Jung San (; born ), more commonly known by his stage name San E (), is a South Korean rapper. He debuted in 2010 under

JYP Entertainment JYP Entertainment Corporation () is a South Korean Multinational corporation, multinational entertainment and record label Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1997 by Park Jin-young, J. Y. Park. Operating as a record label, talent ...

, where he was the label's first solo rapper. He left the company in 2013 to sign with hip hop label

Brand New Music Brand New Music (, also stylized as BrandNew Music and initialized as BNM) is a South Korean hip hop company founded in 2011 by rapper . History 2003–2012: Founding and first-generation artists Kim Se-hwan (), known as Rhymer, founded the r ...

. He left the company in 2018 and established hip hop label FameUs Entertainment in 2019. San E has released one full-length album: ''The Boy Who Cried Wolf'' (2015), and three extended plays: ''Everybody Ready?'' (2010), '''Not' Based on the True Story'' (2013), and ''Season of Suffering'' (2017). San E has received several major awards, including Best Hip Hop Song at the 2010

Korean Music Awards The Korean Music Awards () is an annual South Korean music awards show that honors both mainstream and underground musical artists from a variety of genres. Unlike other major South Korean music awards, which largely rely on record sales to de ...

, Best Rap Performance at the

2015 Mnet Asian Music Awards The 2015 Mnet Asian Music Awards ceremony, organized by CJ E&M through its music channel Mnet, took place on December 2, 2015, at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong. The ceremony was the sixth consecutive Mnet Asian Music Awards to be hosted outside ...

, and the Hip Hop Award at the 2016

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 prom ...

and at the 2016

Seoul Music Awards The Seoul Music Awards (; SMA) is a major South Korean music awards show presented by the newspaper Seoul Shinmun, ''Sports Seoul''. The award winners are selected based on a combination of criteria, including music sales, popular votes, and exp ...

Early life

San E was born on January 23, 1985, in South Korea. He moved with his family to

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, US, when he was a middle school student because his parents had been struggling financially as a result of the

1997 Asian financial crisis The 1997 Asian financial crisis gripped much of East Asia, East and Southeast Asia during the late 1990s. The crisis began in Thailand in July 1997 before spreading to several other countries with a ripple effect, raising fears of a worldwide eco ...

. He attended the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

, where he majored in graphic design.

Career

2008–2009: Mixtapes and underground fame

San E released his first mixtapes ''Ready To Be Signed'' and ''Ready To Be Famous'' in 2008 and 2009, respectively. As a way to draw attention to his self-released music, San E jokingly dissed established underground rapper

Verbal Jint Kim Jin-tae (; born December 19, 1980), better known by his stage name Verbal Jint (), is a South Korean musician, rapper and record producer who is known for his innovations in Korean hip hop rhyme schemes. He established himself as one of Sout ...

in one of his songs. The diss brought him attention from the Korean hip hop community and from Verbal Jint himself, who invited San E to join his hip hop crew, Overclass.

2010–2012: JYP Entertainment and ''Everybody Ready?''

Still unsigned, San E won Best Hip Hop Song at the 2010

for the track "Rap Genius." Soon after, he became the first solo rapper to sign with

, one of the "big three" records labels in the k-pop industry. That September, he released his first mini-album, ''Everybody Ready?,'' which featured fellow JYP Entertainment artists Min (of

Miss A Miss A (; stylized in all caps or miss A) was a South Korean girl group formed by AQ Entertainment, a subsidiary of JYP Entertainment. The group debuted in July 2010 with the single " Bad Girl Good Girl" as a quartet consisting of Fei, Jia, ...

), and Joo and Yeeun (of

Wonder Girls Wonder Girls () was a South Korean girl group formed by JYP Entertainment. The group debuted in February 2007 with the single "Irony (Wonder Girls song), Irony" and 5 members: Park Ye-eun, Yeeun, Sunye, Sunmi, Hyuna, and Ahn So-hee, Sohee. Aft ...

