Kim Gun-mo (; born January 13, 1968) is a South Korean singer-songwriter, who is considered the country's most successful musical artist of the 1990s. His 1995 album, '' Wrongful Meeting,'' previously held the

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

for the best-selling album of all time in South Korea''.'' Since his debut in 1992, Kim has released 13 full-length albums and has won numerous awards, including Album of the Year at the

Golden Disc Awards The Golden Disc Awards (, formerly spelled the Golden Disk Awards before 2015) is an annual South Korean major music awards ceremony that honors achievements in the local music industry. The awards ceremony was founded with the purpose to promo ...

for three consecutive years from 1994 to 1996. In 2011, he received a presidential commendation from the South Korean government for his contributions to popular culture.

Early life

Kim was born on January 13, 1968, in

Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea ...

, South Korea. He was interested in music from a young age and started playing the piano when he was four years old. He attended elementary school, middle school, and high school in Seoul and graduated from

Seoul Institute of the Arts Seoul Institute of the Arts is a prominent educational institution specializing in the Arts located in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. The school has nurtured many graduates who are actively working in art related fields within Korea as ...

. He served in the

South Korean Navy The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN; ko, 대한민국 해군), also known as the ROK Navy or South Korean Navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and amphibious operations. The ROK Navy inc ...

in the late 1980s.

Personal life

Kim is engaged to pianist Jang Ji-yeon, whom he met through a mutual friend. Later in June 2022, Kim is about to agree to divorce his wife. On December 6, 2019, lawyer Kang Yong-suk announced that he is representing a woman who alleges that Kim sexually assaulted her. On December 8, Kang also said that he was representing another client who had similar allegations against Kim. Kim has stated that he will take legal action against Kang.

Career

Kim debuted with Kim Gun Mo 1 in 1992, which was followed by his second album Excuse in 1993. His third album Mis-Encounter came out in 1995. In the following year, he released Exchange. As one of the most popular Korean entertainers, Kim holds the record for biggest selling album in Korea with his third studio album, which sold over 3.3 million copies. Kim's albums rank consistently high on Korean music charts; his 8th album, ‘He-story,’ was the best-selling album of 2003. His most famous songs include "Excuse", "Mis-Encounter", and "Jjangga". In 2004, he released his 9th album Kim Gun Mo 9 which is reminiscent of his first album. This album was his second restarting point in his music career. In the following year, he came up with BE Like...which was also a huge success in Korea. His most recent work was released in 2008, entitled, Soul Groove.

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Filmography

Variety shows

Awards and nominations

State honors

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Gun-mo 1968 births Living people People from Busan South Korean rhythm and blues singers South Korean pop pianists Grand Prize Golden Disc Award recipients Grand Prize Seoul Music Award recipients MAMA Award winners Male pianists 21st-century pianists 21st-century South Korean male singers South Korean male singer-songwriters