Seo Jung-kwon (; born July 29, 1974), also known as Tiger JK, is a South Korea-born American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur based in South Korea. He is best known as a founding member of Korean hip hop group Drunken Tiger. He has also founded two record labels, Jungle Entertainment and Feel Ghood Music.
He is considered a highly influential figure in the development of Korean hip-hop and is credited with helping bring the genre into the Korean mainstream.
Early life
Tiger JK (Seo Jung-kwon) was born in
Seoul, South Korea on July 29, 1974. His father, Suh Byung Hoo (d. 2014), was a
Disc jockey and one of the first Korean pop columnists, and the first
Billboard correspondent in Korea in the 1970s.
[SPIN magazine, November 2000, Silence makes the beats grow stronger, Brett Forrest, pp. 154-160] His family moved to the United States when he was 12, and he was sent to briefly live with an uncle in
Miami,
Florida, where he practiced
Taekwondo, becoming a 3rd "dan" black belt.
He spent his teenage years in Los Angeles, California, where he attended Glendale Hoover High School in Glendale, CA. As a teen in Los Angeles, Tiger JK witnessed the violence between Korean-Americans and African-Americans during the 1992 Los Angeles Riots. He later said he wanted to use hip hop to create a dialogue between the two communities.
Tiger JK attended Santa Monica College and then transferred to UCLA
Musical career
1995 – 2005: Early career and successes with Drunken Tiger
In 1995, Tiger JK's first solo album,
Enter The Tiger, was released in Korea by Oasis Records, a connection Tiger JK had made because his father was friends with the company's CEO. The album got little airplay due to its perceived explicit content.
Tiger JK returned to the United States and teamed up with DJ Shine to form the group Drunken Tiger in 1998. The group debuted in Korea and, despite the explicit content of their lyrics and the group's rejection of mainstream music trends, they achieved popularity with their first album, Year of the Tiger, which included the hit songs, "I Want You" and "Do You Know Hip-hop."
Over the next several years, Drunken Tiger brought on new members and released multiple albums, winning numerous awards.
2006–2013: Creation of Jungle Entertainment and collaborations
In 2006, Tiger JK left Oasis Records and established his own hip-hop label, Jungle Entertainment. The label represented Drunken Tiger, and prominent Korean rappers
Yoon Mi-rae and
Leessang were among the artists to join the label over the next few years.
Tiger JK continued to release music with Drunken Tiger over the next few years, while also collaborating with other artists. In 2012, he featured on "Let This Die," a single by Brian Joo of the R&B duo Fly to the Sky.
2013-present: Founding MFBTY and Feel Ghood Music
In 2013, Tiger JK teamed up with Yoon Mi-rae and
Bizzy to form the group
MFBTY, an acronym for "My Fans are Better Than Yours." Soon after, he left Jungle Entertainment and founded a new label, Feel Ghood Music, which now releases MFBTY's music.
He has had multiple collaborations with popular boy group leader RM of BTS with the latter featuring on his final album Drunken Tiger X: Rebirth of Tiger JK
on the song Timeless.
He also featured in Seventeen's Hoshi's Tiger released in 2022.
In 2023, he featured on "TOPLINE", a single released by K-pop group
Stray Kids, also appearing in the official M/V.
Personal life
Drug conviction
Tiger JK was arrested for using
methamphetamine in Korea in 2000, at the same time that members of the Korean hip hop group Uptown were also arrested on drug charges. Tiger JK said that, though he had used drugs in the past, he had not used them in Korea, and he said that he was ultimately found guilty due to false testimony from the members of Uptown. He spent a month and a half in jail and was given two years probation.
Illness
Tiger JK was diagnosed with acute transverse myelitis, a spinal cord condition that affects motor functions, in 2006. He was hospitalized and took a two-year hiatus from performing. As of 2014, he continued to take medication to treat the condition.
Marriage and family
In June 2007, Tiger JK married rapper and singer
Yoon Mi-rae in a private ceremony in a Buddhist Temple. The wedding occurred a month before the death of his grandmother who had wanted to see them wed before her passing. Yoon gave birth to their son, Jordan, in March 2008.
Other projects
In 2006, Tiger JK launched a clothing line called
Lungta.
In 2011, under American rapper Dr. Dre's "Beats By Dr. Dre" headphones line, Tiger JK released his own limited edition headphones. They retailed for 690,000 won, and all profits went to a child safety organization.
Discography
Studio albums
-
Enter the Tiger (1995)
-
Drunken Tiger X: Rebirth of Tiger JK (2018)
Singles
Soundtrack appearances
Filmography
Film
|
| 2015 | 세계일주 (Trip Around the World) | Pil Hong |
Television
|
| 2010 | High Kick Through the Roof | Gwang-soo's friend | Tiger JK made a cameo appearance on this sitcom. |
| Infinite Challenge | Himself | His team won on the "Highway Music Festival" episodes of this variety show. |
| Himself | He appeared on "Project Runway: Korea" Season Two, Episode Eight titled "Hiphopper's Wedding Crasher." He challenged the designers to create a wedding dress for his Fiancé, and was a judge in the episode as well. |
| 2011 | Welcome to the Jungle: Sunzoo | Himself | This was a reality show special. |
| 2012 | Salamander Guru and The Shadows | Tiger | He made a cameo appearance on this sitcom. |
| The Hero on Stage: Tiger JK.ING | Himself | This was a 2-part TV documentary about Tiger JK. |
| 2016 | We Kid | Himself | Tiger JK is a judge on this music competition show for kids. |
| 2017 | Show Me The Money | Himself | He appeared on this music competition show as a producer judge |
| 2019 | Boss in the Mirror | Himself | He appeared as boss of Feel Ghood Music in the show |
| 2021 | Wild Idol | Coach | |
Endorsements
-
Hite Brewery w/Drunken Tiger
-
Kia Motors w/Tiger JK
-
Reebok w/Tiger JK
-
Yahoo w/Tiger JK
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CJ One Card w/ Tiger JK and Yoon MiRae
-
Samsung w/Tiger JK, Yoon Mirae and Jordan
-
Giordano w/Tiger JK
-
Pringles w/Drunken Tiger
-
Moneual w/Tiger JK and Yoon Mirae
-
Hangame w/Tiger JK
-
The Body Shop w/Tiger JK and Yoon Mirae
-
Guinness w/Tiger JK
-
SK Telecom w/Tiger JK and Bizzy
-
SONY w/Tiger JK and Yoon Mirae
Awards and nominations
Notes
External links
