Suga (rapper)
Min Yoon-gi, better known by his stage names Suga and Agust D, is a South Korean rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Managed by Big Hit Entertainment, he debuted as a member of the South Korean pop idol group BTS in 2013. In 2016, he released his first solo mixtape, Agust D. The Korea Music Copyright Association attributes over 100 songs to Suga as a songwriter and producer, including Suran's "Wine", which peaked at number two on the Gaon Music Chart and won best Soul/R&B track of the year at the 2017 Melon Music Awards. In 2020, he released his second solo mixtape, D-2. Commercially, the mixtape peaked at number 11 on the US Billboard 200, number 7 on the UK Albums Chart and number 2 on Australia's ARIA Album Chart.
Life and career
1993–2010: Early life
Min Yoon-gi was born on March 9, 1993 in Daegu, South Korea. The younger of two sons, he attended Taejeon Elementary School, Gwaneum Middle School, and Apgujeong High School. He became interested in rap after hearing "Reggae Muffin" by Stony Skunk, stating that it was different from anything he had ever heard before. After hearing Epik High, he decided to become a rapper.By age 13, he began to write music lyrics and learned about MIDI. He worked a part-time job at a record studio by age 17. From then on, he began composing and arranging music, rapping, and performing. Before being signed, he was active under the name Gloss as an underground rapper. As part of the hiphop crew D-Town in 2010, he produced "518-062", a song commemorating the Gwangju Uprising.
2013–present: BTS
Originally joining the company as a music producer, Suga trained under Big Hit Entertainment for three years alongside members J-Hope and RM. He made his debut as a member of BTS on Mnet's M Countdown with the track "No More Dream" from their debut single album 2 Cool 4 Skool. He has produced and written lyrics for a variety of tracks on all of BTS' albums.For BTS' third Korean-language extended play The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 1, Suga released a solo intro entitled "Intro: The Most Beautiful Moment in Life". The rap track's lyrics itself discussed the fears of reaching adulthood at the end of one's adolescent years. It released on April 17, 2015, and featured an animated music video. Pt. 1s follow up EP, The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 2, featured another intro performed by Suga, called "Intro: Never Mind", specifically recounting Suga's teenage years. The song released on November 15, 2015, and additionally served as the intro for BTS' 2016 compilation album '. Suga did not perform another introductory track for BTS until 2020, where he released "Interlude: Shadow" as part of the album roll out for '. The interlude is a rap song that references "Intro: O!RUL8,2?" from the 2013 EP of the same name, and discusses BTS' fame, comparing its reality to the celebrity O!RUL8,2? dreamed about. The song released on January 10, along with a music video also referencing the struggles of fame. Tamar Herman of Billboard described it as a "evocative, yet brash track" and noted how the song's sound changes midway through to show "this dichotomy between the relationship of how fame and audiences watching him affects his idea of self".
In addition to performing intros for BTS, Suga released two solo tracks under the group's name. The first, a song entitled "First Love", appeared on BTS' 2016 studio album Wings'', is an autobiographical rap track reminiscent of a monologue. On the 2018 compilation album ', Suga released the song "Trivia: Seasaw", which discussed the up-and-down nature of falling in love. That same year, Suga was awarded the fifth-class Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit as a member of BTS by the President of South Korea along with other members of the group.
