BLOO, real name Kim Hyeon Wung, was born in October 12nd, 1994 in Seoul where he grew up for a while until his family decided to settle in Los Angeles, California.

Enriched through this cultural mix, it’s clear that this environment change has been decisive for his career. First for the influences there, HipHop is born in the US and rappers like Biggie, Tupac…  are often references for the rapper who grew up in America. But also because it’s probably in L.A that the young Kim Hyeon Wung met some of the people who contributed to make him the BLOO we know today.

A start with the collective Young Creation and then with the 42Crew 

His passion for rap, Bloo first fueled it with the members of the crew Young Creation, at the time under the stage name Daniel Prynne. The crew happened a little bit by chance, some young people from the same neighborhood who decided to take a step further into their passion for rap by creating a crew. Thanks to the collective MD Fam and especially the group Souleaf, the crew started to get known in the underground. However, this growing ascension halted because EK (not EK from MBA), the leader of Young Creation, had to move. From this period, you can still find his mixtape 808 released in August 2013. He’s in duo with Young G on 3 tracks. This project is rather interesting by the way since BLOO showed a side his current public might not be used to. An asserted West Coast Gangsta Rap sonority. As a Young Creation member, he’s also present on 2 mixtapes of the collective: Made in Cali and Munchies respectively released in May and November 2013. Holic also invited him for his mixtape PARALLEL released in October 2014, on the track Molotov. 

Nevertheless, like four former members of the crew, BLOO lived in the neighborhood of “La Crescenta”. Therefore, over 2014 they decided to create their own collective: the 42Crew obviously made of BLOO (still known under the stage name Daniel Prynne), but also AP, Young West, Neil, the Forehead and Nafla. Besides the crew’s mixtape Life is 42 released in 2014 as well; on July 1st, 2015 BLOO released his first MV and project to get a public recognition FRESH AS F.  On November 15th, followed the MV 7 gold chains which is as successful. 

2 days later, that is to say on November 17th, the producer Louis Maui, also released the mixtape Highway to the Otherworld. BLOO took part on the track Highway Drivin alongside Young West and Nafla.

Mkit Rain, a significant step

Things took another turn thanks to Loopy’s influence. It seems that BLOO met him through Nafla who introduced Loopy to his 42Crew friends. 

At that time, Loopy was in a decisive step in his career. Under the haters’ pressure, he was thinking about stopping rap but had also paradoxically the ambitious idea to found his own label. And it seems that BLOO was facing a similar problem. Therefore if it wasn’t for Mkit Rain, Loopy and BLOO might have stopped their career on the Hip-Hop scene. Consequence, on January 22nd, 2016, they launched Mkit rain publicly with the track Come Thru and with Loopy, BLOO and Nafla as first members. They decided to go back together to South Korea around November 2015. 

It seems that it’s around the same time that Daniel Prynne became BLOO. 

That same year, on June 18th, BLOO unveiled his first mixtape Tony, with once again good feedback from his audience. If this mixtape is only made of 6 tracks, the project is yet still very thorough. As might be expected from a rapper who grew up in California, the tracks Bad Boy Intro or 7 Gold Chain are rather on egotrip with a West Coast vibe. However, the other tracks of the project are rather tinged with nocturnal sonorities. The instrumentals are light and the strong Jazz Influence really brings a more intimate side to this almost melancholic project. The rapper talked about his dreams, his insecurities, he talked about his parents but also about fading relationships, all of this with a surprising mix of sensitivity and detachment.    

« « Smoking, Drinking, Talking with my friends; Empty that glass, wipe the dust off my heart as well »

– Smoking

Two months later, in August 12nd, Mkit Rain released the track Weathermen and its MV with this time the addition of Owen Ovadoz that Bloo already knew for a while.

Later, BLOO went on tour with Mkit Rain, first in Daegu on October 30th for the BAD BAD GOOD GOOD tour. Young West officially joined the label that same day by the way. And then they went to China for two dates in November for the MONEY SHOWER tour. 

2017: collaboration with neonblue and mini album with Downtown Baby

BLOO started 2017 with, in February, the single Better and in June the M/V Hennessy which only contributed to consolidate his popularity. 

If there is not that much activity from Mkit Rain that year in terms of releases, BLOO is nonetheless present in October on Nafla’s album Angels for the track loosies. Earlier that year, in September, he collaborated with SLEEPY for So What MV as well, also featuring Liquor k.jr. But he also worked with Rico for the track Don’t talk to me from his EP Panorama. 

