Dong Young-bae (Korean: 동영배; born May 18, 1988), better known by his stage names Taeyang (meaning "sun" in Korean) and SOL (when performing in Japan), is a South Korean singer, songwriter and dancer. He made his debut in 2006 as a member of the South Korean boy band Big Bang. While the debut was met with lukewarm receptions, their follow-ups cemented their popularity, becoming one of the best-selling digital groups of all-time in Asia and one of the best-selling boy bands in the world.
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), that garnered sales of over 100,000 copies. His 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, giving him his first solo chart-topper on that chart. "Eyes, Nose, Lips" was awarded Song of the Year at the 2014 Mnet Asian Music Awards and 29th Golden Disc Awards. His third studio album, White Night, was released in 2017. Taeyang's vocal skills have been admired by music critics and he is regarded as one of the best vocalists in South Korea.
Born and raised in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, Dong Young-bae's first contact with music was playing the piano, where he enjoyed classical music composed by Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert. When his family began struggling financially, Dong felt the need to find a job to help support them at a young age. 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. As he got no answer, he went to his office personally to achieve his intention. Yang gave him the opportunity to audition, where he was successful, and accepted by the record label as a trainee. There, he met fellow trainee and future bandmate Kwon Ji-yong. Dong spent the first few years as a trainee cleaning the studio for the other artists in the company and fetching them water bottles during dance practices, later admitting that current artists at the time weren't friendly towards him or Kwon. In 2003, Dong provided the rap verse in singer Wheesung's single "Player" on the latter's second album.

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