Singer-songwriter BIG Naughty (Seo Dong-hyun) has announced plans to marry his first love, whom he has held in his heart for more than a decade. His partner is known as the subject of his signature songs “Vancouver” and “Vancouver 2.”
Born in 2003, BIG Naughty announced the news himself on October 14 in a group chat where he communicates with fans. The announcement also drew attention because it came about a month after he began serving as a social service worker on September 10.
He shared the marriage news with fans first
Reaching out to fans for the first time in a while, BIG Naughty greeted them with a reminder to watch out for colds as the weather turned chilly. He then said he had news he wanted to share with them before others found out and told them about his plans to marry.
He said he had decided to spend his life with the person who appears in several of his songs, including “Vancouver” and “Vancouver 2,” and thanked fans for listening to his music and supporting him over the years.
The announcement has drawn attention because the story of his first love, long familiar to listeners through BIG Naughty’s music, has led to an actual promise of marriage.
Vancouver (2022) — Longing for a first love
Released in 2022, “Vancouver” appears on BIG Naughty’s EP “Romance.” The song candidly expresses his longing for a first love far away and his difficulty telling that person how he feels.
In the song, he confesses that whatever lyrics he tries to write, he ends up writing about that person. The lyrics move through vivid scenes: thinking about the time difference between Seoul and Vancouver, and typing out a message in longing only to delete it.
The lyrics also say that he hoped the person would hear his music and that he wanted to get to them in Vancouver somehow. These lines became a key expression of BIG Naughty’s years of unrequited love.
When the song was released, it was known as a song about love that had not been returned. After BIG Naughty revealed that the person he had loved from afar for years had become his partner, “Vancouver” drew even more attention as a signature song telling his personal love story.
Vancouver 2 (2023) — From longing to a promise for the future
Released on September 19, 2023, “Vancouver 2” continues the earlier song’s story. Unlike the first song, which centered on longing, it conveys the happiness of a love that has been returned and hopes for a future together.
Before its release, BIG Naughty said at a performance that someone had inspired him. He explained that while he had written “Vancouver” from a place of sadness, he had put happy feelings into “Vancouver 2.”
The lyrics express his wish to support his partner’s dreams and live together in a home overlooking the sea. They go on to say that he would gladly spend his youth by that person’s side.
The line “The ring finger on my left hand saves me” is worth revisiting in light of the marriage announcement. The surrounding lyrics, about a date not yet set and a promise that will not change, also bring the couple’s future to mind.
Later in the song, he mentions the spring of 2011 and tells how a long friendship became love. It is another glimpse of how their relationship changed from the longing for a first love portrayed in the earlier song.
In an introduction to the album at the time, BIG Naughty said that, for the first time, he had come to sing about two people in love rather than unrequited love. He closed his thoughts with the short sentence, “First love does work out!”
A lifelong promise to the first love in his music
BIG Naughty first became known through Mnet’s “Show Me the Money” in 2019. Since then, he has expressed his experiences and emotions through music, releasing songs including “Beyond Love,” “Romance Symphony” and “Vancouver.”
In his marriage announcement, he thanked fans who had listened to his songs over the years, saying their support had made it possible for those songs to reach the world. He also said he would return as a more mature person.
The story of his first love, which began with “Vancouver” in 2022 and continued with “Vancouver 2” in 2023, is drawing renewed attention following his 2026 marriage announcement. A specific wedding date has not yet been disclosed.
