Kungs
Kungs during an interview with Dance FM (Dubai, UAE) in 2018.
Kungs during an interview with Dance FM (Dubai, UAE) in 2018.
Background information
Birth nameValentin Brunel
Born (1996-12-17) 17 December 1996 (age 27)
Toulon, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • DJ
  • record producer
  • musician
Years active2015–present
LabelsHouse of Barclay
Websitekungs-music.com

Valentin Brunel (French pronunciation: [valɑ̃tɛ̃ bʁynɛl]; born 17 December 1996), better known by his stage name Kungs (/kʊŋz/), is a French DJ, record producer and musician. A native of Toulon, he released his first album Layers in 2016 after success with "This Girl", a collaboration with Cookin' on 3 Burners that became an international hit for him, and the follow-ups "Don't You Know" featuring Jamie N Commons and "I Feel So Bad" featuring Ephemerals.

Career

Valentin chose the stage name 'KUNGS' ("mister" in Latvian) after searching online for the translation of the word 'gentleman' in various languages.[1] He began playing music when he was five, playing a djembe that was a gift from his parents. He grew up listening to rock and roll classics with his father, including The Who and The Kooks. He began writing and posting online his own compositions when he was seventeen. His remixes of "Jamming" by Bob Marley and the Wailers and "West Coast" by Lana Del Rey featuring new vocals from Molly both reached several million plays on SoundCloud and YouTube. Kungs's remix of Lost Frequencies' "Are You with Me" achieved more than 16 million views on YouTube. In January 2016, he was the opener of some performances in Europe on David Guetta's Listen Tour.

Kungs released his first extended play This Girl in 2016 following his remix of Cookin' on 3 Burners "This Girl",[2] which reached number 1 in France, Germany and Switzerland and number 2 on the UK Singles Chart in 2016.[3] He has since released the single "Don't You Know" featuring Jamie N Commons and "I Feel So Bad" featuring Ephemerals. Kungs' three 2016 singles were released on his debut album Layers, which was released on 4 November.[4]

On 23 March 2018 Kungs played a live set at the Miami Ultra Music Festival. He followed acts from fellow artists Raiden and Kosuke to perform his individual set on the 2018 Ultra Main Stage.

On 22 July 2018 he performed at the electronic dance music festival Tomorrowland in Belgium.

Discography

Albums

Title Details Peak chart positions Certifications
FRA
[5] 		AUT
[6] 		CAN
[7] 		GER
[8] 		ITA
[9] 		LIT
[10] 		UK Dance
[11] 		US
[12]
Layers 10 74 33 56 — — 4 196
Club Azur
  • Released: 18 March 2022
  • Label: Island
  • Format: CD, LP, digital download
 11 — — — 33 60 — —

Singles

Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
FRA
[5] 		AUS
[15] 		AUT
[6] 		BEL (Wa)
[16] 		DEN
[17] 		GER
[8] 		ITA
[18] 		SWE
[19] 		SWI
[20] 		UK
[3]
"This Girl"
(Kungs vs. Cookin' on 3 Burners) 		2016 1 17 2 1 9 1 6 8 6 2 Layers[28]
"Don't You Know"
(featuring Jamie N Commons) 		5 — 8 15 — 16 — — 17 172
"I Feel So Bad"
(featuring Ephemerals) 		3 — — 18 — 88 — — 52 —
"You Remain"
(featuring Ritual) 		45 — — —[A] — — — — — —
"More Mess"
(featuring Olly Murs and Coely) 		2017 20 — — —[B] — — — — — — Non-album singles
"Be Right Here"
(with Stargate featuring Goldn) 		2018 15 — — —[C] — — — — — —
"Disco Night"
(with Throttle) 		— — — — — — — — — —
"Paris"[29] 2019 — — — — — — — — — — Club Azur
"Dopamine"[30]
(featuring J.Hart) 		2020 — — — —[D] — — — — — — Non-album single
"Never Going Home" 2021 5 — — 1 — 47 13 — 16 — Club Azur
"Regarde-moi" — — — — — — — — — —
"Lipstick" 148 — — 38 — — 74 — — —
"Clap Your Hands" 2022 19 — — 4 — — 22 — — —
"Substitution"
(with Purple Disco Machine)[31] 		2023 26
[32]		 — 23 6 — 18 69
[33]		 — 29 — Non-album singles
"Shadows"
(with Carlita)[35] 		— — — — — — — — — —
"Need a Hit"
(with Gero) 		— — — — — — — — — —
"All Night Long"[36]
(with David Guetta and Izzy Bizu) 		2024 118
[37]		 — — — — — — —[E] — —
"—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Promotional singles

