Haechan

In this article, the surname is Lee.
Haechan
Haechan in October 2023
Born
Lee Dong-hyuck

(2000-06-06) June 6, 2000 (age 24)
Seoul, South Korea
EducationSchool of Performing Arts Seoul
OccupationSinger
Years active2014–present
Musical career
Genres
InstrumentsVocals
LabelsSM
Member of
Formerly ofSM Rookies
WebsiteOfficial website
Korean name
Hangul
이동혁
Revised RomanizationI Dong-hyeok
McCune–ReischauerYi Tonghyŏk
Stage name
Hangul
해찬
Revised RomanizationHaechan
McCune–ReischauerHaech'an

Lee Dong-hyuck (Korean: 이동혁; born June 6, 2000), known professionally as Haechan (Korean: 해찬), is a South Korean singer. He is a member of South Korean boy band NCT and sub-units NCT 127 and NCT Dream.

Early life

Haechan was born on June 6, 2000, in Seoul, South Korea, where he lived until age seven. He then moved to Jeju, South Korea for five years before returning to Seoul, where he attended the School of Performing Arts Seoul. He is the oldest of four siblings.[1]

Career

2013–2015: SM Rookies

In 2013, Haechan joined SM Entertainment after passing the SM Saturday Open Auditions, where he sang "Baby" by Justin Bieber, "Hello" by Huh Gak and "Ugly Duckling" by Son Seung-yeon.[2]

On July 17, 2014, he was introduced as a member of SM Rookies, a pre-debut training team managed by SM Entertainment.[3] That year, Haechan, alongside other SM Rookies members, appeared in Exo 90:2014, a reality television series in which labelmate Exo recreated music videos and performed popular K-pop songs from the 1990s and early 2000s.[4][5] In 2015, Haechan starred in the Korean revival of The Mickey Mouse Club. The show aired on Disney Channel Korea from July 23 to December 17, 2015, and was hosted by Leeteuk of Super Junior.[6]

2016–present: Debut with NCT

Main articles: NCT (group), NCT 127, and NCT Dream

On July 2, 2016, SM Entertainment revealed that Haechan would debut as a member of NCT's second sub-unit, NCT 127. The group released their first single, "Fire Truck", on July 7.[7] On August 19, SM Entertainment announced that Haechan would also join NCT's third sub-unit, NCT Dream,[8] which debuted with the digital single "Chewing Gum" on August 25.[9] On December 19, 2018, it was announced that Haechan had fractured his shin bone while preparing for the Neo City – The Origin tour (2019–2020) and would be taking a hiatus from group activities to recover.[10][11] During his recovery period, he participated in the January 26 and 27 concerts.[12] He officially returned from his hiatus with an appearance at NCT 127's concert in Saitama several months later on March 29, 2019.[13] On December 13, Haechan joined the rotational sub-unit NCT U with the release of the single "Coming Home" under the SM Station project.[14][15]

At the Neo City – The Link tour (2021–2022), Haechan and fellow member Taeil performed an unreleased R&B track titled "Love Sign", which they composed with producer Deez [ko].[16] In 2021, Haechan released a remake of the 2006 SM Town's song "Snow Dream" for SM Town's album 2021 Winter SM Town: SMCU Express.[17] Haechan recorded a remake of the 2001 Toy song "Good Person" for the soundtrack of the Playlist Studio web drama Ply Friends: Seoyeon University Class of '22 for release on March 6, 2022.[18] However, CJ ENM announced that the release of the song would be moved forward by one day to "repay fans" for their enthusiastic reactions.[19] Haechan and Taeil released "N.Y.C.T." under NCT U on September 7, 2023. They had previously performed the song at the Neo City – The Link tour.[20]

Artistry

Haechan stated that his mother greatly influenced his music taste by introducing him to songs such as "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson, whom he has cited in multiple interviews as one of his role models and the reason he wanted to pursue a singing career.[21][22][11] Haechan also named labelmate Taemin of Shinee as a major influence, crediting his group's debut single "Replay" with inspiring him to become an idol and audition for SM Entertainment.[1][23] The first album Haechan ever purchased was Shinee's Romeo (2009).[24]

Music critic Kim Young-dae described Haechan's voice as the MSG in NCT 127's discography as it "connects all the different flavors and has a powerful impact on the adlibs".[25][unreliable source?] Changuk of Drippin cited Haechan as his role model.[26]

