Kim Jong-in (Korean: 김종인; born January 14, 1994), better known by his stage name Kai (Korean: 카이), is a South Korean singer, actor, and dancer. He is a member of the South Korean boy bandExo, its subunit Exo-K, and South Korean supergroup SuperM. He debuted as a soloist on November 30, 2020, with his first extended play (EP) Kai. Apart from his musical career, Kai has also starred in various television dramas such as Choco Bank (2016), Andante (2017), and Spring Has Come (2018). He is widely considered to be one of the best dancers of South Korea and K-pop,[1] and is among the most influential Korean fashion icons.[2]
Kai was born on January 14, 1994,[3] in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, South Korea, as the youngest member of his family, with two older sisters.[4][unreliable source?] Despite his parents initially wanting him to learn Taekwondo and the piano, Kai began to train in ballet while in third grade after watching The Nutcracker,[5] and started jazz dancing when he was eight years old in the fourth grade of elementary school. His father, now deceased, was the most important benefactor of his encounter with dance, which was of great significance to his life, according to a film about his growth story featured in Gucci's 2019 project "The Performers." Kai attended high school at School of Performing Arts Seoul, from which he graduated in 2012.[6]
In 2007, encouraged by his father, Kai participated in and won SM Entertainment's Youth Best Contest and signed with the company at the age of thirteen years old. He then began training in hip-hop dance.[7] On December 23, 2011, SM announced Kai as the first member of the company's upcoming boy group, Exo.[8] He made his first televised performance alongside fellow Exo members Luhan, Chen and Tao as well as other SM artists at the year-end music program SBS Gayo Daejeon on December 29, 2011.[9] The group officially debuted in April 2012 and has since gained significant popularity and commercial success.
In October 2012, Kai participated in the promotional group Younique Unit alongside labelmates Eunhyuk, Henry, Hyoyeon, Taemin and Luhan. The group released a single titled "Maxstep" as part of the collaboration between SM Entertainment and Hyundai.[10] Later in December 2012, he joined the dance group SM The Performance, along with fellow member Lay, TVXQ's Yunho, Super Junior's Eunhyuk and Donghae, Shinee's Minho and Taemin.[11] The group first made its appearance at the event SBS Gayo Daejeon on December 29, and performed their single "Spectrum." The single was officially released the next day.[12] In August 2014, Kai was featured in the song "Pretty Boy" from Shinee member Taemin's debut album.[13]
In January 2016, Kai made his acting debut as the male lead in the web drama Choco Bank,[14][15] which achieved record-breaking viewership.[16] In December 2016, he starred in two episodes of the special web drama 7 First Kisses which was produced by Lotte Duty Free.[17]
In January 2017, Kai was announced to be starring as the male lead in the KBS teen drama Andante, playing a high school student.[18][19] In February 2017, he was cast in the Japanese drama Spring Has Come, based on the Japanese novel of the same name.[20] The drama marks the first time a non-Japanese actor taking a lead role on a drama produced by the broadcasting station Wowow.[21]
In December 2017, Kai was chosen as the cover model for December's issue of The Big Issue, a magazine known for helping the homeless. The magazine sold out 20,000 copies within the first two days, and until now, 80,000 copies have been sold, which records the highest number of copies sold since the magazine's start in July 2010.[22] In 2018, Kai was cast in KBS' melodrama The Miracle We Met.[23]
On August 7, 2019, Kai was confirmed to be a member of SuperM, a "K-pop supergroup" created by SM Entertainment in collaboration with Capitol Records. The group's promotions are scheduled to begin in October and are aimed at the American market.[24][25] Kai has been selected as the first Gucci Eyewear Men Global Ambassador in Korea.[26][unreliable source?] SuperM debuted with the group's self-titled debut EP on October 4, 2019.[27]
On July 3, 2020, SM Entertainment announced that Kai's first solo album was currently under production with the goal of being released in the second half of 2020.[28][unreliable source?] On October 12, he was announced to have become the first ever male muse of the cosmetics brand Bobbi Brown.[29][unreliable source?][better source needed]
On November 30, 2020, Kai released his debut extended play Kai and its lead single "Mmmh."[30] The album peaked at number 2 on the Gaon Album Chart and has been certified Platinum by the KMCA.[31]
On November 30, 2021, Kai released his second extended play Peaches and its lead single of the same name.[32] The album peaked at number 3 on the Gaon Album Chart and has also been certified Platinum.[33]
In February 2023, SM confirmed that Kai plans to release a new solo album Rover on March 13.[34] On March 13, Kai released his third extended play Rover and its lead single of the same name.[35]
On May 4, 2023, SM Entertainment announced that Kai would have a fan meeting titled, "Kai's aKAIve," at YES24 Live Hall on May 9 at 19:00 (KST) and also broadcast live on Exo's official YouTube channel, two days before he enlisted to the military.[36][37]
On May 3, 2023, SM Entertainment announced through Exo's official fan club that Kai would have to fulfill his military mandatory service as a social service worker on May 11.[38]
In March 2020, Kai became the ambassador for the Italian high-end luxury fashion houseGucci with the Chinese actress Nini.[39] Later that year Kai became the first male Muse for Bobbi Brown Cosmetics.[40] On September 14, 2021, the city of Seoul announced that they selected Kai as the face of the brand and a global ambassador for Seoul Fashion Week Spring 2022.[41] On November 1, Kai appeared in the online showcase "TUCSON Beyond Drive," a collaboration between Hyundai Motors and SM Entertainment, where he presented a music performance titled "Follow Your Hidden Light" that combines K-pop and AR technology.[42]
In January 2022, Charmzone Mask selected Kai as their new model, "hoping that it will deliver a youthful and trendy image of Charmzone's premium mask products."[43] BlackYak Climbing Crew selected Kai as model for The Black Yak BCC collection.[44] Later that year, Kai became the muse for Yves Saint Laurent Beauty.[45]
^Hosted by the Hong Kong Asia Pacific International Group and Sunway Records, the Asian Pop Music Awards bases its winners on "Asian Pop Music Chart" which opened in September 2019.[79]
^Hwang Hyo-jin (May 1, 2012). "Exo-K: My name is 카이, 세훈" [Exo-K: My name is Kai, Sehun]. TenAsia (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved July 4, 2016.
