Haechan

Lee Dong-hyuck (; born June 6, 2000), known professionally as Haechan , is a South Korean singer and dancer. Known for his distinctive vocal timbre, he rose to prominence as a member of the K-pop boy band NCT and its sub-units NCT 127 and NCT Dream.

Born in Seoul and raised between the city and Jeju, Haechan started training under SM Entertainment to become an idol in 2013. He began his career in 2014 as part of the label's official team of trainees, SM Rookies, appearing on television and touring both in South Korea and abroad. He made his debut in 2016 with NCT, going on to release over 30 albums and participate in nine concert tours over the span of a decade. The group achieved commercial success and became an influential K-pop act.

Developed with the songwriter and producer Deez, Haechan's debut studio album, the R&B and soul record Taste (2025), topped the Circle Album Chart and sold over 400,000 copies in South Korea.

Life and career 2000–2013: Early life and musical beginnings Lee Dong-hyuck was born on June 6, 2000, in Seoul, South Korea, as the oldest of four siblings. His parents, both musicians active in the local music scene, influenced his interest in music. Due to financial reasons, his mother moved to Jeju for work during his childhood, while Lee remained in Seoul with his father and grandparents. Lee said that he first listened to Jackson's single "Billie Jean" (1983) around the age of 10 and became "obsessed" with his music for a few years afterwards. He also admired several artists from SM Entertainment, particularly Taemin of Shinee, a group he first discovered through their debut single "Replay" (2008). In fifth grade, Lee passed the first round of an audition, but he struggled around the time of the second round due to the sudden death of his grandfather. After passing multiple rounds by performing songs like "Hello" by Huh Gak, "Baby" by Justin Bieber, and "The Ugly Duckling" by Son Seung-yeon, he moved back to Seoul to begin training under the label, having drawn attention due to his high vocal range. Being one of the youngest trainees at the time, Lee later said that it saddened him to have missed out on typical experiences like school friendships and trips, but his passion for singing and dancing came first.

2014–2024: SM Rookies and NCT

SM publicly introduced Lee as a member of its official training team, SM Rookies, on July 17, 2014, with a video of him and his fellow trainee Mark launching the group's website. The agency's first program of its kind, SM Rookies allowed trainees to gain experience and public exposure before their debut, often grouping them by gender and concept into distinct units. As part of the team, Lee appeared in the 2014 variety television series Exo 90:2014 with the boy band Exo and the 2015 South Korean revival of The Mickey Mouse Club (1995–1996) with Super Junior's Leeteuk, performing songs, dances, and comedy skits. Lee also participated in the concert tours SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015), featuring several SM artists coming together to perform under the musical collective SM Town, and SM Rookies Show (2015–2016), held in South Korea and Thailand, in which the team covered songs by SM artists.

In July 2016, SM announced that Lee would join NCT, a boy band designed with a concept of unlimited members where smaller sub-units would debut independently and occasionally collaborate under the sub-unit NCT U. Lee debuted on July 7 with NCT's second sub-unit, NCT 127, performing their first single, "Fire Truck", on the television music program M Countdown. Initially established as NCT's teen unit, all members debuted as minors under a graduation system where they would leave the group upon reaching adulthood; however, the graduation concept was scrapped in 2020. Grammy.com stated that NCT became one of the most influential K-pop acts, achieving commercial success, with units like NCT Dream recording ten consecutive million-seller albums. Alongside the rapper Mark, who later departed the group in 2026, Haechan was the only NCT member to maintain a permanent position in two separate sub-units, resulting in a dense schedule. remarked that they participated in an uncommonly high number of promotional cycles, notably releasing five albums per year in both 2021 and 2023 while switching units at roughly two-month intervals. in January 2023 for heart palpitations, and in January 2024 for severe tonsillitis.

