V (singer)

Kim Tae-hyung (Korean: 김태형; born December 30, 1995), known professionally as V (뷔), is a South Korean singer. In 2013, he made his debut as a member of the South Korean boy band BTS, under Big Hit Entertainment. V has performed three solo songs under BTS's name—"Stigma" in 2016, "Singularity" in 2018, and "Inner Child" in 2020—all of which charted on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart. Outside of his music projects with BTS, V had his acting debut in the 2016 television series Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth and contributed the single "It's Definitely You" to its soundtrack. He released his first independent song, the self-composed "Scenery", in 2019. In 2023, V made his official debut as a solo artist with the release of the singles "Love Me Again" and "Rainy Days". His debut solo EP Layover was released on September 8, 2023, accompanied by a third single, "Slow Dancing".

V was born Kim Tae-hyung on December 30, 1995, in the Seo District of Daegu, and grew up in Geochang County. He is the eldest of three children, with a younger brother and sister. He is of the Gwangsan Kim clan. V first aspired to be a professional singer in elementary school. With his father's support, he began taking saxophone lessons in early middle school as a means of pursuing a musical career.

He eventually became a trainee for Big Hit Entertainment after passing an audition in Daegu. After graduating from Korean Arts High School in 2014, V enrolled in Global Cyber University, graduating in August 2020 with a major in Broadcasting and Entertainment. As of 2021, he is enrolled at Hanyang Cyber University, pursuing a Master of Business Administration in Advertising and Media.

Pre-debut, V was the "secret member" of BTS: fans were unaware of his existence as his agency wished to keep him a surprise. He later stated that the concept made him feel lonely and uneasy at the time as he thought it was because he might be cut from the lineup. On June 13, 2013, he made his debut as a member of BTS on Mnet's M Countdown with the track "No More Dream" from the band's debut single album 2 Cool 4 Skool. V was first credited for music composition on The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 1 (2015) extended play (EP), as a co-writer and producer of the song "Hold Me Tight"; he also contributed lyrics for the song "Fun Boyz". On the band's follow up EP, The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 2, V's melody was used for the song "Run". He co-wrote and composed his first solo track "Stigma" for BTS's 2016 studio album Wings. He also released, unofficially, a cover of "Hug Me" with bandmate J-Hope, and "Someone Like You" by Adele.

In May 2018, V's second solo song, "Singularity", was released as a trailer for BTS's then-upcoming third studio album, Love Yourself: Tear. The track made its UK radio debut on BBC Radio on October 25. One month after its release, The Guardian added "Singularity" to its "Top 50 songs for the month of June 2018" playlist, and Billboard included it in their critics' list of the "Top 50 BTS songs" at number 28. Overall, "Singularity" was generally well received by critics and mentioned on several year-end critic's lists. The New York Times ranked it twentieth on its list of "The 65 Best Songs of 2018" alongside "Fake Love", Los Angeles Times critic Mikael Wood named it the fourth "best and most replay worthy song of 2018", and Guardian critic Laura Snapes included it as one of her favourite tracks in her "Best Music of 2018: Albums and Tracks" list.

On October 24, 2018, V became one of the youngest recipients of the fifth-class Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit medal, awarded to him by Moon Jae-in, the President of South Korea alongside his BTS bandmates for their role in the spread of Korean culture.

V and J-Hope collaborated with Swedish singer Zara Larsson on the song "A Brand New Day" for the soundtrack album of the BTS World mobile game. It was released as a single on June 14, 2019, and debuted at number one on Billboard's World Digital Song Sales chart. He next collaborated with bandmate Jimin on the song "Friends"—later used in the 2021 Marvel film Eternals—and helped compose and write his third solo song "Inner Child", both of which were included on BTS's 2020 studio album Map of the Soul: 7.

In July 2021, V was appointed Special Presidential Envoy for Future Generations and Culture by South Korean President Moon Jae-in, alongside his bandmates, to help "lead the global agenda for future generations" and "expand South Korea's diplomatic efforts and global standing" in the international community.