Singer Choi Su-ho claimed the throne for the first half of 2026 with overwhelming support.
Choi Su-ho took first place in the top Gen-Z Star category in the Blue Dragon Ranking's first-half 2026 review vote, which ended on the 7th.
This half-year review was expected to be a close race, with some of the hottest stars in the industry all entering the competition. But Choi Su-ho surged ahead with a commanding 53.45% of the vote and rose to the top.
Kim Da-hyun, the 'trot fairy,' mounted a fierce late charge and finished second with 17.25% of the vote. Still, it was not enough to overcome the strong backing of Choi Su-ho's loyal fan base, Subangsasa.
With this result, Choi Su-ho once again proved himself to be a leading icon of Gen Z across generations and held the trophy of honor.
Born in 2002, Choi Su-ho is an elite traditional Korean music performer with a background in pansori.
Drawing on his solid fundamentals and distinctive powerful vocals, honed over many years, he entered the trot scene with confidence.
In 2022, he appeared on TV Chosun's 'Mr. Trot 2: The Beginning of a New Legend' and finished fifth overall, leaving a strong impression on viewers with his deep, resonant voice that contrasted with his youthful appearance.
His challenge did not stop there. Choi Su-ho went on to compete on MBN's 'King of Veteran Singers 2,' where he kept raising the bar with genre-defying performances that ranged from traditional trot to Korean-style pop songs. He finished sixth overall and, with his official debut, firmly established himself as South Korea's representative 'trot national team' member.
Choi Su-ho has continued to entertain fans this year with nonstop activity.
He kicked off the year on a high note by selling out his first solo fan meeting, 'Suho 101,' at the end of last year. In January, he made a bold transformation with the release of the title track 'Something Big Is Coming' from his second mini album, which stood out for its intense EDM sound.
Recognized for both mass appeal and musicality, he won the TOP 10 Award, a main prize, at the '2026 K-Trot Grand Awards (KTGA)' held in April.
More recently, he has been meeting fans across the country, including in Suwon, Goyang, and Daegu, through the joint national tour concert 'Fly With' with senior singer Hwanhee, further proving his unmatched ticket power.
As Choi Su-ho continues to show limitless growth on every stage and makes the first half of 2026 his own, attention is now turning to what kind of impact he will leave on the music industry next.
Meanwhile, the Blue Dragon Ranking is jointly run by Sportschosun, the organizer of the Blue Dragon Film Awards and the Blue Dragon Series Awards, and Celeb Champ. Along with monthly winners, it also selects the trendsetting stars of the moment through its semiannual awards. Trophy prizes are given to the semiannual winners, chosen every six months, in the categories of male actor, female actor, male singer, and female singer.
This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.
