Kim Seokjin (Korean: 김석진; born December 4, 1992), known professionally as Jin (진), is a South Korean singer, songwriter, and member of the South Korean boy band BTS. Jin has released three solo tracks with BTS: “Awake” in 2016, “Epiphany” in 2018, and “Moon” in 2020, all of which have charted on South Korea’s Gaon Digital Chart. In 2019, Jin released his first independent song, the digital track “Tonight.” He made his official debut as a solo artist in October 2022 with the release of the single “The Astronaut.”
Apart from singing, Jin appeared as a host on multiple South Korean music programs from 2016 to 2018. In 2018, he was awarded the fifth-class Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit by the President of South Korea, along with his bandmates, for his contributions to Korean culture.
On October 17, 2022, Big Hit announced that following the release of “The Astronaut” and the completion of its subsequent promotional activities at the end of that month, Jin would begin the enlistment process and carry out his mandatory military service. The singer was previously granted an automatic postponement in 2021 until the end of 2022, following revisions made to the Military Service Act in December 2020. On November 4, 2022, Jin filed paperwork with the Military Manpower Administration (MMA) requesting a termination of the postponement in order to proceed with his conscription. He enlisted as an active duty soldier on December 13 at the Yeoncheon army base in the North Gyeonggi Province.
Following the completion of his basic training with the 5th Infantry Division in January 2023, Jin was appointed as an assistant training instructor with the same division. He was formally discharged on June 12, 2024, becoming the first member of BTS to complete their military obligations.
All seven members of BTS, including Seokjin, have been taking turns showing the world that there is life outside the phenomenally popular boy band. For several years now, each member has released his own solo material, reaching different levels of success across the Billboard charts in America. Now, it’s Jin’s time to shine, and he simply won’t get out of the spotlight, thanks to another hit single.
Seokjin achieves a new No. 1 in the U.S. this week: his song Falling reaches No. 1 on the Billboard’s World Digital Song Sales Chart. Funny thing: it wasn’t too many weeks ago since he actually last held that position over the same chart.
The South Korean superstar has replaced himself at the top of the chart, which ranks the bestselling tracks in languages other than English or Spanish. Just last week Jin was leading the way with Heart on the Window, a team-up with Wendy of Red Velvet, which debuted at No. 1. This week, that track has disappeared from the list entirely, as Jin swaps one chart-topper for another.
Falling bowed at No. 4 on the World Digital Song Sales chart last week. It now becomes the only one among Jin’s five songs that hit the chart last week to not fall off in its second showing, and it improves substantially. Falling gives Jin a total of six No. 1s on the World Digital Song Sales chart as a solo artist. In all, he has placed at least 10 songs in the chart’s top 10, though the exact number may be even higher.
And against all ironies, Falling continues to rise across the board where it charts. On the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart, which tallies the most-streamed and purchased songs globally excluding the United States, the track bounds from No. 158 to No. 119, reaching a new high.
Read more about the K-POP stories and updates at our site, loopsocial.
