Baekho (singer)
For the actor of the same birth name, see Kang Dong-ho.
In this Korean name, the family name is Kang.
| Baekho | |
|---|---|
| Born | Kang Dong-ho
(1995-07-21) July 21, 1995 (age 25) Jeju Province, South Korea |
| Education | Hanyang University Institute for Future Talents |
| Alma mater | Paekche Institute of the Arts |
| Occupation | |
| Genres | K-pop |
| Instruments | |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Labels | Pledis |
| Associated acts | |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | |
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Gang Dong-ho |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kang Tongho |
| Stage name | |
| Hangul | |
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Baek-ho |
| McCune–Reischauer | Paekho |
Kang Dong-ho (Korean: 강동호; Hanja: 姜東昊; born July 21, 1995), better known by the stage name Baekho (Korean: 백호; Hanja: 白虎), is a South Korean singer-songwriter.
He debuted in 2012 as the main vocalist of South Korean boy band NU’EST.
He is also known for competing in the 2017 series Produce 101 Season 2.
Career
Pre-debut
Baekho became a Pledis Entertainment trainee after being scouted by the company in 2010.
He became more well known after he appeared in After School's music video for the single "Play Ur Love".
In 2011, he and bandmate JR appeared on the KBS talk show Hello Counselor and were revealed by After School's Kahi as two of the members of NU'EST.
Prior to debuting, Baekho made appearances in labelmates' music releases as a member of Pledis Boys.
He was a backup dancer for After School Blue's "Wonder Boy", and featured in Pledis Entertainment's Christmas release "Love Letter".
2012–present: NU'EST and solo ventures
Main article: NU'EST
On March 15, 2012, Baekho debuted as a main vocalist of NU'EST.
His stage name was chosen by labelmate Uee, because of his resemblance to Slam Dunk character Hanamichi Sakuragi (known as "Kang Baek-ho" in the Korean version).
In 2013, Baekho appeared in the television drama Jeon Woo-chi.
In early 2014, he was diagnosed with vocal fold nodules.
However, he decided to continue performing with NU’EST while receiving treatment.
Pledis Entertainment announced in November that he would be taking a temporary hiatus from all group activities.
His doctors advised that he completely rest his voice and underwent vocal cord surgery.
In February 2016, it was reported that he had completely recovered.
In 2017, Baekho participated as a contestant on Produce 101 Season 2 under his real name for a chance to debut in Wanna One.
After performing a cover of BTS's "Boy in Luv" on the show, he gained the nickname of 'sexy bandit' from online commenters.
In the position-based challenge, he covered Blackpink's "Playing with Fire", and the view count of his fancam reached one million views within three days.
He was also noted by commenters for his stable voice in the music removed (MR) performance.
After he was eliminated in the final episode, he and the remaining NU'EST members began promoting as the sub-group NU'EST W from 2017 to 2018.
Baekho's struggles with weight and exercise earned him a reputation of being a "fit idol."
After a fan sent a photo of him in a gym to Men's Health Korea, the editorial team invited him to be the cover of the magazine's November 2018 issue.
He once again appeared in Men's Health Korea for its January 2020 issue.
In September 2020, he became the hair care advertising model for brand The Wood of J One Cosmetic.
Personal life
On March 10, 2020, Baekho, together with NU'EST members JR, Minhyun, and Ren, enrolled at Hanyang University Institute for Future Talents as freshman in Practical Music Course.
Sexual harassment allegations
In June 2017, an acquaintance alleged anonymously online that in 2009, when she and Baekho were both in middle school, she had been molested by him on the ride on their way home from cram school.
All the claims were debunked after the inaccuracies were pointed out, however, the accuser changed her statement after a month.
Pledis denied the allegations and filed a complaint against the accuser for violating the laws on information communication network and information protection.
On April 16, 2018, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office cleared Baekho of the sexual assault accusations ruling his innocence, and have since dismissed the case.
Mnet vote manipulation investigation
On November 18, 2020, the Seoul High Court disclosed as part of the ongoing Mnet vote manipulation investigation that Baekho (under his real name Kang Dong-ho) was a victim of voting manipulation when he participated on Produce 101 Season 2.
According to the documents the Court released, the manipulation of Baekho's ranking only happened in the final episode of the season, which determined who would debut in the project group Wanna One.
It was revealed that Baekho's final rank was swapped with another trainee's (who was the actual 13th place) by the show's producers, thus preventing him from being a member of the group.
Although both of the show's producers Kim Yong-bum and Ahn Joon-young alleged that Baekho requested to be removed from the final lineup of his own volition, Pledis Entertainment denied the allegations.
CJ ENM (Mnet's parent company) released a statement regarding the progress of negotiations to financially compensate all the trainees who were affected by voting manipulation across all the Produce 101 programs, including Baekho.
However, Pledis stated that they had not been contacted by CJ ENM regarding the compensation as of November 18, 2020.
On November 20 2020, it was revealed that Baekho had been suffering from anxiety disorder during the filming of Produce 101 Season 2, and that Ahn and the Mnet staff were aware of Baekho's diagnosis.
Furthermore, Ahn alleged that after speaking to Baekho in May 2017 in regards to his mental health and his involvement in the show, he interpreted Baekho's responses to mean that Baekho wanted to be eliminated from the competition.
However, the Court re-affirmed that Baekho was not personally involved in the decision to have his rank manipulated, and ruled him as a victim of unfair elimination through vote manipulation.
Discography
For discography as part of NU'EST, see NU'EST discography.
