- April 19, 2019
- Art
- Anna Mallaalieva
Lee Ji-eun, known under the stage name IU, is a singer from South Korea. IU's stage name is stylized from the English phrase "I & You". Refers to the power that unites people through melody.
Her musical career had a strong impact on the singer’s school grades, so in 2011, after graduating from high school, Ji-eun refused to enroll in college or university.
We will discuss the biography and personal life of the singer in more detail below.
Before career
Born May 16, 1993. Ji-eun dreamed of becoming a celebrity from a very early age. The girl attended acting classes. But after finishing elementary school, Ji-eun's family began to have financial problems, so she had to move to Uijeongbu. About a year after this, the girl spent with her younger brother at her grandmother and cousins. Parents lived separately.
The girl’s vocal abilities were discovered in high school. Then she participated in a school competition and wanted a professional career. While IU was looking for a suitable agency for herself, she failed 20 auditions and even came across fake labels. Ji Eun ended up joining Good Ent., where she trained with some other successful idols. In 2007, she signed a contract with LOEN Entertainment. After that, she prepared for many years of training, but, to her surprise, she made her debut 10 months later.
Beginning of career (2008)
Ji-eun made her debut on September 18, 2008 on one of the weekly music shows. The first album was released on September 24 and eventually earned IU a win for Rookie of the Month. But the public received him coldly; we can say that the soloist’s debut was a failure. At one of the interviews, IU, whose personal life is of interest to all her fans, commented on this part of her biography as one of the most important in her life. If her debut had been successful, she would not now understand the true taste of popularity.
Personal life
Aya's personal life is reliably hidden from prying eyes. Svetlana says that she has a beloved man, but she does not want to reveal his name and make their relationship public.
Aya, like a typical oriental woman, loves to create home comfort and claims that she will not allow a man to manage the kitchen, cook or do his own laundry.
Aya (Svetlana Nazarenko) now
She considers these activities exclusively for women. But in return, she needs care and trust from her loved one.
Aya quite strongly feels her “separation” from her homeland. She yearns for Kyrgyzstan and tries to visit there whenever possible. Aya’s special love is Lake Issyk-Kul.
Two albums (2009)
Ji-eun worked on her next album for just under a year. It was released on April 23 of the following year. The concept of the title song is youth and prettiness, which radiated not only from the track, but also from the image of the singer herself. IU comments on this part of her biography as one of the most difficult. It was difficult for her to be in such an image, it was awkward.
At the end of 2009, another mini-album of the singer was released. The title song was a mixture of rock and roll and French pop. Viewers really liked IU's character. The girl would like to throw out this part of her life from her biography. In 2013, at one of the shows, she admitted that she hated girly stage clothes and various fashionable hairstyles.
Growing popularity (2010-2011)
Ji-eun's popularity was influenced by the track she recorded together with Im Seulong. It was released on June 3, 2010. In the first few days, the single was not very popular with viewers, but after a week it began to top the Korean charts. The single was used in the show “Newlyweds” as the soundtrack of the 2nd season.
After the successful release of the song, IU's biography was supplemented by work on the soundtrack for the drama "Route No. 1". After that, she recorded a duet track with Sung Si Kyung for his collection of songs.
The third mini-album was released on December 9, 2010. To improve her popularity, the girl worked in the entertainment show “Heroines”. It was broadcast from July 18, 2010 to May 11 of the following year.
The girl is not only engaged in a vocal career. IU is also a Korean actress. The celebrity's biography has been supplemented with new work. Ji-eun auditioned for the drama “Dream High.” She also released a popular soundtrack for it.
In 2011, the third mini-album was re-released and included three new songs. With the title song released in a ballad style, IU topped many country charts.
In March 2011, Ji-eun performed at the opening of a solo concert of one of the British singers. It took place in Seoul. In the same month, the girl begins working as a permanent presenter on the show Inkigayo.
In May, IU, whose biography is presented in the article, wrote her own song, which became the soundtrack to the drama “Unrelenting Love.”
The second full-length album was released on November 29, 2011. The regular and special versions are available for sale. The title song became the best-selling song of 2012. A little before the release of the album, the singer signed a contract with a Japanese label and on December 14 released her first mini-album in Japanese.
Aya: biography
The future singer Aya (real name Svetlana Anatolyevna Nazarenko) was born in 1970 in the Kyrgyz city of Frunze (now Bishkek). Svetlana’s parents’ professions were not related to music and art, but everyone in the family loved to sing. 9 years after the birth of their daughter, a son, Alexey, appeared in the family.
Svetlana Nazarenko is the real name of singer Aya
Already at the age of 7, Svetlana Nazarova was a soloist in the Big Children's Choir. At 12, she received an invitation to perform at the Republican Folk Art Festival. There she was noticed by one of the best Kyrgyz vocal teachers, Rafail Sarlykov.
He invited the girl to join his famous ensemble “Araket”, whose repertoire was based on German, Spanish, Latin American songs, as well as songs of various peoples of the USSR. The ensemble toured a lot, and its fame grew. Soon “Araket” became the Laureate of the 2nd All-Union Festival of Political Song, which took place in Moscow. In Kyrgyzstan, the ensemble was awarded the title of People's.
