Eric Nam

This is a Korean name; the family name is Nam.
Eric Nam

Eric Nam at the 2014 KCON
Background information
Birth name Nam Yoon-do (남윤도)
Born November 17, 1988
Atlanta, Georgia
Occupation(s) Singer, television host
Years active 2011–present
Labels B2M Entertainment
Website ericnam.com
Korean name
Hangul 에릭남
Revised Romanization Erik Nam
McCune–Reischauer Erik Nam

Nam Yoon-do (November 17, 1988), better known by his stage name Eric Nam, is an American singer and television host currently based in South Korea. He first appeared on Birth of a Great Star 2 in 2012 after being discovered in one of his cover songs on YouTube. He released his first album, "Cloud 9", on January 23, 2013.

Early life

Eric Nam was born and raised in Atlanta on November 17, 1988. He graduated from The Lovett School in 2007 where he played soccer and played in the orchestra. For his senior project, he recorded his own solo CD that was very popular with the student body. He then flew to Boston where he studied Bachelor of International Studies at Boston College. He also studied in Beijing for a year. He can speak Korean, English, Spanish, Chinese, and is currently learning Japanese. When he was younger, he became a part of the Atlanta Boy Choir and toured in Italy where he got to sing for mass at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.[1]

Career

Pre–debut

After doing some covers on YouTube, a JYP representative suggested that he should go to a JYP audition in New York. However, he decided not to audition because during that time, he still had to focus on his studies.[2] In June 2011 a cover he posted was reason enough for MBC to fly him to Korea for an audition in person.

2011–12: Birth Of A Great Star 2 and signing with B2M

Eric Nam became a part of a talent search show, Birth of a Great Star 2 as a contestant in December 2011. He stayed in the competition for about 8 months and made it to the Top 5.[3] After the show, he flew back to USA and performed at Kollaboration Boston 2 on April 21, 2012. Kollaboration is a "nationwide talent competition that empowers Asian-Americans through entertainment."[1]

In June 2012, he headed back to Korea for his project group, Namaste's single, "제주도의 푸른밤" (The Blue Night of Jeju Island) and was released after a month.[4] He also became an MC at MBC Star Audition Season 3 that was held in August in New York.

On September 25, 2012, he joined B2M Entertainment and became a solo artist.[5]

2013: Solo debut with Cloud 9

His debut album, Cloud 9, was released on January 23, 2013.

2014–present: "Ooh Ooh", "Melt My Heart", and "I'm OK"

On April 8, 2014, Eric Nam released the single "Ooh Ooh" which featured Hoya of Infinite. The accompanying music video also featured cameo appearances of Boa (Spica), Kevin (U-KISS), and Brad Moore (Busker Busker).[6]

Eric was also featured on Amber Liu's mini-album Beautiful on the song "I Just Wanna". On March 5, 2015, he released the single "I'm OK" and its accompanying music video.[7]

Other works

Since 2013 Eric Nam has been the host of the Arirang TV variety show After School Club. He has also done guest spots on Eatyourkimchi performing skits with Simon and Martina. He also hosted the Viki-sponsored red carpet during KCON 2014.[8] B2M entertainment, the agency Eric Nam belongs to, announced that Eric has been casted by an Hollywood Movie company on 17th of March 2015..[9]

Discography

Albums

Title Album details Peak chart positions Sales Tracklisting
KOR
[10]
Cloud 9
  • Released: January 23, 2013
  • Label: B2M Entertainment
  • Format: CD, digital download
 22
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Singles

Title Year Peak chart position Album
KOR
[12]		 KOR
Hot 100
[13]
"Heaven's Door" 2013 66 60 Cloud 9
"Ooh Ooh" (feat. Hoya of Infinite) 2014 48 93 Non-album single
"Melt My Heart" 71 —
"I'm OK" 2015 32 —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Other charted songs

Title Year Peak chart position Album
KOR
[12]
"The Blue Night of Jeju Island" (with Namaste) 2012 137 Non-album single
"I Just Wanna" (Amber Liu feat. Eric Nam) 2015 63 Beautiful
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Soundtracks

Year Song Album
2013 "Good-bye in Once Upon a Time" Love in Memory OST Part. 2
"Eric's Logo Song" After School Club
2014 "Cool Guy" Let's Eat OST

Awards

Year Award Category Result
2013 Eatyourkimchi Awards Rookie of 2013
(with Brad ofBusker Busker)[14]		 Won
2014 Eatyourkimchi Awards Best Solo Artist Won
Catchiest Song(OohOoh) Won

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "[Exclusive] Interview with Eric Nam: The Unexpected K-Pop Artist". Soompi. 2013-01-27. Retrieved 2013-02-21.
  2. ↑ 에릭남 JYP 오디션 거절, 왜? [Eric Nam refused JYP audition, why?] (in Korean). The Korean Herald. 2012-06-19. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  3. ↑ 에릭 남 "내겐 지금이 '클라우드 나인'이죠" [Eric Nam "Right now, I'm on 'Cloud 9'"] (in Korean). Yonhap News Agency. 2012-01-21. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  4. ↑ 제주도의 푸른밤 (in Korean). Melon. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  5. ↑ Ho, Stewart (2012-09-25). "‘The Great Birth 2’s Eric Nam Joins Lee Hyori’s B2M Entertainment". CJ E&M enewsWorld. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  6. ↑ Smith, Corynn (2014-04-08). "Eric Nam Turns Up the Volume with “Ooh Ooh!”". MTV K. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  7. ↑ Danbi Hong, Grace (2015-03-05). "[Video] Eric Nam Insists He′s Alright in ′I′m OK′ MV". CJ E&M enewsWorld. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  8. ↑ "KCON 2014 - Viki""Viki". Retrieved. 2015-03-16
  9. ↑ "에릭남 측, 할리우드 영화 캐스팅…촬영 위해 4월 출국" [Eric Nam departs for Hollywood in April] (in Korean). My Daily. 2015-03-17. Retrieved 2015-03-17.
  10. ↑ "Gaon Album Chart". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  11. ↑ 2013년 01월 Album Chart [January 2013 Album Chart]. Gaon Chart. Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Gaon Digital Chart". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  13. ↑ "Korea K-Pop Hot 100 Music Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  14. ↑ "'EYKA 2013 Winners List". tumblr.

External links