Karina (South Korean singer)

In this Korean name, the family name is Yu.

Karina
Karina waving at the press in November 2023
Karina in November 2023
Born
Yu Ji-min

(2000-04-11) April 11, 2000 (age 23)
Suwon, Gyeonggi, South Korea
Occupations
  • Singer
  • dancer
Musical career
Genres
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active2020–present
Labels
Member of
WebsiteOfficial website
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationYu Ji-min
McCune–ReischauerYu Chimin
Stage name
Hangul
Revised RomanizationKarina
McCune–ReischauerK'arina
Signature

Yu Ji-min (Korean: 유지민; born April 11, 2000), known professionally as Karina, is a South Korean singer and dancer. She is the leader of the South Korean girl group Aespa, formed by SM Entertainment in November 2020. She is also a member of the supergroup Got the Beat, which debuted on January 3, 2022.

Early life

Karina was born and raised in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea[1][2] and attended Hansol High School but later dropped out and obtained a GED certificate.[3] Karina is a Catholic and stated that her Catholic name is Katarina, which is the inspiration for her stage name.[4]

Career

Pre-debut

Karina was first scouted by an SM Entertainment representative through social media and trained for 4 years before her debut.[5] During her time as a trainee, Karina appeared in labelmate Taemin's music video for the song "Want" in February 2019, and performed with him on several music programs in the following weeks.[6][7] Karina also appeared alongside labelmate Kai for Hyundai and SM's virtual showcase, The All-New Tucson, Beyond DRIVE.[8]

2020–present: Debut in Aespa, Got the Beat, and solo ventures

On October 27, 2020, SM revealed Karina as the second member of Aespa.[9] She debuted as the leader of the group on November 17, 2020, with the digital single "Black Mamba".[10]

On December 17, 2021, she was announced to be a member SM's supergroup Got the Beat alongside bandmate Winter and other female labelmates such as BoA, Girls' Generation's Taeyeon and Hyoyeon, and Red Velvet members Seulgi and Wendy.[11]

On September 22, 2023, Karina released the single "Sad Waltz" for the Netflix TV series Song of the Bandits.[12] On November 30, it was announced that Karina will take part in the Netflix unscripted show Agents of Mystery which is scheduled to air in 2024.[13]

Public image and influence

Karina was introduced by SM as a member with multiple talents from dance, vocal and rap ahead of her debut.[14] The magazine Paper praised Karina for being a "dynamic dancer, an attentive leader, and a sultry rapper to her group".[10]

In 2021, Karina topped South Korean's brand reputation for K-pop artists and influencers for two consecutive months.[15] She also topped Star News' female idol category for 8 weeks.[16] In the Korean Business Research Institute's monthly "Individual Girl Group Members Brand Power Ranking", Karina placed first in both the June and July issue and fourth on the October issue.[17][18] She was also featured on Seoul Metropolitan Government's "Tour Promotion Program" that "helps tourists to appreciate the panoramic view of the entire city and the historic Fortress Wall of Seoul as well as pottery making in Mullae-dong".[19]

Endorsements

In April 2022, Karina was selected as the new global ambassador for South Korea's Maeil Business Newspaper Clean Campaign.[20]

In November 2023, Lotte Chilsung appointed Karina as the official spokesperson for their "Kloud Krush" alcohol beverage.[21] In December, Vogue Korea announced Karina as the new face of YSL Beauty's "Rouge Pur Couture" lipstick line.[22]

Discography

For Karina's works with Aespa and Got the Beat, see Aespa discography and Got the Beat discography.

Collaborations

Title Year Peak chart position Album
KOR
"The Cure"
(with Kangta, BoA, U-Know, Leeteuk, Taeyeon, Onew, Suho, Irene, Taeyong, Mark and Kun) 		2022 —[A] 2022 Winter SM Town: SMCU Palace
"Hot & Cold" (온도차)
(with Kai, Seulgi and Jeno) 		—[B]
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Soundtrack appearances

Title Year Peak chart position Album
KOR
"Sad Waltz" 2023 —[C] Song of the Bandits OST
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Composition credits

All song credits are adapted from the Korea Music Copyright Association's database unless stated otherwise.[25]

List of songs, showing year released, artist name, and name of the album
Title Year Artist Album Notes
"Menagerie" 2023[D] Karina Non-album single As lyricist

Filmography

For Karina's works with Aespa, see Aespa filmography.

Television shows

Year Title Role Ref.
2024 Agents of Mystery Herself [13]

Music video appearances

Year Song title Artist Ref.
2019 "Want" Taemin [6]

Notes

  1. ^ "The Cure" did not enter the Circle Digital Chart, but debuted and peaked at number 39 on the component Download Chart.[23]
  2. ^ "Hot & Cold" did not enter the Circle Digital Chart, but debuted and peaked at number 47 on the component Download Chart.[23]
  3. ^ "Sad Waltz" did not enter the Circle Digital Chart, but debuted and peaked at number 105 on the component BGM Chart.[24]
  4. ^ Unreleased single that was performed by Karina at Synk: Hyper Line.[26]