Singer Aya
But Svetlana wanted something more than to be one of the members of the team. Therefore, she left Araket and took up a solo career.
Tour and Japanese promotion (2012)
When describing the biography of the Korean singer IU, it is necessary to talk about promotion in Japan. On January 24, Jieun performed in Shibuya in front of 4 thousand fans and sang several songs, including those included in the mini-album. To maintain her popularity, the singer held mini-concerts in five cities in Japan.
The soloist's first solo tour began on June 2. She performed in 6 cities across the country. Due to preparations for the tour, IU did not actively promote her fifth mini album. By the way, it came out on May 11th. This album became significant in IU’s biography, as it was dedicated to the singer’s 20th anniversary. A music video for the title song was not released. Instead, the artist uploaded a 30-minute documentary film about her life.
On September 17th, IU returned to Japan once again to hold an incredible concert.
Acting career and new album (2013)
The next year for the artist began with receiving a role in the next drama “You are the best, Lee Soon Shin.” After filming ended, IU released a 2nd mini-album in Japanese. All songs were new and not re-releases of Korean tracks.
On September 11, the discography was replenished with an additional Japanese track.
On October 8, the biography of the Korean singer IU was replenished with new work, as her third full-length album was released. Its release took place on October 8.
During the promotions for this album, the girl received a role in the drama “Magnificent Man”. To support her released album, IU performed solo concerts in Seoul and Busan.
A re-released version of the third full-length collection was released on December 20, featuring two new songs.
Discography[ | ]
Solo career[ | ]
- “Good Night” (1992, magnetic album)
- “Broken Radio” (1994, magnetic album)
- "Music of Dreams" (1996)
- “Sveta-tea with strawberry flavor” (1999)
City 312[ | ]
- “213 roads” (2005, unofficial record)
- "Out of Touch" (2006)
- "Turn Around" (2007)
- "City 312. Live" (2008)
- “City 312 Video Clips + Bonus (Concert 09/05/09)” (2010)
- "New Music" (2010)
- “Don’t lose me, Moscow” (2013)
- "No Options" (2015)
Sixth mini-album (2014)
The 6th mini album was released on May 16th. It included covers performed by IU - 7 tracks. They were warmly received by the public.
On April 16, a tragedy occurred: a ferry carrying schoolchildren sank in Korea. IU, which held mini-concerts from May 22 to June 1, donated all proceeds to a relief fund for those affected by the accident.
In August, the girl performed in America at the KCON festival, which was held in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, IU speaks English poorly, for which she apologized and promised to improve her knowledge by the next performance in America.
Throughout 2014, IU recorded joint tracks with many Korean artists.
New role in the drama, albums and growth in popularity (2015-2016)
In 2020, the girl began starring in the drama “Producer,” which was one of the most anticipated in Korea. In the story, the character Ji-eun performed two songs. A little later they were included in IU's song collection. IU’s biography (the artist’s photo is in the article) after this role only began to be replenished with new dramas and collaborations with other artists. “Producer” made the singer even more popular, and she was also offered media work by many Chinese companies.
The seventh mini-album was released on October 23, 2020. Sales of the physical version began only 5 days later. The songs and music for them were written by Ji-eun herself. Even though the album received an excellent response from the audience and was a leader in the Korean charts, the girl found herself in a major scandal. The lyrics of one of the album's tracks (namely Zezé) became a topic of discussion. When writing the song, Ji-eun took inspiration from the story "My Orange Tree". His publisher said the singer sexualized the main character, who is only 5 years old. Two days later, IU apologized and said that her lyrics were misunderstood. After this, the publisher also apologized.
After the release of the album, the girl performed on a concert tour, which lasted from November to December. On December 11, she released the album to Taiwanese fans.
In September of the following year, the artist starred in the drama “Scarlet Heart.”
Many are interested not in IU’s biography itself, but in the singer’s personal life. So, in October 2020, journalists published that the girl was in a relationship with Chan Kiha, a singer and songwriter. They met at the end of 2013. In 2020, they announced the end of their three-year relationship.
The lead singer of the group “City 312” Aya saved an Izhevsk resident from depression
On April 27, for the first time in Izhevsk, with the support of the production team, a group with unique energy performed. “City 312” is Aya, Dim, Masha, Alex, Leon and Nick. Almost all of them once came to Moscow from Kyrgyzstan. And this year the group turns 15 years old! During this time, they released 7 albums, recorded 16 soundtracks and gained thousands of fans around the world. Before the concert in Izhevsk, the band's lead singer Aya and keyboard player Dim stopped by to visit Radio Adam (104/5 FM). Although no, they didn’t look in - they burst in!
