Minzy
| Minzy 민지 | |
|---|---|
 Minzy at Press Conference in Singapore for New Evolution World Tour in November 2012 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Gong Minji |
| Also known as | Minzy; Mingkki |
| Born |
January 18, 1994 Seoul, South Korea |
| Genres | K-pop, hip hop, R&B, pop |
| Occupations | Singer, rapper, dancer |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Labels | YG Entertainment |
| Associated acts | 2NE1 |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 공민지 |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization | Gong Minji |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kong Minji |
| Stage name | |
| Hangul | 민지 |
| Revised Romanization | Minji |
| McCune–Reischauer | Minji |
Gong Minji (born January 18, 1994), more commonly known as Minzy (Korean: 민지), is a South Korean idol singer, rapper and dancer. She was born in Seoul.[1] In 2009, she debuted along with YG Entertainment label mates CL, Park Bom and Sandara Park as 2NE1's main dancer, lead vocalist, lead rapper and maknae.
Her duet song with CL, "Please Don't Go," peaked at number 6 on the monthly Gaon Chart in November 2009. With 2NE1, she has released two extended plays and two studio albums.
Biography
Early life and career
Minzy was born in Seoul, South Korea, but moved to Gwangju shortly thereafter where she participated in many dance contests and competitions during her younger years. Minzy is the granddaughter of Gong Okjin, a legendary folk dancer in South Korea.[1]
Minzy was discovered by YG Entertainment through a video uploaded on the internet, which showed her dancing. The video got many hits and praises for her ability to dance. Because of her rising popularity through the internet, YG contacted and recruited her, after which she became a trainee in the entertainment company.
On July 16, 2009 it was revealed that she dropped out from high school and will be focusing on her music work with 2NE1.[2]
2NE1
YG Entertainment announced that the new group would consist of four members and debut sometime in May 2009. The company stated that the group had trained for 4 years and that their debut album would contain songs produced by 1TYM's leader, Teddy Park and G-Dragon of Big Bang. The group's name was initially announced as "21"; however, due to the discovery of a singer with the same name, the group was renamed "2NE1", which "NE" is the abbreviation of "New Evolution". Minzy was placed in 2NE1 as the main dancer, alongside CL, Sandara Park and Park Bom.
They debuted in 2009 with "Lollipop", a collaboration with label mates Big Bang, when Minzy was only fifteen years old.[1] The song reached number one on the Gaon Charts, but questions were raised about whether the group could survive on its own.[3] In May the same year, the group had their official debut with the single "Fire", that reached #1 again along with follow-up promotional single "I Don't Care".[4] The EP 2NE1 went on to sell over 100,000 copies in that year.[5]
After initial success with 2NE1, the group went on a temporary year-long hiatus with each member releasing their own singles. Dara released "Kiss", Bom released "You and I", and CL and Minzy released "Please Don't Go". The song was the lowest performing of the three solo singles but still managed to chart at number six on the monthly charts.[6] After all the members released individual singles, the band released "Follow Me" which landed at number one for the week of February 13.[4] In September, the group had their comeback with album To Anyone with title tracks namely "Go Away", "Clap Your Hands", and "Can't Nobody". The album went on to sell 150,000 copies.
Personal life
Minzy is known to be friends with several idols, such as f(x)'s Amber, Luna and was even mentioned in Sulli's 'Thanks to' section and Girls' Generation's Yoona, Tiffany, Sooyoung and Hyoyeon, Psy, Super Junior's Siwon, Kara's Goo Hara and as well as soloist IU. She is also close to Japanese pop star Koda Kumi. Big Bang's G-Dragon has named Minzy as his favorite junior.
Discography
Singles
| Year | Song | Peak position | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| KOR [6] | |||
| 2009 | "Please Don't Go" (with CL) | 6 | To Anyone |
| 2013 | "Miracle" (with Other SBS Friendship Project artists) | - | You Are A Miracle |
Filmography
Films
- 2009: Girlfriends (Korean: 걸프렌즈) (cameo)
Television
- 2009: 2NE1 TV (Mnet)
- 2009: Style (Korean: 스타일, SBS) (cameo)
- 2010: 2NE1 TV Season 2 (Mnet)
- 2011: 2NE1 TV Season 3 (Mnet)
- 2012: Strong Heart Episode 123 "YG Family Special"
- 2013: Running Man Episode 156
- 2013: Mamma Mia (KBS)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Nate People Search: 공민지" [Nate People Search: Gong Minji]. Nate People Search (in Korean). SK Communications. Retrieved November 11, 2010.
- ↑ "2NE1's Minzy drops out of high school". allkpop. 17 July 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
- ↑ Cho, Hyun-u (April 14, 2009). "빅뱅에 숟가락 얹은 ‘2NE1’ 성공할 수 있을까?" [Big Bang's helping hand for '2NE1', can they succeed?]. Kukinews (in Korean). Kukminilbo Kukinews. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Gaon Chart Search: 2NE1". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved October 30, 2010.
- ↑ "Hanteo Chart 2009 Year Top Album Sales". Hanteo Chart (in Korean). Hanteo Information System. Retrieved November 2, 2010.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Gaon Chart Search: 민지" [Gaon Chart Search: Minzy]. Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved November 11, 2010.
External links
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