Who is Jang Keun-suk? The Influencer star’s life & career explained

The Influencer introduces us to a whopping line-up of 77 contestants, all of them social media stars in their own right – but what about Jang Keun-suk?

The aim of the Netflix K-reality series is to give influencers of varying popularity the chance to prove their value, all in a bid to be crowned the ultimate winner and bag a 300 million won ($220,000) prize. 

It’s for this reason the arrival of Jang ruffled a few feathers among The Influencer cast. After all, he’s an established celebrity, and a number of fellow contestants felt he was at an unfair advantage. 

But as he explains on the show, he’s relatively new to the content creation game, having only started a YouTube channel nine months before filming. If you want to learn more about him, here’s a rundown of his life and career. 

Who is Jang Keun-suk?

Jang Keun-suk, also known as the “Prince of Asia,” is a 37-year-old South Korean actor, singer, and model known for his versatile talents and widespread popularity in Asia, particularly in Japan.

Born on August 4, 1987, in Danyang County, South Korea, Jang began his career in the entertainment industry at a young age. 

He made his debut as a child model when he was just five years old, and by the age of 10, he was already acting in TV dramas. 

Although he went on to study in New Zealand, where he learned English and Japanese, Jang landed a role in the sitcom Nonstop 4, bringing him back to South Korea. 

He later gained recognition in various K-dramas, one of his most notable being in the 2009 series You’re Beautiful, where he played the role of Hwang Tae-kyung, the leader of a fictional band. 

Other K-dramas he’s known for include Beethoven Virus (2008), Mary Stayed Out All Night (2010), Love Rain (2012), Bel Ami (2013), The Royal Gambler (2016), and Switch (2018).

But acting isn’t his only gig. Jang is also an accomplished singer and has released several albums, with much of his fanbase being in Japan. 

This is thanks, in part, to his 2011 single ‘Let Me Cry’, which debuted at number one on Japan’s Oricon single charts, making him the first non-Japanese music artist to achieve this milestone.

After collaborating with Team H for a couple of EPs, Jang dropped his first full-length album in Japan, ‘Just Crazy’, in 2012 – and again it shot to number one in the charts. 

Jang’s controversy explained 

In 2015, Kang went on a hiatus in Korea after his company became embroiled in a tax evasion controversy.

At the time, he was accused of underreporting his income earned in China, leading to him shelling out a reported 10 billion won ($7.2 million). 

However, Jang was later ruled not guilty in the incident, and that his agency, Tree J Company, had unintentionally made the error, which the company confirmed. 

Jang made a comeback

After leaving the agency, Jang made a comeback in Korea with the 2016 music survival series Produce 101. 

Over the next few years, he focused more of his efforts on philanthropy work. In 2022, Jang, alongside his official fan club Cre-J, donated 30 million won to support hearing-impaired children.

Last year, he donated 100 million won to the Korean Committee for UNICEF amid the Turkey-Syria earthquake. 

His agency, Craft42 Ent, said, “Jang Geun-suk, upon hearing the news of the damage, realized the severity of the damage and expressed his intention to donate to help the locals who are going through a difficult time.”

This was the same year the actor starred in the crime drama Decoy alongside Squid Game actor Heo Sung-tae, marking five years since he’d appeared in a major series in Korea. 

Speaking about the show, he said (via The Korea Herald), “Time flies. Even I didn’t expect it would be so long before my next project. But I can assure you that Decoy was the series, which makes the last five years not in vain.

“Whenever I visited the on-site shooting location, discussed ways to improve the scenes with actors and staff, I felt alive.”

Is he the host of The Influencer?

Despite his fame, Jang is simply a contestant of the new Netflix series rather than the host. 

This comes as a surprise to the rest of The Influencer cast, given he’s a high-profile name. A number of them claim it’s “unfair,” with some even trying to sabotage his position. 

However, he argues that he’s a newbie in the influencing world, and he garners the support of other contestants as the games progress.

For more content, check out 2024’s biggest reality show releases. You can also read about Squid Game: The Challenge Season 2, Physical: 100 Season 3, and the top K-dramas of 2024.