Lee Gi-kwang
Lee Gi-kwang | |
|---|---|
| 이기광 | |
 Lee in 2017
| |
| Born |
March 30, 1990
Gwangju, South Korea
|
| Occupations |
|
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals |
| Years active | 2008–present |
| Labels | |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 이기광 |
| Hanja | 李起光 |
| Revised Romanization | I Gi-gwang |
| McCune–Reischauer | Yi Kigwang |
Lee Gi-kwang (Korean: 이기광; born March 30, 1990), known professionally as Gikwang or Kikwang, is a South Korean singer, songwriter and actor. He originally debuted as solo singer with the stage name AJ (Ace Junior), releasing his first mini album First Episode: A New Hero on April 4, 2009. In October 2009, he debuted as the main dancer, visual and a lead vocalist of boy group Beast, which was renamed Highlight in February 2017.
He began his acting career with a supporting role in the popular television sitcom High Kick Through the Roof (2009–10) and had supporting roles in dramas My Princess (2011), Me Too, Flower! (2011), Mrs. Cop (2015), Monster (2016), Circle (2017), and Lovely Horribly (2018), He also became an MC for various shows such as Hot Brothers and Inkigayo.
Early life and career
Lee Gi-kwang was born on March 30, 1990 in Naju, South Korea. Gi-kwang found interest in hip hop and had particular liking to many classic hip hop acts. At first he was backed by his family to pursue a musical career but eventually he passed an audition and became a trainee. He was trained under JYP Entertainment for four years before being eliminated. He was asked by the former president of Cube Entertainment to join the agency without auditioning, making him the company's first trainee.
He was known as the solo singer AJ or Ace Junior when he debuted and released a mini-album First Episode: A New Hero on April 4, 2009. He made his debut on April 2, 2009 on Mnet M!Countdown, and dubbed by Korean media as the next Rain. However he met controversies when his name created dispute among netizens for having a similar name with Paran's AJ (who later became a U-KISS member). He now goes with his original name when he re-debuted with Beast. On June 17, 2009, AJ opened for Lady Gaga's Korean showcase. Fellow Beast members Yoon Doo-joon, Yong Jun-hyung, Jang Hyun-seung and Yang Yo-seob participated as backup dancers for AJ before debuting in Beast. AJ also featured in reality show, Diary of AJ, which was hosted by MTV. The show ran on two episodes on May 9, 2009 with a total of two episodes showcasing his journey on his debut as AJ.
Career
2009–2016: Debut with Beast and solo activities
Six months after debuting as soloist, Gi-kwang was chosen to debut as member of Beast, originally known as B2ST, an acronym for "Boys 2 Search the Top". However, their name was changed to BEAST (acronym for "Boys of East Asia Standing Tall"). The group debuted in October 2009. Gi-kwang made his acting debut in the MBC sitcom High Kick Through the Roof, which aired in 2009 and 2010.
In 2010, Gi-kwang featured in K.Will's music video for the song, "Present". He was also selected as the MC for MBC's Sunday Sunday Night segment Hot Brothers and the KBS talk show Win Win. In May, Gi-kwang was chosen as the model for the 'Ice Tea Tio' from DongSuh Foods. In August, Gi-kwang featured on Ahn Jinkyung's single "Love is Pathetic" from the mini album Be the Voice as a rapper. He, Yoon Doojoon and IU appeared as special hosts on Music Core on August 21, 2010. On December 29, Gi-kwang was awarded with Popularity Award from the 2010 MBC Entertainment Awards.
Gi-kwang, together with IU, were selected to be new MCs of Inkigayo in replacement of CNBlue's Jung Yonghwa from March 20, 2011. The two were paired with the existing MCs, 2AM's Jo Kwon, and f(x)'s Sulli. He was also chosen as the leading man in A Pink's music video, "I Don't Know" Sunny Hill's music video for "Midnight Circus". In July, Gi-kwang was featured on Brave Brothers' song "Break Up" alongside Electroboyz, as a part of Brave Brother's sixth project album on July 12, 2011.
Also in 2011, Gi-kwang was cast in the romantic comedy drama My Princess starring Song Seung-hun and Kim Tae-hee; and played Lee Ji-ah's patrol partner in the drama Me Too, Flower!. Gi-kwang won the Best New Actor award at the SBS Drama Awards for his performance in My Princess.
On February 8, 2012 Gi-kwang appeared in Ailee's debut music video, "Heaven". Gi-kwang also hosted SBS K-Pop Super Concert in America on November 10 alongside Tiffany Hwang and Jung Yong-hwa and Melon Music Awards with Infinite's Woohyun, Moon Hee-jun, and Danny Ahn.
In 2013, Gi-kwang had a role as a terminally ill patient with leukemia on KBS Drama Special My Friend is Still Alive. In 2014, he starred in the mobile drama 20's (Twenty Years Old).
In 2015, Gi-kwang was cast in SBS's drama Mrs. Cop as the youngest detective on the team. He next starred as the younger version of Kang Ji-hwan's character in the 2016 MBC drama Monster, and the web drama Momin's Room.
