LOS ANGELES — In an entertainment industry bent on categorization, Eric Nam finds an audience in fluidity. A decade into his career, he’s still a challenge to describe: Do you label him a pop star? Or a K-pop idol? Is there a difference? Is he an actor? A singer-songwriter? An interviewer? A television personality? A mental health activist? Korean American, or Korean and American?
Nam was born and raised in Georgia, studied at Boston College, and got a job in New York City before heading to Seoul, South Korea, where he started his music career in his early 20s. He eventually found fame in the Korean major label system, was named GQ Korea’s “Man of the Year” and was featured on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Asia list.
But making it in the U.S. was always part of his goal. It’s not an uncommon journey for Korean Americans who see few opportunities to break into the entertainment business stateside — but after finding success in South Korea, he returned home years later to establish his name in the country where he was raised.
“I had a very confused upbringing when it comes to my identity,” Nam, now 34, says. “And so, so much of my life has been trying to figure (it) out.” But life is a journey for everyone, he theorizes, and that’s why he’s been welcomed by his loyal fans. Now he sees his multicultural identity as “a superpower,” and “not a hindrance.”
His latest full-length release, “House on a Hill,” what can be viewed as Nam’s third-English language album (that, too, is a challenge to define — “LPs, EPs, mini-albums, whatever we call them, do they have much of a significance the way they used to?” he ponders aloud), centers on what he has labeled “an existential crisis.”