Jackson Wang

**Jackson Wang** (王嘉爾) (王嘉尔) is a Hong Kong rapper, singer and dancer based in China. He is the founder of record label Team Wang, and is the creative director and lead designer for fashion brand Team Wang Design. He is active in mainland China as a solo artist and television host. He is a member of the South Korean boy group Got7.

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Wang was a sabre fencer for Hong Kong's fencing team. He was ranked eleventh in the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics, and won first place at the Asian Junior and Cadet Fencing Championships in 2011. After passing a music audition, he moved to Seoul, South Korea in July 2011 to pursue a career in K-pop. In January 2014, after over two years of training, Wang debuted as a member of Got7 with the single "Girls Girls Girls".

## Jackson Wang

### Ocupation(s)

Rapper ・singer ・ dancer ・ host ・fashion designer ・ creative director

### Agent

JYP Entertainment (2014 - 2021 January)Team WANG (2017 - present)

88rising

Sublime Artist Agency

Epic

## Life and career

### 1994–2016: Early life and debut with Got7

Wang was born in Kowloon Tong, British Hong Kong on 28 March 1994, and grew up in Sha Tin District, New Territories. His father, Wang Ruiji, is a former member of China's national fencing team and an Asian Games gold medalist. His mother, Sophia Chow, is a former acrobatics gymnast from Shanghai. His maternal grandfather, Zhou Yongchang, was a pioneer of ultrasound diagnostic medicine of mainland China. Under the guidance of his father and other professional coaches, Wang started his fencing training at the age of ten. He went on to win multiple awards as part of the Hong Kong national fencing team, including first place at the Asian Junior and Cadet Fencing Championship in 2011. He attended the American International School Hong Kong.

In 2010, while playing basketball at his school, Wang was noted by a representative of South Korean talent agency JYP Entertainment and invited to participate in the global auditions in Kowloon, which he passed in December 2010, five or six months later, ranking first place among 2,000 applicants. He was offered a scholarship to Stanford University for fencing, but turned it down after passing his audition. In July 2011, Wang moved to Seoul, South Korea for his K-pop training. He made an appearance on the reality survival program *Win: Who Is Next* two years later, which aired on Mnet on 6 September 2013. The program was a competition between YG Entertainment trainees (who later debuted as members of Winner and iKon), and JYP trainees. Wang appeared alongside fellow trainees Mark, Yugyeom, and BamBam, who were then selected as members of Got7.

After two and a half years of training, Wang was selected as one of the final members of JYP Entertainment's new boy group Got7 and debuted with the single "Girls Girls Girls", released on 16 January 2014, from the group's first EP *Got It?*.

In 2014, Wang joined his first variety show, SBS' *Roommate*, as a member in its second season. Wang's individual popularity rose after he appeared on the series, and he was later awarded the Newcomer Award at the 2014 SBS Entertainment Awards. He subsequently appeared on several other Korean variety shows such as *Star King*, *Law of the Jungle*, *Happy Together*, *Radio Star*, *Problematic Men*, *Our Neighborhood Arts and Physical Education*, *Saturday Night Live Korea*, *A Look At Myself*, and others. On 12 May 2015, Wang was appointed as a new MC for SBS' music show *Inkigayo*, following the departure of ZE:A's Kwanghee.

In December 2015, Wang made his Chinese television debut as one of the presenters (alongside He Jiong) on the Chinese version of the show *Please Take Care of My Refrigerator*, called *Go Fridge*, which was well received. He also wrote the lyrics, composed and arranged the theme song for the show in seasons 2 and 3. In March 2016, Wang was appointed as MC for *Fresh Sunday*, a show on Hunan TV. Later in 2016, he starred in the show *Fighting Man* alongside Jam Hsiao, Wang Kai, Jing Boran, Bai Jingting, and Yang Shuo.

On 29 April 2016, Got7 held their first concert in Seoul, where Wang performed his self-composed songs "I Love It" and "WOLO (We Only Live Once)" with his group members Yugyeom and BamBam. In November 2017, prior to the release of Got7 second Japanese extended play "Turn Up", Wang dropped out of all group activities in Japan due to health concerns and conflicting schedules. In December 2016 Wang's first solo commercial for Midea was released in China.

