Seo In-guk

Seo In-guk (Hangul: 서인국; born October 23, 1987) is a South Korean singer and actor. He launched his singing career after winning the talent reality show Superstar K in 2009, and made his acting breakthrough in the 2012 cable TV series Reply 1997.

Early life

Seo In-guk came from a family in Ulsan. He started dreaming of becoming a singer at the age of 10, after listening to Korean rocker Kim Jung-min. The young Seo discovered his talent by standing on stage at family gatherings and school events. He studied Applied Music at Daebul University, and eventually started to audition at entertainment agencies. After being repeatedly rejected and told to lose weight, Seo struggled with bulimia, but fortunately, the vomiting only damaged his vocal cords temporarily.

Career

2009-2012: Superstar K, acting debut and Reply 1997

Despite the setbacks, in 2009 he joined Mnet's talent reality show Superstar K. He won that first season of the show.

The subsequent spotlight came with a hectic schedule of recordings, photo shoots, interviews and television broadcasts, followed by chart-topping singles and albums. Seo also had to deal with the negative consequences of fame, including plastic surgery rumors, and cold-shoulder treatment from the three major networks for cable stars like him.