Winner (band)

Winner

From left: Seunghoon, Jinwoo, Taehyun (former), Mino, Seungyoon
Background information
Origin Seoul, South Korea
Genres K-pop
Years active 2014 (2014)–present
Labels YG Entertainment
Associated acts YG Family, MOBB
Website yg-winner.co.kr
Members
Past members

Winner (Hangul: 위너), often stylized as WINNER, is a South Korean boy group formed in 2014 by YG Entertainment. It currently consists of four members, Seungyoon, Mino, Seunghoon, and Jinwoo, the fifth member Taehyun having left the group on November 25, 2016. The group has released two studio albums and one extended play.

The group was formed through the 2013 reality survival program WIN: Who is Next, where they competed as "Team A" against other trainees from YG Entertainment for the chance to debut as the first YG boy group in eight years, since the debut of Big Bang. At the conclusion of the program, the name "Winner" was given to Team A after they won all three rounds of public voting.[1]

After several delays, the group made their Korean debut at the YG Family Concert on August 15, 2014. Their broadcast debut was on Inkigayo on August 17. On September 10, the group debuted in Japan.[2] They won a number of awards for Best New Artist in 2014, including at the Mnet Asian Music Awards, the MelOn Music Awards, and the Golden Disk Awards.

History

Pre-debut

In 2010, the group's leader Kang Seung-yoon was a contestant on the singing contest Superstar K2, reaching the final four. The following year, he signed with YG Entertainment[3] and made his acting debut in the sitcom High Kick: Revenge of the Short Legged.[4] In 2013, he debuted as a solo artist and released multiple tracks, including "It Rains".[5]

Lee Seung-hoon was also a former reality-show singing contestant, competing in K-Pop Star 1 in 2012. He came in fourth place and was recruited by Yang Hyun-suk.[6] It was announced that Seung-hoon had signed under YG Entertainment on May 16.[7]

Song Min-ho began his musical career as an underground rapper under the name "Mino", collaborating with other underground rappers-turned-idols such as Block B's Zico, Kyung, and P.O and SPEED's Taewoon. Mino was initially meant to debut with Block B, but left the group before their debut for personal reasons.[8] In 2011, he debuted under Y2Y Contents Company as part of the group BoM, which disbanded two years later. In 2013, he joined YG Entertainment through an audition, after being spotted from his acting appearance in the 2012 series The Strongest K-POP Survival broadcast on Channel A.[9]

Kim Jin-woo attended the Joy Dance Plug In Music Academy prior to joining YG, where he was seen by Big Bang's Seungri and brought to the agency. He became a trainee in 2010.[10]

Nam Tae-hyun was recruited to the agency in 2011 through an audition. He and Jinwoo performed as backup dancers at the 2011 YG Family Concert.

2013–2014: WIN: Who Is Next and debut

The five trainees competed as "Team A" on the reality television program WIN: Who Is Next, broadcast on Mnet, in order to debut as a group. During the finale episode on October 25, 2013, it was announced that they had won the competition and would be debuting as "Winner", releasing two singles on October 28 and performing as the opening act for Big Bang's Japanese dome tour beginning on November 15.[11] On November 9, the members of Winner appeared as backup dancers in Taeyang's music video for "Ringa Linga".[12] From December 13, Winner appeared in their own reality program, Winner TV, which had ten episodes aired on Mnet.[13]

In 2014, Seungyoon and Mino featured on a track for Yoon Jong-shin's March project.[14] Between June and August of that year, the group members were re-introduced to the public in anticipation for their debut, through a series of teaser images and videos.[15][16][17][18]

Winner's official debut showcase was held on August 6, with their album 2014 S/S digitally released on August 12 and physically on August 14.[19] On the day of Winner's debut the stock price of YG Entertainment rose by 6.57%, a sign of investor belief in the debut.[20] Their first music show appearance was on Inkigayo on August 17, and they became the fastest male group to win on a music show by taking first place on M! Countdown during their debut stage.[21] The group's official fan club name was announced to be 'Inner Circle'.[22] Following the album's release, two music videos for their title tracks "Color Ring" and "Empty" (which was co-composed by B.I from Team B) were released on YouTube,[23][24][25] and the album charted at number one on the Billboard World Albums Chart.[26][27] On August 30, a music video for Mino's solo track "I'm Him" was released, with cameo appearances from the members.[28]