). He debuted several days later on the television music show, ''

M Countdown ''M Countdown'' () is a South Korean music program broadcast by Mnet from the CJ E&M Center Studio in Sangam-dong, Mapo District, Seoul. It features appearances by popular music artists who also perform live on stage. First hosted by Leeteuk ...

,'' with his single "Tasty San," featuring Min. In November, San E started another round of promotions for the single, "LoveSick," the music video for which starred label mate Sohee of

. In 2011, San E released several singles, including "Please Don't Go," a collaboration with rapper Outsider and singer Lee Changmin (of 2AM). The song reached #14 on the

Gaon Digital Chart The Circle Digital Chart, previously known as the Gaon Digital Chart, is the music industry standard record chart ranking the 200 most popular singles in South Korea. It provides rankings on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis, which is based on ...

, making it his highest charted song while contracted under JYP Entertainment. He also collaborated that year with

Beenzino Lim Sung-bin (; born September 12, 1987), better known by the stage name Beenzino (빈지노), is a South Korean rapper. Beenzino first gained popularity through the duo Jazzyfact, which he formed with Shimmy Twice in 2008. And he made his f ...

, Swings, and other artists on the single "Stand Up, Japan!" which benefited Japan's relief efforts after the Tohoku tsunami.

2013–2018: Brand New Music and top ten success

San E - 2014 Seoul International Drama Awards

In April 2013, San E ended his contract with JYP Entertainment, saying that he was leaving on good terms. That June, he joined hip hop label,

, home to his Overclass crew mate,

. San E achieved his first #1 hit on the

with the song, "Story of Someone I Know," from the album '''Not' Based on the True Story.'' His next three singles, "Where Did You Sleep?" (feat.

and Swings), "Break-Up Dinner" (feat. Sanchez of

Phantom Phantom, phantoms, or the phantom may refer to: * Spirit (metaphysics), the vital principle or animating force within all living things ** Ghost, the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear to the living Aircraft * Boeing Phanto ...

), and "What's Wrong With Me" (feat. Kang Min Hee), all reached the top ten of the Gaon Digital Chart. San E's success continued with the single " A Midsummer Night's Sweetness," a collaboration with Raina (of After School). The song was an instant hit and achieved #1 on ten music charts shortly after its debut. The song went on to win awards that year at the

Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards The Circle Chart Music Awards (), formerly known as the Gaon Chart Music Awards, is a major music awards ceremony that is presented annually in South Korea by the Korea Music Content Association primarily based on the commercial performance of t ...

, the

MelOn Music Awards The Melon Music Awards () is a major music awards show that is held annually by Kakao Entertainment (a Kakao company) through its online music store Melon. The event was initially a fan-voted award conducted entirely online from 2005 through ...

, and the

. His next single, "Body Language" (featuring

Bumkey Kwon Ki-bum (, born September 22, 1984), known as Bumkey (), is a South Korean R&B singer under Brand New Music. He made his musical debut in 2010 as part of the hip hop duo 2winS and is currently a member of the Korean hip hop and R&B quartet T ...

), was also a #1 hit, topping both the Gaon Digital Chart and seven Korean real-time music charts shortly after its release, despite its 19+ rating. In June 2017, San E was featured in

Hyoyeon Kim Hyo-yeon (; born September 22, 1989), known professionally as Hyoyeon or DJ Hyo, is a South Korean singer, dancer, and DJ. She debuted as a member of the girl group Girls' Generation in August 2007, which went on to become one of the best-s ...

's single "Wannabe". San E was also the rap mentor for

KBS2 KBS 2TV is a South Korean free-to-air Free-to-air (FTA) services are television (TV) and radio services broadcast in unencrypted form, allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen ...

