He’s the lead rapper of one of Korea’s top hip-hop groups, a talented songwriter and producer, and more recently, the head of independent music label, HIGHGRND. He has more than a couple of number one hits under his belt, and his group Epik High is known for their cool on stage performances. But it was his appearances with his daughter Haru on the show, The Return of Superman, where he showed his warm and affectionate side that truly captured our attention and made him a true blue dad crush in our eyes.
Though he’s doing well now, Daniel Armand Lee Seon-Woong (Tablo’s real name) nearly didn’t make it into the music industry as his parents were not at all supportive of his decision to pursue music. Luckily for all of us, Tablo defied their wishes and after graduating from Stanford with a Master’s degree in creative writing, he moved to South Korea and met his bandmates Mithra Jin and DJ Tukutz in the underground hip-hop scene, and they formed Epik High.
The band launched their first album in October 2003, and their music has been well-received by the public, with Tablo being the leader and the face of the group. They recently played at the Seoul Jazz Festival 2017 with Korean indie rock band, Nell.
Their popularity isn’t just limited to Korea and they are regularly invited to perform overseas. Their appearance at Singapore’s Sundown Festival 2015 contributed to the festival having one of its largest turnouts ever since it was launched in 2009.
They were also the first ever Korean band to be invited to perform at Coachella, which they did to a crowd of 3,000 in 2016.
Riding on his growing international popularity, Tablo was one of the select few who received an invitation to the 59th Annual Grammy Awards, where he got to meet many of his idols, including Chance the Rapper.
He also got to speak with one of his heroes rapper, Andre 3000. Perhaps there’s a future collaboration in the works.
Despite his busy schedule, Tablo found the time to publish a book, titled Blonote in 2016. The book is a compilation of personal messages from musicians, directors, models, DJs and more, as well as thoughts and quotes used by Tablo.
However, no matter how busy he gets, Tablo always makes it a point to spend time with the apple of his eye – Haru, his daughter with wife, actress Kang Hye Jung.
We love how he encourages her to be fearless and outgoing, and not to be afraid to be silly sometimes.
He even allowed her to ‘customise’ his phone! That doesn’t look like it’ll come off easily.
Tablo even brings her out when he heads out to meet his band, and this lucky little tot has had the chance to meet some of the biggest stars in South Korea’s music scene.
We’re sure Tablo still has lots to offer the world, and can’t wait to see what projects he has lined up next. No matter what, one thing’s for sure, that he’ll always be a sweet, loving dad to Haru.
For last week’s dad crush, click here.
