| Son Dam Bi | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | 손담비 |
| Born | September 25, 1983 Seoul, South Korea |
| Origin | South Korea |
| Genres | Pop, Dance, Hip Hop, R&B |
| Occupations | Singer, dancer, model, actor |
| Years active | 2007 – Present |
| Labels | Pledis Entertainment |
| Associated acts | After School, Kahi, Eric Mun, Jun Jin, Nam Hyun Joon |
| Website | Official Website (Korean) |
| Korean name | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 손담비 |
| Hanja | 孫淡妃[1] |
| Revised Romanization | Son Dam-bi |
| McCune–Reischauer | Son Tambi |
Son Dam Bi (born September 25, 1983) is a South Korean singer, dancer, model and actress.
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Son Dam Bi is one of the most hyped names to debut in Korea. She had appeared in music videos for Paran and MYV, along with many advertisements. She first came to fame when she appeared in a commercial for an MP3 player alongside Poppin' Hyun Joon. Before her debut, MSN Japan had a video documentary made, capturing her pre-debut training and rehearsals; it attracted 480,000 visitors in 5 days. Son Dam Bi trained especially with a well-known American choreographer in preparation for this album, and people began calling her the female version of Rain (비).
Son Dam Bi’s highly anticipated debut single comes with five tracks that give her ample opportunity to show off her vocal and dancing talents. Her debut single "Cry Eye" was produced and composed by Jang Joon Ho, who previously wrote MC Mong's "180 Degrees" and Jang Woo Hyuk's "Last Game". The lyrics were provided by Brian Kim, who also penned Shinhwa’s Once in A Lifetime.
Son Dam Bi joined MBC's reality show 우리 결혼했어요 ("We Got Married"), being paired with Marco. Joining the show in late 2008 as part of the second group of couples, their last episode was on February 2, 2009.
It was also announced that Son would be part of the cast for Hype Nation, a film that has been labelled a "world movie".[2] However, as the movie was delayed, Son released a mini-album with the single "Toyoil Bamae" ("토요일 밤에", "On Saturday Night").[3] The song became her first #1 hit, topping various on- and offline charts, including M! Countdown (within 20 days), two wins on KBS's Music Bank, a 3-week chart-topping run on SBS's Inki Gayo.[4][5] The song's routine features Son in various 80s fashions, transforming her into a "retro fashionista".[6]
She starred in SBS drama Dream with Ju Jin Mo and Kim Bum, her debut as an actress.
After training in the United States after "Cry Eye", Son Dam Bi returned to Korea and released a mini album, Son Dambi Mini Album Vol.1, with a focus on electronica (departing from her previous style of crunk pop) on April 29, 2008. The lead title was "Bad Boy", produced by Brave Brothers. Also, Kahi (leader of After School) was her dance teacher, and is also featured in the Bad Boy music video.
In September 2008, she returned with the single "미쳤어" ("Crazy"). The song featured a "chair dance" that has become popular with the Korean public; it has since been upgraded to a "sofa dance".[7] The dance has been copied and parodied by many people, including Hyun Young,[8] Infinity Challenge comedy team member Noh Hong-cheol, comedienne Shin Bong-sun, and Lee Soo Young.[9]
Her follow-up song in 2009, "Toyoilbamae" (Korean: "토요일밤에", "On a Saturday Night"), was a success.[10]
She then released her next EP, The Queen, which was not as well-received as her previous hits; she faced netizen criticism for her vocals, as well as accusations of plagiarism for "Queen", the lead single from the EP.[10]
| Single # | Album Information | Track Listing |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | First Single
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| Album # | Album Information | Track Listing |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | First Mini Album
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| 2nd | Second Mini Album
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| 3rd | First Full Length Album
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| 4th | Third Mini Album
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