Paul Kim (musician, born 1981)

Last updated

Paul Kim (born March, 1981) is a Korean American musician, singer and rapper.

Contents

Background

Kim grew up in Saratoga, California, and attended Monta Vista High School in Cupertino, California. As can be seen in his Season 6 American Idol segment, Kim's motivation for auditioning for the show was to dispel and shatter the stereotypical Asian images that William Hung perpetuated during prior seasons. [1]

On American Idol

Kim's initial performance on Season 6 of American Idol garnered all "yes" votes from the judges, and Randy Jackson declared that Kim had one of the best male vocals he heard that season, in Season 6. [2] When Kim made it as one of the top 24 semi-finalists, it was mentioned that the judges were divided by "a split decision". It is notable that he sang barefoot during all of his performances.

Work, YouTube channel, and career

Kim currently has a YouTube channel that has over 337,000 subscribers and over 189,830,000 total views as of 2020. [3] Some of his most popular videos are: his cover of an English version of Big Bang's Bad Girl (the music video also starring Eunice Kiss), [4] his cover of Taeyang's "I Need A Girl" (with David So), [5] his cover of G-Dragon's "That XX" (with David So), [6] and his cover of Bruno Mars' "Locked Out of Heaven" (Paul Kim x John Ho remix). [7] Kim has also done covers of songs by Drake, Robin Thicke, Justin Timberlake, Miguel, Omarion, Usher, Boyz II Men, Frank Ocean, Coldplay, Beyoncé, Adele and others. Kim has also worked with other YouTube artists such as Dumbfoundead/Parker, David So, Joseph Vincent, Z. Woods, Baiyu, Eunice Kiss, Jennifer Chung, Megan Lee, Danakadan (afterschoolspecial) and other artists.

Among his original songs include "No Turning Back" with Dumbfoundead/Parker and CHOPS (the music video directed by Timothy Tau and JL Jupiter), [8] "You Left Me for That" (the music video directed by Anthony Bui and starring Grace Su and Timothy DeLaGhetto), "Outta My Head" (music video directed by Alexandher), "Today" (music video directed by Daniel Kwan), "Getaway" (music video directed by Evan Asato), "She Is The Reason" (music video directed by Edward Park), "Make Believe" (feat. Baiyu (singer)) (music video directed by Anthony Bui), "Still Not Over You" (feat. Eunice Kiss) (music video directed by Ebling Howard), "You Had Your Chance" (music video directed by Dan Fisher), "Give Into Me" (music video directed by Evan Asato) and more. Most of his original songs and remixes are available for purchase over iTunes. [9]

Kim also has started his own apparel line along with David So, entitled "Go For Broke Apparel". [10]

Kim has released an album titled My Word which includes fifteen tracks on January 21, 2015.

Related Research Articles

Courtney Act Australian drag performer and recording artist

Shane Gilberto Jenek, better known under the stage name Courtney Act, is an Australian drag queen, singer and television personality. Courtney first came to prominence competing on the first season of Australian Idol in 2003. After the show, she signed to BMG Australia, and she released her debut single, "Rub Me Wrong", which peaked at No. 29 on the ARIA Singles Chart and eventually gained a gold certification. While auditioning for Australian Idol, she also became the first LGBTQ contestant to openly appear on a reality TV talent show. In 2014, Courtney was one of the runners-up in season six of RuPaul's Drag Race.

Willam Belli American actor, drag queen, and recording artist

Willam Belli, mononymously known as Willam, is an American drag queen, actor, singer-songwriter, reality television personality, author, and YouTuber. Willam came to prominence as a contestant on the fourth season of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2012, but was disqualified in the "Frenemies" challenge.

Shout It Out Loud (Kiss song)

"Shout It Out Loud" is a song by the American hard rock group Kiss, originally released on their 1976 album, Destroyer. It was released as the lead single off the album, and it proved to be successful, becoming the band's second single to break the Top 40, after "Rock and Roll All Nite". It was also the band's first single to top the charts, as it reached number 1 hit in Canada on May 22, 1976. The song was performed on almost every tour for many years, and is one of the most played songs in the Kiss catalog, having been played over 1,700 times as of June 2022.

