Lee Ji-hoon (Korean: 이지훈; born November 22, 1996), better known by his stage name Woozi (Korean: 우지), is a South Korean singer, songwriter and record producer. He is a member of the boy band Seventeen. Aside from his work as a soloist and with Seventeen, Woozi has also written for other K-pop artists such as NU'EST W, Ailee, and I.O.I.
2015–present: Debut with Seventeen and solo activities
On May 26, 2015, Woozi debuted in the self-producing group Seventeen with the single "Adore U".[4] He helped write and produce every track on their debut extended play (EP) 17 Carat.[5] He has since become Seventeen's main producer along with Bumzu and is credited for writing over 80% of the group's discography as of January 2019.[6][2]
Shortly thereafter, Woozi began writing for other artists as well. In 2016, he and Ailee wrote lyrics for her collaboration with Eric Nam, "Feelin'".[7] In 2017, Woozi wrote the last single released by the project group I.O.I, "Downpour", whose lyrics received praise.[8] Later that year, he gifted the song "Thankful for You" (지금까지 행복했어요) to South Korean singer Baekho of boy band NU'EST W, which was featured in the group's first EP W, Here.[9] Woozi became a full member of the Korea Music Copyright Association in 2019.[10] On October 15, 2019, Woozi released the song "Miracle" for the soundtrack of the television series The Tale of Nokdu.[11]
In 2021, he worked with fellow Seventeen member Hoshi on the latter's song "Spider", which debuted at number five on the BillboardWorld Digital Song Sales chart.[12][13] That year, Woozi won Best Producer at the 6th Asia Artist Awards, becoming the youngest recipient of the accolade in the show's history.[14] He released his first mixtape, Ruby, on January 3, 2022.[15] Its lead single, the first track he wrote entirely in the English language, reached number one on iTunes charts in at least 18 different regions, including Chile, Mexico, Indonesia, and Philippines.[16]
On January 26, 2024, Woozi officially released the song "What Kind of Future" as a birthday gift to his late friend Moonbin, who had died the previous year.[17][18]
Endorsements
In October 2022, Korean fashion brand Romantic Crown announced that they had selected Woozi as their brand model for their 2022 fall/winter collection.[19] In March 2023, the brand collaborated with Woozi on a second collection, which featured clothing referencing "Universe Factory", Woozi's nickname for his music studio.[20]
^I.O.I and Woozi were nominated alongside the song as singer and producer respectively.
References
^Park, Su-jeong (June 18, 2015). "[My Name] 세븐틴 (2) 보컬팀 - 우지, 조슈아, 정한, 도겸, 승관" [[My Name] Seventeen (2) Vocal Team – Woozi, Joshua, Jeonghan, DK, Seungkwan]. TenAsia (in Korean). Archived from the original on April 14, 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
^ abYoon, Seung-geun (January 19, 2019). '프로듀서' 우지 "솔로 욕심? 세븐틴이 먼저죠"(인터뷰) ['Producer' Woozi "Greed for solo? Seventeen comes first" (interview)]. StarNews (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 31, 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
^Kim, Joo-ae (October 11, 2016). "'올드스쿨' 에일리, 센 언니 'NO'…애교만점 '흥 부자' (종합)" ['Old School' Ailee, older sister 'NO'... Full of aegyo 'heung rich' (comprehensive)]. Xports News (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 1, 2021. Retrieved November 1, 2021.
^Han, Jeong-won (March 30, 2019). ""흥행 문제 없어"…진영·백호·우지·정세운, 소문난 프로듀싱 ★ [엑's 기획]" ["No performance problems"... Jinyoung·Baekho·Woozi·Jeong Sewoon, famous producing ★ [X's plan]]. Xports News (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 1, 2021. Retrieved November 1, 2021.
^Kim, Mi-ji (October 11, 2017). '프레젠트' 뉴이스트W 백호 "세븐틴 우지가 솔로곡 선물…가사수정 無" ['Present' Nu'est W Baekho "Seventeen's Woozi presents a solo song... No lyrics correction"]. Xports News (in Korean). Archived from the original on April 20, 2021. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
^Hwang, Hye-jin (January 28, 2019). "'뮤직쇼' 세븐틴 우지 "저작권협회 정회원 됐다, 굴비 기대돼"" ['Music Show' SEVENTEEN's Woozi "I'm a full member of the Copyright Association, I'm looking forward to Gulbi"]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 1, 2021. Retrieved November 1, 2021.
^Ji, Min-kyung (October 15, 2019). "세븐틴 우지, '녹두전' OST 세 번째 주자..오늘(15일) 'Miracle' 발매 [공식]" [SEVENTEEN's Woozi, 'The Battle of Nokdu' OST 3rd Runner..Today (15th) 'Miracle' Released [Official]]. OSEN (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 31, 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
^Lee, Tae-soo (December 28, 2021). "세븐틴 우지, 내달 3일 첫 믹스테이프 '루비' 발표" [SEVENTEEN's Woozi to release the first mixtape 'Ruby' on the 3rd of next month]. Star News (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 28, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
^"세븐틴 우지, 솔로 믹스테이프 '루비'로 아이튠즈 차트 1위" [SEVENTEEN's Woozi tops iTunes chart with solo mixtape 'Ruby'] (in Korean). 뉴스1. January 4, 2022. Archived from the original on January 15, 2022. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