After debuting, Haechan continued pursuing songwriting and began asking SM's A&R team for spare demos to practice writing top lines. The following year, "N.Y.C.T" was officially released under NCT U on September 7 via the NCT Lab project. An R&B and pop track featuring guitar, bass, and brass over a piano melody, it depicts the emotions felt in moments with fans, likening the experience to walking together along the streets of New York City under the moonlight. Referencing South Korea's country calling code, the hip-hop track features lyrics written by Mark that express the duo's confidence in their capabilities, as they alternate roles with Haechan rapping and Mark singing. Later that May, Haechan released "A Thousand Reasons" for the soundtrack of the television series Second Shot at Love (2025). He then held a fan meeting at the on June 11, to commemorate his birthday. In July, Maeil Business Newspaper confirmed that he would make his solo debut in September, scheduled to follow the conclusion of group activities for NCT 127's fourth concert tour, Neo City – The Momentum, and NCT Dream's fifth studio album, Go Back to the Future, while he would continue participating in the latter's fourth concert tour, the Dream Show 4: Dream the Future (2025–2026).

In August, Haechan announced that he would release his first studio album, Taste, on September 8, along its lead single "Crzy". He had begun developing the record in 2024 in collaboration with Deez, who worked on nine of the album's 11 tracks. Ahead of the launch, SM released teasers featuring song snippets, and Haechan hosted a listening event in Seoul. He then promoted the album with performances on television music programs in South Korea in September and fan meetings in Japan in October. In the first week of release, Taste topped Circle's Album and Retail Album charts, while "Crzy" peaked atop the Download and BGM charts and reached number 11 on the Digital chart. It earned a nomination for Millions Top 10 at the 2025 Melon Music Awards. Later that May, Haechan performed several songs from Taste live at the Seoul Jazz Festival. In July, ten years after his debut, it was announced that Haechan had renewed his exclusive contract with SM.

Artistry Voice Haechan's vocal timbre has been described as distinctive and received praise in critical reviews. His voice has been characterized as "delicate, high-pitched" and "youthful, bright, yet with a strong core" by IZM and the critic Kim Young-dae, respectively. Calling it uncommon in South Korea, Kim initially compared Haechan to a young Michael Jackson from the Jackson 5 era, later placing his "refreshing" vocals in a lineage with a young Whitney Houston and the R&B trio SWV. while Sports Donga praised his handling of soul on Taste. Haechan's voice has been described as versatile and flexible, with Clash praising his dexterity across harmonies, melismas, falsettos, and ad-libs; he has also incorporated rapping into his work. prompting The Hollywood Reporter to describe him as one of the group's "most valuable players". Haechan has been recognized for his ability to shift the mood of a track with his timbre, particularly in the second verses and bridges of songs such as NCT 127's "Kick It" (2020) and "Fact Check" (2023).

Musical style and influences Haechan said that he was initially undecided on which genre to pursue, but credited his collaboration with Deez for inspiring his decision to create his own R&B music. Haechan's music also incorporates elements of pop, and funk. He has cited Jackson and Usher among his influences, The Hollywood Reporter and Teen Vogue respectively described it as reminiscent of Timberlake and Jackson. NCT Wish's Ryo, Xikers's Junmin, Nowz's Yoon, Younite's Eunho, and Whib's Wonjun, with some citing his performance style as a reason.

Other ventures Endorsements Haechan appeared on the April 2023 cover of Arena Homme + wearing Louis Vuitton and the December 2025 digital cover of Dazed Korea wearing Yves Saint Laurent. He also featured in the Japanese magazine promoting Dior Beauty. In October 2025, he became the brand model for the South Korean cosmetics company Naming, appearing in a promotional campaign with advertisements featured mainly in the Seoul Forest area. In July 2026, the Indonesian coffeehouse chain Kopi Kenangan appointed Haechan as its brand ambassador to target a "digitally connected younger generation" amid the brand's international expansion, launching three limited-edition beverages along with exclusive merchandise.

Philanthropy In February 2023, Haechan donated million to the Community Chest of Korea to help victims of the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria that month. In August 2023, he donated million to the Korean Red Cross to support victims and emergency services affected by the wildfires that broke out that month on the island of Maui, Hawaii. In March 2025, Haechan donated million to the Community Chest of Korea to help residents of the Yeongnam region affected by the wildfires that broke out that month.

Personal life In November 2022, a fan trespassed into Haechan's family home, leading to a prosecution indictment that was ultimately resolved with leniency at Haechan's request, to spare the fan from criminal punishment.

