Taeyong Profile: Age, Height, Career, Facts & More
Taeyong is the leader of NCT and NCT 127, and one of the group’s most creatively involved members: a rapper, dancer, and songwriter who has helped shape its sound since the 2016 debut.
He was also the first NCT member to launch a solo career and the first to enlist in the military. After his discharge from the Navy in December 2025, he spent 2026 on a run of solo concerts, his first full-length album, WYLD, and his first solo music show win.
This complete profile breaks down everything fans want to know about Taeyong: his age, height, career, personality, and the fun facts that keep circulating through the fandom.
Quick Facts About Taeyong
- Real Name: Lee Tae-yong (이태용)
- Stage Name: Taeyong (태용)
- Nickname: Tyong
- Birth Date: July 1, 1995
- Zodiac Sign: Cancer
- Chinese Zodiac Sign: Pig
- Birthplace: Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, South Korea
- Position: Leader (NCT and NCT 127), Main Rapper, Main Dancer, Center, Songwriter
- Height: Approximately 175 cm (5’9″)
- Blood Type: O
- MBTI: ENTP-T (sometimes listed as INTP)
- Nationality: South Korean
- Agency: SM Entertainment
- Group: NCT, NCT 127, NCT U; former member of SuperM
- Education: School of Performing Arts Seoul (Applied Music)
- Brand Ambassadorship: Loewe (global brand ambassador since June 2023)
- Instagram: @taeoxo_nct
Early Life and Background
Taeyong was born on July 1, 1995, in Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, and has an older sibling born in 1988. He attended Seoul Cheongryong Elementary School and Namseoul Middle School, started at Seongbo High School, and later transferred to the School of Performing Arts Seoul, where he studied Applied Music and graduated in February 2014.
His favorite school subject was art, and he has said he rode a bike to school every day. Before music, he dreamed of becoming a firefighter.
His route into K-pop began on the street: an SM Entertainment casting director spotted him, and he became a trainee in 2012. For his SM audition, he sang the South Korean national anthem.
On December 2, 2013, he was introduced as a member of SM Rookies, the company’s pre-debut trainee team. Fan profiles note that an SM dance teacher once described his early dancing as hopeless, a detail that makes his later reputation as one of NCT’s strongest performers more striking.
Career Highlights
Debut and Leadership Taeyong debuted in April 2016 as a member of NCT U, the first NCT unit, and then in July 2016 as the leader of NCT 127, the Seoul-based unit, with the single “Fire Truck” and the EP NCT #127, for which he co-wrote three songs.
He later joined SuperM, the supergroup that debuted on October 4, 2019, and became the first Asian artist to reach number one on the US Billboard 200 with a debut release. NCT 127’s best-selling album is Sticker (2021). By 2024, press profiles reportedly credited him with writing more than 70 songs since his debut, including dozens he co-composed.
A Solo Pioneer Taeyong released his first solo song, “Long Flight,” in July 2019, a track he wrote and co-composed. On June 5, 2023, he made his official solo debut with the mini album Shalala, becoming the first soloist from NCT.
His second mini album, Tap, followed on February 26, 2024, and he wrote all of its tracks himself. His first solo concert, TY Track, sold out two nights at Olympic Hall in Seoul in February 2024, and its setlist consisted only of songs he had personally worked on.
Loewe Global Ambassador On June 20, 2023, the Spanish luxury house Loewe named Taeyong its newest global brand ambassador.
Loewe’s creative director, Jonathan Anderson, said the brand loved Taeyong’s idiosyncratic style and his range across songwriting, performing, and visual creation, and Taeyong said he had long admired the brand’s designs and philosophy. He attended Loewe’s menswear show in Paris to mark the partnership.
Military Service On April 15, 2024, Taeyong enlisted in the Navy as an active-duty soldier, becoming the first NCT member to serve. Fellow NCT members sent him off as he began his service. While serving, he narrated a KBS1 documentary, Codename 1950: Cruise, which aired on March 29, 2025. He was discharged on December 14, 2025.
The 2026 Comeback Taeyong’s return was immediate. He made his first post-military stage appearance at the 2025 SBS Gayo Daejeon on December 25, and SM announced his Asia tour just two days after his discharge.
TY Track – Remastered, a bigger version of his 2024 concert, opened with two shows at Ticketlink Live Arena in Seoul on January 24 and 25, 2026, his first solo concert in almost two years, and then visited Jakarta, Yokohama, Macau, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur.
On April 17, he released the pre-release single “Rock Solid,” featuring Anderson .Paak and produced by Dem Jointz. His first full-length album, WYLD, followed in May, with ten tracks spanning hip-hop, jazz, rock, electronic, hyperpop, and future bass; he handled writing and production duties himself, and it topped iTunes charts in several regions. On May 29, he won his first solo music show trophy on KBS’s Music Bank, beating ITZY’s “Motto.”
The summer brought a Seoul Jazz Festival set with a live band and a reunion with Haechan for their unit song “Pado,” a Rapbeat set alongside Jay Park and Zico, and appearances scheduled for Waterbomb Seoul and the SBS Gayo Daejeon Summer broadcast.
NCT 127 in 2026 NCT 127 continued as a seven-member group after Mark left NCT and SM Entertainment in April 2026. At his January concert, Taeyong shared stories about groupmates who were still serving in the military at that point, including Jaehyun and Jungwoo, a reminder that NCT 127’s full-group activity was still on hold.
Personality and Public Image
Taeyong is known for a quirky, unconventional personality that shows up in his taste and interests, but fans and members describe him as kind, caring, and genuine. He has a reputation as a leader who looks after his members, and his concert talk, full of funny stories about his groupmates, shows how close he is to both them and the fans.
As an artist, he is one of the SM system’s most experimental figures, comfortable shifting from hard-hitting hip-hop to jazz and hyperpop within a single album. His 2026 festival run was widely read as proof that his rap credentials stand on their own, not just as part of an idol group.
Fun Facts and Trivia
- Taeyong was the first NCT member to release a solo project and the first to enlist in the military.
- He was discovered on the street by an SM Entertainment casting director.
- His SM audition song was the South Korean national anthem.
- He is a gamer and has said he reached diamond rank in Overwatch.
- His favorite foods include melons, strawberry macarons, and green tea ice cream, and his favorite color is pink.
- His shoe size is 275 mm.
- He turned 31 on July 1, 2026.
Social Media and Where to Follow
Taeyong is active on Instagram under the handle @taeoxo_nct, and he appears across NCT’s official channels, including YouTube, X (formerly Twitter), and TikTok, where his solo promotions and NCT 127 content are shared.
With WYLD released and NCT 127 expected to be active again, Taeyong’s schedule for the rest of 2026 is likely to keep him between solo and group stages.
Conclusion
From a street-cast Seoul trainee who sang the national anthem at his audition to the leader of NCT and a solo artist with a chart-topping comeback, Taeyong’s career reflects creativity, discipline, and steady ambition.
Whether fans are drawn in by his rap delivery, his songwriting, his Loewe ambassadorship, or the sheer pace of his post-military return, Taeyong continues to prove why he is one of the defining figures of NCT.
As NCT 127 and his solo career move forward together, all eyes remain on Taeyong to see what he builds next.
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