### 2017–present: Early musical releases and *Mirrors*

On 26 June 2017, JYP Entertainment announced the release of Wang's first solo album in China, as well as the establishment of a dedicated management team, named Team Wang, for his activities in the country. Wang also established Snake or the Rabbit, which is a distribution company based in the United States. His first single, an English track titled "Papillon", was released on 26 August and debuted at No. 1 on *Billboard*'s China V Chart on the week of 16 September; moreover, on 30 August, he released "Novoland: The Castle in the Sky" (Chinese: 九州天空城), the theme song for iOS game *Novoland: The Castle in the Sky 3D*, breaking away from hip-hop and making a first try with melodious and classical music. After establishing his own studio in China, Wang began endorsing beverages, clothing brands and electronics, which include Pepsi, Snow Beer, VIVO X21, Adidas, Douyin Application, Lenovo in China, and Hogan in Hong Kong.

Wang attended the 2017 MTV Europe Music Awards as an Ambassador of Great China on 12 November. On 13 November, he was appointed as Alibaba Group Tmall Global's Chief Wonderful Goods Officer. On 30 November, he released his second solo single, "Okay": similar to "Papillon", he wrote the lyrics, and composed and arranged the song together with Boytoy.

On 9 February 2018, Wang was appointed as envoy of Hong Kong Tourism. On 20 April, he released his third self-written single, "Dawn of Us", an English song once again composed and arranged in collaboration with Boytoy. While "Papillon" dealt with the theme of self-struggle and "Okay" described self-love, the track exhorts to appreciate the present and live with enthusiasm. The duo paired up again for "Fendiman", a collaboration with Fendi China. "Papillon" was included in B2 Music and Vibe Asian hip hop and rap compilation album *Urban Asia Vol. 1*, which was released worldwide on 9 May. Wang also featured in one of the four exclusive tracks, "Can't Breathe" by Eddie Supa, together with Stan Sono. On 14 May, his solo track "X" for Snow Beer superX was released.
Wang with his wax figure at Madame Tussauds Hong Kong, 30 July 2019.
On 22 October 2018, Wang signed with Canxing Culture to enter the international market. On 6 November 2018, Wang released a single, "Different Game", featuring Gucci Mane. On 18 December, Madame Tussauds Hong Kong announced the creation of Wang's wax figure, which was unveiled on 30 July. On 14 January 2019, he was appointed as the new ambassador of Fendi China. On 23 March 2019, Wang held a birthday party titled "328 Journey Festival" at the Beijing Olympics Sports Center. The 5,000 tickets were sold out in 98 seconds.

On 12 June 2019, Wang was featured on the song "Rumble" from the album *Diaspora* by GoldLink and Lil Nei. Then he collaborated with Qin Fen, and released the single "Another" on 19 June 2019. On 20 July, Fendi launched its first ever velvet collection called "Fendi X Jackson Wang Capsule Collection". The limited edition collection, for which Jackson designed clothes, shoes and accessories, sold out immediately after the launch. It was then released worldwide on 26 July.

On 12 September 2019, Wang held a listening session of his first album *Mirrors* for the press: the digital record, which expresses the emotions of the contemporary youth and incorporates elements of China's traditional culture, was produced in China, South Korea, and the United States. Wang supervised the whole process, from the initial creation to the packaging, and was personally involved in arrangements, lyrics writing, and music video shooting. The album's first single, "Bullet to the Heart", was released on 24 September with a music video directed by Daniel Cloud Campos, and tells the obstacles and hardships experienced in pursuing something. The album's second single was "Dway!", published on 22 October with its music video. In conjunction with the release of *Mirrors* on 25 October, the singer and artist Da Yan created an interactive video installation space titled *Bullet to the Heart: 0328* at the LOVE LOVE LOVE Art of Love Exhibition at Shum Yip Upperhills Tower 1 in Shenzhen from 24 October to 3 November.

On 11 October 2019, leading up to the release of *Mirrors*, Wang was featured in three tracks from 88rising's album *Head in the Clouds II*: "Tequila Sunrise", "Walking", and "I Love You 3000 II". On 12 December 2019, he was featured on the song "Face Power" from the album *Mr. Enjoy Da Money*, a solo album by Higher Brothers' KnowKnow.