2017–present: Return to solo music career
In September 2017, Gi-kwang returned as a soloist with his first mini album One. The lead single was a future R&B single titled "What You Like". Gi-kwang reportedly participated in 6 out of 8 tracks on the album. He held his first solo concert Lee Gikwang Mini Live 2018 One in January 2018.
Also in 2017, Gi-kwang was cast in tvN's science fiction drama Circle. In 2018, Gi-kwang was cast in KBS' horror romance drama Lovely Horribly.
On April 18, 2019, Gi-kwang began his mandatory military service as a conscripted police officer. He was discharged on November 18, 2020.
In 2022, Lee became a DJ on Gikwang's Song Plaza, which began in March and will end his duties as a DJ on April 16, 2023.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Sales | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
KOR |
JPN Down. |
|||
| Predator |
|
11 | 94 |
|
Single albums
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| [I] |
|
Extended plays
| Title | EP details | Peak chart positions | Sales | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
KOR |
JPN |
|||
| First Episode: A New Hero |
|
— | — |
|
| ONE |
|
5 | 171 |
|
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region. | ||||
Singles
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Sales (DL) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
KOR |
||||
| "Dancing Shoes" | 2009 | — | First Episode: A New Hero | |
| "Wipe the Tears" (눈물을 닦고) | — | |||
| "What You Like" | 2017 | 51 |
|
ONE |
| "Don't Close Your Eyes (D.C.Y.E)" (feat. Kid Milli) | 2019 | — | [I] | |
| "Nothing" | — | Goodbye with a Smile (single) | ||
| "Predator" | 2023 | — | Predator | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region. | ||||
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
|
KOR |
|||
| "Love Is Pathetic" (사랑이 딱해) (An Jin-kyung feat. Gikwang) | 2010 | 31 | Be the Voice |
Collaborations
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Sales (DL) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
KOR |
||||
| "Let It Snow" (with Hyunseung) | 2010 | 87 | My Story | |
| "Should I Hug or Not" (with Doojoon, Junhyung) | 2011 | 16 |
|
Shinsa Dong Tiger Project: Supermarket – The Half |
| "Break Up" (with Brave Brothers, Electro Boys) | 34 |
|
Non-album single | |
| "Yesterday" (with Dynamic BLACK) | 2012 | 9 |
|
|
| "Baby It's You" (with Doojoon) | 2016 | 66 |
|
Highlight |
| "Just Trust Me (오빠만 믿어)" (with Park Hyun-bin, Lizzy, Park Kwanghyun) | 2017 | — | Fantastic Duo 2 | |
| "Dazzling Dazzling (샤방샤방)" (with Park Hyun-bin) | — | |||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region. | ||||
Music videos
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2009 | "Dancing Shoes" |
| "Wipe the Tears" | |
| 2017 | "What You Like" |
| 2019 | "D.C.Y.E/Don't Close Your Eyes" |
| "Lonely (Feat. Jiselle)" | |
| "Nothing" |
Songwriting credits
| Year | Album | Artist | Song | Lyrics | Music | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Credited | With | Credited | With | ||||
| 2009 | Beast Is the B2ST | BEAST | "Beast Is the B2ST" | Yes | BEAST | No | Shin Sa Dong Tiger, Choi Gyu Seong |
| "Bad Girl" | Yes | BEAST, Lee Sang Ho, Shin Sa Dong Tiger | No | Lee Sang Ho, Shin Sa Dong Tiger | |||
| 2010 | My Story | BEAST (Gikwang & Hyunseung) | "Let It Snow" | Yes | Jang Hyun-seung | No | Choi Gyu Seong |
| 2013 | Thriller | BtoB | "Why" | Yes | Lim Hyunsik | Yes | Lim Hyunsik, Lee Minhyuk, Shin Peniel, Jung IlHoon |
| 2014 | Good Luck | BEAST | "History" | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung, Noday | Yes | Noday |
| Time | "So Hot" | Yes | Noday | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung, Noday | ||
| 2015 | Ordinary | "Oh Honey" | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung, Noday, Chloe | Yes | Noday, Chloe | |
| 2016 | Highlight | "Curious" | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung, Noday | Yes | Noday | |
| "Lullaby" | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung, Noday, Chloe | Yes | Noday, Chloe | |||
| BEAST (Gikwang & Doojoon) | "Baby It's You" | Yes | Noday | Yes | Noday | ||
| 2017 | Can You Feel It? | HIGHLIGHT | "Dangerous" | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung, Kwon Phillip | Yes | Kwon Phillip |