On September 10, the group commenced their Japanese promotions for their 2014 S/S: Japan Collection album and embarked on their first Japanese solo concert on September 11.[29] The group successfully concluded the tour in Tokyo on October 11, drawing 25,000 fans in total.[30] On December 9, 2014 Fuse announced their 13 Top Breakout Artists of 2014, with Winner coming in at #11 and being the only South Korean artists on the list.[31] On December 17 Dazed Digital published their top 20 K-pop tracks of 2014 with Winner placing tenth with "Color Ring".[32]

2015–present: Solo activities, Exit : E, and Taehyun's departure

In 2015, the group went on hiatus while the members pursued solo endeavors. Taehyun appeared in several acting roles, including in MBC's web drama Midnight's Girl,[33] SBS's Late Night Restaurant,[34] and the joint Chinese-Korean production Under the Black Moonlight.[35] Seungyoon also returned to acting with the successful CJ E&M web drama We Broke Up, which garnered over 16 million views.[36][37] Jinwoo appeared in the Chinese-Korean drama The Magical Cell Phone,[38] while Mino competed on the fourth season of Mnet's rap contest Show Me the Money[39] and finished as runner-up. A number of his digital releases from the program were commercially successful, including "Fear" featuring Taeyang, which became the show's most downloaded single with over one million digital sales.[40] In December, it was announced that the group would be returning from hiatus in 2016, with a comeback spread over five 'project releases'.[41]

The group's first release in 2016 was a "warm-up" duet featuring Mino and Taehyun, titled "Pricked". Although the single was not promoted, it charted at #2 on MelOn and #1 on iTunes in nine countries including Singapore, Thailand, and Brunei.[42] In the lead-up to the group's official comeback, a number of musical covers of their title tracks were released as promotional teasers, featuring artists including Lee Hi, Zion.T, Epik High, Taeyang and G-Dragon.[43] The mini-album EXIT : E was released on February 1, and served as Winner's return after an 18-month break since their debut. The group promoted the title tracks "Baby Baby" and "Sentimental" from the EP, the first of the proposed "Exit Movement" series.[44] In April, Winner appeared on the JTBC variety show Half-Moon Friends, and in September, Mino debuted as part of the hip-hop duo MOBB alongside iKON's Bobby.

On October 12, YG Entertainment announced that Taehyun would be taking a hiatus from the group due to mental health issues, and that the rest of the Exit Movement series would be delayed indefinitely.[45] On November 25, Taehyun's departure from the group was announced, due to mental health issues and believing he was the reason for the delay in Winner's promotions. It was decided that Winner would continue as a four member group, without any addition of new members.[46]

Discography

Main article: Winner discography

Korean albums
Japanese albums

Tours

Headlining
Joint tours
Supporting act

Filmography

Television

Year Title Network Member(s) Note(s)
2013 WIN: Who is Next Mnet All (as Team A) 10 episodes; Team A won against other YG trainees to debut as Winner
2013-2014 Winner TV All 10 episodes
2014 Yoo Hee-Yeol's Sketchbook KBS2 Episode 243 (September 19)
Weekly Idol MBC Every1 Episode 169 (October 22)
2015 Show Me the Money 4 Mnet Mino 10 episodes (June 26–August 28); finished as runner-up
2016 Actor School tvN Taehyun 10 episodes; variety show starring Park Shin-yang giving acting lessons to celebrities[47]
Yoo Hee-Yeol's Sketchbook KBS2 All February 19
Sugar Man JTBC Seungyoon, Taehyun, Mino Episode 21 (March 8); performed "Je t'aime"
Happy Camp Hunan All March 19
Running Man SBS Mino, Taehyun Episode 294 (April 10); with Hyeri
Half-Moon Friends JTBC All 12 episodes (April 23–July 16); variety show where members interacted with children[48]
The Collaboration Tencent Seungyoon, Mino 10 episodes (June 30–present)[49]
SBS MTV

