Portrait of Taeyang

Birthday profile

Taeyang

Taeyang, South Korean singer

Born
May 18, 1988
Age in 2026
38
Zodiac sign
Taurus
Birth year
1988

About Taeyang

Dong Young-bae (Korean: 동영배; born May 18, 1988), better known by his stage name Taeyang (태양; lit. 'sun') or SOL, is a South Korean singer and songwriter. He made his debut in 2006 as a member of the South Korean boy band BigBang. Following the release of several albums and extended plays with his group, Taeyang pursued a solo career in 2008, releasing his first extended play, Hot. The EP was acclaimed by critics and went to win the award for Best R&B & Soul Album at the 6th Korean Music Awards. Hot was followed by his first full-length studio album Solar (2010), which was released in July 2010 and peaked atop the Gaon Album Chart. Taeyang's second studio album Rise (2014) peaked at number 112 on the US Billboard 200, becoming the highest ranking album by a Korean soloist in the chart, while its lead single, "Eyes, Nose, Lips", peaked at number one on the Billboard K-pop Hot 100. "Eyes, Nose, Lips" was one of the most popular songs in South Korea during 2014 and was awarded Song of the Year at the MAMA Awards, Melon Music Awards and Golden Disc Awards. His third studio album, White Night, released in 2017, debuted at number one on the Billboard's World Digital Albums and remained atop for two weeks, making Taeyang the second solo K-pop artist to have an album do so. Taeyang's vocal skills have been admired by music critics and he is regarded as one of the best vocalists in South Korea. In sixth grade, he auditioned and won the part of "mini Sean" in Jinusean's music video "A-yo", where he was introduced to and became fascinated with hip hop music. On the occasion, Dong met Yang Hyun-suk CEO of the record label YG Entertainment and begged him for a chance to become a singer.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Taeyang timeline

  1. He made his debut in 2006 as a member of the South Korean boy band BigBang.
  2. Following the release of several albums and extended plays with his group, Taeyang pursued a solo career in 2008, releasing his first extended play, Hot.
  3. Hot was followed by his first full-length studio album Solar (2010), which was released in July 2010 and peaked atop the Gaon Album Chart.

The world when Taeyang was born

Taeyang was born in 1988. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1988

  • #1 song"Faith" – George Michael
  • Top movieRain Man
  • Top TV showThe Cosby Show
  • Best-selling bookA Brief History of Time – Stephen Hawking

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentBen Johnson stripped of Olympic 100m gold for doping
  • Top headlineGeorge H.W. Bush elected president
  • Technology milestoneFirst transatlantic fiber optic cable
  • Defining fadKoosh balls
  • Notable inventionFirst disposable contact lenses
  • World population5.11 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderRonald Reagan
  • Sports championLos Angeles Dodgers (World Series)
  • Also wonLos Angeles Lakers (NBA)
  • U.S. population244.5M

1988 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Taeyang's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19882026
Gas$0.95$3.45/gal
Average home$89,300$435,000
Average income$32,191$67,500
Minimum wage$3.35$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$4.11$11.95
Postage stamp$0.25$0.73
Population244.5M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.