Kim Woosung (Korean: 김우성, born February 25, 1993), also known as Woosung and Sammy, is a Korean-American singer–songwriter, composer, producer, and musician. Woosung is most known as lead vocalist and electric guitarist of the South Korean indie-rock band The Rose. He also made his solo debut on July 25, 2019, with the extended play Wolf.[2][3]
Early life
Woosung was born in Wonju in South Korea before moving to the United States in his early childhood.[4][5] Growing up he aspired to play American football, but when a shoulder injury in ninth grade derailed those plans Woosung redirected his passion toward music.[6]
In 2011, he auditioned for the South Korean reality TV competition series K-pop Star.[4][6] After narrowly missing being included in the show's top ten artists, Woosung took a three year break from music and taught English in Korea. Late 2015, Park Dojoon, keyboard player for indie act Windfall, asked Woosung to join the band. In 2016, Windfall adopted the name “The Rose” and signed with J&Star Company.[5]
He debuted on August 3, 2017, as a lead vocalist and electric guitarist of indie-rock band, The Rose alongside members, Park Dojoon (English name: Leo), Lee Hajoon (English name: Dylan), and Lee Jaehyeong (English name: Jeff).[7][8] Woosung was the last member to join the band.[5] The band’s first release was their critically acclaimed hit single "Sorry". On December 14, 2017, Billboard named The Rose's "Sorry" as one of the best Korean pop songs of 2017.[7][8]
OOn March 20, 2019, it was announced on Twitter Woosung would be the third MC on After School Club, replacing Seungmin from Stray Kids . He co-hosted along with Jamie and Han Hee-jun beginning with episode 361 on March 26, 2019.[9] Woosung officially left the show on December 31st, 2019, due to his busy schedule. [10]
From April 12 – July 12, 2019, Woosung participated in the music talent show Superband, produced by JTBC. The show invited indie musicians to perform and form new bands, competing against each other. Woosung entered the competition with his band members, but he was the only one to advance to the next round. Temporarily forming the band Moné with other participants, including Isaac Hong, [11] they ultimately placed fourth in the finale. During his time on the show, Woosung co-wrote three songs as part of Moné: "Take Me Away;" "Wooing;" and “idc.” [12]
Woosung's solo pre-release single "Lonely" came out on July 19, 2019.[13] His first extended play Wolf was released the following week on July 25, along with the title track "Face".[13] The music video for "Face" was directed by Lee Rae Kyung and quickly amassed more than 20 million views on YouTube.[13][14][15] The EP peaked at number 19 on the Gaon Album Chart.[3]
On October 22, 2019, Woosung worked on the soundtrack for the K-Drama Catch The Ghost releasing “Feel My Heart.” [16]
On November 15, 2019, Woosung released “Beautiful Girl” featuring BtoB's Peniel.
In December 2019, Woosung worked on another original soundtrack, “Wanna Be Bad”, for the K-Drama series Psychopath Diaries. [17] In 2020, Woosung lent his vocals to the original soundtrack of the award-winning K-drama series, Itaewon Class, for a track titled "You Make Me Back".[14]
On September 7, 2021, it was announced that Woosung would be releasing an audio collection on Mindset by Dive Studios, a podcast platform offering personal, in-depth interviews with celebrities and influencers, focusing on mental health, personal growth, and well-being. [18]
The collection, composed of 12 episodes, was released on September 8, 2021. It is available on all Mindset platforms, providing listeners with insights into Woosung's life and professional experiences and his unique and compelling perspective.
Woosung’s first full-length album Genre was released under his self-owned indie label, Woolfpack, on December 9, 2021.[19][20] It included collaborations with KARD’s BM on ‘CWS’ and Ladies’ Code’s Ashley on ‘Oh’, alongside previously released songs "Dimples" (September 2021) and "Lazy" (July 2021).[20][21]
From March 1, 2022 through April 12 of that same year, Woosung opened for Epik High on their North American tour.[22]
In 2022, Woosung signed with Transparent Arts and released his second EP Moth on May 13, 2022,[23] which featured the title track, "Phase Me," that Woosung debuted during his tour with Epik High.[24] Just three days after the Epik High tour ended, on April 15, 2022, Woosung started his own tour in Europe, the USA, and Canada. Titled the "Moth EP Showcase", the mini solo tour ended on May 26, 2022, in Seoul, with a special appearance by the rest of The Rose members, Dojoon, Hajoon and Jaehyeong, who had just recently been discharged from their mandatory military service.[25]
In July 2022, The Attire, a Los Angeles-based duo, released 'Sriracha' featuring Woosung.[26] He also features prominently in the music video for the song.[27]
On April 21, 2023, Woosung featured on the track “Snooze” from Agust D's (also known as Suga of BTS) album D-Day. The track would also feature Ryuichi Sakamoto, and the song would become the legendary composer’s last work as he passed away shortly after its completion. The song has received great critical acclaim and commercial success and quickly became a fan favorite, with all three artists' contributions being highly praised.[28]
On March 29, 2023, the cast for Jentry Chau vs. The Underworld, a Netflix original animated series led and produced by Ali Wong, was revealed, announcing Woosung as one of the voice stars.[29] The series is set to be released sometime in 2024.
Woosung updated his official website on May 16, 2024, hinting at a possible new EP in the works, cryptically titled “4444”.[30] Fans immediately began speculating about the significance of "4444" and what it might mean for Woosung's upcoming music and artistic projects. Woosung later released "4444" on October 4, the album includes 8 songs.
