Kawashiri Ren

*See also: His KProfile and JO1 Wiki Page*

**Kawashiri Ren** (川尻 蓮; born March 2, 1997) is a Japanese singer and member of the Japanese boy group JO1. He rose to prominence after participating in the reality competition show *Produce 101 Japan*, where he ranked 2nd.

## Early life

Kawashiri Ren was born on March 2, 1997 in Fukuoka, Japan. He has one older brother and two younger brothers.

Before participating in *Produce 101 Japan*, he worked as a dance instructor and background dancer. He performed as a background dancer for SMAP, FT Island, Dreams Come True, Yamashita Tomohisa, Lead, Wanna One, and Pentagon, amongst others.

## Career

### Pre-debut: *Produce 101 Japan*

In 2019, Kawashiri participated in the Japanese version of the reality competition show *Produce 101*, *Produce 101 Japan*. He auditioned as part of the group *UNBackers*. He received an evaluation grade of A and kept the same grade after his re-evaluation. He ended up ranking 2nd with 256,527 votes, securing him a spot in the boy band JO1.

He also participated at the group's first pre-debut fanmeeting on January 31, 2020 at Pacifico Yokohama. The group also held another fanmeeting at Osaka Orix Theater from February 18 to February 20, 2020.

### 2020-present: Debut with JO1, *Protostar*, *Stargazer*, and *The Star*

On March 4, 2020, JO1 debuted with their first single album *Protostar*. The same day, they held their debut stage with the album's title track "Infinity" ("無限大").

The group returned with their second single album *Stargazer* on August 26, 2020. For their promotions with *Stargazer*, Kawashiri filled the position of the center as he had ranked 2nd place on *Produce 101 Japan*. The center position is set to rotate is order of the rankings from the show. As part of his promotions with JO1, he performed at the 31st Mynavi Tokyo Girls Collection 2020 Autumn/Winter 2020, the largest fashion event in Japan. The group was also scheduled to perform at KCON 2020 JAPAN's main event *KCON 2020 JAPAN x M COUNTDOWN* on April 4, 2020 at Makuhari Messe. Since the event was canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak, they instead attended KCON:TACT 2020 SUMMER for a Meet&Greet, making them the first Japanese boy group to ever participate in the convention. They also performed at KCON:TACT Season 2 from October 16 to October 25, 2020.

On November 25, 2020, the group is set to release their first full-length album *The Star*. They are also scheduled to hold their first solo online concert, *Starlight*, on December 19, 2020.

## Trivia

* His name is written with the kanji for "river" ("川"; *kawa*), "ass" ("尻"; *shiri*), and "lotus" ("蓮"; *ren*).
* His hobbies are playing games, physical activity, and watching magic tricks and comedy skits.
* His special skill is freestyle dancing.
* He said that if he got into the Top 11 on *Produce 101 Japan*, he'd release dance tutorials for their songs.
* He thinks his charm point is his smile.
* His favorite colors are white, black, and blue.
* His favorite foods are chocolate and fruit.
* The things he hates the most are cow's milk, eggs, and pumpkin.
* He thinks smooth hair is the most attractive.

## Notes

1. ↑ His childhood nickname, which he revealed for JO1's Children's Day posts on social media.

## References

1. ↑ JO1 Official Instagram — JO1 Children's Day. #思い出のアルバム #のぞいてみました!
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 JO1 Official Website — Kawashiri Ren's Profile
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 *Produce 101 Japan* Offical Website — Kawashiri Ren's Profile
4. ↑ JO1 Official Fanclub Resume
5. ↑ JO1 Official YouTube — 1st Fanmeeting at Pacifico Yokohama (removed, now only available through the official fanclub)
6. ↑ JO1 Official Website — JO1 1ST FANMEETING Details decided! Pre-registration for JO1 Official Fan Club has started!
7. ↑ JO1 1ST FANMEETING @ Osaka Venue Lottery Bonus: Invite "Meet & Greet"
8. ↑ JO1 Official Instagram — JO1 「PROTOSTAR」2020.03.04 Debut
9. ↑ JO1 Official Website — JO1 debut single "PROTOSTAR" singer photos and jacket photos published
10. ↑ JO1 Official Instagram — JO1 2ND SINGLE 『STARGAZER』 2020.08.26 Release
11. ↑ JO1 Official Website — The second single "STARGAZER" will be released on August 26! (20/08/06：forTUNE music Third reception update)
12. ↑ Girlswalker Official Website — 2020 Autumn/Winter 2020 Artists
13. ↑ JO1 Official Website — "KCON 2020 JAPAN x M COUNTDOWN" 4/4 (Sat) appearance decision
14. ↑ JO1 Official Website — JO1 "KCON: TACT 2020 SUMMER" Meet&Greet appearance decision
15. ↑ Oricon — JO1、『KCON』初出演 日本人ボーイズグループで初の快挙 豆原一成「これからも出続けられるように」
16. ↑ JO1 Official Website — Information on "KCON: TACT season2" appearance decision
17. ↑ JO1 Official Website — 1ST ALBUM "The STAR" to be released on November 25!
18. ↑ JO1 Official Website — JO1's first online solo live "STARLIGHT" will be held!
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 19.4 GYAO! Official YouTube —【JO1 HOUSE 第0話】3月4日にデビューしたJO1初のレギュラー番組！果たしてどんな番組になるのか！？│毎週木曜よる9時GYAO!で無料配信中！