Younha

South Korean pop singer songwriter

Go Youn ha (hangul=고윤하; born April 29, 1988), known mononymously as Younha, is a South Korean singer songwriter and record producer. She began her career in 2004 in Japan, where she was nicknamed the "Oricon Comet" for her success on the Japanese music chart. In 2006, she debuted in South Korea, where she is regarded as one of the country's best singer songwriters.

Younha was born in South Korea on April 29, 1988, where she began to play the piano at the age of 5. She started singing in elementary school and later began to teach herself Japanese after watching the popular Japanese drama, Gokusen. As a teenager, Younha said she went to as many as 20 auditions with South Korean record labels but was rejected because she wasn't "pretty enough to become a star." As a result, she dropped out of high school at the age of 16 to pursue a singing career in Japan.

After her legal troubles, Younha began her comeback activities with a new record label, wealive (now C9 Entertainment). She released her fourth album Supersonic on July 3, 2012, featuring artists such as Jay Park, Tiger JK, and John Park. The album spawned two singles, the Top 10 Hit, "Would We Have Changed?" featuring John Park, and "Run". The album was released to critical acclaim, embracing a rock based style, doing away with ballad styles she had promoted for the last 2 years, and even led to "Run" being nominated for Pop Song of the Year at the Korean Music Awards. She also joined the cast of I Am a Singer, a show based around professional singers remaking songs, ranging from old to current hits. On May 2, 2013, Younha released her second EP, Just Listen receiving rave reviews. The album also brought her back to commercial success, "아니야 (Unacceptable)" became her first Top 5 single since "오늘 헤어졌어요 (Broke Up Today)" in 2009 and is also her first album to feature 2 Top 10 singles, Unacceptable and Reason. On December 6, 2013, Younha released her third EP, Subsonic, featuring the lead in single "It's Okay" and follow up "Not There" featuring Eluphant. With the release of these singles, it brings about the first time in Younha's career where she has achieved 3 Top 10 singles, and at a stretch, 4 Top 15 singles in one year. On May 29, 2014, she collaborated with rock singer Jung Joon young to release the digital single "Just The Way You Are" (달리 함께). The song peaked at #11 on the Billboard K pop Hot 100. She achieved her first #1 single in her career on the Gaon Charts, 10 years after debut, with her solo remake of her 2008 hit with Epik High, "Umbrella". The original version in turn, also surged up the charts, jumping 245 places up to #53 in that same week. This marks the first time she has topped the chart since "Broke Up Today" 5 years before, in 2009, and "Comet" in 2007. On November 11, 2015, Younha released her single "Thinking About You" (널 생각해), produced by Lee Chanhyuk of Akdong Musician. She released her fifth album, RescuE, on December 27, 2017. Billboard ranked the album number eight on its list of top K Pop albums of the 2010s, calling it "a cathartic listening experience that reflected on hard times and hinted to the brightness beyond them." Younha followed up by releasing the EP Stable Mindset in 2019, and then the EP Unstable Mindset on January 6, 2020. The latter contained the song "Winter Flower", a collaboration with RM from BTS, which Billboard called "an epic, comforting power ballad". Furthermore, the song gave Younha the title of the first Korean female solo artist to Top US iTunes chart. Younha released her sixth album, End Theory on November 16, 2021, and a repackaged version with 3 additional songs, End Theory: Final Edition, was released on March 30, 2022. On June 30, 2022, Younha released the digital single "Rain Song", which is a remake of Epik High's single of the same name. "Event Horizon", the lead single from End Theory: Final Edition began to rise in the charts and viral popularity 6 months after initial release, as Younha did major gigs at universities and festivals in the second half of 2022, with positive word of mouth and fan footage gathering views online. The song peaked at #1 on the Circle Digital Chart.

Year Film Role Notes Ref. (References) 2011 The Suicide Forecast Ahn So yeon 124 minutes

Year Title Role Ref. (Reference(s)) 2017 KBS Drama Special – Viva Ensemble Singer songwriter 2022 Youth Star Youth mentor 2023 Universe Ticket Mentor

+ Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination Award ceremony Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref. (Reference(s)) Brand Customer Loyalty Awards 2022 Best Female Vocalist Younha Circle Chart Music Awards 2023 Discovery of the Year – Rock & Metal Cyworld Digital Music Awards 2007 Rookie of the Month – April "Password 486" Golden Disc Awards 2007 Best New Artist 2023 Female Solo Artist Younha Hanteo Music Awards 2023 Special Award – Ballad K Global Heart Dream Awards 2023 K Pop Listener’s Choice Award Korean Music Awards 2008 Best New Artist Pop Musician of the Year – Netizen Vote Best Pop Song "Password 486" 2009 Pop Musician of the Year – Netizen Vote Someday Best Pop Album 2013 Best Pop Song "Run" 2023 Best Pop Song "Event Horizon" Song of the Year Musician of the Year Younha MBC Entertainment Awards 2011 Excellence Award – Radio "Younha's Starry Night" Melon Music Awards 2023 Best OST "Letter" (편지) Mnet Asian Music Awards 2007 Best New Artist "Password 486" 2008 Best Female Artist "Telepathy" 2009 "123" 2014 Best Vocal Performance – Female "Umbrella" Seoul Music Awards 2023 Ballad Award Younha