Park Jin-young (Hangul: 박진영; born December 13, 1971), also known by his stage names J. Y. Park and The Asiansoul or the initials JYP, is a South Korean singer-songwriter, record producer, record executive, and reality television show judge. Park rose to stardom as a singer following the release of his 1994 debut album, Blue City. In 1997, he became the founder of JYP Entertainment, one of the most profitable entertainment agencies in South Korea. As the former head of JYP Entertainment (May 1997–Feb 2011), Park has developed and managed highly successful K-pop artists including Rain, Wonder Girls, 2PM, Miss A, Got7, Day6, Twice, Stray Kids, Itzy, Xdinary Heroes and Nmixx, as well as Mandopop group Boy Story and J-pop group NiziU.
Early life and education
Park was born in Seoul. His father was a news correspondent based in the U.S. At age 9, Park moved with his mother to New York following his father's reassignment. They lived there for three years before Park returned to Seoul for high school. He later attended Yonsei University, during which time he released his first two albums. He graduated with a bachelor's in geology in 1996. He has an older sister. Park learned music composition and production for two years from Kim Hyung-suk, who is considered one of the best pop music composers and producers of all time in South Korea.
Career
Park originally debuted as the trio boy group "Park Jin Young and the NG (New Generation) (박진영과 신세대)", with Kim Soo-chul as a producer, and members Cho Hye-sung and Yoon Tae-jin. Their first album 'Floating time (떠도는 시간)' was not successful. Park's notability within the Korean music industry began in 1994 when he debuted as a solo artist with the song "Don't Leave Me" (날 떠나지마) from his debut album Blue City. During this period, he met composer and long-time collaborator Bang Si-hyuk. In 1997, Park founded his label and agency JYP Entertainment, then known as Tae-Hong Planning Corp (대홍기획). That same year, he was tasked by EBM (now SidusHQ) with preparing the members of its project group for debut; the five-member act was eventually called g.o.d and debuted two years later. The success of g.o.d as one of the country's most popular and bestselling groups of the early 2000s would further establish Bang and Park's reputation as hit makers.
In 2004, Park ventured into the American music industry, becoming the first Asian producer to cross over to the U.S., producing music for Will Smith, Mase and Cassie.
In May 2008, Park collaborated with Jackie Chan to form the I Love Asia Project, prompted by the earthquake tragedy in China. Park produced the song "Smile Again" along with Chan and Korean director Kang Je-gyu to raise funds for relief efforts in Sichuan. The song featured an array of Korean stars including actors and singers as well as figure skater Kim Yuna. The music video was released on JYP Entertainment's YouTube channel on June 30.
In October 2009, Park became the first Korean songwriter, together with RAINSTONE, to reach the Billboard Hot 100 Chart with the Wonder Girls hit "Nobody" which debuted at No. 76.
On December 3, 2009, Park released his single "No Love No More". On April 22, 2011, Park collaborated with Brown Eyed Girls' Ga-In, releasing the duet track "Someone Else". The song charted at No. 2 on the Gaon Digital Chart and sold over a million copies. This was his first release in about two years. Park followed up his success with "Someone Else" by releasing the single "You're the One" on April 28, 2012. The song rose to No. 3 and sold over 1.5 million copies.
In 2015, Park released the song "Who's Your Mama?" featuring Lucky J's Jessi. The song became a hit, displacing fellow label-mates Miss A from first spot on the Korean charts. Later that year, he participated in the Infinite Challenge Yeongdong Expressway Music Festival, forming the duo Dancing Genome with comedian Yoo Jae-suk and releasing the song "I'm So Sexy".
