# Samuel (singer)

Samuel Arredondo Kim (born January 17, 2002), better known by his stage name Samuel (Korean: 사무엘), is an American singer based in South Korea. He was a part of the short-lived hip hop duo 1Punch in 2015. He participated in the reality television series season 2 of Produce 101 during the first half of 2017. In the final episode, he ranked 18th and was not able to join the show's project group. One month after the show ended, he began his solo career, with the release of his debut extended play (EP) Sixteen on August 2, 2017.

## Early life

Samuel was born in Los Angeles, California, to a Mexican father (José Arredondo) and a South Korean mother.

## Career
### 2012–2013: Pre-debut

Samuel made his first appearances to the public at the age of eleven, when he appeared in the live broadcast series Seventeen TV as a trainee under Pledis Entertainment. In 2013, he left the agency.

### 2015–2016: 1Punch and collaboration with Silentó

In 2015, Samuel debuted as a part of hip-hop duo named 1Punch (with rapper One) under a collaboration between Brave Entertainment and D-Business Entertainment, taking "Punch" as his stage name. They debuted on January 23 with the release of "Turn Me Back", which is the title track of their album, The Anthem. Eight months later, One was scouted by YG Entertainment, leading to the disbandment of the duo. Under the name Punch, Samuel collaborated with Silentó to release the single "Spotlight" in 2016, for which they won the 26th Seoul Music Award for Global Collaboration. He later joined Silentó on tour in the US.

### 2017–2021: Produce 101, solo debut and lawsuit

In April 2017, Samuel participated in the second season of the popular survival show Produce 101 under his own name, representing Brave Entertainment. During the first elimination, he was ranked 2nd, but did not make the final cut for the 11-member team, finally ranking 18th overall. The result was met with surprise from many viewers, who had expected Samuel to become part of the lineup of Wanna One.
Samuel debuted as a solo artist on August 2. His debut mini album, Sixteen, was released on August 2, with the title track "Sixteen" featuring rapper Changmo.
Samuel's first full-length album, Eye Candy, was released on November 16, 2017, with a total of ten tracks including the lead single "Candy".
In December 2017, it was announced that Samuel had signed a contract with 'Pony Canyon' for his Japanese promotions.
Samuel officially debuted in Japan on February 7, 2018, with his first Japanese single, "Sixteen (Japanese Ver.)". The music video of "Sixteen (Japanese Ver.)" was released on January 18.
In March 2018, Samuel released his second mini album, One, with the title track "One" featuring BtoB member Jung Il-hoon.
In April 2018, Samuel released his second Japanese single, "Candy (Japanese Ver.)", on May 16. The music video of the track was released on May 2.
On May 30, 2018, Samuel released his repackaged album, Teenager, featuring Lee Ro Han, who was a runner-up to MNet's "School Rapper Season 2".
In the course of 2018, Samuel, together with Chinese singer Zhou Zhennan, collaborated and participated in Tencent's The Collaboration Season 2. The duo eventually placed first and won the competition.
In June 2019, Samuel announced to work independently onwards, filed a name trademark, and set-up a one-man agency.
On November 17, 2021, Samuel won a lawsuit against Brave Entertainment to terminate his contract.

### 2024–present: Now

On April 21, Samuel made his comeback after five years and released his new self-produced EP Now, along with its lead single titled "YEH YEH!".

## Personal life

On July 16, 2019, Samuel's father José Arredondo was found dead at his condo in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. He died from blunt force trauma and stab wounds. Later in July 2019, Mexican authorities arrested a suspect who was a family acquaintance and "friend of [Arredondo] for 20 years."

## Discography
### Studio albums

| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Sales |
| Title | Details | KOR | Sales |
| Eye Candy | Released: November 16, 2017 Label: Brave, Kakao Formats: CD, digital download Track listing Candy (캔디) Never Let U Down Love Love Love Paradise Crush On You (끌려) Stunning (찬란하게) Jewel Box (보석함) Masquerade (가면놀이) (feat. Maboos) Dream Sixteen (식스틴) (feat. Changmo) (Remix) | 6 | KOR: 25,153 |