Philanthropy

In February 2023, Haechan donated ₩100 million to the Community Chest of Korea, thus joining its Honor Society, to help victims of the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake.[27] In August 2023, he donated ₩50 million to the Korean Red Cross to support the victims and areas affected by the wildfires that broke out that month on the island of Maui, Hawaii.[28]

Discography

For Haechan's works with NCT, see NCT discography, NCT 127 discography, and NCT Dream discography.
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
KOR
[29]
"Snow Dream 2021"
(with Yeri, Chenle, Jisung, Ningning) 		2021 —[A] 2021 Winter SM Town: SMCU Express
"Good Person (2022)" (좋은 사람 2022) 2022 115 Non-album single
"N.Y.C.T."
(with Tae-il) 		2023 —
"—" indicates that the song did not chart or was not released in that region.

Songwriting credits

All credits are adapted from the Korea Music Copyright Association, unless cited otherwise.[31]

List of songs, showing year released, artist name, and name of the album
Title Year Artist(s) Album Lyricist Composer
"Like We Just Met" 2023 NCT Dream ISTJ Yes No
"N.Y.C.T." NCT U SM Station: NCT Lab Yes Yes
"Flying Kiss" 2024 NCT Dream Dreamscape Yes No
"Best of Me" Yes No

Notes

  1. ^ "Snow Dream 2021" did not enter the Gaon Digital Chart, but peaked at position 83 on the component Download Chart.[30]

