hyun CJ E&M Web Drama

Variety shows

Year Title Network Notes Video
2009 Family Outing SBS Guest, episode 34 and 35 [-]
2012 Running Man SBS Guest with BIGBANG, episode 84 and 85 [-]
2013 Running Man SBS Guest with Kim Yoo-jung, episode 170 [-]
2015 Running Man SBS Guest with BIGBANG, episode 250 [-]
2015 Yu Huiyeol's Sketchbook KBS2 Guest with BIGBANG, episode 276 KBS World TV
2015 Happy Together KBS2 Guest with BIGBANG, episode 398 KBS World TV

Music video appearance

Year Song title Artist
2007 "Hello" Red Roc
2008 "I'm Sorry" Gummy
"D.I.S.C.O" Uhm Jung-hwa
2011 "I'm Sorry" (Japanese version) Gummy

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
2010 47th Grand Bell Awards Hallyu Popularity[43] 71: Into the Fire Won
Best New Actor[44] Nominated
8th Korean Film Awards Best New Actor[45] Nominated
Style Icon Awards New Icon (Movie)[46] Won
31st Blue Dragon Film Awards Best New Actor[47] Won
Popularity Award[47] Won
Max Movie Award Best New Actor[48] Won
5th Asian Film Awards Best New Actor[49] Nominated
2011 47th Baeksang Arts Awards Best New Actor[50] Won
Popularity Award[50] Won
2013 17th BIFF Asia Star Awards Rookie Awards[51] Commitment Won
2014 50th Baeksang Arts Awards Popularity Award Nominated
Singapore Entertainment Awards Most Popular K-pop Music Video Doom Dada Nominated
2015 Prudential Eye Awards Visual Culture Award Himself Won
52nd Grand Bell Awards Popularity Award Tazza: The Hidden Card Nominated

Music chart wins

SBS's Inkigayo

Year Date Song
2011 January 9 "High High" (GD&T.O.P)

Mnet's M! Countdown

Year Date Song
2010 December 30 "Oh Yeah" (GD&T.O.P)
2011 January 6 "High High" (GD&T.O.P)
2015 August 20 "Zutter" (GD&T.O.P)