's survival show, ''The Unit''. In late 2018, Brand New Music terminated San E's contract after the rapper made a series of controversial remarks about

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

2019–present: CEO of FameUs Entertainment

In 2019, San E established hip hop label FameUs Entertainment and recruited rappers Errday, Malkey, and

Be'O Yoo Chan-wook (; born April 27, 2000), known professionally as Be'O (; stylized in all caps), is a South Korean rapper and songwriter. He first garnered attention when he appeared on the rap competition TV show ''Show Me the Money 10'' in 2021. ...

. They released their first compilation album ''God FameUs'' on April 9, 2020.

Personal life

Relationship and marriage

San-E married his girlfriend in a private ceremony on September 24, 2022, in

Cheongdam-dong Cheongdam-dong () is a ward of Gangnam District, Seoul, South Korea. The area is best known in South Korea as an affluent neighborhood populated by a disproportionately high number of high-income individuals and for having some of the most expens ...

, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Charted songs

Filmography

Television variety programs

Awards and nominations

Gaon Chart K-Pop Awards The Circle Chart Music Awards (), formerly known as the Gaon Chart Music Awards, is a major music awards ceremony that is presented annually in South Korea by the Korea Music Content Association primarily based on the commercial performance of t ...

, - , 2013 , "Story of Someone I Know" , Song/Artist of the Year (August) , , - , 2014 , "A Midsummer Night's Sweetness" (with Raina) , Song/Artist of the Year (July) ,

Golden Disk 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 prom ...

, - , 2015 , "A Midsummer Night's Sweetness" (with Raina) , Digital Bonsang , , - , 2016 , ''The Boy Who Cried Wolf'' , Best Rap/Hip Hop Award ,

Korean Music Awards The Korean Music Awards () is an annual South Korean music awards show that honors both mainstream and underground musical artists from a variety of genres. Unlike other major South Korean music awards, which largely rely on record sales to de ...

, - , 2010 , "Rap Genius" , Best Hip Hop Song ,

MelOn Music Awards The Melon Music Awards () is a major music awards show that is held annually by Kakao Entertainment (a Kakao company) through its online music store Melon. The event was initially a fan-voted award conducted entirely online from 2005 through ...

, - , rowspan="4", 2014
, rowspan="3", "A Midsummer Night's Sweetness" (with Raina) , Best Song , , - , Hot Trend , , - , Rap/Hip Hop , , - , "What's Wrong With Me?" , OST ,

Mnet Asian Music Awards The MAMA Awards (, formerly Mnet Asian Music Awards) is a major Music award, music awards ceremony presented annually by entertainment company CJ ENM. First held in South Korea, the majority of prizes have been won by K-pop artists, although ...

, - , rowspan="4", 2014 , " A Midsummer Night's Sweetness" (with Raina) , rowspan="2", Song of the Year , , - , rowspan="2", "Body Language" , , - ,

Best Rap Performance The Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance is an honor presented to recording artists for quality rap performances. It was first presented at the 31st Annual Grammy Awards in 1989 and again at the 32nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1990, after which p ...

, , - , " A Midsummer Night's Sweetness" (with Raina) , Best Collaboration , , - , rowspan="2", 2015 , rowspan="2", "Me You" , Song of the Year , , - ,

Seoul Music Awards The Seoul Music Awards (; SMA) is a major South Korean music awards show presented by the newspaper Seoul Shinmun, ''Sports Seoul''. The award winners are selected based on a combination of criteria, including music sales, popular votes, and exp ...

, - , 2014 , San E & Raina , Hip Hop/Rap Award , , - , 2015 , San E , Hip Hop/Rap Award ,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:San E 1985 births Living people Brand New Music artists JYP Entertainment artists Korean Music Award winners Melon Music Award winners MAMA Award winners Musicians from Incheon People from Bupyeong District South Korean hip-hop musicians South Korean hip-hop singers South Korean male rappers 21st-century male rappers South Korean hip-hop record producers 21st-century South Korean rappers South Korean television personalities University of Georgia alumni