JBJ95

Concept photo for Jasmin

**JBJ95** (제이비제이95) is a South Korea-based male duo formerly under Star Road Entertainment. They debuted on October 30, 2018 with the mini album *Home*.

Their name is a combination of JBJ (to commemorate their roots in the group) and 95, as they were both born in 1995. Unlike JBJ, which was a temporary group, JBJ95 is a permanent duo.

The duo was formed through an agreement between Star Road Entertainment and Hunus Entertainment before Star Road took over all management in March 2019 following Sanggyun's transfer to the agency.

## History

### Pre-debut

Prior to debuting together as a duo, Kenta and Sanggyun debuted as members of the project group JBJ, which had a 7-month contract. Both members participated in the reality survival show *Produce 101 Season 2*, the show that created Wanna One, with the group's four other members, though they were eliminated after not making it to the final lineup.

Kenta was previously a member of the Japanese dance cover group Garagara Hebi. In June 2018, Sanggyun collaborated with former fellow JBJ member turned current soloist and WEi member Donghan on the song "Record Me", a b-side on his first mini album *D-Day*. The latter was also a former member of the group Topp Dogg (now known as Xeno-T).

### 2018: Debut with *Home*

Following JBJ's disbandment in April, Kenta and Sanggyun held a fanmeeting that they would be coming together as a permanent duo. Their name was decided by fans via a fan vote.

During a V Live on August 7, Kenta and Sanggyun revealed that the duo's name would be JBJ95, which refers to the project group "JBJ" (in which they are former members of) and "95", as both were born in 1995. On October 4, Star Road announced that the duo would officially debut in the last week of the same month.

On the midnight of October 15, a timetable was released for their debut mini album *Home*, which was released on October 30. On October 24, the duo announced their official logo and fan colors, Blue Moon and Golden Treasure.

### 2019: Fan club name, First comeback, subsequent releases

On Feburary 1, JBJ95 announced the name of their fans would now be known as "Jjakkung", which means "partner" or "mate".

On March 10, it was announced that Sanggyun had officially left Hunus Entertainment and joined Kenta's agency, Star Road, which left the duo to fully be managed by the latter agency. They then made their first comeback with their second mini album *Awake*, which was released later that same month.

On August 9, the duo returned with their third mini album *Spark*.

On November 18, Star Road announced that the duo is working on their first digital single album for a target release of December. The single, "Only One", was released on December 6.

### 2020-2022: Jasmin, lawsuit, Japan activites

JBJ95 made a comeback with their fourth mini album *Jasmin* on October 28, 2020.

### 2021-2022: Lawsuit

On April 14, 2021, it was revealed that the duo had filed a lawsuit to terminate their contracts with Star Road in September 2020, stating that the agency had not provided them with a manager and also having to managing their schedules by themselves. The duo also stated that Star Road is facing numerous lawsuits of unpaid employee wages, unpaid fees to concert organizers, and not being transparent on their financial statements. However, five months later, on September 3, Star Road had filed a countersuit against the duo itself.

In August 2022, the duo began promoting in Japan under the name **KENTA・SANGGYUN** after opening a new Twitter account to announced their upcoming Japan mini concert, KENTA・SANGGYUN Mini Concert in Japan 「Dear My Friend -夕暮れの交差点で君と会う-」, to be held November 2022.

On September 12, 2022, several media reports announced that the court date for JBJ95 and Star Road Entertainment over the duo's exclusive contract is set for October, and the Seoul Western District Civil Court would be delivering its verdict on October 14. This would mark as a settlement after a year and a half long legal battle. Finally, on October 24, the duo had officially won their lawsuit to terminate their exclusive contracts with their agency.

On October 28, 2022, they released the lyric video for the song "Dreams".

## Filmography

### Reality shows

* *Good Girl* (Mnet, 2020) - guest (Episodes 6-7)

## Concerts

### Japan concerts

* KENTA・SANGGYUN Mini Concert in Japan 「Dear My Friend -夕暮れの交差点で君と会う-」 (2022)

## Trivia

* They are former *Produce 101 Season 2* contestants and JBJ members.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Soompi: JBJ95 Reveals Official Fan Club Name
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 JBJ95 on Twitter: JBJ95 OFFICIAL COLORS & LOGO (October 24, 2018)
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Soompi: JBJ95’s Kim Sang Gyun Reportedly Signs With Groupmate Kenta’s Agency
4. ↑ Soompi: Kenta And Kim Sang Gyun To Debut As Permanent Duo + Taking Fan Ideas For Group Names
5. ↑ Soompi: Kenta And Kim Sang Gyun Reveal Their Group Name And Plans For Debut
6. ↑ Soompi: JBJ95 Reveals Date For Official Debut As Permanent Duo
7. ↑ Soompi: JBJ95 To Release Digital Single Perfect For The Season
8. ↑ Soompi: JBJ95 Files Lawsuit To Terminate Contracts With Their Agency
9. ↑ Allkpop: Star Road Entertainment files countersuit against JBJ95
10. ↑ KENTA・SANGGYUN on Twitter: KENTA・SANGGYUN MINI CONCERT in JAPAN will be held on 22nd November 2022 at OSAKA , and 27th November 2022 at TOKYO! Pre tickets are available on LAWSON ticket from 26th August, 6PM! Don’t miss it^^ (August 19, 2022)
11. ↑ Allkpop: Court set to rule on JBJ95 and Star Road Entertainment's lawsuit in October
12. ↑ Allkpop: JBJ95 wins the lawsuit against Star Road Entertainment
13. ↑ KENTA TAKADA on Instagram: KENTA SANGGYUN “Dreams” lyric video (October 28, 2022)

## Official links

* Daum Cafe
* Facebook
* Instagram
* Twitter
* YouTube