References

  1. 1 2 "Choi Seung Hyun YG Profile" (in Korean). YG Entertainment. Retrieved May 26, 2009.
  2. ↑ Mark Russell (April 29, 2014). K-Pop Now!: The Korean Music Revolution. Tuttle Publishing. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-4629-1411-1.
  3. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff. "BIGBANG in America: Behind the Scenes With the K-Pop Boy Wonders". Billboard. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 (Korean){{cite http://www.google.com/imgres?q=t.o.p+bigbang&start=110&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1366&bih=690&tbm=isch&tbnid=wFs8Rfa20KHbCM:&imgrefurl=http://www.koreaboo.com/index.html/_/general/big-bangs-top-injures-hand-during-t-r18073&docid=wENS_DAHnh89pM&imgurl=http://www.koreaboo.com/forum/uploads/cc783ab569ec885de139952dac83d2d0.jpg&w=290&h=290&ei=bnAtUa7QOvSr2AXsgoGgBQ&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:10,s:100,i:34&iact=rc&dur=268&sig=107515174304572353076&page=5&tbnh=174&tbnw=167&ndsp=28&tx=63&ty=117 2010012614544865752|title=新스타고백지드래곤⑥'빅뱅' 별명은 '어떡해'였죠|date=February 3, 2010|publisher=Asiae News|accessdate=February 4, 2010}}
  5. 1 2 新스타고백지드래곤⑤아이돌그룹 활동, 망설였다 (in Korean). Asiae News. February 2, 2010. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
  6. ↑ "Big Bang". KBS World. Retrieved January 15, 2010.
  7. ↑ '준비된 그룹' 빅뱅, 대폭발 예고. Sports Chosun (in Korean). July 7, 2006. Retrieved January 15, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Album Sales for the Month of February 2007". Industry Association of Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved February 15, 2008.
  9. ↑ "빅뱅 쥬크온차트 8주 연속 1위 기염, JOO도 2주만에 7위 진입". Newsen (in Korean). January 21, 2008. Retrieved February 1, 2008.
  10. ↑ "Big Bang's 'Day by Day' Sweeps J-Pop Charts for Four Weeks". KBS Global. September 8, 2008.
  11. ↑ 빅뱅 8월 신보 발매, 태양 솔로 데뷔는 미정. Newsen (in Korean). July 18, 2007. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
  12. ↑ 탑(T.O.P), 단국대 입학 증명사진 화제. Etoday.co.kr. Retrieved on January 13, 2012.
  13. ↑ Chung Kang, Hyun (November 26, 2009). "New drama finds a gripping formula for success". Joongang Daily. Retrieved December 3, 2009.
  14. ↑ Han Sang, Hee (May 24, 2009). "'Iris' to Bring Spy Story to Small Screen". Korea Times. Archived from the original on October 16, 2009. Retrieved December 3, 2009.
  15. ↑ "Big Bang duo star in murder movie". JoongAngDaily. May 22, 2009. Retrieved December 3, 2009.
  16. ↑ Hicap, Jonathan M. (October 30, 2010). "'Poetry' wins best film at 47th Daejong Film Awards". Manila Bulletin. Manila Bulletin Publishing. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  17. ↑ Yim, Seung-hye (February 5, 2010). "Actor Kwon Sang-woo injured while filming fight". JoongAng Daily. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
  18. ↑ 탑-대성, 빅뱅 콘서트서 솔로곡 첫 공개 (in Korean). Osen. January 31, 2010. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
  19. ↑ 빅뱅 탑 콘서트서 첫 솔로곡 뮤비 깜짝 공개 ‘올 상반기 활동’ (in Korean). Newsen. January 31, 2010. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
  20. ↑ "G-Dragon and Top to Release Duet Album in December". KBS Global. November 30, 2010. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  21. ↑ Kim, Jessica (December 15, 2010). "Big Bang T.O.P, G-Dragon pose at album showcase". 10asia. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  22. ↑ Kim, Jessica (December 15, 2010). "G-Dragon and T.O.P hold world premiere showcase for duo unit". 10asia. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  23. ↑ Kim, Jessica (December 24, 2010). "Big Bang unit G-Dragon and T.O.P release third title track". 10asia. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  24. ↑ "Big Bang duo on TV today". Korea JoongAng Daily. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  25. ↑ Kim, Heidi. "IU "Good Day" stays atop Gaon chart for 4th week". 10asia. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  26. ↑ Kim, Heidi. "IU's "Good Day" takes charge of Mnet chart for 4th week". 10asia. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  27. ↑ "Gaon Chart Search: GD & TOP". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved October 31, 2010.
  28. ↑ "'발매 D-2' GD·탑 유닛 첫앨범, 선주문만 '20만장' (GD&TOP's album receives 200,000 pre-orders)". Daum (in Korean). Retrieved January 23, 2011.
  29. ↑ "Big Bang Wins the "World Wide Act" Award at MTV European Music Awards". Soompi. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
  30. ↑ "Big Bang's T.O.P. and Jo Sung Ha Confirmed for "Alumni"". Soompi. Retrieved June 12, 2012.
  31. ↑ "Kim Yoo Jung to Play T.O.P's Younger Sister in New Movie". Soompi. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
  32. ↑ "T.O.P suffers an injury while filming for movie Alumnus". Allkpop. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  33. ↑ "2013's Hottest Sex Symbols". RollingStone. Retrieved December 17, 2013.
  34. ↑ "'YG Music' DOOM DADA". Genie. Retrieved November 15, 2013.
  35. ↑ "Performances from the '2013 MAMA'!". Allkpop. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
  36. ↑ http://www.allkpop.com/2012/03/gdtop-to-feature-in-english-singer-pixie-lotts-new-japanese-release
  37. ↑ "T.O.P to Debut as Furniture Designer in 2015 in Collaboration with Switzerland-based Brand VITRA". YGUnited. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  38. ↑ "Big Bang's T.O.P awarded Visual Culture Award for his artistic interests from 'Prudential Eye Awards'". Allkpop. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  39. ↑ "Gaon Chart Search: T.O.P". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  40. ↑ "Gaon Chart Search: Park Bom". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  41. ↑ http://www.newseveryday.com/articles/35876/20160406/kpop-news-bigbang-t-o-p-to-star-in-a-chinese-movie.htm
  42. ↑ "BigBang T.O.P. and Japanese actress reveal 'Secret Message'". Korea Times. October 28, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
  43. ↑ [아츠포토] '시' 윤정희-이창동감독, '대종상영화제' 참석 (in Korean). Arts News. October 30, 2010. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  44. ↑ ホーム»第47回大鐘賞映画祭授賞式公式観覧ツアー (in Japanese). 韓流コンサート. October 30, 2010. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  45. ↑ "8th Korea Film Awards" (in Korean). MBC. November 10, 2010. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  46. ↑ Han, Jiyoung (November 18, 2010). 올해 스타일아이콘 어워즈, 이병헌-소지섭-신민아 엣지있는 이유는?(종합) (in Korean). Newsen. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  47. 1 2 제 31회 / 의형제 (쇼박스㈜미디어플렉스, 루비콘픽쳐스㈜, ㈜다세포클럽) (in Korean). Blue Dragon Film Awards. November 27, 2010. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  48. ↑ 제8회 맥스무비 최고의 영화상 [Top of the 8th Max Movie Awards] (in Korean). Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  49. ↑ "5th AFA Nominees & Winners by Nominees" (in Korean). Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  50. 1 2 "Winners of 47th Baeksang Award" (in Korean). Allkpop. May 26, 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2011.
  51. ↑ "[T.O.P becomes the only Korean celebrity to be awarded at BIFF's 'Asia Star Awards'" (in Korean). Big Bang Updates. October 6, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.

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