Drama

Year Title Network Member Role Note(s)
2011–2012 High Kick 3: Revenge of the Short Legged MBC Seungyoon Himself Supporting role
2012 K-POP - The Ultimate Audition Channel A Mino Park Ki-bum Supporting role
2015 Late Night Restaurant SBS Taehyun Min-woo Supporting role

Web-drama

Year Title Network Member Role Note(s)
2015 Midnight's Girl / Girl of 0 AM Naver TVCast Taehyun Gong Ji-dan Lead role; 8 episodes (May 4–May 14); opposite Seo Min-ji
MBC Every1
We Broke Up Naver TVCast Seungyoon Ji Won-young Lead role; 10 episodes (June 29–July 19); opposite Sandara Park
2016 Under The Black Moonlight Sohu TV Taehyun Kang-woo Lead role; 9 episodes (May 24–July 19); opposite Kim Soo-yeon; Produced in 2015
Magic Cellphone Jinwoo Oh Tae-ji Lead role; 10 episodes (July 13–September 14); opposite Park Min-ji; Produced in 2015
Love For A Thousand More Naver TVCast Seungyoon Yoo Jun-woo Lead role; 10 episodes; opposite Hwang Seung-eon
Jinwoo Hyung-sik Supporting role; 10 episodes

V Live Broadcast

Year Title Network Member(s) Note(s)
2016 WINWIN TV (승승TV) V Live TV Seunghoon, Seungyoon, Jinwoo Thursdays 10pm KST (July 5–present); Seunghoon and Seungyoon as MCs

Awards and nominations

Winner won their first major award, a Bonsang award, for earning a place in the "Top 10 Artists" and "Best New Artist" categories at the 2014 MelOn Music Awards.[50] They also won the "Best New Artist" awards at 2014 Mnet Asian Music Awards, SBS Awards Festival, Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards and Golden Disk Awards.

On March 15, 2016, the group won a Style Icon Asia Awesome Kstyle award.

