Kang Ji-hyun (born February 12, 1992), known professionally as Soyou, is a South Korean singer. She is best known as a former member of the South Korean girl group
Sistar
Sistar (, often stylized as SISTAR) was a South Korean girl group formed in 2010 by Starship Entertainment. The group consisted of Hyolyn, Bora, Soyou and Dasom. They made their official debut with the song " Push Push" on 3 June 2010. Their ...
.
Life and career
1992–2010: Early life and career beginnings
Soyou was born on February 12, 1992,
in
Jeju Island, South Korea. Before debuting, she was a licensed hairdresser and worked in a hair salon. Soyou was known as a
Cube Entertainment
Cube Entertainment Inc. () is a South Korean entertainment company. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management and concert production company, and music publishing house. Cube are known for h ...
trainee, who was originally supposed to debut as a member of
4Minute
4Minute (, often stylized as 4MINUTE) was a South Korean girl group formed in 2009 by Cube Entertainment. The members of the group were Son Ji-hyun, Nam Ji-hyun, Heo Ga-yoon, Jeon Ji-yoon, Hyuna, Kim Hyuna and Kwon So-hyun. The group was known ...
. Soyou has said that she didn't make it into the group because she was lacking in many ways and was originally supposed to be in
Sohyun's place. Instead, Soyou auditioned for
Starship Entertainment
Starship Entertainment () is a South Korean entertainment company founded in 2008 and became an independent subsidiary of Kakao Entertainment in 2013.
They had been recognized for their contributions to the Hallyu Wave, being home to several ...
, singing a cover of Navi's "On The Road", and after her traineeship, she debuted as a member of
Sistar
Sistar (, often stylized as SISTAR) was a South Korean girl group formed in 2010 by Starship Entertainment. The group consisted of Hyolyn, Bora, Soyou and Dasom. They made their official debut with the song " Push Push" on 3 June 2010. Their ...
in June 2010. The group gained significant popularity after the release of their hit single "So Cool" in 2011.
2010–2017: Original soundtracks, collaborations and Sistar disbandment
In August 2010, Soyou collaborated with Kan Jongwoo of J2 for the soundtrack for the drama ''Gloria''. In September, she also sang a soundtrack for
MBC's drama ''
Playful Kiss
''Playful Kiss'' (; (also known as ''Mischievous Kiss'' or ''Naughty Kiss'') is a 2010 South Korean romantic-comedy television series, starring Jung So-min and Kim Hyun-joong. It aired on MBC from September 1 to October 21, 2010 on Wednesdays ...
''. The song is titled "Should I Confess".
In November 2012, Soyou sang a duet with hip-hop duo Geeks. The song "Officially Missing You, Too" is a remake of Tamia's song of the same title. It is a part of Geeks' project album, ''Re;Code Episode 1''. She also collaborated with fellow label mates,
K.Will
Kim Hyung-soo (; born December 30, 1981), better known by his stage name K.Will (), is a South Korean singer. The name is a combination of the first letter 'K' of his last name 'Kim' and the English word 'Will', which means will. He debuted in ...
and
Boyfriend
A boyfriend is a male friend or acquaintance, often specifying a regular male companion with whom a person is romantically or sexually involved.
A boyfriend can also be called an admirer, beau, suitor and sweetheart. The analogous female ...
's Jeongmin, for Starship Planet's yearly holiday release, titled "White Love".
In September 2013, it was revealed that Soyou and
Mad Clown
Jo Dong-rim ( ko, 조동림; born March 25, 1985), better known by the stage name Mad Clown ( ko, 매드클라운), is a South Korean rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He debuted with the single "Luv Sickness" in 2008 and released his fi ...
would release a duet called "
Stupid in Love" on the 10th.
In February 2014, Soyou and
Junggigo
Go Jung-gi (born September 5, 1980), better known by his stage name Junggigo, is a South Korean singer.
Discography
Studio albums
Tribute albums
Extended plays
Singles as lead artist
Collaborative singles
Soundtrack appearanc ...
released a duet called "
Some
Some may refer to:
*''some'', an English word used as a determiner and pronoun; see use of ''some''
*The term associated with the existential quantifier
*"Some", a song by Built to Spill from their 1994 album ''There's Nothing Wrong with Love''
*S ...
".
In January 2015, it was revealed that Soyou, together with
Lee Honey and Kim Jungmin, would be the new MCs of beauty tip program ''Get It Beauty''. The new MCs' first episode aired on February 4, 2015.