On 20 March 2020, Wang released a new self-written single, "100 Ways", mixing western and Chinese culture. The single became the first song by a Chinese and K-pop solo artist to debut on Mediabase's U.S. Top 40 radio chart. It entered the chart in May, ranking 39th, and maintained its spot with a steady rise, ranking #24 on 19 July.

On 7 July, he launched his fashion brand Team Wang Design, for which he served as the designer and creative director, after three years of development. The first collection titled "The Original" was presented with a pop-up store in Shanghai on 18 July, and made available in China and North America through pop-up stores. He went on to release a limited capsule collection with StockX in September.

On 4 September, Wang released the EDM single "Pretty Please", a collaboration with Swedish duo Galantis. Wang was behind the whole planning and editing of the music video, which pays homage to Hong Kong's love movies from the 90s, and directed it with Conglin. On 5 September, it was announced that Wang had invested in esports organization Victory Five. The same month, a collaboration project between Team Wang and the Monet exhibition in Shanghai was announced, in which Wang gave his own interpretation of the painting "Impression, Sunrise". The new painting, mixing Paris architecture with Shanghai's, was displayed in a concept space unveiled on 17 September and printed on a limited Team Wang collection consisting of t-shirt, jacket and vest, which was released on 31 October. In December, Team Wang Design expanded into the lifestyle sector.

In 2020, he ranked 41st on *Forbes* China Celebrity 100 list. He is the fastest Chinese artist to reach 10 million views on Vevo.

He left JYP Entertainment on 19 January 2021, along with other Got7 members after their exclusive contracts expired. Since then, Team Wang currently operates his international activities. There had been reports alleging Wang has also partnered with Sublime Artist Agency, which the latter later confirmed on 22 January.

On March 26, he released his new English single, "LMLY", along with a self-directed 90s Hong Kong movie inspired music video. Wang made his U.S. late-night television debut with the single on April 21, performing it live on *The Late Late Show With James Corden*.

## Personal life

In August 2019, along with other Chinese celebrities, Wang uploaded a photo of the Chinese flag and declared himself as "one of 1.4 billion guardians of the Chinese flag" on his official Weibo account, after a Chinese flag was removed and tossed into the Victoria Harbour during the 2019-20 Hong Kong protests. In a January 2020 interview with *Forbes*, Wang introduced himself as "Jackson Wang from China" and stated: "My goal is just to put my name out on the table just to let everybody to get to know me. I want to ... let people know that Chinese kids are working on good music too."

In March 2021, along with other Chinese brand ambassadors, Wang terminated his working relationship with Adidas, after their previously made public statement regarding alleged forced labour in the cotton-producing region of Xinjiang resurfaced.

## Albums[edit]

### Reissues[edit]

List of reissues, with selected chart positions and sales
 *Mad Winter Edition* | * Released: November 23, 2015 (KOR)
* Label: JYP Entertainment
* Formats: CD, digital download
 *Present: You & Me* | * Released: December 3, 2018 (KOR)
* Label: JYP Entertainment
* Formats: CD, digital download
 *Love Loop ~Sing for U Special Edition~* | * Released: December 18, 2019 (JPN)
* Label: Epic, Sony Music Japan
* Formats: CD, digital download

### Box sets[edit]

List of box sets, with selected chart positions, sales figures and certifications
* Label: Universal Music Taiwan
* Formats: CD, DVD, digital download
* Label: Sony Music Thailand
* Formats: CD
 "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

## Albums[edit]

### Studio albums[edit]

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions, sales figures and certifications
Dig.
Dig.
* Label: Team Wang, Western and 6th
* Formats: Digital download, streaming

## Dramas[edit]

Produced by JYP Entertainment and Youku Tudou, *Dream Knight* is a fantasy romance web drama which premiered on 27 January 2015, and ran for 12 episodes until 5 March 2015. Each episode lasts around 12–15 minutes, with the final episode being 23 minutes in total. The series revolves around an orphaned, bullied high school girl, Joo In-hyeong, played by Song Ha-yoon, who suffers from a terminal illness. Her bleak, solitary life starts to look better when she is suddenly befriended by a group of mysterious boys, played by members of Got7, who provide her with happiness, love, support and friendship. Unbeknownst to In-hyeong, the four knights possess magical powers and are on a mission to protect and care for her, until an unexpected discovery threatens their loyalty. The drama features many famous faces, with Miss A's Min starring in a lead role, and cameos by comedian Lee Guk-joo, 2PM's Chansung, Park Ji-min (15&), as well as JYP Entertainment's founder Park Jin-young, and actor Choi Woo-shik. On September 15, *Dream Knight* was added onto Netflix with English, Korean, Chinese, and Spanish subtitles.

