Singer Jeong Dong-won is called the ‘Trot Prince’ in the music industry. In 2020, at the age of 13, he made a splendid debut by winning the ‘Top 6’ of Season 1 of the trot audition program ‘Mr. Trot’Tomorrow is Mr. Trot’ and has been performing on stages all over the country for the past five years. While leading the popularity of trot with his ‘Mr. Trot’ peers such as Lim Young-woong, Lee Chan-won, Jang Min-ho, and Young Tak, the 146 cm tall boy has grown 30 cm and is now on the threshold of adulthood.

Jeong Dong-won, who is now a senior in high school and in the final years of his teens, released his second full-length album ‘Gift of Long Legs’, which contains his ‘boyhood’, which he lived fiercely, on the 13th. It took three years just to prepare his second full-length album, which would be his “last album in his teens”. He has been continuously releasing singles and mini-albums, but this is his first full-length album in three years since ‘Yeong-eum, the Giving Tree’ in November 2021.

As he ambitiously prepared, he packed 14 songs into one album, boldly challenging various genres such as trot, hip-hop, dance, and EDM. He also chose two title songs out of over 200 candidates. He showcases polar opposite charms by simultaneously presenting ‘Flower Lantern’, a ballad with a sad sensibility, and ‘Heung!’, which emphasizes hip-hop elements with rapper Kim Ha-on.

At the album release showcase held at Nodeul Island Live House in Yongsan-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 13th, Jeong Dong-won said, “When I debuted, I wanted to quickly turn 20, but now that it‘s right in front of me, I feel like I want to enjoy my teens more. I want to finish my teens by doing my best through this album so that I don’t regret those intense years.”

As expected from the ‘MZ representative’ of the trot stage, the way the album was produced was also unconventional. He sent a direct message (DM) to Kim Ha-on, who he became a fan of after watching ‘High School Rapper 2’, and asked him to feature in it, which led to the completion of the title song ‘흥!’. Also, he sent a bold ‘collaboration love call’ to ‘trot senior’ Seol Woon-do through his company, and received the song ‘Age to Start Love’, which he wrote and composed.

His mindset has also matured a lot as he has gained various experiences such as activities with JD1, a ‘sub-character’ that emphasizes the dance genre, and nationwide tours. He said, “I hope the fans will be proud and think, ‘Jung Dong-won, who we thought was a baby, has grown a lot’’‘and has now grown up and knows how to repay the love.’ I hope that the fans and the public will gain hope through my album and songs. As I have grown and become more mature, I will return the love I have received from my fans.”


Reporter Yoo Ji-hye yjh0304@donga.com

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.