Chris Richardson American singer-songwriter (born 1984)

Christopher Michael Richardson is an American singer-songwriter who was the fifth-place finalist on the sixth season of American Idol.

David Archuleta American pop singer

David James Archuleta is an American pop singer. At ten years old, he won the children's division of the Utah Talent Competition, leading to other television singing appearances. When he was twelve years old, Archuleta became the Junior Vocal Champion on the second season of Star Search, known as "Star Search 2". In 2008, he finished second on the seventh season of American Idol.

David Cook (singer) American rock singer-songwriter

David Roland Cook is an American rock singer-songwriter. Cook rose to fame after winning the seventh season of American Idol in 2008.

Come Back to Me (David Cook song)

"Come Back to Me" is the second official single released from American Idol season 7 winner David Cook's major label debut studio album, David Cook (2008). It was released as a joint double-A single with "Bar-ba-sol".

Taeyang South Korean singer (born 1988)

Dong Young-bae, better known by his stage names Taeyang and SOL, is a South Korean singer, songwriter and dancer. After appearing in Jinusean's music video "A-yo", Taeyang began training under YG Entertainment at the age of 12. Six years later, he made his debut in 2006 as a member of the South Korean boy band Big Bang. While the quintet's debut was met with lukewarm receptions, their follow-ups cemented their popularity, becoming one of the best-selling digital group of all-time in Asia and one of the best-selling boy bands in the world.

Jay Park American rapper (1987)

Jay Park is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer and entrepreneur of Korean descent. He is a member of the Seattle-based b-boy crew Art of Movement (AOM), and founder and former CEO of the independent hip hop record labels AOMG and H1ghr Music, as well as the founder of the record label More Vision. Park initially rose to fame as the leader of South Korean boy band 2PM, formed by record label JYP Entertainment in 2008, after having previously been a trainee for four years. In September 2009, Park returned home to Seattle after comments he wrote about Korea in 2005 as a teenager were publicized by the Korean media, officially leaving the group. Park returned to South Korea in June 2010 for the filming of Hype Nation, and in July, Park signed a contract with SidusHQ, one of the largest entertainment agencies in South Korea. Rebranding and re-debuting as both a solo singer and a rapper, Park's musical identity would lend to him partaking in the underground hip hop culture in South Korea, a rarity for both active and former K-Pop idols.

Todrick Hall American entertainer (born 1985)

Todrick Hall is an American singer, songwriter, choreographer, and YouTuber. He gained national attention on the ninth season of the televised singing competition American Idol. Following this, he amassed a huge following on YouTube with viral videos including original songs, parodies, and skits. He aspires to be a role model for LGBTQ and people of color. A documentary series about his video-making process titled Todrick aired on MTV in 2015.

Andrew Garcia American singer

Andrew Adrian Garcia is an American singer from Moreno Valley, California who was the ninth place finalist on the ninth season of American Idol. Garcia has released two EPs and numerous standalone singles. He has also collaborated with several artists.

Haley Reinhart American singer

Haley Elizabeth Reinhart is an American singer and songwriter from Wheeling, Illinois. She first rose to prominence after placing third in the 10th season of American Idol. In July 2011, Reinhart signed a recording deal with Interscope Records. Her debut album Listen Up! was released on May 22, 2012, to critical acclaim, and she subsequently became the first American Idol alumna to perform at Lollapalooza.

Baiyu (singer) Chinese-American singer-songwriter and actress

Sara Baiyu Porritt, known professionally as Baiyu, is a Chinese-born American singer-songwriter and actress. In the early 1990s, her family moved to Gaithersburg, Maryland where she was then given the American name of "Sara". Baiyu has appeared in several independent films and was a VJ for the mtvU show "The Freshmen" from 2006 to 2008. She completed high school in three years' time, and later graduated from Princeton University in 2008 with a degree in Sociology.