| ONE | Gikwang | "ONE" | Yes | Kim Tae-joo | Yes | Kim Tae-joo | |
| "Misunderstand" | Yes | Noday, Kwon Philip | Yes | Noday, Kwon Philip | |||
| "Dream" | Yes | Kim Tae-sung, Joo Chanyang, Luizy | Yes | Kim Tae-sung, Joo Chanyang, Secret Weapon | |||
| "Look At Me Now" | Yes | Noday | Yes | Noday | |||
| "Only U" | Yes | Noday, Chloe | Yes | Noday, Chloe | |||
| "What Are U" | Yes | Noday, Chloe | Yes | Noday, Chloe | |||
| Celebrate | HIGHLIGHT | "Love Like This" | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung, Kim Tae-sung, Joo Chanyang | Yes | Kim Tae-sung, Joo Chanyang, Secret Weapon | |
| 2018 | Shake You Up | Rainz | "Music Up" | Yes | Joo Chanyang | Yes | Kim Tae-sung, Joo Chanyang, Secret Weapon |
| Outro | HIGHLIGHT | "Leave Me Alone" (Junhyung & Gikwang) | Yes | Yong Jun-hyung | Yes | Good Life | |
| 2021 | The Blowing | HIGHLIGHT | "NOT THE END" | Yes | Joo Chanyang, Lavin | Yes | Joo Chanyang, Lavin |
| "Hey Yeah" | Yes | Kim Sooyoon, Moon Kim | Yes | Kim Tae-sung, Moon Kim, NOD, Ahn Seong-chan, Kim Yong-shin | |||
| 2022 | Daydream | HIGHLIGHT | "Night Fog" | Yes | Noday | Yes | Noday, Riskypizza |
| "Don't Leave" | Yes | VO3E, Kim Jeung-jung, ZNEE | Yes | VO3E, Frederik Jyll | |||
| "PLAY" | Yes | Sooyoon | Yes | Big Sancho, Moon Kim, Kim So-ming | |||
| "Whatever" | Yes | NOD, Park Sol, Gyuberlake | Yes | NOD, Park Sol, Gyuberlake, Moon Kim | |||
| "Classic" | Yes | Noday, Gyuberlake | Yes | Noday, Gyuberlake, WONJUN | |||
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | A Turtle's Tale 2: Sammy's Escape from Paradise | Ricky | voice-dubbing |
Television series
| Year | Title | Role | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | High Kick Through the Roof | Kang Se-ho | |
| 2011 | My Princess | Geon-yi | |
| Me Too, Flower! | Jo Ma-roo / Pink Chicken | ||
| 2013 | My Friend Is Still Alive | Kyeong-sook | |
| 2014 | 20's (Twenty Years Old) | Gi-kwang | |
| 2015 | Mrs. Cop | Lee Se-won | |
| 2016 | Monster | young Lee Gook-cheol / Kang Ki-tan (20s) | |
| Momin's Room | Wonee | ||
| 2017 | Circle | Lee Ho-soo | |
| 2018 | Lovely Horribly | Lee Sung-joong | |
| 2024 | Marry My Husband | Baek Eun-ho |
Television shows
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Diary of AJ | Cast Member | ||
| 2010–2012 | Hot Brothers | |||
| 2011 | Inkigayo | Host | ||
| 2011–2012 | Win Win | |||
| 2014 | Style Log | with Gayoon and Do Sang-woo | ||
| 2017 | The Dynamic Duo 7 | Cast member | ||
| Love 10 | Host | with Sung Si-kyung | ||
| 2018 | Why Not?: The Dancer | Cast member | ||
| God of Football | Host | with Jeong Jin-woon | ||
| Battle Trip | Contestant | with Doojoon (Episode 81-82) | ||
| Dancing High | Dance coach | |||
| 2020 | Idol Wonderland | Host | with Kang Yu-chan | |
| 2021 | Brad PT & GYM Carry | with Kim Sook and Lee Hyun-yi | ||
| 2023 | Peak Time | Judge |
Web shows
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | MuzieKwang Company | Host | Fake documentary entertainment | |
| Soldier Idol Camp | Cast Member |
Radio show
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–2023 | Gikwang's Song Plaza | DJ | March 14, 2022– April 16, 2023 |
Hosting
| Year | Title | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | KCON 2022 Premiere | Special MC; May 7, 2022 – May 8, 2022 |
Concerts
Korean tours
- LEEGIKWANG Mini LIVE 2018 <ONE> - Blue Square I Market Hall, Seoul (January 27–28, 2018)
- LEEGIKWANG LIVE 2019 [I] - Blue Square I Market Hall, Seoul (March 23-24, 2019)
Japan tours
- LEEGIKWANG Mini LIVE 2018 <ONE> in Japan - Mynavi BLITZ Akasaka, Tokyo (July 22, 2018)
- LEEGIKWANG LIVE 2019 [I] in Japan - Toyosu PIT by Team Smile, Tokyo (13 April, 2019)
Taiwan tours
- LEEGIKWANG LIVE 2019 [I] in Taiwan - Taiwan TICC Hall, Taipei (30 March, 2019)
Awards and nominations
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee / Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I-Magazine Fashion Face Award | 2016 | Asian Male | Lee Gi-kwang | Won | |
| 2017 | Won | ||||
| KBS Drama Awards | 2018 | Best New Actor | Lovely Horribly | Nominated | |
| KBS Entertainment Awards | 2022 | DJ of the Year Award | Lee Gi-kwang's Song Plaza | Won | |
| MBC Drama Awards | 2011 | Best New Actor | My Princess | Won | |
| MBC Entertainment Awards | 2010 | Popularity Award | Hot Brothers | Won |