## Web series and TV shows[edit]

Real Got7 and Got2DAY
Got7's company JYP Entertainment has produced four seasons of a reality YouTube series, *Real Got7*, that provides a different view of the members as they go about various activities. The episodes were uploaded onto the official JYP Entertainment YouTube Channel and include English subtitles. Each season consists of ten episodes that vary in length. In season 1, the first several episodes show the members getting ready for the group's debut with later episodes showing the members having fun together in various locations. Season 2 introduced a "secret angel" game, with each member randomly choosing another to take care of during the promotion period for Got7's song "A". Most of the second season's episodes were focused on the members' behind the scenes actions at events such as fan-signs, music programs, and photo shoots.

Due to the group attending numerous overseas activities, season 3 was shot with at least one extended break between episodes 5 and 6. Season 3 was later made available to purchase on DVD. The DVD set came with bonus material, including previously unreleased footage, 3 making-of videos, and 21 episodes of *Got2DAY*, a series that had each member participate in an open talk with each of the other members. A second series of *Got2DAY* was released in Autumn 2016 on Naver V Live, and later on Got7's official YouTube channel. The *Got2DAY* concept returned in late 2017, but, instead of being pre-recorded, were live broadcasts through the Naver V Live application. On September 15, all three seasons of *Real Got7* were added onto Netflix with English, Korean, Chinese, and Spanish subtitles.

*Real Got7* returned for a fourth series in Spring 2017, following a similar format and pattern to the previous three seasons. The ten episodes, each approximately around 20 minutes, were uploaded on Got7’s official YouTube channel and Naver V Live. In 2019, *Got2DAY 2019* debuted on YouTube and V Live.

Got7ing
In March 2016, the group began a new reality series called *Got7ing*, which was distributed through Naver's V-live phone app; unlike the majority of other content on the app, the episodes were each pre-filmed and edited. The episodes were also made available on the application's online site, and were later uploaded onto Got7's official YouTube channel.

A later version of this series, *Got7ing+*, has also been produced and is available to subscribers of the official Got7 CH+ channel on Naver V Live.

Got7's Hard Carry
In October 2016, Got7 began starring in their own reality television show, *Got7's Hard Carry*, hosted by Mnet. The series ran for ten weeks and was broadcast weekly on Mnet’s television channel and through Naver V Live. As well as releasing teasers online before each episode, Mnet also shared unreleased clips following the broadcast, via the official M2 YouTube channel.

Prior to the series’ broadcast, Got7 live-streamed a launch show on Naver V Live where they outlined and explained their wishes for the *Hard Carry* series. Planned and produced by Got7 themselves, the show sees the seven members undertake a range of activities, including sports like skydiving, wakeboarding and fencing. To fit with Got7's international activities, the series was shot in various places, such as Canada, Thailand and Jeju Island. The members also self-produced music videos for several of their own songs, exclusively for the show.

The five-episode second season, *Hard Carry 2*, aired weekly on Wednesday evenings from September 26, 2018 to October 24, 2018. On October 23, 2019, a teaser for *Hard Carry 2.5* was released; the three-episode season premiered on November 13, 2019 and ran for three weeks.

On February 3, 2020, the program won in the Entertainment Category of Vega Digital Awards with more than 100 million cumulative views.

IDOLity: Got7's TMI Lab
In late 2017, Mnet worked with Got7 again on a new three part series, *IDOLity: Got7's TMI Lab*, which aimed to discover more about the members through the completion of various strange tasks, for example, regarding athletic ability or tolerance towards spicy food.

Working Eat Holiday in Jeju
In February 2018, Got7 appeared in a new show, *Working EAT Holiday in Jeju*, which was broadcast through Naver V Live and a cable channel. The four-episode series aired on V Live from February 21, 2018 through March 21, 2018.