References

  1. ^ "카리나 (에스파)". Marie Claire (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
  2. ^ "카리나 (aespa)". Hanryu Times (in Korean). Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  3. ^ Kim, So-young (January 9, 2023). "아이돌 중학교 중퇴..."아동학대 소지 있어 vs 선택과 집중일 뿐"" [Idol Middle School Dropouts..."Child Exploitation vs. Choice and Focus"]. Insight (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 9, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  4. ^ Choi, A-reum (May 17, 2023). "금발로 미모 리즈 갱신, 에스파 카리나 TMI 12" [Renewing Beauty Lies with Blondes, Aespa Karina's TMI 12]. Esquire Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 17, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  5. ^ Lee, Narin (July 1, 2021). "[SBS Star] NCT SUNGCHAN & aespa KARINA Got Scouted by SM Entertainment Twice?". SBS News. Archived from the original on October 23, 2022. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
  6. ^ a b Kim, Soo-young (November 11, 2020). "'SM 신인' 에스파, 카리나 아바타 티저 공개...점까지 유지민 판박이" ['SM Rookie' Aespa Releases Karina Avatar Teaser... Down to the Last Detail, idential to Yoo Jimin]. The Korea Economic Daily (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 15, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  7. ^ Young, Hana (October 15, 2020). "SM "연습생 유지민 관련 악성루머 법적 조치 취할것"...누구길래?". The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.
  8. ^ Yoon, Ji-na (November 2, 2020). "[스브스타] 엑소 카이와 광고 촬영한 '에스파' 카리나...남다른 미모 눈길" [[SBS Star] EXO's Kai and 'Aespa' Karina in an advertisement shoot... A look at her extraordinary beauty]. SBS News (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 26, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  9. ^ Yim, Seung-hye (October 28, 2020). "aespa's second member, Karina, is introduced by SM". Korea Joongang Daily. Archived from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved July 26, 2022.
  10. ^ a b Bell, Crystal (February 28, 2023). "Karina Is aespa's Intense, Attentive Leader". Paper. Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  11. ^ Chan, Tim (January 3, 2022). "Meet 'Girls on Top:' K-Pop's New Female 'Super Group'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  12. ^ Dash, Pratyusha (September 23, 2023). "Karina of aespa drops solo OST Sad Waltz for K-drama Song of the Bandits". Pinkvilla. Archived from the original on October 1, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  13. ^ a b Lee, Seung-mi; Oh, Myeong-on (November 30, 2023). "마니아층 넘어선 대중화 노린다...두뇌 예능, OTT 타고 '활활'". Yonhap News (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 30, 2023. Retrieved November 30, 2023 – via Naver.
  14. ^ "KARINA, the second member of SMs new girl group "aespa" has been revealed!" (Press release). SM Entertainment. October 28, 2020. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  15. ^ "Aespa's Karina leads brand reputation rankings for the second consecutive month". The Times of India. July 19, 2021. Archived from the original on November 7, 2023. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
  16. ^ Lee, So-yeon (January 1, 2022). "Karina of aespa Stays on Top for 8 Weeks". Top Star News. Archived from the original on September 30, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.
  17. ^ Woo, Da-bin (June 20, 2021). "에스파 카리나, 블랙핑크 제니 꺾고 걸그룹 브랜드 평판 1위" [Aespa's Karina beats Blackpink's Jennie to top girl group brand reputation]. Hankook Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 14, 2023. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  18. ^ Kim, So-yeon (July 18, 2021). "에스파 카리나, 걸그룹 개인 브랜드평판 1위...2위 제니·3위 브브걸 유정" [Aespa's Karina, girl group individual brand reputation 1st place... 2nd place Jennie, 3rd place Brave Girls Yujeong]. Maeil Business Newspaper (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  19. ^ Jun, Ji-hye (October 30, 2021). "Aespa's Karina featured in Seoul's tourist promotion program". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on November 15, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  20. ^ Kim, Dae-eun (April 28, 2022). ""아바타는 내 거울 같은 존재...서로 배려하는 에티켓 지켜주세요"" ["Your avatar is a mirror of you... be considerate of one another"]. Nate News (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 3, 2023. Retrieved April 28, 2022 – via Nate.
  21. ^ Ryu, Nan-young (November 15, 2023). "롯데 '크러시' 맥주 모델에 카리나...'만24세 이하' 술광고 출연 논란 재점화" [Lotte's 'Krush' beer model reignites controversy over KARINA...'under 24' alcohol ad appearance]. Newsis (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 15, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  22. ^ Vogue Korea [@voguekorea] (December 27, 2023). "1978년 출시한 입생로랑 뷰티의 '루쥬 쀠르 꾸뛰르'의 새 얼굴을 발탁했습니다. 4세대 걸 그룹 중 올라운더 카리나가 그 주인공이죠" [The new face of Yves Saint Laurent Beauty's "Rouge Pur Couture", launched in 1978, is Karina, the all-rounder of the fourth-generation girl groups.] (in Korean) – via Instagram.
  23. ^ a b "Download Chart – 2022 Weeks 53". Circle Chart (in Korean). December 25–31, 2022. Archived from the original on November 18, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.
  24. ^ "BGM Chart – 2023 Weeks 39". Circle Chart (in Korean). September 24–30, 2023. Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  25. ^ "Songs Registered Under KARINA (10038955)". Korea Music Copyright Association (in Korean). Archived from the original on June 10, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.
  26. ^ Daly, Rhian (February 27, 2023). "Aespa live in Seoul: future-facing set from K-pop's AI trailblazers". NME. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.

External links