Bang Ye-dam

Bang Ye-dam (Korean: 방예담; born May 7, 2002) is a South Korean singer and member of boy band Treasure under South Korean record label YG Entertainment. In 2012, he auditioned for the second installment of SBS' reality competition program, "K-pop Star" and finished as runner-up. In June 2013, Bang was scouted by YG Entertainment and joined as a trainee. Following a seven-year training period, he released the digital single titled "Wayo" on June 5, 2020. Thereafter, he debuted with Treasure on August 7.
Biography.
Early life.
Bang Ye-dam was born on May 7, 2002 in Mapo District, Seoul, South Korea. Coming from a musically-oriented family, his father, is well known for releasing over 40 songs for commercials and animations including the Korean-dub for Japanese anime opening songs "Pokemon", "Dragon Ball" and more. His mother, Jung Mi-young is well known for singing soundtracks in Korean drama "Friends" and film "After the Show Ends" . His uncle is well known as a composer and director in the commercial film industry. Within his family, he is an only child. At the age of five, Bang participated in the opening songs for EBS' television series "Bboong bboong-E" and the Korean-dub version of the Japanese anime "Onegai! Samia-don" . On March 5, 2007 he made his first television appearance on EBS' documentary "15 Second Fever, Hold the World" alongside his parents. During his adolescence, he attended and .
2012–present: Career beginnings and debut with Treasure.
In August 2012, Bang auditioned for SBS' "K-pop Star Season 2". During the first round, BoA complimented his vocals by comparing to a young Michael Jackson. Park Jin-young praised his rhythm while Yang Hyun-suk was intrigued, commending his voice could reach the soul of the audience. He placed runner-up behind sibling duo Akdong Musician (AKMU). In June 2013, Yang Hyun-suk confirmed Bang had joined his label, thus, both first and second-place winners were now signed under YG Entertainment. That same year, he appeared on the finale of "WIN: Who is Next" with YG artists Lee Hi and Akdong Musician and sang "Officially Missing You" on October 27. Past interactions with "Kpop Star" alumni, Lee Seung-hoon, resulted in appearances in unreleased clips from the show with Winner, formerly Team A. In January 2014, he also made a cameo appearance on "Winner TV".
In the midst of training for his debut, on November 21, 2017, Bang made an appearance on Mnet survival program "Stray Kids" alongside other fellow trainees under YG Entertainment as its representatives. His name rose to the top of South Korean search portal site Naver while his performance video for "There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back" by Shawn Mendes peaked at number 1 on the Naver TV top 100 popular videos chart. On YouTube the video surpassed 3 million views in 24 hours and accumulated 35 million views as of May 2020. On October 5, 2018 he made a cameo appearance on Netflix television series "YG Future Strategy Office" as himself. In November 2018, Bang participated in reality survival program "YG Treasure Box", where 29 trainees competed to secure a spot in the new boy group. He participated as a contestant under "Team A". During the finals, Bang joined the final line-up by overall placing first among the vocal team. Marking the show's end, it was revealed the boy group had been named "Treasure".
On May 21, 2020 YG Entertainment announced ahead of Treasure's official debut, Bang would release a digital single, later revealed to be entitled "Wayo", on June 5. Notably, label-mates Kang Seung-yoon of Winner and Lee Chan-hyuk of AKMU participated in production. The song was accompanied with a music video dedicated to fans who supported him since his appearance on "K-pop Star Season 2". His single did not carry out any broadcasting promotions due to his upcoming preparations for debut with Treasure. Upon release, the digital single peaked at number 10 on the "Billboard" World Digital Songs chart and entered the top 100 at number 98 on the "Billboard" Korea K-Pop 100 chart.
Bang trained at YG Entertainment for seven years before officially debuting as a member of Treasure on August 7. They released the first installment to their "The First Step" series with the single album "" which included the lead single entitled "Boy". Five months into their career, "The First Step" series sold over one million copies. In result, the group earned the title "Million Seller".
Personal life.
While attending Kwang-sung middle school, it was revealed that academically Bang placed first among the entire school. Bang attended School of Performing Arts Seoul (SOPA), majoring in Practical Music located in Guro-gu, Seoul. In November 2018, he revealed he ranked the highest within the entire school during mock exams for the subjects Social studies and Science, and was named a "model student" in both school and as a trainee. Bang graduated from SOPA on February 5, 2021.
Artistry.
Influences.
Through EBS' Story, Bang revealed his greatest influences towards music are Michael Jackson and his parents. He has also cited G-Dragon of Big Bang as a role model.