^"SM 신인티저 공개 두팀 베일벗다, 신비로운 멤버 카이(KAI)만 공개" [SM unveils first member, Kai, of mysterious rookie group]. Newsen (in Korean). December 23, 2011. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
^"꽁꽁 감춰뒀던 SM 소속 신예그룹 Exo 'SBS 가요대전' 통해 공개" [S.M.'s rookie group Exo made debut in the SBS Gayo Daejun]. Newsen (in Korean). December 29, 2011. Archived from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
^Jeon Hyo-jin (November 11, 2020). "엑소 카이, 솔로 데뷔...30일 'Kai' 발매 [공식]" [EXO's Kai, solo debut... Released 'Kai' on the 30th [Official]] (in Korean). Sports DongA. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020 – via Naver.
^Jo Hye-jin (November 11, 2021). "엑소 카이, 1년 만에 솔로 컴백...30일 새 앨범 발매" [EXO Kai, solo comeback after 1 year... New album release on the 30th] (in Korean). Xsports News. Archived from the original on November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021 – via Naver.
^Kim Ji-hye (May 4, 2023). [팝업★]엑소 카이, '급 입대' 이틀 전 팬들 만난다..무료 팬미팅 결단 [[Pop-up ★] EXO's Kai, meets fans two days before his 'rapid enlistment'...free fan meeting decision]. Herald POP (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 10, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2023 – via Naver.
^Park Se-yeon (May 9, 2023). "돌아와 박살낼 것...기다려달라" 카이 입대 D-2 팬미팅, 웃으며 안녕[종합] ["I will come back and smash... Please wait" Kai enlistment D-2 fan meeting, goodbye with a smile [comprehensive]]. MK (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 10, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2023 – via Naver.
^Bae Hyo-joo (May 3, 2023). "엑소 컴백 준비했으나.." 카이, 5월11일 입대→사회복무요원 대체 복무[공식] ["I prepared for EXO's comeback..." Kai, enlisted on May 11 → alternative service as social worker [Official]]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved May 3, 2023 – via Naver.
"週間 アルバムランキング 2021年12月27日付" [Oricon album charts for December 27, 2021] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved April 5, 2023.
"週間 アルバムランキング 2023年04月10日付" [Oricon album charts for April 10, 2023] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on April 5, 2023. Retrieved April 5, 2023.
^"2020년 12월 Album Chart" [December 2020 Album Chart]. Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
^月間 アルバムランキング 2021年12月度 [Oricon Monthly Album Ranking December 2021] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2023.
^2015년 01주차 Download Chart [1st Week of 2015 Download Chart]. Gaon Music Chart. Archived from the original on February 5, 2015. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
^Seo Mi-kyung (March 2, 2017). 엑소 카이, 日드라마 '봄이 왔다' 첫 주연 발탁 [EXO Kai gets his first lead role in the Japanese drama 'Spring Has Come']. Osen (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 2, 2017. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
^"MBC 연예". www.imbc.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2019. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
^Ahn Yoon-ji (August 19, 2021). "탁재훈, 웹예능 '대부님' 출연..뮤지·김종민·카이와 의기투합[공식]" [Tak Jae-hoon, appearing in the web entertainment 'The Godfather'..Musi, Kim Jong-min, and Kai [Official]]. Star News (in Korean). Naver. Archived from the original on August 19, 2021. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
^Hwang So-young (July 12, 2021). "[단독] 넷플릭스 '신세계로부터' 제작..이승기·카이 등 출연" [[Exclusive] Netflix 'From the New World' production..Lee Seunggi, Kai, etc.]. JTBC (in Korean). Naver. Archived from the original on July 12, 2021. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
^Younique Unit 'Maxstep' MV. SM Entertainment. October 30, 2012. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved October 31, 2018 – via YouTube.
^"2020亚洲流行音乐大奖结果出炉 林俊杰获5奖成最大赢家" [2020 Asian Pop Music Awards results are out JJ Lin won 5 awards as the biggest winner]. VCT News (in Chinese). December 28, 2020. Archived from the original on January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
^【APMA 2021】亚洲流行音乐大奖2021年度获奖名单(完整版) [Asian Pop Music Awards 2021 Winners List (Full Version)]. Sina Weibo (in Chinese). November 30, 2021. Archived from the original on December 27, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
^【APMA 2021】亚洲流行音乐大奖2021年度入围名单 [(APMA 2021) Asian Pop Awards Shortlisted for 2021]. Sina Weibo (in Chinese). November 30, 2021. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
^Kim Ga-Young (July 19, 2022). "엑소 카이·주현영, 남녀신인예능인상 [청룡시리즈어워즈]" [EXO Kai · Joo Hyun-young, Male and Female New Artist Award [Blue Dragon Series Awards]] (in Korean). Edaily. Archived from the original on July 19, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022 – via Naver.
^Jo, Yoon-kyung (December 31, 2018). "[2018 KBS 연기대상] 김권·박성훈·박세완·설인아 신인상 수상" [[2018 KBS Drama Awards] Kim Kwon, Park Seong-hoon, Park Se-wan, Seol In-ah Rookie of the Year Award] (in Korean). Sports Donga. Archived from the original on October 8, 2022. Retrieved October 8, 2022 – via Naver.