References

  1. ↑ 이지영 기자 (October 25, 2013). "'WIN' 강승윤 속한 A팀, 최종 우승...'WINNER'로 데뷔" ['WIN' Member Kang Seung yoon's A team won the final ... Debut as 'WINNER']. My Daily via Nate News (in Korean). My Daily via Nate News. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  2. ↑ "YG Entertainment's Winner set to debut in Japan". Kpopstarz.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  3. ↑ "Kang Seung Yoon Opens Up About Why He Chose Record Label YG Entertainment: They Insisted That He Got Better". Kpopstarz.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  4. ↑ "New pictures of Krystal and Kang Seung Yoon from 'High Kick 3'". Allkpop.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  5. ↑ "Kang Seung yoon to dominate daily music charts with his new single "It Rains"". My.entertainment.yahoo.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  6. ↑ ""K-Pop Star" Contestant Lee Seung Hoon to Debut as Member of New YG Group". Soompi.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  7. ↑ "'K-Pop Star' contestants Lee Ha Yi, Lee Michelle, and Lee Seung Hoon sign with YG Entertainment". Allkpop. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  8. ↑ "MTV Match Up – Block B with Mino". Twitter.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  9. ↑ "Mino CUT in Strongest Kpop survival drama". Youtube.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  10. ↑ "승리 "YG 데뷔하려면, 빅뱅 뛰어넘어야 해요"". 오마이스타. 2013-08-29. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  11. ↑ "Team A to release 4 songs and open up for Big Bang's Japanese Tour". Translated by allkpop. allkpop. October 25, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Ringa Linga – Taeyang MV". Youtube.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  13. ↑ "WINNER to Follow YG's Star Making System... On 'Winner TV'". Kpopstarz.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  14. ↑ 한국경제TV 김지원 기자 (Kim JiWon) (March 20, 2014). 강승윤 윤종신 콜라보 기대감 폭발, 인증샷만 봐도 `두근 두근` [Yoon Jong Shin's Collaboration with Kang seung Yoon Explosive expectations, 'Excited' after certification Shot]. 한국경제TV (Korea Economic TV) (in Korean). WowTV. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
  15. ↑ "[Video] YG Makes a Surprise Attack with Teaser for Winner". CJ E&M enewsWorld. Mwave. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  16. ↑ "YG Entertainment gears up for WINNER debut". Hellokpop.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  17. ↑ "YG Entertainment release their 'launching campaign plan' for new group WINNER". Allkpop.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  18. ↑ "WINNER to tease all this week as revealed through 'WINNER Week' schedule". Allkpop.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  19. ↑ "WINNER to Hold a Launching Show for Their Awaited Debut". Soompi.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  20. ↑ "Entertainment Stock Hits 15 Daily Limit On news Of Louis Vuitton Investment". Koreabizwire.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  21. ↑ "WINNER Grabs First Music Show Win on "M!Countdown" - Soompi". Soompi. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  22. ↑ Korean Inner Circle fansite
  23. ↑ "WINNER finally make their big debut with 'Empty' MV + '2014 S/S' album sampler". Allkpop.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  24. ↑ "Winner Drops MV For Second Title Track "Color Ring"". Allkpop.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  25. ↑ "WINNER's 'Empty' surpasses 1 million views". Daebakkpop.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  26. ↑ "Winner's Debut Album Ranks No.1 on Billboard's World Album Chart". Mwave.interest.me. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  27. ↑ "WINNER debut #1 on Billboard World Album Chart". Ph.celebrity.yahoo.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  28. ↑ "WINNER's Mino is Suave in Teaser for Solo MV "I'm Him" - Soompi". Soompi. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  29. ↑ "Winner to Officially Debut in Japan and Launch 1st Japanese Tour". mwave.interest.me. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  30. ↑ "위너, 첫 日 투어... :: 네이버 뉴스". M.news.naver.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  31. ↑ "13 Top Breakout Artists of 2014". Fuse. December 2014. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  32. ↑ "The top 20 K-pop tracks of 2014". Dazed. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  33. ↑ "Nam Tae Hyun to debut as an actor!". Allkpop. March 2015. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  34. ↑ "WINNER's Nam Tae Hyun will be a foodie in his first-ever TV drama". AllKPop. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  35. ↑ "WINNER's Nam Tae Hyun cast as one of the main leads in new drama". AllKPop. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  36. ↑ "2NE1's Dara and WINNER's Kang Seung Yoon to be in a loveline on upcoming web drama 'We Broke Up'". AllKPop. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  37. ↑ "지난해 최고 인기 웹드는 '도전에 반하다'<컨스TV> (2015's Most Watched Web-Dramas)". Naver. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
  38. ↑ "WINNER's Kim Jinwoo to be in Chinese-Korean drama "The Magical Cell Phone"?work=Soompie". Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  39. ↑ "WINNER's Mino to compete in 'Show Me the Money' Season 4!". AllKPop. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  40. ↑ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
  41. ↑ "WINNER unveils pre-release song on the 11 this month and a mini-album on February 1… Yearly plan". YG LIFE. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  42. ↑ "WINNER回归先行曲《PRICKED》登各大榜单No1 - 粉丝网星闻". news.ifensi.com. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  43. ↑ "The Real "monster" WINNER is Set to Make a Comeback [Welcome back WINNER③]". YG LIFE. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  44. ↑ "YG Family on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  45. ↑ "Nam Taehyun to take hiatus from Winner due to mental health issues". allkpop. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
  46. ↑ "ko:YG의 공식 입장을 알려드립니다.". YG Life (in Korean). YG Entertainment. November 25, 2016. Retrieved November 25, 2016.
  47. ↑ "WINNER's Nam Tae Hyun to Receive Acting Lessons From Park Shin Yang in "Actor School"". Retrieved 2016-08-03.
  48. ↑ "[Exclusive] WINNER's TV show "Half-moon Friends" will be first broadcast on April 23". Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  49. ↑ "YG Signs a Deal with China's Tencent and Weying, which is Expected to Create a Great Synergy Effect". Retrieved 2016-07-29.
  50. ↑ "2014 MelOn Music Awards: WINNER Nabs Best New Artist Award, Block B Takes Home Best Dance Artist Male Award". KpopStarz. Retrieved 11 March 2015.

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