2016–present: Solo work
Suga released a free self-titled mixtape via SoundCloud on August 15, 2016. He decided against releasing the project as a commercial studio album, describing it as the "feeling of being trapped in some sort of framework." On the record, he discussed matters such as his struggles with depression and social phobia. Fuse TV rated it one of the top 20 mixtapes of 2016. The following year, in 2017, Suga composed the song "Wine" for singer Suran, whom he had previously worked with for a single on his mixtape. At Suga's studio, Suran heard a rough draft of "Wine" and asked Suga for the song. The record peaked at #2 on the Gaon Digital Chart and won best Soul/R&B track of the year at the Melon Music Awards on December 2, 2017. Suga also received the "Hot Trend Award" for his work on the track. Suga later re-released his mixtape for digital purchase and streaming in February 2018. The reissue reached #3 on Billboards World Albums Chart, #5 on the Heatseekers Albums chart, and #74 on the Top Album Sales chart. It also caused Suga's solo alias, Agust D, to reach #46 on the Emerging Artists chart for the week of March 3.In January 2019, Suga provided a rap feature on Lee So-ra's single "Song Request". The track was co-written by Suga and Tablo of Epik High, who also produced the track. The single debuted at number three on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart and at number two on Billboard's World Digital Songs chart, with 3,000 downloads during the song's two-day charting period. Suga later produced a track for Epik High's Sleepless in extended play, titled "Eternal Sunshine", in February. He co-wrote and produced the digital single, "We Don't Talk Together", for singer Heize, which she released on July 7. In December, American singer-songwriter Halsey released the song "Suga's Interlude", from her third studio album Manic, which both featured and was produced by Suga.
On May 6, 2020, IU released the digital single "Eight" featuring and produced by Suga. The song debuted at number one on both the Gaon Digital Chart and Billboard World Digital Songs chart. Suga released his second mixtape, D-2, together with the music video for its lead single "Daechwita" on May 22. The mixtape debuted at number 11 on the Billboard 200 and became the highest-charting album by a Korean soloist in the US. It is also the first Korean solo release to reach the top 10 in the United Kingdom, opening at number 7 on the UK albums chart.
Name
The stage name Suga is derived from the first syllables of the term shooting guard, the position he played in basketball as a student. He adopted the alias Agust D in 2016 for his mixtape, which is derived from the initials DT, short for his birthplace, Daegu Town, and "Suga" spelled backwards.Artistry
Suga is responsible for writing, composing, arranging, mixing, and mastering his material. Over 70 registered songs are credited to him by the Korea Music Copyright Association. He is a pianist, and produces hiphop and R&B music. His lyrics involve themes that are "full of dreams and hope," conceived with the intent of his music becoming "many people's strength." He cites Stony Skunk and Epik High as his inspirations to pursue hiphop music. Particularly, he credits the former's reggae-hiphop hybrid album Ragga Muffin and its title track for igniting his interest in the genre.Jeff Benjamin of Fuse said that Suga's mixtape "showcases the star's ear for hot productions, hardcore rap style, and how he can make his vulnerabilities a strength." Other critics stated that Suga's "storytelling execution in the music he creates tears down the barrier of censoring and sugarcoating".
In January 2018, Suga was promoted to a full member of the Korea Music Copyright Association.
Impact and influence
In a survey conducted by Gallup Korea, Suga was ranked the 13th most preferred idol of the year for 2017. In the 2018 and 2019 surveys, he ranked 7th and 9th, respectively.Personal life
As of 2019, he lives in Hannam-dong, Seoul, South Korea. In 2018, he purchased a US$3 million luxury apartment located in South Korea but continues to live in Hannam-dong.In 2014, he made a promise to buy his fans meat should he find success as a musical artist. Four years later, on his 25th birthday, he donated beef to 39 orphanages as "ARMY", the name of BTS' fanbase. For his 26th birthday, he donated KR ₩100,000,000 or US$88,000, to the Korea Pediatric Cancer Foundation alongside 329 BT21 Shooky dolls.
Suga has spoken openly about mental health and equality for the LGBTQ+ community.
Awards and nominations
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee/work | Result | |
| Melon Music Awards | 2017 | Hot Trend Award | Suran and Suga | ||
| Mnet Asian Music Awards | 2019 | Best Collaboration |
Discography
Mixtapes
Charted songs
Other songs
As producer
| Year | Title | Artist | Album | |
| 2010 | "518-062" | D-Town | ||
| 2017 | "Wine" | Epik High | Sleepless in | |
| 2019 | "We Don't Talk Together" | Heize feat. Giriboy | ||
| 2020 | "Eight" ( | IU |