Wooyoung

(left: online community, right: JYP Entertainment)

His path to stardom was not without obstacles. His father had hoped he would become a civil servant, but Wooyoung did not give up his dream to become an entertainer and had secretly taken dance classes behind his father’s back.

His mother had supported her son’s ambition. During an interview on TV, Wooyoung’s mother had said that her son had been into dancing from a young age. There had been tension in the family due to the difference in views about Wooyoung’s career path, which almost led to his parents getting a divorce.

His father eventually found out about the dance classes, because Wooyoung had returned home late every day and his grades in school had suffered. There was even an incident when his father had gotten angry after finding out that the portable media player he had bought for his son to help him in his studies was being used instead to play dance videos. He broke the player in a fit of anger. Wooyoung’s mother cried on TV while recalling the tension between father and son.

Nichkhun

(left: online community, right: JYP Entertainment)

Nichkhun was born in California, the U.S., to Thai parents of Chinese descent. His mother is the CEO of a Thai pharmaceutical company Union Medical and his affluent family background earned him the moniker “Thai Prince.”

In 2011 Nichkhun, his mother, and his extended family members were featured in an international call commercial for LG U+, a Korean cellular carrier. (You can watch the commercial below.)



Nichkhun also made headlines in Korea when he dated Tiffany, a member of K-pop group Girls’ Generation, from January 2014 to May 2015.

Taecyeon

(left: online community, right: JYP Entertainment)

Taecyeon is currently starring in the drama “Hey Ghost, Let‘s Fight,” which airs on tvN on Mondays. He said this will probably be the last drama he stars in as he begins his military service in 2017.

In Decembr 2010, Taecyeon gave up his American permanent resident visa status so that he would be able to enlist in the South Korean military.

In 2008, he had been deemed physically ineligible for military service and only fit for public service, due to his poor vision and a shoulder injury. Determined to serve in the military, Taecyeon underwent surgery and had another physical examination in 2013. He was deemed fit to serve in active military service then.

Jun K. (Kim Min-jun)

(left: online community, right: JYP Entertainment)

When he debuted as a member of 2PM in 2008, he was known as Junsu, which was his first name at the time. However, he changed this to Min-jun in 2012 and now goes by the stage name Jun K.

On MBC’s “Radio Star” in 2013, Jun K. said that he had changed his name because his father had wanted it, having requested him to do so in his will before he died of a heart attack in January 2012. Jun K’s mother, who suffered from an illness before and after her husband's death, had said to Junsu on the day before her surgery, “Can’t you change your name? It is what your father wanted.”

Chansung

(left: online community, right: JYP Entertainment)

In July 2012 Chansung opened a fitness center in Nonhyun-dong, Seoul. He was a TV actor prior to becoming a singer in 2PM in 2008. He was in MBC’s “Unstoppable High Kick” (2006) and KBS’ “Jungle Fish” (2008).

Junho

(left: online community, right: JYP Entertainment)

Junho signed a contract with JYP Entertainment after winning the SBS’ program “Superstar Survival” in 2006. He won first out of 6,500 competitors. His competitors included Taecyeon and Chansung, who later joined 2PM too.

Junho had said in an interview with local media in 2015 that his ideal type of woman is Scarlett Johansson. He appeared as a cameo in Thursday's episode of KBS’ “Uncontrollably Fond."

Ex-member Jay Park

(left: online community, right: JYP Entertainment)

Park was born in Seattle and grew up there until he went to Korea in 2005 to audition for the entertainment agency JYP Entertainment. He said he cried every day during his first two weeks in Korea because of the language and cultural barriers he faced as a Korean-American.

He debuted as a member of 2PM but left the group in 2010. He is now a member of the Seattle-based B-boy group Art of Movement and one of the CEOs of the hip-hop record label AOMG.

By Lee Ji-hae (jihlee@heraldcorp.com)

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