Late-blooming singer ZO ZAZZ climbs to No. 2 on charts with debut song

By KTimes

Late-blooming rookie singer ZO ZAZZ introduced himself under the YouTube music video of his debut song “Don’t you know” with a playful message: “I’m ZO ZAZZ, a singer whose voice outruns his looks. I’ll sing with sincerity.”

“It was just a funny comment I came across, so I just quoted it," he explained in a recent interview, laughing.

ZO ZAZZ, 40, whose real name Jo Hong-jun, is the voice behind “Don’t you know,” a song that has recently gone viral and made an unexpected climb up Korea’s music charts.

A cover of K-pop duo Davichi’s 2013 hit, the track was released this past January and, without the support of a major entertainment agency or coordinated fan-driven streaming campaigns, soared to No. 2 on both Melon’s daily and weekly charts. On March 13, it even claimed the top spot on TJ Media’s karaoke chart.

Listeners have responded enthusiastically, leaving comments such as, “Sorry to Davichi, but this doesn’t even feel like their song anymore,” and “It’s like watching 16 drama episodes in one track.”

“Don’t you know” is not only ZO ZAZZ's debut but is currently his only released track. Despite having no formal promotion, the song spread through word-of-mouth on social media, eventually rising to the top of the charts in just two months.

Even Ahn Young-min, CEO of Brotherhood Entertainment and a member of the producer team Rocoberry that wrote and arranged the original song, admitted the response was unexpected.

“I thought it would be a success if it even made the top 100,” ZO ZAZZ said. “But when it kept climbing to No. 50, No. 30, then No. 10, I was stunned.”

From chance encounter to breakthrough recording

The project began with a chance encounter between ZO ZAZZ and Ahn, who first heard him sing at the live music bar that ZO ZAZZ runs. As a gesture of respect, ZO ZAZZ sang “Don’t you know,” and Ahn was immediately moved.

“People who were with me clutched their chests while listening. Even after an hour, the emotion lingered. That’s when I knew we had to make a record,” Ahn recalled.

Outside of performing in street shows in his early 20s in Busan and auditioning for the singing competition show "Superstar K3," ZO ZAZZ had lived a life far from music. After his brief attempt at pursuing music, he moved to Seoul and worked in fashion and other industries.

“After 'Superstar K3,' I felt music wasn’t something just anyone could do,” he said. “My early to mid-30s were the hardest time. I was just trying to survive in Seoul, becoming a singer didn’t even feel like an option.”

A dream reignited

Still, he never gave up on music. A longtime fan of jazz and soul, ZO ZAZZ named his business ZO ZAZZ Studio when he founded his own company seven years ago, a name that would later become both his nickname and stage name.

Unable to let go of his passion for music, he appeared on SBS’s "Fantastic Duo" in 2016 and later auditioned for TV Chosun’s "Mr. Trot 2" in 2022, hoping to make his parents proud. But neither opportunity brought any real change.

“I figured if I wanted to sing, I needed to create a space where I could perform live, so I opened my own bar,” he said. “I didn’t expect the opportunity to come this quickly.”

Now in his 40s, ZO ZAZZ is preparing his next release with Ahn, riding the momentum of his surprise breakout. “I want to become a singer like Choi Baek-ho (veteran ballad and folk singer),” he said. “I want to make music that resonates with people in their 40s, 50s and beyond, music that younger generations can also enjoy. If I can be a singer who brings the craft of song to life, that would make me truly happy.”

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.