In August, with niahn they released the EP Henny & Jamie with the MV You and I under the name neonblue. There is a strong Cloud Rap influence in this project which only confirmed BLOO’s appeal for nocturnal atmospheres. 

However, with his mini-album Downtown Baby released on December 7th, 2017 BLOO kind of contradicted this? For this mini-album, the artist left his usual muted beats for more acoustic sonorities. The acoustic guitar is everywhere in Downtown Baby. In some interviews, he explained that he wanted to give a try to instrumental rap. Therefore, the rapper’s flow is also more languishing and Break-Up seems to be the main theme of this project. 

2018: A comeback to nocturnal atmospheres

Downtown Baby might be an exception because Bloo went back for his usual sonorities in 2018 with on April 30th, the single Drink Slow Henny which is more on a Trap beat, followed on June 18th, by the MV So Rude. 

One month later, on July 18th, neonblue made a comeback with the MV BJ, still on a Cloud Rap vibe. He’s also present on 12 out of 14 tracks of Mkit Rain’s album Public Enemy released on May 31st, 2018. Including the MV Don’t Move released earlier in February

Still within Mkit Rain, with AP they also collaborated to the track NAME from Loopy’s album QUESTIONS. 

Finally, BLOO ended 2018 with the mini-album BLOO IN WONDERLAND released on November 19th and accompanied by an MV for the track I’m the one directed by DANTAYSPEAK. This project is made of 5 tracks, all produced by BIG BANANA including the track Take me featuring Nafla released earlier in September. You can also hear niahn on two tracks: GG and Hope (바래).    

As for the atmosphere of this mini-album, with BLOO IN WONDERLAND the artist went back to a more nocturnal vibe and left acoustic for a more Trap sonority. There is still a rock influence though, but differently. You can hear drum or electric guitar samples, especially on Take me, lightly on Hope (바래) but also on I’m the one inspired by the structure you can commonly hear on Pop/Rock tracks. 

On the other hand, BLOO IN WONDERLAND theme is in keeping with his previous album. The artist talks about break-up, the difficulty to move on like on GG, Hope (바래), or even Take me, a track in which he depicts a more than confusing reality. On the other side of the spectrum, I’m the one relate the story of a passionate relationship, while I wish is about the inner-conflict caused by starting to have feelings for someone who is already in a relationship.

More generally, if several aspects and status of the relationship are shown in this album, there is still a common and prevailing theme in this project: a consuming passion, just like an addiction. 

2019: an Emo Rap influence which keeps on getting stronger

In February, niahn invited him on Extape for the track Runaway. The atmosphere of this track his both dark and hazy, and there are several references to the recreational use of Xanax, an anxiolytic commonly used as a drug by the rappers, especially in the US. 

A month later, he was present on ASH ISLAND’s first album ASH for the track Forgot U.  

In May, BLOO also took part in the OST of the drama Voice 3, more precisely on the track Close Your Eyes.   

Beginning August, BLOO also released the MV for boyfromthemoon with this time a light autotune effect. This track is a pre-release from his EP It’s not Love I’m just Drunk released on September 25th. In this project, BLOO’s vocals are especially raw, there is still this light alternative rock influence. You can also hear niahn on the track You should STOP. 

He ended 2019 with Candle a joined track released with the rapper Xbf. 

2020: A year full of collaborations. 

So far, in 2020 he was only present on collaborations. 

In March with Han Yo Han for the track A Croner Seat from the album Spirit Bomb. But VIINI also invited him on his double single Moon & Butterfly for the track Love the Moon also featuring LEE SUHYUN.

A month later, in April, he took part to Loopy’s album NO FEAR for the track MONEY TASTE. 

A thorough rapper

Besides the old school rappers he took inspiration from when he was young, Bloo explained in some interview that artists like Kanye West or A$AP ROCKY inspired him a lot. A common point between those two rappers being their visual taste and their involvement in fashion.

BLOO also share this appeal. He tends to refer to designer houses a lot and doesn’t hide his taste for shopping.

This passion is so strong that he would assist Mkit Rain art directors for all the reflection about the crew’s visual identity. He would advise the group for questions about style and fashion but also help them with the way to act on stage, what type of gestures to have. 

But BLOO is also thorough when it comes to music. more than a genre, for him, Hip-Hop is a culture. Therefore, he strives to release tracks with real meaning, songs with a part of himself which will captivate the audience.

Now we can only wait to see what’s going to be BLOO’s next move!

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