For some reason, Jinyoung was always adored. He didn’t have to do anything, people simply threw their affection at him. His parents spoiled him, giving him anything the youngster would ask for which Jinyoung sometimes abused if he really, really liked that specific thing. His father was a hard working man, the owner of a ramen restaurant, his mother a wannabe musician when they met. They fell in love, got married and had two children; their eldest Jaehyun, and Jinyoung. At school, Jinyoung was rather lazy, breezing through classes, scraping by on average. He wasn’t interested in academics, he just wanted to perform. He’d spend hours in his room dancing, singing, screaming the words to H.O.T at the top of his voice. Jinyoung parents enrolled him into various vocal and dance classes, something he kept a secret from his friends due to the fact they all thought the arts were pointless and something to be made fun of.
Jinyoung never wanted to be famous. He just wanted to dance all the time. He enjoyed singing, but he knew he was weak at it. He performed in various competitions and shows, solo and group, just loving every second he was on stage, centre of attention. After a lot of convincing from his best friend, Jinyoung applied for an audition to one of the most popular companies in South Korea at the age of thirteen, curious about the process. Upon failing, Jinyoung made it his goal to practice hard, determined to prove that he’s good enough. Two years and five rejections later, Jinyoung was welcomed with open arms to BB Entertainment. He worked for another two and a half years, showing promise and passion for the arts before being selected to be in a newly debuting boy group.
In 2013, Jinyoung was selected to take part in a special collaboration with three others from different companies to perform in the 2013 SBS Gayo Daejun. The group, named Jupe (jyoop), released the single Stress Come On, performed for the first time on the evening of the music show, with a large percentage given to charity. Due to the success, the group reformed end of 2014 to release a second song, Ojingeo Doenjang.
Jinyoung doesn’t have a stage personality. How he is at interviews is how he is with everyone. He’s not a typical bright and bubbly leader, always yelling out encouragements and supportive comments which caused him a lot of trouble around their debut. Netizens slammed him for not supporting his band members and it’s something that bothered Jinyoung. He’s a hard worker and insisted on trying to be more vocal with his encouragements towards his members and other idols. His nickname, “Tiny Cold Leader” came about from his fellow members, commenting on how he appears cold and distant and he’s the shortest of the group. He isn’t bothered by it, he actually endorses it. Jinyoung isn’t a jokester. He can appreciate a good prank or something to laugh at, but he isn’t the kind to make them. Sometimes he can be a little too serious, easily adding an awkward tension to any atmosphere. That’s also something he’s working on. When Jinyoung gets angry, he doesn’t lash out. He’s very in control with himself, speaking firmly but calmly, wanting to resolve the situation as quickly as possible, something that has come in handy within the dorms. Jinyoung will always try and hide his problems, believing that there are others suffering much worse than him and that he should always be grateful of what he has. He keeps things bottled up, refusing to discuss the situation, which often leads to him snapping in the privacy of his own room.
Nicknames - Youngie, tiny chic leader, ojingeo
Date of birth - June 20th, 1990
Place of birth - California, United States of America
Relationship status - Single
Languages - English, Korean
Eyes - brown, almost black
Hair - black, frequently styled up