In February 2017, Soyou and
Baekhyun
Byun Baek-hyun (; born May 6, 1992), better known mononymously as Baekhyun, is a South Korean singer, songwriter and actor. Baekhyun began training under SM Entertainment in 2011. A few months later, he made his debut in 2012 as a member of the ...
released a duet called "
Rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...
".
In May 2017, Sistar released their last single "Lonely". The group performed their most successful summer hits – "Touch My Body", "Shake It", "Loving U", "I Swear" and also their last song "Lonely" on four major music shows, before concluding the schedule on ''
Inkigayo
''Inkigayo'' ( ko, 인기가요; English title: ''The Music Trend'', previously ''Popular Song'') is a South Korean music program broadcast by SBS. It airs live every Sunday. The show features some of the latest and most popular artists who p ...
'' on June 4, 2017 and officially disbanding.
In August 2017, Soyou was featured as the vocalist on Primary's song "Right?".
2017–present: Solo debut
After Sistar disbanded in June 2017, Soyou debuted her solo career under Starship Entertainment. She was featured on K.Will's fourth album ''Part.1 Nonfiction,'' for the B-side track titled "Let Me Hear You Say", released on September 26. She released a collaboration track titled "Monitor Girl" with Geeks' Louie on October 26, it was their second collaboration since "Officially Missing You, Too" in 2012. On November 16, Soyou released "I Still" with
Sung Si-kyung as pre-release track for her upcoming solo album. On November 28, Soyou was confirmed to become an MC for a new beauty program of JTBC titled SoyouXHani's Beauty View, which began airing on December 28. On December 13, Soyou released the first part of her solo album titled ''Re:Born'' with the single "The Night" featuring rapper duo
Geeks
The word ''geek'' is a slang term originally used to describe eccentric or non-mainstream people; in current use, the word typically connotes an expert or enthusiast obsessed with a hobby or intellectual pursuit. In the past, it had a generall ...
and produced by Primary.
A year and nine months after her last release, Soyou released "Gotta Go" on June 28, 2020. The song is a reggaeton, dance hall style song and was accompanied by a music video, released through Starship Entertainment's YouTube channel.
After eight months, Starship Entertainment announced that Soyou is gearing up for her next comeback on March 11, 2021. Soyou's new single "Good Night My Love" was reportedly written by
Lee Hyori
Lee Hyo-ri (; born May 10, 1979) is a South Korean singer, record producer, activist, actress and television presenter. Dubbed as the "Nation's Fairy" during her ''Family Outing'' days, she debuted as a member of South Korean girl group Fin.K.L ...
and composed by
Babylon
''Bābili(m)''
* sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠
* arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel''
* syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel''
* grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn''
* he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel''
* peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru''
* elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...
.
On September 8, Soyou decided not to renew her contract with Starship Entertainment. Later on September 29, Soyou signed with
BPM Entertainment
BPM Entertainment (), also known as Big Planet Made, is a South Korean entertainment company established in 2021. The company is best known as the home to the trio Viviz, solo artists Soyou, Huh Gak, Ha Sung-woon, Lee Mu-jin, Be'O, Mighty Mouth ...
.
On March 1, 2022, BPM Entertainment announced Soyou will hold her first solo concert 'THE LIVE: NIGHT' on April 2 and 3. On April 27, 2022, Soyou released her third EP, ''Day & Night'', with the lead single "Business", featuring
Be'O
Yoo Chan-wook (; born April 27, 2000), known professionally as Be'O (; stylized in all caps), is a South Korean rapper and songwriter. He first garnered attention when he appeared on the rap competition TV show ''Show Me the Money 10'' in 2021.
...
.
Philanthropy
On November 21, 2022, Soyou donated a total of twenty million won in scholarships to twenty underprivileged university students in Seoul through the
Korean Red Cross
The Republic of Korea National Red Cross (more commonly known as the Korean Red Cross) is a humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and education inside South Korea. It is the designated South Korean aff ...
Society for which Soyou acts as a public relations ambassador.
Discography
Extended plays
Singles
As lead artist
As featured artist
Collaboration singles
Soundtrack appearances
Filmography
Television shows
Web shows
Videography
Music videos
Concert and tours
Concert
Awards and nominations
Notes
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Sistar members
Starship Entertainment artists
BPM Entertainment artists
1992 births
Living people
People from Jeju Province
South Korean female idols
South Korean women pop singers
South Korean television personalities
Korean Music Award winners
Melon Music Award winners
Sungshin Women's University alumni