Cho Yong-pil (Korean: 조용필; born March 21, 1950) is a South Korean singer-songwriter who is considered one of the most influential figures in South Korean popular music (K-pop). He debuted as a member of the rock band Atkins in 1968 and made his solo debut with the hit single "Come Back to Busan Port" in 1976. Cho has released 19 solo albums and has remained consistently popular during his 50-year career.[1][2] Nicknamed the "King of Pop" of South Korea,[3][4] his songs have ranked number one on South Korean music charts in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2010s.[5] He was recognized with theEungwan Order of Cultural Merit for his enormous impact on the South Korean pop music scene.[6] He was selected asSinger of the Year and his song "Bounce" was selected asSong of the Year in the surveys conducted byGallup Korea in 2013.[7]
Cho Yong-pil was born in Songsan-myeon,Hwaseong, South Korea, on March 21, 1950[8][9] and spent part of his childhood in Seoul. He and actorAhn Sung-ki were schoolmates at the now-defunct Kyungdong Middle School in Seoul and remained friends even though they attended different high schools.[10][11] When Cho was seven, he happened to listen toRay Charles playing the harmonica, and this inspired the young Cho to become a musician.[citation needed]
1968–1975: Atkins, Five Fingers and Kim Trio period
Cho began his music career as a guitarist in various bands. In 1968, he formed a rock band called Atkins and played for theUnited States Army.[3][12] Later, he joined Five Fingers, which played music by black artists. In 1971, Cho joined the band Kim Trio,[5] which motivated him to perform rock music. Members of Kim Trio included Kim Dae Hwan (drum), Lee Nam Yee (bass) and Choi Yee Chul (guitar). This Kim Trio is different from the band of the same name from the 1980s.
Cho's debut single as a soloist, "Come Back to Busan Port [ja]", brought him national attention when it was released in 1976, later becoming a hit in Japan.[5][13] Cho then made a Japanese-language version of the song, and sang live in Japan. The combined sales of the "Come Back to Busan Port" single and the LP featuring the song exceeded 3 million copies.[14] He was accused of smoking marijuana in 1977 and was banned from performing until 1979.[5] His first album,Woman Outside the Window (창 밖의 여자), was released in 1980 and has been followed by many others. In 1980, he held a concert atCarnegie Hall in New York, the first Korean singer to perform there.[5] In 1988, he became the first South Korean singer to perform in China, before the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.[5]
His commercial success declined after the rise of the groupSeo Taiji and Boys and many other young musicians. His studio albums released after 1992 were not so successful. Noticing this, he announced that he would stop appearing on television, concluding that he would hardly make any hits.[citation needed] Subsequently, he focused more on concerts and music performance. In 1993, hisBusan concert attracted an audience of 1 million, a record for South Korea.[citation needed] The following year, he became the first South Korean singer to surpass 1 million record sales. In 2005, Cho performed a concert inPyongyang, North Korea, a rare occurrence for a South Korean singer.[5]
In April 2013, Cho released his 19th album titledHello, which debuted at number one on the South Korean charts, eclipsingPsy's "Gentleman".[15]On April 25, 2013, he returned to television with the showcase "Hello". This show was also broadcast live onYouTube.[16]
The album ranked number one on theGaon Album Chart for the week of April 28 – May 4, 2013.[17] Two songs from the album won first place onSouth Korean music shows: "Hello" and "Bounce".[18][19] Following the success ofHello, Cho reissued 14 of his old albums.[20] He later released a Japanese version of the album.[13]
In 2018, Cho held a series of concerts to mark his 50th anniversary as a singer.[4]
Cho released the single albumRoad to 20-Prelude 1 on November 18, 2022. To promote the album, he released a 30-second teaser video on his official YouTube channel on November 15. The video contains the titles of the new songs "Moment" and "Like Serengeti". He will hold a solo concert, 2022 Cho Yong-pil and the Great Birth, at theOlympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul from November 26 to 27 and December 3 to 4.[21]
^Park, Ji-hoon (December 19, 2013)."올해의 가수는 조용필, 올해의 노래는 '바운스'" ["Singer of the Year is Cho Yong-pil, Song of the Year is 'Bounce'"].Kookmin Ilbo.Archived from the original on June 11, 2021. RetrievedJune 13, 2021 – viaNaver.
^조용필 소개 [Cho Yong Pil Profile].Mnet (in Korean). Archived fromthe original on August 29, 2019. RetrievedFebruary 4, 2018.
^가왕 조용필 출연없이도 가요프로 첫1위..판도 뒤집었다 [Even without the appearance of singer Cho Yong-pil, the first place on a music program was achieved].Newsen. May 2, 2013.Archived from the original on November 18, 2021.
^조용필, 가왕의 힘..! 'Bounce' 2주연속 '뮤뱅' 1위 [Cho Yong-pil, the power of the King of Singers...! 'Bounce' tops 'Music Bank' for 2 weeks in a row].Star News (in Korean). May 10, 2013.Archived from the original on May 10, 2021. RetrievedNovember 20, 2022 – viaNaver.
^Yoon, Ki-baek (November 15, 2022).가왕' 조용필, 신곡 '찰나' '세렝게티처럼' 18일 발매 ['King of Singer' Cho Yong-pil, new songs 'Instant' and 'Like Serengeti' released on the 18th].Edaily [ko] (in Korean).Archived from the original on November 15, 2022. RetrievedNovember 15, 2022 – viaNaver.
^Lee, Min-kyung (October 22, 2024).조용필, 정규 20집 '20'으로 오늘(22일) 컴백…"자신 믿는다면 늦어도 괜찮아" [Cho Yong-pil, comeback today (22nd (Oct)) with the 20th studio album '20'... "it's okay to be late as long as you believe in yourself"].Tenasia (in Korean). RetrievedOctober 22, 2024 – viaNaver.
^"Gaon Album Chart". Gaon Music Chart.Archived from the original on August 27, 2015. RetrievedFebruary 4, 2018.:
^Nagata, Gyoji (October 2017).昭和歌謡 流行歌からみえてくる昭和の世相』敬文舎 [Showa Kayo: The Showa Era as Seen Through Popular Songs, Keibunsha] (in Japanese). p. 187.ISBN9784906822768.
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Eungwan Order of Cultural Merit (2013)