The year he turned 5, he debuted as a child advertising model. In 1997, he appeared in HBS’s Selling Happiness. In 2001, he appeared as a child actor in Ladies of the Palace and other shows. In 2003, he played a medical student in MBC’s sitcom Nonstop 4.
The breakthrough yearThe year he turned 17, he became the sole DJ of SBS Power FM’s Young Street. Yonhap News Agency wrote that he set the record as the youngest DJ, and that December he also began hosting a live show on YTN STAR.
In 2006, he played Hwang Jini’s first love, Eun-ho, in KBS2’s Hwang Jini. In 2007, he played a band vocalist in the film The Happy Life. In 2008, he appeared in Hong Gil-dong and Beethoven Virus. He won Best New Actor (film) at the Baeksang Arts Awards, Best New Actor at the MBC Drama Awards and the Popularity Award, Actor at the KBS Drama Awards.
In 2009, he played Hwang Tae-kyung in SBS’s You’re Beautiful. Seoul Shinmun wrote the next January that he rose to stardom through this drama and Beethoven Virus, among others, and he received the Top 10 Stars Award and Netizen Best Popularity Award at that year’s SBS Drama Awards.
In 2010, he won Most Popular Actor (film) at the Baeksang Arts Awards. In 2011, he held a solo concert at Tokyo Dome in Japan, selling out about 45,000 seats. In 2012, he played the male lead opposite Yoona in KBS2’s Love Rain, and Japanese fans gave him a bus for the 20th anniversary of his debut. In 2013, he held the Jikjin Festival in Japan, drawing about 80,000 people in all, and in November KBS2’s Bel Ami began.
In 2016, he played Dae-gil in SBS’s The Royal Gambler. In July 2018, he began alternative service as a social service agent. In May 2020, he was discharged from it.
In 2023, he appeared in Coupang Play’s Decoy and opened the YouTube channel I Am Jang Keun-suk. In 2024, he appeared as a participant in Netflix’s The Influencer. In 2025, he spoke on MBC’s Radio Star about the discovery of his thyroid cancer. In 2026, he appeared as a judge on ENA’s directors’ survival show Director’s Arena.
Jang Keun-suk (born Aug 4, 1987) debuted as a child advertising model in 1992, the year he turned 5, and became known when he became the sole DJ of SBS Power FM’s Young Street on May 3, 2004, the year he turned 17. He played Hwang Tae-kyung in SBS’s You’re Beautiful in 2009, the year he turned 22, and held a solo concert at Tokyo Dome in Japan in 2011, the year he turned 24.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.