Choi Hyunsuk

Choi Hyunsuk was born on April 21, 1999, in Seoul, South Korea. As the oldest member of TREASURE's current lineup, he naturally occupies an older-brother role in addition to his official responsibilities as one of the group's leaders.

• Hyunsuk spent several years as a YG Entertainment trainee before TREASURE debuted. His path was considerably longer than simply auditioning for YG Treasure Box, as he had already experienced years of training and public competition before the program began.

• His first major survival-show experience was MIXNINE in 2017. The YG-produced competition brought together trainees from numerous Korean entertainment companies, and Hyunsuk ultimately ranked among the nine male contestants selected for the planned debut group.

• Winning MIXNINE still didn't guarantee Hyunsuk a debut. The show's male group was canceled before officially launching following disagreements surrounding its promotional plans, forcing Hyunsuk to return to being a trainee despite having already survived an entire competition.

• He later competed on YG Treasure Box, meaning he had to go through the uncertainty of another survival show after already winning one. His eventual TREASURE debut therefore came after multiple opportunities that could easily have ended his idol career differently.

• Hyunsuk originally dreamed of becoming a soccer player before focusing seriously on music. His love for the sport never disappeared, however, and football remains one of his most recognizable interests outside TREASURE.

• He is an enthusiastic fan of the English football club Chelsea FC. His interest goes well beyond casually watching major games—football shirts, club merchandise and conversations about matches regularly appear in his personal content and interactions with fans.

• Hyunsuk's love of fashion is almost as recognizable as his love of music. He frequently experiments with streetwear, accessories, unusual silhouettes and statement pieces rather than maintaining one predictable offstage style.

• He is especially interested in sneakers and has accumulated a sizable collection. Shoes are an important part of his outfits, and his interest in sneaker culture fits naturally with the hip-hop influences that shape much of his music and fashion.

• Hyunsuk is also known for collecting character merchandise, particularly items associated with characters he finds cute. The hobby creates a funny contrast with the aggressive image he can project during rap performances.

• His musical influences include major YG artists he grew up watching. BIGBANG and other senior artists helped shape his interest in becoming a performer, while his later music demonstrates a particularly strong attachment to hip-hop.

• Hyunsuk has been involved in writing TREASURE's music since the group's early releases. Rather than being added to the creative process years after debut, he received lyric credits during The First Step era and continued accumulating credits as TREASURE's catalog expanded.

• He regularly writes his own rap sections, allowing his personality and preferred phrasing to become part of TREASURE's songs instead of relying entirely on lyrics written by outside producers.

• Hyunsuk, Yoshi and Haruto make up TREASURE's rap line, and the three were given an opportunity to showcase that identity much more aggressively through "VolKno." The track's rock-influenced hip-hop sound is noticeably harder than many of TREASURE's title tracks.

• "VolKno" became important enough to receive its own music video and live performances. The song helped establish the three rappers as a distinct creative unit within TREASURE rather than simply giving each of them isolated verses in full-group songs.

• Hyunsuk's leadership style tends to be highly emotional and expressive. He has frequently become visibly emotional while talking about TREASURE, their fans and the group's achievements, showing a softer personality than his confident stage image might initially suggest.

• He shares leadership responsibilities with Jihoon rather than leading TREASURE entirely by himself. The co-leader structure allows them to balance the responsibilities of managing a large group, with the two bringing noticeably different personalities to the role.

• Hyunsuk was originally selected for the group that YG planned to call TREASURE 7. A second group called MAGNUM was subsequently announced, with the two teams eventually combined under the single name TREASURE before their official debut.

• He was already an adult by the time TREASURE debuted, despite having entered the entertainment industry much earlier. Watching younger trainees debut while repeatedly facing delays and canceled plans made his eventual 2020 debut especially meaningful.

• Hyunsuk has described the stage as a place where he can express a more intense side of himself. His performance persona often includes aggressive rap delivery, exaggerated expressions and commanding gestures that contrast with his more playful behavior in TREASURE's casual content.

• He pays close attention to TREASURE's performances beyond his own individual parts. As a leader and experienced trainee, Hyunsuk frequently watches the group's overall energy and interacts with the other members onstage rather than treating his performance as a collection of isolated rap verses.

• His interest in producing and songwriting suggests that his long-term ambitions extend beyond performing. Hyunsuk has steadily increased his involvement in TREASURE's creative work and has spoken about wanting to continue developing music that reflects both the group and his individual identity.

• Hyunsuk's career is a particularly good example of how uncertain the trainee system can be. He trained for years, successfully completed MIXNINE, saw that debut disappear, competed again on YG Treasure Box, waited through TREASURE's delayed launch and finally debuted in 2020—years after first entering YG.