Not only is Jongho the youngest member (a.k.a. the “maknae”) of K-pop boy group ATEEZ, but he’s also the main vocalist! Keep reading to learn more about Jongho, including debut details, age and more.
Who Is Jongho?
Born in Seoul, South Korea, on October 12, 2000, Jongho is a Libra! The future K-pop star trained at South Korean musical label KQ Entertainment for several years, and was also a contestant on the survival competition show called MIXNINE.
ICYMI, MIXNINE aired in 2017, and contestants included K-pop idol trainees who were progressively eliminated until it culminated into a competition between a team of the final nine boys and one of the final nine girls. The winning team was to debut as a group, however their debut was ultimately cancelled following contract disputes between YG Entertainment and the contestants’ respective agencies.
Despite that, Jongho debuted with ATEEZ under KQ in 2018 as the group’s main vocalist. In 2021, he made his acting debut in the K-drama Imitation, playing a character named Hyuk from the fictional boy group Shax.
Fun fact: Jongho is freakishly strong and can literally break an apple with his bare hands.
Who Are ATEEZ?
Including Jongho, the group consists of leader Hongjoong, along with Seonghwa, Yunho, Yeosang, San, Mingi and Wooyoung. They debuted on October 24, 2018, with their songs “Pirate King” and “Treasure.”
Most K-pop groups have a “concept,” which is their overall theme which help separate them from other groups. For ATEEZ, they are known as the “pirates of K-pop.”
“The pirate concept fits us so well,” Hongjoong told The Ringer in February 2022. “It can be mysterious, it can be powerful—we can say so many things and express so much within that theme. There are so many different types of pirates!” Hongjoong laughed. “Not real pirates. But we can imagine the concept in so many different ways,” he affirmed. “It’s not official, but we want to do more with that in the future.”
On top of their small company roots, ATEEZ is known for their unique sound created by the group’s own members, as Hongjoong is a regular producer of their songs — which is almost never heard of in the K-pop world.
“These days, when I write lyrics or produce a song, I just start from zero,” he explained. “Before, if we had a pirate theme, for example, I would start with that as a topic. That’s why I found it so hard.”
Love J-14? Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for fun, exclusive videos with your favorite stars.
