Beenzino is the stage name of South Korean rapper Lim Sung Bin (임성빈.) “Beenzino” is a play on the name of Boston rapper Benzino, combined with “빈” (pronounced “been”) from his birth name. Lim is currently signed to hip-hop label BANA (Beasts And Natives Alike), but was previously signed to Illionaire Records.

Lim was born and raised in New Zealand, where he began listening to hip-hop because of a friend. He particularly enjoyed Coolio’s “C U When U Get There” and P.Diddy. He moved to South Korea prior to middle school, where he wrote his first rap in his 6th year of elementary about social issues. He actively pursued his interest in hip-hop from a young age to combat his boredom while living in the countryside-esque Yangpyeong county.

He first gained recognition by the Korean hip-hop scene by posting recordings to the DC Tribe website in 2010, through which he was recruited by established rapper Simon Dominic. He made his first public appearance at fellow rapper Dok2’s Hustle Real Hard concert on June 5th, 2011. He later joined Illionaire after gaining their attention as a part of the group Jazzyfact with close collaborator and producer Shimmy Twice, who he met in highschool.

Following his signing to Illionaire, he released his debut studio EP, 24:26 in 2012. Despite being enrolled as a fine arts student in the prestigious Seoul National University, he released his EP Up All Night in 2014, which drew inspiration from his hectic university life. In fact, his motivation to juggle both university and rap came from one of his role models (and later, collaboraters), Verbal Jint, who was also a fine arts student and rapper. He was also a part of the duo Hotclip with Beatbox DG and the crew Illest Konfusion.

However, Beenzino truly broke into the mainstream with the song “Dali, Van, Picasso” from his 2016 EP 12. His other popular songs include his feature on Epik High’s “Born Hater”, “Aqua Man” and “Nike Shoes.”

After 6 years of silence, completing his period in the military, and getting married to longtime girlfriend Stefanie Michova, Beenzino made a comeback with the full-length album NOWITZKI, named after the iconic NBA player, in July of 2023.