Jeon Won-woo (; born July 17, 1996), known
mononymous
A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person.
A mononym may be the person's only name, given to them at birth. This was routine in most ancient societies, and remains ...
ly as Wonwoo (), is a South Korean rapper and singer. Managed by
Pledis Entertainment
Pledis Entertainment () is a South Korean entertainment company founded by Han Sung-Soo in 2007. The label is home to Bumzu, Hwang Min-hyun, and groups Seventeen and TWS. Its name originates from the Pleiades, a star cluster in the constellat ...
, he is a member of the South Korean boy band
Seventeen, its hip hop team, and its second subunit,
JxW.
Early life and education
Jeon Wonwoo was born in
Changwon
Changwon (; ) is the capital and largest city of South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea (with a population of 1,025,702 ), and the 11th largest city of the South Korea, country. A port city, Changwon is bordered by Masan Bay to the south, and the ...
, South Korea, on July 17, 1996. He attended the
School of Performing Arts Seoul
School of Performing Arts Seoul (SOPA; / ) is an arts high school located in Gung-dong, Guro District, in Seoul, South Korea.
History
SOPA was founded on March 6, 1966 as Jeonghui High School (). On February 28, 2002, Park Jae-ryeon was app ...
and graduated in 2015.
Career
2011–2014: Pre-debut
Wonwoo joined
Pledis Entertainment
Pledis Entertainment () is a South Korean entertainment company founded by Han Sung-Soo in 2007. The label is home to Bumzu, Hwang Min-hyun, and groups Seventeen and TWS. Its name originates from the Pleiades, a star cluster in the constellat ...
in 2011, where he would undergo singing and dancing training for four years. As a trainee, he participated from the first season onwards of ''
Seventeen TV'', an online reality show that introduced Pledis' trainees and showed potential members of the boy group
Seventeen before their official debut. The show was broadcast periodically on
Ustream
IBM Watson Media (formerly Ustream and IBM Cloud Video) is an American virtual events platform company which is a division of IBM. Prior to the IBM acquisition, it had more than 180 employees across San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Budapest office ...
, where the trainees showed themselves training, singing, creating choreographies and playing games. The online show also included participation in concerts, titled ''Like Seventeen''.
2015–present: Seventeen and solo activities
In 2015, Wonwoo debuted as a member of the South Korean boy group
Seventeen with the
extended play
An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...
''
17 Carat
''17 Carat'' is the debut extended play (EP) by South Korean boy group Seventeen. It was released on May 29, 2015, by Pledis Entertainment and distributed by LOEN Entertainment. " Adore U" serves as the lead single for the EP.
Background and ...
'' on May 29. Within the 13-member group, he was selected to be a member of its hip-hop unit. Since debuting in Seventeen, he has participated in the songwriting of over 35 songs, the majority of which being songs performed by the hip-hop unit.
In 2021, Wonwoo and Seventeen bandmate
Mingyu released a digital single titled "Bittersweet", featuring
Lee Hi
Lee Ha-yi (; born September 23, 1996), known by her stage name Lee Hi, is a South Korean singer and songwriter. She first garnered attention as the runner-up of '' K-pop Star season 1''. She debuted with single "1, 2, 3, 4" on October 28, 2012, ...
. "Bittersweet" ranked first on the iTunes song chart in ten regions upon release.
In 2022, Wonwoo released a cover of
IU's "Knees" as a tribute to his late mother.
In 2023, Wonwoo was featured in Dive Studio's ''Mindset'' series, releasing three episodes detailing his relationship with his mental health.
In 2024, Wonwoo and bandmate
Jeonghan debuted as Seventeen's second official subunit named Jeonghan X Wonwoo, alternatively known as JxW, with the single album ''
This Man''. The album featured three tracks, including Wonwoo's first commercially released solo song "Leftover", where he is credited for songwriting.
Achieving commercial success, ''This Man'' broke the first-week sales record for an album released by a K-pop sub-unit within four days of its release.