References

  1. ^ a b Benjamin, Jeff (June 13, 2020). "Haechan of NCT and NCT 127: a talented and confident performer, with the personality to match". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on June 13, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
  2. ^ Goo, Min-ji (June 3, 2021). "루키의 꿈, 미래가 됐다"...NCT드림, K팝 성장 보고서 ["Rookie's dream, now it's the future."NCT DREAM, K-Pop Growth Report]. Dispatch (in Korean). Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  3. ^ Kim, Sara (July 17, 2014). SMROOKIES, 공식 페이지 오픈..슬기&아이린 '첫 유닛' [SMROOKIES, open the official page.. Seulgi & Irene 'first unit']. The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 13, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
  4. ^ Kim, Sara (October 4, 2014). [어저께TV] '엑소902014' K팝 시험, 90 반갑고 2014 새롭고 [[Yesterday TV] 'EXO 902014' K-Pop Test, 90 Nice and 2014 New]. Osen (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 21, 2019. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
  5. ^ Kim, Sara (October 3, 2014). '엑소902014' SM루키즈 동혁, 걸그룹 지식 최강자 등극 ['EXO 902014' SM Rookies Donghyuck, the strongest girl group knowledge]. Osen (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
  6. ^ Seo, Byung-gi (July 9, 2015). 이예지 PD, 이적 후 첫작품 '미키마우스 클럽' 한국판 제작 방송 [Lee Ye-ji PD, first work after transfer 'Mickey Mouse Club' Korean version production broadcast]. Herald Pop (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 30, 2021. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
  7. ^ NCT127 소방차, 데뷔 타이틀곡은 힙합에 뭄바톤 퓨전 장르..."역대급 서머송 예고" [NCT127 Fire Truck, the debut title song is a hip-hop and Mumbahton fusion genre... "Prediction of the greatest summer song ever"]. The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). July 5, 2016. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
  8. ^ Choi, Na-young (August 20, 2016). 'SM막내' NCT드림, 네 멤버 베일 벗다..제노·해찬 ['SM's maknae' NCT Dream unveils four members.. Jeno Haechan]. The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  9. ^ Kim, Yu-young (August 25, 2016). "NCT Dream releases new music video". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on August 25, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
  10. ^ Lee, Min-ji (December 19, 2018). SM "NCT 해찬, 부상으로 깁스, 스케줄 불참"(공식입장 전문) [SM "NCT Haechan, casts due to injury, misses schedule" (Full text of official position)]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 4, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Episode 6". Boys Mental Camp (in Korean). June 4, 2021. Wavve. Archived from the original on February 19, 2022. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  12. ^ Sung, Mi-kyung (January 27, 2019). "연두색 바다"..NCT 127, 2만4천 관객 열광시킨판타스틱 첫 콘서트(종합)[Oh!쎈 현장] ["Yellow-green sea"..NCT 127, the first fantastic concert that made 24,000 spectators enthusiastic [Oh!]]. The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  13. ^ Goo, Min-ji (March 29, 2019). 'NCT127' 해찬, 밝은 근황..."막내가 돌아왔습니다" ['NCT127' Haechan, a bright current... "The youngest is back"]. Dispatch (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  14. ^ Jeon, Hyo-jin (December 13, 2019). 태일·도영·재현·해찬, 오늘(13일) 겨울 발라드 'Coming Home' 발표 [Taeil, Doyoung, Jaehyun, and Haechan to release the winter ballad 'Coming Home' today (13th)]. Sports Dong-a (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  15. ^ Herman, Tamar (December 16, 2019). "NCT U Drop Wintery 'Coming Home' Video: Watch". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 14, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
  16. ^ Lee, Seung-hoon (December 20, 2021). "떼창+함성 듣고파"..NCT 127, 변함없는 '♥︎시즈니'와 이룬 꿈('THE LINK')[종합] ["I want to hear the crowd + shouts"..NCT 127, the unchanging '♥︎ Czennies' and a dream fulfilled ('THE LINK') [General]]. Osen (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  17. ^ Ahn, Jin-young (December 23, 2021). 규현·태일, 태용·지젤, 예리·해찬·닝닝...SM 이색 컬래버레이션이 온다 [Kyuhyun and Taeil, Taeyong and Giselle, Yeri, Haechan, Ningning... SM's unique collaboration is coming]. Munhwa Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 23, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  18. ^ Ji, Min-kyung (February 23, 2022). NCT 해찬, '플렌즈 서연대 22학번 편' OST 참여..토이 '좋은 사람' 리메이크 [NCT Haechan, 'Friends Seoyeon University 22nd Edition' OST Participation... Toy 'Good Person' remake]. Osen (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 23, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  19. ^ Jeong, Hee-yeon (March 2, 2022). NCT 해찬, 데뷔 후 첫 단독 OST 5일 발매 [NCT Haechan, first solo OST released after debut on the 5th]. The Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  20. ^ Yoon, So-yeon (September 3, 2023). "NCT's Taeil, Haechan to release duet "N.Y.C.T" on Sept. 7". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on September 3, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  21. ^ "YOUNG, FREE AND NCT". Arena Homme + (in Korean). October 22, 2018. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
  22. ^ Kim, Mi-ji (January 11, 2017). NCT 127 "'무한적아' 1위 공약? 하이터치 하고파"(종합) [NCT 127 "The promise of #1 in 'Infinite Child'? I want to do high-touch" (comprehensive)]. X Sports News (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 20, 2021. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  23. ^ Park, Seo-hyun (May 12, 2020). "다음엔 7드림으로"..'오빠네' NCT DREAM이 밝힌 #마크 #라이딩 #1위(종합) ["Next time, with 7 Dreams"... 'Oppa' NCT DREAM revealed #Mark #Riding #1 (Overall)]. The Korea Herald (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  24. ^ Travis, Emlyn (March 6, 2020). "NCT 127 Share The First Albums They Ever Bought, Favorite Films, And Secrets That Would Honestly Shock NCTzens". Buzzfeed. Archived from the original on August 8, 2022. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  25. ^ Kim Youngdae (March 26, 2020). "Interview with NCT 127's Composer DEEZ". Medium. Archived from the original on April 19, 2020. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  26. ^ Barilo, Marianna (March 9, 2022). "Drippin are villains ready to steal your hearts". Panorama. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  27. ^ Hong, Hye-min (February 13, 2023). NCT 해찬, 튀르키예·시리아 지진 피해에 1억 쾌척 [NCT's Haechan donates 100 million won for earthquake damage in Turkey and Syria]. Hankook Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 13, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2023 – via Naver.
  28. ^ Lee, Min-ji (August 22, 2023). NCT 해찬, 미국 하와이 산불 구호 성금 5천만원 기부 [공식] [NCT Haechan donates 50 million won to relief in Hawaii, USA [Official]]. Newsen. Archived from the original on August 22, 2023. Retrieved August 22, 2023 – via Naver.
  29. ^ Peaks on the Gaon Digital Chart:
  30. ^ "Snow Dream 2021". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). December 26, 2021 – January 1, 2022. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  31. ^ "Songs Registered Under LEE DONG-HYUCK (10039530)". KOMCA. Retrieved April 23, 2024.