Han Seung-yeon

Han Seung-yeon
Born	Han Seung-yeon (1988-07-24) July 24, 1988 Seoul, Republic of Korea
Occupation	Singer Dancer Actress
Years active	1997–present
Agent	DSP Media (2007–2016) J,Wide-Company (2016–present)
Musical career
Genres	K-pop J-pop
Instruments	Vocals guitar
Years active	2007–present
Labels	DSP Media Universal Sigma EMI Records Japan Warner Music
Associated acts	KARA

Han Seung-yeon (born July 24, 1988) is a South Korean idol singer, dancer, and actress. She is known for being a former member and main vocalist of the girl group Kara, formed by DSP Media in 2007.

Career

Han Seung-yeon was born on July 24, 1988,^[1] in Seoul, South Korea. She left South Korea to study at Tenafly High School in New Jersey, United States. However, she withdrew from high school mid-course in order to pursue a singing career.^[2] After returning to South Korea, she debuted as a singer on March 29, 2007, as a member of the girl group Kara along with Park Gyuri, Nicole Jung and Kim Sunghee. During her time with the group, she passed a high school qualification exam, the College Scholastic Ability Test, and was accepted by Kyung Hee University, majoring in theater and film.^[2]

In 2016 joins J WIDE Company.

Kara (2007-2016)

Kara debuted as a quartet on M! Countdown in March 2007 with their debut single "Break It" from their first studio album entitled The First Blooming. In early 2008, however, member Kim Sunghee left the group due to parental pressure.^[3] She was eventually replaced by Goo Hara and Kang Jiyoung, and the group made their comeback as a quintet with "Rock U" in July 2008.

Solo artist

Due to Kara's debut album The First Blooming being relatively unsuccessful, Han went on to participate in many variety shows from late 2007 to early 2009 in order to keep the group recognizable to the public.^[4] She was the VJ for MSL Break from 2007 to 2008. She replaced Tiffany of Girls' Generation as co-host of Boys and Girls Music Countdown in June 2008 with Kim Hye-sung,^[5] and later with actor Kim Soo-hyun.^[6] Their segment ended on May 8, 2009. From October to December 2008, she was part of the cast of the MBC Every 1 reality show I Need a Family - Season 2, where a group of celebrities would live life as a family, consisting of a father, mother, son and daughter.^[7] She also became part of MBC's entertainment news show Section TV as a "pop correspondent," debuting on November 21, 2008.^[8] On July 31, 2011, she became a co-host of SBS's Animal Farm.

Han was featured on rapper Nassun's single "Come to Play", which was released in March 2009, and was featured on the soundtrack for the movie Why Did You Come to My House? (2009), releasing her first solo song entitled "Miracle".^[9] In October 2009, she became part of the "Dream Team Girl Group" named 4Tomorrow for Samsung's campaign Samsung Anycall. Their digital single "Tomorrow" was released on October 6, and the official music video for their single was released on the October 12, starring actor Lee Dong-gun.^[10] In 2010, she recorded the song "Super Star" for the soundtrack of the KBS2 drama Mary Stayed Out All Night (2010). She performed the song as one of her solos during the South Korean leg of Kara's tour entitled Karasia in February 2012. In 2011, she recorded the song "Because of Love" for the soundtrack of the SBS drama Warrior Baek Dong-soo (2011).

In January 2012, it was announced that each member of Kara would be recording solo material for their upcoming concerts, and it was later revealed that Han's song was entitled "Guilty". She performed her solo song during the group's tour along with the other members and their respective solo songs. The Japanese version of "Guilty" was later included in Kara's special album Kara Collection in September 2012. It was released digitally in Japan on August 26, with the video being released on September 4.^[11][12] The Korean version of the song was included in the group's compilation album Kara Solo Collection, which was released on December 4 in South Korea. The track was released digitally on November 30 along with its respective music video.^[13] She made her solo debut with "Guilty" on MBC's Music Core on December 15.^[14]

Acting

Han made her acting debut as a child actress in a bit part in Star in My Heart (1997).^[15]

After cameos on the sitcoms More Charming by the Day (2010) and Salamander Guru and The Shadows (2012), she appeared as the protagonist's younger counterpart in the daily drama Pure Love (2013). Then in her first major supporting role, Han portrayed Choi Suk-bin in the period drama Jang Ok-jung, Living by Love (2013).^[16]

Discography

Korean singles

Japanese singles

Featured singles

Guest appearances

Filmography

Film

Television drama

Korean Movies

Music video appearances

Variety/Reality shows

Events shows hosting

Radio shows

Audiobook

• Victor the fool by Joachim de Posada, voice of Laura^[30]

Awards

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Han Seung-Yeon.

• Han Seung-yeon on Twitter (Korean)
• Han Seung-yeon on Instagram