South Korea’s Bang Yong-guk (aka Yongguk) is a rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer who entered the music industry as the leader of the TS Entertainment-founded boy band B.A.P. After releasing five studio albums with the group — including the chart-topping First Sensibility (2014) — he left the entertainment company in 2018 to kickstart his solo career with the 2019 solo album BANGYONGGUK.
Born in Seoul and raised in Incheon, musician Bang Yong-guk first released music as part of rap group Soul Connection, which he joined through online forums while attending middle school. Under the alias Jepp Blackman, he began working substantially with the collective, debuting with “Cherry Flower” before appearing on the group’s 2009 album Rapsody. His stint with the group was to be short-lived, however: after a scout from TS Entertainment (Untouchable, Secret) took notice of his talents, the rapper (now using the alias Yongguk) signed a contract with the company in 2010.