The members of TXT are leaders of 4th Gen K-Pop, and eldest member Choi Yeonjun is no exception. He’s often referred to as the 4th Gen It Boy, and the MOAs here at THP HQ love to call him that too! Yeonjun is a perfectionist and an incredibly hard worker, and it clearly pays off. From lyricism to fashion, from rap to dance, he’s the best of the best! With a perfect all-rounder like Yeonjun, it’s hard to narrow down the reasons why he is the 4th Gen It Boy, but we’ve put together ten of them right here!
BIGHIT Legendary Trainee
Where else could we start other than the very beginning? Yeonjun was the first member of TXT to begin training at BIGHIT, and he earned himself quite the reputation. Trainees undergo monthly evaluations in categories like singing, dancing, and rap. During his entire time as a BIGHIT trainee, Yeonjun came first in every category every time. He occasionally came joint-first, but he never came second. Yeah, sounds pretty legendary to us!
Unforgettable Rap
Whilst TXT have no set roles other than Soobin as leader, Yeonjun is often referred to as the rapper of the group. He’s written his own raps for title tracks such as ‘LO$ER=LOVER’ and ‘Good Boy Gone Bad,’ and is known for his distinctive delivery, even if Beomgyu does poke fun at it sometimes.
Furthermore, trainee Yeonjun built a name for himself through his raps. Taehyun and Soobin spoke about how all the other rap trainees would write lyrics tearing down their “haters” despite clearly not having any. Yeonjun, on the other hand, worked with what power he did have, writing lyrics like “the evaluation paper hung on the wall, my name on the very top of it.”
Yeonjun’s energy and performance are unmatched when it comes to rap, and that’s exactly why he’s the 4th Gen It Boy!
4th Gen Friends
If MOA’s love for Yeonjun wasn’t enough to convince you, you can pretty much guarantee that your faves are as enamored with Yeonjun as we are! He’s close friends with the likes of ATEEZ’ Wooyoung, SEVENTEEN’s Dino and Stray Kids’ Changbin, plus there are already plenty of younger idols who look up to Yeonjun too!
Understanding Legacy
Another thing that makes Yeonjun’s talent so multi-faceted? He’s a true fan of K-Pop and has an encyclopedic knowledge of K-Pop dance routines past and present, rivaled only by bandmate Soobin. (If you haven’t watched TXT on Hybe x Game Caterers you simply need to!). Yeonjun’s genuine respect and admiration for his fellow artists shines through his work! But mostly, MOA just love and miss Yeonjun’s Essence of Dance VLives.
Songwriting
Another talent to add to this list? Yeonjun is one of the best songwriters in 4th Gen K-Pop. All of TXT take their contributions to their music, especially songwriting, very seriously, and it clearly pays off! Yeonjun has credits on around twenty songs in TXT’s skipless discography, including ‘Good Boy Gone Bad,’ ‘Blue Hour,’ ‘PUMA,’ ‘Maze In The Mirror,’ and ‘Frost.’
Yeonjun is known for writing his own raps, including in English-language collabs like ‘Valley of Lies’ with iann dior. Plus, he featured on ENHYPEN’s ‘Blockbuster,’ writing, singing, and rapping on the song! We love to see this expansion of his talent and can’t wait to see more of this in the future.
Unbeatable Style
Look, we love Yeonjun’s style so much that we already wrote a whole article on it, but we’re here to talk about it again. At this point, Yeonjun is one of the most stylish idols, not just in 4th Gen, but all of K-Pop and our It Boy is finally getting recognition for it too!
Back in 2021, Yeonjun made his NYFW debut with Korean brand UL:KIN and even collaborated with them on his own collection. Fast forward a year, and Yeonjun is making more moves! This summer he was announced as an Ambassador and Guest Creative Director for fashion brand Privé Alliance, which you may recognize as Baekhyun’s (EXO and SuperM) brand. MOAs and fashion fans alike were so eager to get their hands on the collection that initial preorders sold out instantly!
TikTok And Instagram It Boy
Speaking of fashion, the runway and his collabs aren’t the only places Yeonjun shows off his style. He also opened a public Instagram account at the start of 2022, and our feed hasn’t known peace since. From sponsored ad campaigns with Burberry and Celine, to dreamy pics at the beach, we can’t keep up. Yeonjun is the most-followed 4th Gen artist with over 10 million followers! It sure sounds like he’s the It Boy to us! Not to mention the fact that his dance challenge videos go viral on TikTok every five minutes…
Vocals
Yeonjun has had incredible vocal prowess since debut, and his talent has only grown since then. On their ACT: LOVE SICK world tour, it’s become a running joke for TXT to take turns copying Yeonjun’s verse in ‘Lonely Boy’ acapella. But the thing is, whilst it’s very funny, their skills still blow us away. Yeonjun’s vocal strength and unique ability to adapt his tone never go unnoticed!
From ‘20cm’ from their debut year, to ‘Lonely Boy’ at ACT: LOVESICK (both blue-haired eras – we love a full-circle moment) Yeonjun has continued to impress MOAs with his talents. Plus we can’t ignore *that* vocal run in ‘Force.’
MC-ing
Following on from Soobin’s iconic run as MC on Music Bank, it turns out that Yeonjun is a great TV presenter too! Alongside his Jjunijjun cohosts, Yeonjun is a current MC on Inkigayo. He’s won over other idols and the audience alike with his charm, and MOA have loved seeing Yeonjun in this new environment.
A Dancing Ace
Yeonjun has proved time and time again that he’s one of the best dancers in K-Pop, but one of our personal faves has to be Studio Choom. Yeonjun was their Artist of the Month for July 2021, and his dance cover of ‘Watermelon Sugar’ and ‘BLOW’ is one of their most viewed. The video perfectly encapsulates Yeonjun’s style, skill, and personality – and that’s exactly why it’s a great example of him being the 4th Gen It Boy!
See! It’s undeniable, right?
What are some of your favorite moments that prove Yeonjun is the 4th Gen It Boy? Anything we missed that absolutely should’ve been on this list? Let us know all of your thoughts on Twitter @TheHoneyPOP! Or if that’s not your style, we can also be found on Facebook and Instagram!
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u better be joking. Lol