Biography
Kim Woo-sung, the Korean-American lead vocalist and guitarist of the Seoul-based melodic indie rock quartet the Rose, draws on slick R&B and 1980s pop-inspired stylings for his solo output. His sound first surfaced with the 2019 debut EP Wolf, which landed in the Korean Top 20, followed by the self-released full-length Genre in 2021. The subsequent Moth EP returned him to the Top 20 in 2022, while his somewhat darker, more reflective second long-player, 4444, did likewise upon its 2024 arrival.
Born in Wonju, South Korea, and raised in Los Angeles by his mother, Woo-sung once aspired to a professional football career until a serious shoulder injury in his mid-teens redirected his focus toward music. By 2011 he had appeared on Korean television as a contestant during the first season of SBS' K-pop Star; although he fell just short of the show's Top Ten artists, the near miss sharpened his resolve to break through in the industry. His next major opportunity arrived in late 2015 when keyboardist Park Do-joon of the indie act Windfall invited him to join the group. Within a year the band had renamed itself the Rose and signed with J&Star Company. The Rose's debut single, August 2017's "Sorry," reached the Top 20 of Billboard's World chart, and both 2018 EPs—Void and Dawn—entered the Top Ten. The same year the quartet toured Europe, the U.S., South America, and Australia, then claimed the Most Promising Artist prize at the International K-Music Awards.
Woo-sung's initial wave of solo projects began in 2019. He opened the year hosting Arirang TV's After School Club and made three collaborative appearances on JTBC SuperBand. That July, J&Star released his debut solo EP Wolf—issued under his full birth name—which drew on R&B and reached the Korean Top 20. The set included the solo single "Lonely" as well as "Beautiful Girl," featuring a guest rap from Reddy. A non-EP solo track, "Feel My Heart," appeared concurrently on the soundtrack for tvN's Catch the Ghost. Further exposure followed in late 2019 and early 2020: his rock track "Wanna Be Bad" featured on tvN's Psychopath Diary, while "You Make Me Back" surfaced in JTBC's Itaewon Class and served as the lead single for the accompanying soundtrack album.
After the Rose issued the August 2020 single "Black Rose," Woo-sung's three bandmates entered mandatory military service, placing the group on temporary hiatus. In mid-2021 he announced that both he and the Rose had parted ways with J&Star, allowing him to establish his own imprint, Woolfpack. The label's first release was his own Genre LP, an '80s pop-inspired collection issued in December 2021 under the mononym Woosung. After securing wider distribution, the Moth EP arrived on Woolfpack in May 2022 and peaked at number 18 in Korea. The Rose subsequently charted with October 2022's HEAL and September 2023's Dual—the latter also reaching number 83 on the Billboard 200—before Woosung delivered his second solo album. Released in October 2024 via Woolfpack in partnership with Transparent Arts, 4444 entered the Korean Top 20; its moodier scope incorporated darker electro-pop elements.
Born in Wonju, South Korea, and raised in Los Angeles by his mother, Woo-sung once aspired to a professional football career until a serious shoulder injury in his mid-teens redirected his focus toward music. By 2011 he had appeared on Korean television as a contestant during the first season of SBS' K-pop Star; although he fell just short of the show's Top Ten artists, the near miss sharpened his resolve to break through in the industry. His next major opportunity arrived in late 2015 when keyboardist Park Do-joon of the indie act Windfall invited him to join the group. Within a year the band had renamed itself the Rose and signed with J&Star Company. The Rose's debut single, August 2017's "Sorry," reached the Top 20 of Billboard's World chart, and both 2018 EPs—Void and Dawn—entered the Top Ten. The same year the quartet toured Europe, the U.S., South America, and Australia, then claimed the Most Promising Artist prize at the International K-Music Awards.
Woo-sung's initial wave of solo projects began in 2019. He opened the year hosting Arirang TV's After School Club and made three collaborative appearances on JTBC SuperBand. That July, J&Star released his debut solo EP Wolf—issued under his full birth name—which drew on R&B and reached the Korean Top 20. The set included the solo single "Lonely" as well as "Beautiful Girl," featuring a guest rap from Reddy. A non-EP solo track, "Feel My Heart," appeared concurrently on the soundtrack for tvN's Catch the Ghost. Further exposure followed in late 2019 and early 2020: his rock track "Wanna Be Bad" featured on tvN's Psychopath Diary, while "You Make Me Back" surfaced in JTBC's Itaewon Class and served as the lead single for the accompanying soundtrack album.
After the Rose issued the August 2020 single "Black Rose," Woo-sung's three bandmates entered mandatory military service, placing the group on temporary hiatus. In mid-2021 he announced that both he and the Rose had parted ways with J&Star, allowing him to establish his own imprint, Woolfpack. The label's first release was his own Genre LP, an '80s pop-inspired collection issued in December 2021 under the mononym Woosung. After securing wider distribution, the Moth EP arrived on Woolfpack in May 2022 and peaked at number 18 in Korea. The Rose subsequently charted with October 2022's HEAL and September 2023's Dual—the latter also reaching number 83 on the Billboard 200—before Woosung delivered his second solo album. Released in October 2024 via Woolfpack in partnership with Transparent Arts, 4444 entered the Korean Top 20; its moodier scope incorporated darker electro-pop elements.
Albums
4444: Reborn
2025
4444
2024
MOTH
2022
IDOL: The Coup (Original Television Soundtrack, Pt. 4)
2021
Catch the Ghost, Pt. 1 (Original Television Soundtrack)
2019
Singles