Songwriting credits
| Year | Album | Artist | Song | Lyrics | Music | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Credited | With | Credited | With | ||||
| 2015 | Good Life | Bumzu | "I Need You" (YA해) | Yes | No | N/A | |
| 2016 | Q is | NU'EST | "Lost & Found" (나의 천국 lit. My Heaven) | Yes | Yes | ||
| "VVith" (사실 말야 lit. In Fact) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| Canvas | "R.L.T.L (Real Love True Love) (One Morning)" | Yes | No | N/A | |||
| "Love Paint (Every Afternoon)" | Yes | No | N/A | ||||
| "Look (A Starlight Night)" | Yes | No | N/A | ||||
| 2017 | W, Here | NU'EST W | "My Beautiful" (하루만) | Yes | Yes | ||
| "Where You At" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| Aron | "Good Love" | Yes | Yes | ||||
| 2018 | To. Day | Fromis 9 | "DKDK" (두근두근) | Yes | No | N/A | |
| Who, You | NU'EST W | "Signal" | Yes | Yes | |||
| "Dejavu" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Polaris" (북극성) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Ylenol" | Yes | No | N/A | ||||
| "Gravity & Moon" (중력달) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Shadow" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| Produce 48 – Final | Produce 48 contestants | "We Together" (앞으로 잘 부탁해) | Yes | No | N/A | ||
| Non-album single | NU'EST W | "I Don't Care (with Spoonz)" | Yes | Yes | N/A | ||
| Wake, N | "L.I.E" | Yes | Yes | ||||
| "Help Me" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| Aron | "Wi-Fi" | Yes | Yes | ||||
| Ren | "You & I" (나, 너에게) | No | N/A | Yes | |||
| Baekho | "Feels" | Yes | Yes | ||||
| 2019 | Non-album single | NU'EST | "A Song For You" (노래 제목) | Yes | No | N/A | |
| Happily Ever After | "Segno" | Yes | Yes | ||||
| "Bet Bet" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Bass" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Talk About Love" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Different" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Fine" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| The Table | "Call Me Back" | Yes | Yes | ||||
| "Love Me" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "One Two Three" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Trust Me" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Stay Up All Night" (밤새) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "If We" (우리가 사랑했다면) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| 2020 | Non-album single | NU'EST | "Let's Love (with Spoonz)" | Yes | Yes | ||
| The Nocturne | "I'm in Trouble" | Yes | Yes | ||||
| "Firework" | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "Back To Me"(평행우주) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "꼭"(Must) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| "반딧별"(Shooting Star) | Yes | Yes | |||||
| Non-album single | "Best Summer (with Spoonz)" | Yes | Yes | ||||
Soundtrack Appearances
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KOR (Gaon) | ||||
| 2018 | Beautiful Night
(BEAST cover) |
- | Masked Singer 160th (Live Version) | As masked contestant David Beckham |
| I Remember
(Boohwal cover) |
- | |||
| 2019 | That Day, We | TBA | The Crowned Clown Pt.2 (Original Television Soundtrack) |
Other appearances
| Year | Artist | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KOR (Gaon) | |||||
| 2010 | After School | Someone Is You | - | Happy Pledis 1st Album | Boys Choir including JR, Ren, Baekho |
| 2011 | Son Dam-bi & After School | LOVE LETTER | - | Happy Pledis 2nd Album | Feat. Ara, Hyelim, Minhyun, Baekho |
| 2017 | Knock | 열어줘(Open Up) | 10 | 35 Boys 5 Concepts | As the produce 101 contestants |
Produce 101
Last 20 Contestants
|
Super Hot | 19 | Produce 101 – Final | ||
| Always | 17 | ||||
| 2019 | Yun Min Soo, Cheetah, Baekho | Bastard | - | The Call 2 Project, No.5 | As part of Yun Min Soo family on The Call 2 |
| Yun Min Soo, Cheetah, Baekho, Song Ga In | Don't Worry | - | The Call 2 Project Final |
Filmography
See also: NU'EST § Filmography
Television
| Year | Title | Network | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Jeon Woo-chi | KBS | with Ren |
| 2017 | Produce 101 Season 2 | Mnet | Contestant |
| 2018 | King of Mask Singer | MBC | Eps. 159-160 |
| Battle Trip | KBS | Eps. 108-109 (with JR) | |
| 2019 | Law of the Jungle | SBS | Eps. 353-357 |
| The Call | tvN | Final Lineup | |
| Let's Go, Man Soo Ro | KBS2 | Regular Cast |
Awards and Nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 17th KBS Entertainment Awards | Hot Issue Entertainer Award | Let's Go, Man Soo Ro | Won | |
| Best Challenge Award (with Let's Go, Man Soo Ro ensemble) | Won |
Concert/Tour/Fan Meeting
| Year | Concert/Tour/Fan Meeting | Date/Venue | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Happy BAEKHO Day Busking Live | July 21/Olympic Park88 Waterside Stage | Special Busking Live |
| 2019 | BAEKHO's Birthday Talk Live | July 18/Olympic Park 88 Waterside Stage | Special guerilla fan meeting |
| 2020 | 2020 Baekho Mini Concert in Macau 'BAEKHO-liday' | January 11/ Broadway Theatre | |
| 2020 Baekho Mini Concert in Bangkok 'BAEKHO-liday' | TBA/ MCC Hall, The Mall Bangkapi | Postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic |
Credits to the contents of this page go to the authors of the corresponding Wikipedia page: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baekho (singer).