Seungri

Lee Seung-hyun (born December 12, 1990), better known by his stage names Seungri (승리; meaning Victory in Korean) and V.I (when performing in Japan), is a South Korean singer, songwriter, actor, and former member of the South Korean boy band BigBang formed by YG Entertainment.

In the mid-2000s, Seungri rose to prominence as a member of the South Korean boy band BigBang.

Following the release of several single albums, BigBang's first album Big Bang Vol.1 – Since 2007 was a moderate success.

Seungri also recorded his first solo song "The Next Day" (Korean: 다음날; Revised Romanization: Daeumnal) for the album.

The group's breakthrough came with the release of their first extended play, Always (2007), which included the number one song "Lies" (Korean: 거짓말; Revised Romanization: Geojitmal).

The song went on to T.O.P major Korean music charts for a record-breaking seven consecutive weeks,[3 and won the group the Song of the Year award at the 9th Mnet Korean Music Festival.[4 Their following EPs followed its predecessor's footsteps: Hot Issue yielded "Last Farewell" (Korean: 마지막 인사; Revised Romanization: Majimak Insa) while Stand Up spawned "Day by Day" (Korean: 하루하루; Revised Romanization: Haru Haru); both singles were chart-toppers.

Seungri continued to hone his dancing skills by competing against bandmate Taeyang in several dance competitions, as well as against Super Junior's Eunhyuk, TVXQ's Yunho and Shinee's Taemin.

He also choreographed a large portion of BigBang's dances.

With the release of the group's second studio album Remember (2008), which included a solo performance by Seungri, he began to adopt a more mature image as an artist.

Outside of music, he made his theatrical debut with the musical Sonagi in 2008 and went on to star in films such as Nineteen (2009) and Why Did You Come to My House? (2009).

In 2008, members of BigBang began branching out to develop their solo careers.

Seungri became the first member of BigBang to act in a musical with Sonagi in 2008.

He also ventured into hosting, becoming a host for MBC's music program Show! Music Core alongside Daesung.

After filming wrapped up, Seungri went back into the studio with BigBang to record for their second Korean studio album, Remember (2008).

The album was promoted with two singles: "Sunset Glow" (Korean: 붉은노을; Revised Romanization: Byulkeun Noeul) and "Strong Baby", a solo release by Seungri.

In order to shed the "youngest member" image from BigBang, he promoted the single with a more mature look complete with a stylized dance.

He won his first triple crown for "Strong Baby" on SBS's live music show Inkigayo.

When promotional activities for Remember ended, Seungri returned to acting and starred in his first film Why Did You Come to My House?, playing the love interest of Kang Hye-jung.

He then starred in his second musical Shouting, alongside bandmate Daesung, who was unable to perform at the last minute due to a car accident.

The same year, he also starred in the film 19-Nineteen alongside fellow member T.O.P.

Seungri furthered this image with the release of his chart-topping EP, V.V.I.P (2011).

It yielded two singles: "VVIP" and "What Can I Do".

His second Korean EP Let's Talk About Love (2013) fared better, becoming his second number one album with 80,000 copies sold.

It was supported by "Gotta Talk to You", which was later re-released in Japan as his first full Japanese studio album, with re-recordings of his previous songs in Japanese.

He started in television with the Japanese drama Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo (2013) and the South Korean television series Angel Eyes (2014).

He then released his first Korean studio album, The Great Seungri (2018).

On March 11, 2019, Seungri departed from BigBang and retired from the entertainment industry after allegations that he provided sex workers for investors.

He was charged with sexual bribery and embezzlement, and convicted in 2020 after the police investigation of the Burning Sun scandal.

Seungri's military trial commenced on September 16, 2020, where he denied 7 of his 8 charges.

A military court found Seungri guilty on all charges and sentenced him to three years of imprisonment and a fine of 1.15 billion won (US$970,000) on August 12, 2021, which was reduced to 18 months on January 27, 2022, based on his admission of guilt.

During the sentence reduction, Seungri pleaded guilty to all charges brought against him and expressed that he "will reflect on his actions".

He was released from prison on February 9, 2023.

Born and raised in Gwangju, South Korea, Seungri was noted for his dancing skills growing up, with the singer participating in the dance group II Hwa.

Hoping to pursue a career in the entertainment industry, Seungri appeared in survival program ''Let's Coke Play!

Battle Shinhwa'', a reality television series to find the next Shinhwa.

He was eventually eliminated in the ninth episode.

Following his appearance on the show, Seungri was scouted by YG Entertainment to audition for the new boy band, Big Bang, alongside five other members: T.O.P, Taeyang, G-Dragon, Daesung, and Hyun-seung.

The formation of the group was documented on television.

Despite the initial plan of debuting six members, Seungri and Hyun-seung risked elimination due to their lack of stage presence and were given one final opportunity to impress Yang Hyun-suk, founder of YG Entertainment.

Ultimately Seungri was chosen to stay, while Hyung-seung (who went on to debut with the boy band Beast) was dropped before the official debut.