### Extended plays

| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Sales |
| Title | Details | KOR | Sales |
| Sixteen | Released: August 2, 2017 Label: Brave, Kakao Formats: CD, digital download Track listing Jewel Box (보석함) Sixteen (식스틴) (feat. Changmo) I Got It With U (feat. Kim Chung-ha) 123 (One Two Three) (feat. Maboos) I'm Ready | 4 | KOR: 34,386 |
| One | Released: March 28, 2018 Label: Brave, Kakao Formats: CD, digital download Track listing One (feat. Jung Il-hoon of BTOB) SOS Princess I Can't Sleep Clap Your Hands Just a While (잠시만) | 8 | KOR: 16,900 |
| One | Re-released: May 30, 2018 (Teenager) Label: Brave, Kakao Formats: CD, digital download Track listing Teenager (틴에이저) (feat. Lee Ro Han) Kka Kka (까까) (feat. Maboos) One (feat. Jung Il-hoon of BTOB) SOS Princess I Can't Sleep Clap Your Hands Just a While (잠시만) | 11 | KOR: 16,900 |

### Singles

| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Sales | Album |
| Title | Year | KOR | JPN | Sales | Album |
| Korean ||||||
| "Spotlight" (with Silentó) | 2016 | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Sixteen" (식스틴) (feat. Changmo) | 2017 | 88 | — | KOR: 22,655 | Sixteen |
| "Candy" (캔디) | 2017 | — | — | — | Eye Candy |
| "Winter Night" (겨울밤) | 2018 | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "One" (feat. Jung Il-hoon of BtoB) | 2018 | — | — | — | One |
| "Teenager" (틴에이저) (feat. Lee Ro Han) | 2018 | — | — | — | Teenager |
| "Archive People" (with Brave Hongcha) | 2019 | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Yeh! Yeh!" | 2024 | — | — | — | Now |
| "Wanna Hear You Say" (feat. Hoàng Mỹ An) | 2025 | — | — | — | Non-album singles |
| Japanese ||||||
| "Sixteen" | 2018 | — | 19 | JPN: 3,020 | Non-album singles |
| "Candy" | 2018 | — | 30 | JPN: 1,563 | Non-album singles |
| "One" | 2019 | — | 52 | — | Non-album singles |
| "—" denotes songs that did not chart or were not released in that region. ||||||

### Soundtracks

| Title | Year | Album | Collab |
| Say you love me (좋아한다 말해) | 2017 | Pink Pink OST | Kriesha Chu |
| Thousand Times | 2018 | Cross OST | N/A |
| Time to Shine | 2018 | Sweet Revenge 2 OST | BIGSTAR Feeldog |

### Other appearances

| Title | Year | Album | Collab | Ref. |
| "CHANEL BAG" (샤넬백) | 2016 | SUNGLASSES | ELECTROBOYZ | |
| "Chan Chan Chan" (찬찬찬) | 2019 | Immortal Songs: Singing the Legend (Sing the Lyrics of Kim Byeong Geol) | Hong Kyung-min | |

## Filmography
### Reality shows

| Year | Title | Notes |
| 2012 | Made in U | Contestant |
| 2017 | Produce 101 Season 2 | Contestant |
| 2017 | Leaving The Nest 2 | Cast member |
| 2017 | Photo People | Cast member |
| 2018 | The Collaboration Season 2 | Contestant |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2018 | Sweet Revenge 2 | Seo Robin | Main Cast |
| 2018 | Pops in Seoul | Host | |

### Radio shows

| Year | Title | Network | Role | Notes | Ref. |
| 2022–present | Radio'n Us | Arirang Radio | DJ | March 14, 2022–present | |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated Work | Result |
| 2017 | 26th Seoul Music Awards | Global Collaboration Award | "Spotlight" with Silentó | Won |
| 2017 | 19th Mnet Asian Music Awards | Best New Male Artist | Kim Samuel | Nominated |
| 2017 | 19th Mnet Asian Music Awards | Artist of the Year | Kim Samuel | Nominated |
| 2017 | Yahoo! Asia Buzz Awards | Most Searched KR New Singer | Kim Samuel | Won |
| 2018 | 32nd Golden Disk Awards | New Artist of the Year | Kim Samuel | Nominated |
| 2018 | 32nd Golden Disk Awards | Global Popularity Award | Kim Samuel | Nominated |
| 2018 | 27th Seoul Music Awards | Bonsang Award | Kim Samuel | Nominated |
| 2018 | 27th Seoul Music Awards | Popularity Award | Kim Samuel | Nominated |
| 2018 | 27th Seoul Music Awards | Hallyu Special Award | Kim Samuel | Nominated |
| 2018 | Soribada Best K-Music Awards | New Hallyu Performance Award | Kim Samuel | Won |