Discography

Studio albums + List of studio albums, with selected details, chart positions, sales figures, and certifications Title Details Peak chart positions Sales Certifications KOR JPN JPNHot TasteReleased: September 8, 2025 Labels: SM, Kakao Formats: CD, digital download, LP, streaming 1 4 24KOR: 434,611 JPN: 22,658 KMCA: Platinum

Singles As lead artist + List of singles as lead artist, with year of release, selected chart positions, and associated album Title Year Peak chart positions Album KOR "Crzy" 2025 11 Taste

As featured artist + List of singles as featured artist, with year of release, selected chart positions, and associated album Title Year Peak chart positions Album KOR Second Shot at Love "Bitter Sweet (Addiction)" 2026 — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Other charted songs + List of other charted songs, with year of release, selected chart positions, and associated album Title Year Peak chart positions Album KOR Down. "Snow Dream 2021" 2021 83 2021 Winter SM Town: SMCU Express "Camera Lights" 2025 45 Taste "Adrenaline" 47 "Love Beyond" 53 "Roll with Me" 49 "Intermission" 65 "Talented" 59 "WYN?" 51 "Should Be" 52 "Grey Rain" 57 "Outro (Back in the Studio)" 80

Writing credits +Key Indicates songs in which writers are credited specifically for the Korean lyrics

+List of songs by name, with credited artist(s), lyricist(s), composer(s), associated album, and year of release Title Artist(s) Lyricist(s) Composer(s) Album Year "Best of Me" NCT Dream Haechan Matthew CrawfordAaron Theodore BertonTaylor Ryan DolletzkiJacob Connor Plough Dreamscape 2024 "Flying Kiss" NCT Dream Haechan Ronny SvendsenAdrian ThesenHenrik HeavenLouise Lindberg Dreamscape 2024 "N.Y.C.T" NCT U TaeilHaechan DeezYunsuTaeilHaechan 2023 "Should Be" Haechan DeezVxionHaechan DeezFrzm Taste 2025

Music videos +List of music videos, with year of release, other credited performer(s), director, and description Title Year Other performer(s) Director Description "+82 Pressin'" 2025 Mark Park Cheol-ho Influenced by the 2005 film Sin City, it adopts a graphic novel aesthetic to show Haechan and Mark reintroducing color to a gray version of Seoul. "Taste of Sun" Littletempo It features snippets of tracks from Taste and shows Haechan navigating a series of strange, uncontrollable events, eventually discovering the existence of his "inner god", depicted as a solar deity, and ultimately merging with him. "Taste of Light" Park Cheol-ho It features snippets of five tracks from Taste and shows Haechan's journey from being a trainee guided by a stage light to becoming the light itself. "Crzy" Christian Haahs It shows Haechan's pursuit of a stranger after a chance encounter at an art museum, along with various dance sequences.

Live performances

Fan meetings + List of fan meetings, with dates and locations Title Date Venue City Country Taste October 8, 2025 Zepp Osaka Bayside Osaka Japan August 1, 2025 KCON Crypto.com Arena Los Angeles United States May 23, 2026 Seoul Jazz Festival KSPO Dome Seoul South Korea

Television shows and specials + List of television performances, with date, name of the program, location, and performed song(s) Date Television program Country Performed song(s) March 20, 2025 M Countdown South Korea "+82 Pressin'" (with Mark) September 12, 2025 Music Bank September 13, 2025 Show! Music Core September 14, 2025 Inkigayo September 18, 2025 M Countdown August 25, 2026 LeeMujin Service

Other performances + List of other performances, with date, name of the event, location, and performed song(s) Date Event Venue City Country Performed song(s) August 9, 2025 SM Town Live 2025: The Culture, the Future Tokyo Dome Tokyo Japan "+82 Pressin'" (with Mark) Best Continent Artist – Asia Best Continent Artist – Europe Best Continent Artist – North America Best Continent Artist – Oceania Best Continent Artist – South America Best Global Popular Artist Best Popular Artist Korea First Brand Awards 2026 Male Solo Singer – Vietnam Korea Grand Music Awards 2025 Taste Best Music 10 Haechan Fan Favorite Artist – Male Trend of the Year – K-pop Solo Melon Music Awards 2025 Taste Millions Top 10 Music Awards Japan 2026 Haechan Best K-pop Artist Seoul International Drama Awards 2026 "A Thousand Reasons" Outstanding Korean Drama OST Seoul Music Awards 2026 Haechan K-pop World Choice – Solo "A Thousand Reasons" Original Soundtrack Award