Title Year Album
"To Describe You"
(Mozambo & Kungs featuring Molly) 		2015 Non-album singles
"We'll Meet Again"

Other charting singles

Title Year Peak chart positions Album
FRA
[5]
"Melody"
(featuring Luke Pritchard) 		2016 144
[39] 		Layers

Awards and nominations

Year Awards Category Recipient Outcome Ref
2016 NRJ Music Awards Best New DJ Kungs Nominated [40]
Best Single Dance/Electro "This Girl" Won
LOS40 Music Awards International New Act of the Year Kungs Won [41]
2017 Electronic Music Awards New Artist of the Year Kungs Nominated [42]

Notes

  1. ^ "You Remain" did not reach the region's Ultratop 50 chart, but charted at number 15 on the Ultratip Bubbling Under ranking.[16]
  2. ^ "More Mess" did not reach the region's Ultratop 50 chart, but charted at number 17 on the Ultratip Bubbling Under ranking.[16]
  3. ^ "Be Right Here" did not reach the region's Ultratop 50 chart, but charted at number six on the Ultratip Bubbling Under ranking.[16]
  4. ^ "Dopamine" did not reach the region's Ultratop 50 chart, but charted at number 36 on the Ultratip Bubbling Under ranking.[16]
  5. ^ "All Night Long" did not enter the Swedish Singellista Chart, but peaked at number 15 on the Swedish Heatseeker Chart.[38]

References

  1. ^ Claude, Gaspard (25 May 2016). "Découvrez qui se cache derrière " This girl " du clip de Kungs - UNTITLED MAGAZINE". UNTITLED MAGAZINE (in French). Retrieved 15 December 2016.
  2. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "KUNGS - This Girl (2016)". YouTube.
  3. ^ a b Peaks in the UK:
  4. ^ a b "Kungs : son premier album "Layers" sortira le 4 novembre. Découvrez la tracklist !". ChartsInFrance. 9 October 2016. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  5. ^ a b c "Discographie Kungs". French Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Discographie Kungs". Austrian Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 8 August 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  7. ^ "Kungs - Chart history (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  8. ^ a b "Discographie Kungs". German Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  9. ^ "Album – Classifica settimanale WK 15 (dal 08.04.2022 al 14.04.2022)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  10. ^ "2022 20-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 20 May 2022. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  11. ^ "UK Dance Album Chart". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  12. ^ "Kungs - Chart history (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i "French certifications – Kungs" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  14. ^ a b c d e f "Italian certifications – Kungs" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 4 October 2023. Select "Tutti gli anni" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Kungs" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Tutte le sezioni" under "Sezione".
  15. ^ "Discography Kungs". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 18 September 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  16. ^ a b c d e "Discografie Kungs". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  17. ^ "Discography Kungs". Danish Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  18. ^ "Discography Kungs". Italian FIMI Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
  19. ^ "Discography Kungs". Swedish Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  20. ^ "Discographie Kungs". Swiss Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 17 September 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  21. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  22. ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – singles 2016". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  23. ^ "British single certifications – Kungs". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 June 2022. Select singles in the Format field. Type Kungs in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  24. ^ a b c d "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Kungs)" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  25. ^ "Sverigetopplistan – Kungs" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  26. ^ a b "Gold & Platin" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  27. ^ "CERTIFICERINGER". IFPI. 24 June 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  28. ^ "Layers by Kungs on Apple Music". iTunes. 4 November 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  29. ^ "Paris – Single by Kungs on Apple Music". iTunes Store. 29 November 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
  30. ^ Williams, Isla (2 July 2020). "Kungs releases catchy dance anthem 'Dopamine'". CelebMix. Archived from the original on 9 July 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  31. ^ "Purple Disco Machine & Kungs - Substitution". mix1.de (in German). Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  32. ^ "Top Singles (Week 33, 2023)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  33. ^ "Top Singoli – Classifica settimanale WK 22" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  34. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Kungs)". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  35. ^ "KUNGS – CARLITA". The 360 Mag. 26 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  36. ^ "Kungs, David Guetta & Izzy Bizu release new anthem 'All Night Long': Listen". We Rave You. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  37. ^ "Top Singles (Week 4, 2024)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  38. ^ "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 4". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  39. ^ "Le Top de la semaine : Top Singles Téléchargés - SNEP (Week 45, 2016)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 14 November 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  40. ^ "Palmares NRJ DJ AWARDS 2016 - Meilleurs DJs". NRJ.fr (in French). Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  41. ^ "Ganadores de LOS40 Music Awards 2016". LOS40 (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
  42. ^ "Electronic Music Awards 2017 Results: Album, Single, Festival of The Year". EDM Sauce. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 24 March 2018.

External links

Kungs
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