Other ventures
Fashion and ambassadorships
In November 2022, Wonwoo was announced as the new sole model for South Korean cosmetic brand Huxley. In June 2023, Wonwoo made his first appearance on the cover of Japanese fashion magazine ''
Men's Non-no
is a Japanese language, Japanese monthly men's fashion and lifestyle magazine based in Tokyo. Published by Shueisha, it is an offshoot of women's magazine ''Non-no''.
History
''Men's Non-no'' was started in 1986, and the first issue appeared in ...
'', alongside Seventeen member DK. The pair would go on to be featured in other issues cataloguing their fashion. He would again be featured on the cover for the magazine's July 2024 issue alongside Jeonghan, in promotion of ''
This Man''. In September 2023, Wonwoo attended British luxury fashion house
Burberry
Burberry Group plc is a British luxury fashion house established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry and headquartered in London, England. It designs and distributes ready to wear, including trench coats, leather accessories, and footwear. It is l ...
's opening of their new pop-up store in Seoul. He then attended the brand's 2025 Autumn/Winter fashion show at London Fashion Week in February 2025.
In March 2024, Wonwoo attended an event for luxury suitcase brand
Rimowa
Rimowa GmbH (), often stylized as RIMOWA, is a luxury luggage manufacturer. The company was founded in 1898, in Cologne, Germany.
Rimowa suitcases are widely known for their parallel aluminium grooves, which have become characteristic of the bra ...
in Seoul. In April, he was announced as the new global model for South Korean cosmetic brand
The Face Shop
The Face Shop () (stylized as THE FACE SHOP) is a South Koreabased skincare and cosmetics manufacturer, retailer and a franchise business. It is a subsidiary of LG Household & Health Care of LG Corporation. Its products include body, bath, skin ...
. In June, Wonwoo, alongside Seventeen members
S.Coups and
Vernon, became the new global brand ambassadors for Chitato, an Indonesian snack brand under
Indofood
Indofood is an Indonesian producer of various pharmaceuticals and drinks, headquartered in Jakarta. The company was established on 14 August 1990 as PT Panganjaya Intikusuma, then later on 5 February 1994 its name was changed to Indofood Sukses M ...
. In December, he was selected as the newest brand ambassador for Japanese optical brand Jins Eyewear.
Philanthropy
In March 2019, Wonwoo donated his personal items for auction by Nabiya Cat Shelter, an
animal shelter
An animal shelter or pound is a place where stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals – mostly dogs and cats – are housed. The word "pound" has its origins in the animal pounds of the agricultural communities, where stray livestock w ...
in Seoul. He again donated items for their 2022 auction drive.
Personal life
Wonwoo lives in Seoul with bandmate
Mingyu. He enjoys video games, frequently hosting livestreams of games via
Weverse
Weverse () is a South Korean mobile app and web platform created by South Korean entertainment company Hybe Corporation. The app specializes in hosting multimedia content, the sale of artist-related merchandise, content subscription, and artist ...
.
He is a fan of South Korean esports team
T1.
Military service
In March 2025, Pledis Entertainment announced that Wonwoo would be
enlisting in the
South Korean military
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the Military, armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel ...
on April 3, following Seventeen's 2025 fan meeting in Incheon. He began his enlistment on that day.
Discography
Singles
Other charted songs
Composition credits
All credits are adapted from the
Korea Music Copyright Association
The Korea Music Copyright Association (KOMCA) is a South Korean non-profit copyright collective for musical works, administering public performance and broadcasting rights, and mechanical recording and reproduction rights. Founded in 1964, it ...
.
Notes
References
External links
{{Seventeen (band)
Seventeen (South Korean band) members
Korean singers
Pledis Entertainment artists
South Korean hip-hop singers
South Korean male rappers
21st-century male rappers
South Korean hip-hop musicians
South Korean male idols
21st-century South Korean rappers
South Korean hip-hop record producers
1996 births
Living people