Samuel Kim: Solo Artist Profile, Music, History and Current Career

Samuel Kim Arredondo — American solo singer, dancer and creative director, born January 17, 2002; current through the 2026 SAMUELiTO EP.

Profile

Stage name	Samuel / 사무엘
Birth name	Samuel Kim Arredondo
Born	January 17, 2002
Nationality	American
Work	Singer, dancer and creative director
Former act	1PUNCH
Solo debut	Sixteen (2017)
Current status	Active solo artist through Samuel Music Group

Bottom line

Samuel Kim Arredondo, professionally known as Samuel, is an American singer and dancer based in South Korea. Born January 17, 2002, he moved through Seventeen’s pre-debut orbit, the duo 1PUNCH, Produce 101 Season 2 and a teenage solo debut before taking direct creative control through Samuel Music Group.

He is not Samuel/Lee Chanhee of WAYF BOYS. The shared stage name is a collision, not a relationship. This page uses the unambiguous slug “samuel-kim-solo-artist” so neither person inherits the other’s cards, biography or images.

A childhood career needs adult revision

Samuel entered entertainment young enough that several public identities were chosen before he could reasonably control the whole frame. A current profile has to record that history without trapping a twenty-four-year-old artist inside “former child star” as a permanent genre.

The question is not whether the younger work disappears. It is who gets to decide what the name means now.

Pre-debut training and the Seventeen connection

Samuel trained under Pledis and appeared in the pre-debut environment that preceded Seventeen’s final lineup. He did not debut as a Seventeen member.

That distinction matters. A near-debut can explain training and relationships without turning him into a former member of a group he never formally joined.

1PUNCH and Punch

He debuted in 2015 as Punch in the duo 1PUNCH, then continued related collaboration work including “Spotlight” with Silentó.

The chapter established recording and performance experience, but a very young debut under a temporary name should not own the adult artist forever.

Produce 101 Season 2

Samuel competed as a Brave Entertainment trainee in 2017 and finished outside Wanna One despite entering the finale conversation with years of visible training behind him.

The result became one of the season’s defining frustrations for many viewers, but a profile should not convert disappointment into conspiracy without evidence. The career after the show is the stronger answer.

Sixteen and the solo debut

His 2017 mini album Sixteen made his age part of the title and placed him into a bright, highly choreographed solo route. Later releases including Eye Candy, One and Teenager expanded the catalog while he was still being marketed through youth itself.

The performances remain valid work. The branding also shows why an adult creative reset eventually became necessary.

The Brave Entertainment dispute

Samuel’s activities entered a long legal conflict after he sought to end his contract. Courts ultimately recognized the termination, clearing the route for independent management.

This page records the outcome without pretending a contract lawsuit is a fun character-building montage. Years of interrupted momentum have material career cost.

Samuel Music Group

The current official operation presents Samuel Management and Entertainment Music Group as the home of his work. That structure gives him greater control over album direction, video direction and the public framing of the name.

Independence is not the absence of collaborators. It is a clearer line of decision-making and responsibility.

NOW and the 2024 return

The 2024 EP NOW marked a Korean music return and included “YEH! YEH!,” “Tell Me,” “Shawty,” “2 Tone Rose Gold” and “Who We R.”

The title announces presence without asking the audience to pretend the missing years did not happen. Return becomes current action rather than nostalgia for the teenager who left.

YEH! YEH! is directed identity

Samuel co-directed the official video with Anthony King and directed the album. The track uses bright rhythm, dance and relaxed confidence as evidence of adult authorship rather than another company’s guess about what youth should look like.

The playlist carries Warner Music Korea upload yHoEq5b6dio. Samuel’s own channel has a separate upload, so this audit does not merge them.

Two uploads are not one file

The Samuel Official upload and Warner Music Korea upload share the music video but have different YouTube IDs, provenance and audience records.

The exact playlist URL receives its own React, local frame and official player. Another upload may receive a separate route if it appears in the playlist later.

ROCKSTAR in 2025

“ROCKSTAR” extended the self-directed period in 2025 and kept the focus on performance confidence that no longer required a teenage qualifier.

A current profile follows the work after the comeback rather than treating NOW as a one-time return headline.

Current status: SAMUELiTO through June 2026

Samuel released the four-track SAMUELiTO EP on June 8, 2026, including “ZIGI-ZIGI-ZIGI,” “DDOOK DDAK” and “NEVER SAY GOODBYE…”

The profile hero uses the current official ZIGI-ZIGI-ZIGI video. It does not reuse the exact 2024 React image.

Names collide, people do not

Samuel Kim, Sam Kim the Korean-American singer-songwriter, Samuel Kim the soundtrack arranger and Samuel of WAYF BOYS are separate people. Search systems routinely blend them when pages use only “Samuel.”

Canonical slugs, birth information, current organization and source URLs prevent the site from repeating that mistake.

RaeRae take

Samuel’s most interesting comeback choice was refusing to spend every second proving the industry had wronged him. “YEH! YEH!” moves, smiles and claims the present while creative credits quietly establish who is steering.

Joy can be reclamation. It does not need a courtroom monologue in the bridge.

Image and archive standard

This profile uses a unique real 2026 official-video frame stored locally with complete source, alt, caption, description and SEO metadata.

The React owns a separate frame from exact ID yHoEq5b6dio. WAYF BOYS Samuel keeps his own unrelated image.

What to follow next

Use Samuel Music Group and Samuel Official for current releases and credits. Use original program and label records for early history.

When a source says only “Samuel,” confirm the person before attaching anything.