Wax (rapper) American rapper

Michael Jones, better known by his stage name Wax, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician, producer, and comedian. He became a YouTube star after uploading several videos of himself rapping and singing. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California. Wax is widely known for his popular single "Rosana", which was released in 2012.

Timothy Tau American novelist

Timothy Tau is a Taiwanese-American writer, engineer, attorney, law professor and filmmaker. Tau won the 2011 Hyphen Asian American Writers' Workshop Short Story Contest for his short story, "The Understudy", which was published in the Winter 2011 issue of Hyphen magazine, Issue No. 24, the "Survival Issue." Tau also won Second Prize in the 2010 Playboy College Fiction Contest for his short story, "Land of Origin". He has also directed a number of short films and music videos that have screened at various film festivals worldwide and on YouTube.

Hunter is a full length studio album by Chinese-American artist Baiyu released on June 13, 2012. The studio album component of "Hunter" is part of a larger project that is to be accompanied by a book of poetry as well as a comic book series and animated short entitled "The Illuminators" for which she is basis of the animated heroine. The album features several up and coming, as well as established artists including Los of Puff Daddy's Bad Boy Records; Rotimi, a singer-songwriter who is known for his role on the show "Boss" from the Starz Network; Barbadian soul singer Hal Linton; as well as Paul Kim of American Idol.

Postmodern Jukebox American retro music collective

Postmodern Jukebox, also widely known by the initialism PMJ, is a rotating musical collective founded by arranger and pianist Scott Bradlee in 2011. PMJ is known for reworking popular modern music into different vintage genres, especially early 20th century forms such as swing and jazz. Postmodern Jukebox has amassed over 1.8 billion YouTube views and 5.7 million subscribers.

Adanna Duru is an American singer, songwriter and producer from Diamond Bar, California. At 15, she was on Adam Levine's team on the third season of The Voice. At 18, she came in tenth place on the fourteenth season of American Idol. In 2016, she released a mixtape, Exhibit A. and in August 2017, she released an EP, Stardive.

"Loser" is a song by South Korean boy band Big Bang. It was released on May 1, 2015, alongside "Bae Bae" as the group's fifth single album M, and as the first single of their third Korean-language studio album Made (2016). The single marked Big Bang's first release since Still Alive (2012). Written by G-Dragon, T.O.P, Teddy and produced by Teddy alongside Taeyang, "Loser" has been described as a hip hop and R&B song.

Jun Sung Ahn Korean-American musical artist and youtuber

Jun Sung Ahn or Ahn Jun-sung, better known by his stage name Jun Curry Ahn, is a Korean-American musician, YouTube video producer and member of BgA. He is a classically trained violinist who is known for his 2012 violin and dance cover performance of Psy's Gangnam Style on his YouTube channel and other K-pop and pop music covers.

References

  1. ↑ "Paul Kim - Season 6 - American Idol". Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2013.
  2. ↑ "American idol Paul Kim". YouTube. 2007-10-16. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  3. ↑ Hoang, Vu. "PaulKimMusic". YouTube. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  4. ↑ "Paul Kim Releases English Remix of 'BAD BOY'". Fareastvibes.com. 2012-04-03. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  5. ↑ "Paul Kim and David So Make An Acoustic Cover of Taeyang's "I Need A Girl"". Soompi. 2012-05-02. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  6. ↑ Bower, Janine (2012-11-20). "David So & Paul Kim Re-Do G-Dragon's "That XX"". MTV K. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  7. ↑ "Free Music Videos, Video Interviews, Music Video News, Live Sessions and Clips". Nme.Com. 2015-07-10. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  8. ↑ "Paul Kim & Dumbfoundead Together in "No Turning Back" MV | 247 Asian Media". Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2013.
  9. ↑ "iTunes - Music - Paul Kim". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  10. ↑ "Go For Broke Apparel". Go For Broke Apparel. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.