Chenle

Chenle, born Zhong Chenle (鐘辰乐) on November 22, 2001, in Shanghai, China, is a Chinese singer, dancer and former child star who serves as the main vocalist of the South Korean boy group NCT, its sub-unit NCT Dream, and the rotational project group NCT U. Long before he ever set foot in a K-pop training room, Chenle was already a working performer back home in China.

Early Life and Child Star Career

Chenle grew up in a musical household and began performing in public while still a young child. At just nine years old, he became the youngest soloist to ever perform at the famed Golden Hall of the Vienna Musikverein, singing the song “Memory” from the musical Cats. That same year he also appeared on China’s Got Talent. Before he ever thought about becoming a K-pop idol, Chenle had already released three albums as a child artist: Tomorrow (2010), My Wing (2011) and the concert record You Are There (2014). He trained in vocals and dance at the Shanghai Ying Siu Sing School and studied further at the Beijing Contemporary Music School.

Joining SM Entertainment and Debut with NCT Dream

In 2016, Chenle signed with SM Entertainment and relocated to South Korea, debuting only about two months after starting his training — an unusually short trainee period even by K-pop standards. He officially debuted on August 24, 2016, as part of the seven-member lineup of NCT Dream with the digital single “Chewing Gum,” becoming, alongside labelmate Jisung, one of the group’s two youngest members. Notably, Chenle and Jisung had actually met years earlier, both appearing on the same Chinese children’s program in 2013, long before either of them imagined debuting together.

Growth as NCT Dream’s Main Vocalist

As NCT Dream evolved from a rotating, age-based “graduation” unit into a fixed seven-member (now six-member) group in 2020, Chenle cemented his position as the group’s main vocalist, known for his clear, powerful high notes. He has been part of every major NCT Dream era since, including Hot Sauce (2021), Glitch Mode (2022), ISTJ (2023), Dreamscape (2024) and Go Back to the Future (2025), and he regularly rotates into NCT U line-ups for special project releases.

Solo Ventures and Personal Milestones

Over a decade after his early Chinese-market recordings, Chenle returned to the solo spotlight with his first Chinese special EP, Lucid (灿), released on May 5, 2025, which topped the QQ Music digital album chart. He also lent his voice to self-produced NCT Lab tracks such as “Marine Turtle” (2023) and to soundtrack work in China. Outside of music, Chenle is known for his playful, upbeat personality, his love of cooking and football, and his close on-screen friendship with fellow member Jisung, with whom he has hosted the official content series “Chenle & Jisung’s This and That.”