The year he turned 21, after military discharge, he worked at a call center and an auto parts factory. Music was a hobby. That year he auditioned for Mnet’s Superstar K3 but was cut from the broadcast.
The year he turned 23, he released his first EP, Jackasoul, under the name Mayson the Soul. In 2014 he released four singles. In 2015 he released his first full-length album, Photographer.
In 2016 he changed his stage name to Car, the Garden, a name given by Oh Hyuk of Hyukoh. In 2017 he released the album Apartment. In the winter of 2018 he went on SBS’s The Fan on the recommendation of the singer Jang Hye-jin.
The breakthrough yearThe year he turned 29, in February, he won The Fan, about 5 years 4 months after his first EP. He released the album C later that year.
In 2020 he released the single “31.” In 2021 he released the EP Absence. In 2022 he sang the national anthem at the Korean Series, where the broadcast captioned him with another group’s name. In 2023 he released the album Harmony.
In 2024 he opened the YouTube channel “Car the Jungwon.” In 2025 he changed agencies and appeared as a host on Netflix’s Better Late Than Single and in Coupang Play’s Office Workers.
The year he turned 36, “My Whole World,” released five years earlier, reached No. 1 on Melon TOP 100.
Car, the Garden (born Oct 23, 1990, birth name Cha Jung-won) debuted with his first EP, Jackasoul, on Sep 30, 2013, the year he turned 23, and became known when he won SBS’s The Fan on Feb 9, 2019, the year he turned 29. It took about 5 years 4 months from his debut to that win.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.
After military discharge he worked at a call center and an auto parts factory. Music was a hobby.
Source 01 · Kyunghyang Shinmun (Korean) · Interview with Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabHe entered under his birth name, Cha Jung-won. He was cut from the broadcast and appears for about two seconds in episode 5.
Source 16 · Namuwiki (Korean) · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tab Based on Namuwiki and not cross-checked in news reports. The date is when Super Week aired.His debut EP, released under the stage name Mayson the Soul.
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabHis first single after the debut EP. He released four singles that year, with “Gray” in June, “6 to 9” in August and “Pretty Woman” in December.
Source 05 · Namuwiki (Korean) · Car, the Garden / Discography · opens in a new tabSource 17 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tab Release dates are from Namuwiki and Wikipedia and not cross-checked in news reports.His only full-length album under the name Mayson the Soul.
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabHis first release after changing his stage name. The new name is an English rendering of his birth name, Cha Jung-won, given by Oh Hyuk of Hyukoh.
Source 04 · Segye Ilbo (Korean) · How his stage name changed · opens in a new tabSource 05 · Namuwiki (Korean) · Car, the Garden / Discography · opens in a new tabHis first full-length album as Car, the Garden. It includes “Home Sweet Home.”
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabHe appeared on the recommendation of the singer Jang Hye-jin. Two months later he won the final.
Source 18 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Stage with Jang Hye-jin on The Fan · opens in a new tabSource 16 · Namuwiki (Korean) · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tab The first appearance date is based on Namuwiki and not cross-checked in news reports.He won SBS’s music competition The Fan, about 5 years 4 months after his first EP.
The single came out two months after his win on The Fan.
Source 03 · Star Today (Korean) · New single “Tree” released · opens in a new tabReleased on his birthday.
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabHis first new song in about nine months since the album C.
Source 19 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Single “31” released · opens in a new tabIts track “My Whole World” reaches No. 1 on a chart five years later.
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabThe MBC broadcast captioned him as the a cappella group “Maytree.” He wrote on social media that people could now do as they liked.
Source 06 · Sports Kyunghyang (Korean) · Caption in the Korean Series broadcast · opens in a new tabThe EP came out six days after the caption mix-up.
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabIt came about 10 years after his first EP.
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabThe channel is closer to variety than to music. By September that year it neared 500,000 subscribers.
Source 07 · Ilgan Sports (Korean) · YouTube channel “Car the Jungwon” · opens in a new tabHe left Duru Duru Artist Company, where he had been for 10 years, and moved to a new agency.
Source 08 · Marie Claire Korea (Korean) · Joining CAM with Us · opens in a new tab The date is when the contract was reported.He plays an employee under his birth name, Cha Jung-won. He also appeared in season 3, released in August 2026.
Source 09 · Coupang Newsroom (Korean) · Office Workers first released · opens in a new tabSource 10 · Coupang Newsroom (Korean) · Office Workers season 3 · opens in a new tabA six-track EP made with O3ohn.
Source 02 · Wikipedia · Car, the Garden · opens in a new tabSource 05 · Namuwiki (Korean) · Car, the Garden / Discography · opens in a new tabHe hosted with Seo In-guk, Kang Han-na and Lee Eun-ji.
Source 11 · Hankook Ilbo (Korean) · Better Late Than Single · opens in a new tabAfter criticism of his singing, he watched the clip himself on a social media live broadcast and apologized for not being professional.
Source 12 · Sports Kyunghyang (Korean) · His response to the live-singing controversy · opens in a new tabThe title track is “LOVERS.” He held a solo concert of the same name at Olympic Hall in Olympic Park on Jan. 17–18 the next year.
Source 13 · Rolling Stone Korea (Korean) · EP Blue Heart · opens in a new tabSource 14 · Sports Kyunghyang (Korean) · Solo concert BLUE HEART · opens in a new tabThe song is from his 2021 EP Absence. After it was used in TVING’s EXchange 4, it reached No. 1 five years after its release.
Source 15 · YTN (Korean) · “My Whole World” at No. 1 · opens in a new tabEND OF SELECTED RECORDSSelected records, 2011–2026 · not a complete list of work. “Key moment” is an editorial label, not a measure of success.
What did they do, and at what age?
AgeTrail lines up the key moments of a life by age.
Debut and breakthrough are marked separately, and every record has a source.
Music · South Korea
Oct 23, 1990 —
Ages are counted from the birth year 1990: the year of the event minus 1990, birthdays aside. “Key moment” labels and the connecting story are AgeTrail's editorial reading.
Fact-checked: 2026.09.21 · An independent archive, not affiliated with the person or their agency.