Photo: Sergey GRACHEV
- We were in a hurry to see you as soon as possible! – Aya exclaimed when she entered the studio. – By the way, fans greeted us at the entrance. It is so sweet! They asked me to sign the guitar, which had a lot of autographs from different groups. I was also very touched by the story that the girl Nastya told. She admitted to me that not long ago she had a difficult period in her life, I won’t tell you which one. And our song “Take Care of Yourself” saved her from depression. Nastya came specifically to thank me for this composition. I was very moved. And although we were not going to play this song today, we will perform it at the concert especially for Nastya!
Photo: Sergey GRACHEV
Beautiful, sweet, kind - all this is about the members of the group “City 312”. During the broadcast, they amazed with their energy and openness.
— We are delighted with Izhevsk! – Aya admitted. – Your city has very good energy, friendly people and beautiful houses.
“And I know that Kalashnikov lived and worked here!” – Dim picks up. — And you had a wonderful radio presenter in Izhevsk, and now an equally wonderful singer, Tanya Zykina! We know her well. And I can honestly say, she is a very interesting and original singer and an amazing girl.
- Yes! She's beautiful! I have several of her songs on my playlist,” Aya smiles.
“The children in the rehabilitation center learned our song - it was very touching”
The musicians of the group “City 312” have a very good tradition - before their concerts in different cities, they try to come to orphanages or orphanages to please the children with their songs. Izhevsk was no exception.
Photo: vk.com/novsvet
— Today we were in rehabilitation. It houses children and their parents who are undergoing rehabilitation for drug and alcohol addiction. You know, the workers at this center do incredible things! - says Dim.
“We sang there ourselves and together with the kids.” Imagine, the guys even prepared a number especially for us - they learned our song and sang it! It was so touching! You should be proud that in Udmurtia there is such a wonderful place where people really help,” adds Aya.
Photo: vk.com/novsvet
To say that we were glad to have such guests is to say nothing. Everyone was jubilant and did not fully believe that the musicians of the group “City 312” themselves would come to them and talk to the children.
— In fact, we recently came up with this idea - to invite stars to our events. So, the first who came to Izhevsk and whom we invited was this group. And, to be honest, they didn’t believe that they would respond,” says Natalya Permyakova, social design specialist at the center for social support for families in difficult life situations, “New World”.
Photo: vk.com/novsvet
She, along with other employees of the institution, sent a letter to the director of the group with an invitation. They got an answer almost immediately.
“We were terribly happy, and the kids were jumping up to the ceiling.” After that, we began to prepare for the meeting and practice the song “Out of Access” with the children. Then the backing vocalist of the group, Dim, periodically called us on the phone, so we agreed to meet with him. We picked them up yesterday and they stayed with us for almost three hours! – says Natalya.
The children, she said, were not embarrassed at all and behaved as usual. And all because the musicians are very simple-minded, kind and bright.
- The children sang a song to them, and then we found an out-of-tune guitar and even a synthesizer in the bins, Aya and Dima immediately set everything up and we all sang - it was incredibly soulful. I really didn’t want to let them go, but they promised that this would not be their last visit to us. They also really wanted to communicate with adults who are undergoing rehabilitation,” says Natalya.
And the organizers of the concert of the group “City 312”, in turn, also gave the children a surprise - they gave 30 tickets to their evening concert.
After the concert, the musicians thanked the residents of Izhevsk and took a joint selfie with the audience. Photo: official group page on Instagram
BLITZ SURVEY
5 questions in 30 seconds
We asked short questions to the band's keyboard player and backing vocalist Dim and asked him to answer them without hesitation.
1. What melody is your ringtone?
— Coldplay "Viva la Vida"
2. Would you sing at Zhirinovsky's corporate party?
- Why not.
3. Do you know that the code of Izhevsk is the same as that of Bishkek - 312?
- No, I didn’t know. Nice (smiles).
4. Is it better to be blonde, brunette or with dreadlocks?
- Definitely a brunette. By the way, she is actually a brunette. You can see this in children's photos.
5. Are you ready to move to London or New York to start a new life and career there?
- What are you doing?! Of course not! I'm Russian. Or rather, to even say - a Soviet man.
Photo: Sergey GRACHEV
Photo: Sergey GRACHEV
Photo: Sergey GRACHEV
New album and drama (2017-2018)
A full-length album was released on April 21, 2020. The title track was recorded together with popular singer G-Dragon. This album became quite popular, topping the sales charts for both the physical and digital versions of the album. IU was the creator of almost all the songs, which showed her potential, and many critics noted that it was her songwriting abilities that made her popular both in Korea and outside the country. One of the singles became the best-selling single of 2020.
With this collection, the girl received many awards, including “Best Performer”, “Best Album”, “Album of the Year”, “Best Songwriter”, “Lyricist of the Year”, “Producer of the Year” and some others.
On September 22 of the same year, the singer released a collection of covers. To celebrate the 9th anniversary of the career, one of the tracks was released earlier without notifying listeners. A little later, IU went on a tour throughout Korea and also performed in Hong Kong. The performances lasted from November to December. IU also sang in one of Epik High's songs. She became very popular, topping all major charts in Korea.
In March 2020, Ji-eun received a role in the drama “My Master.” The series received high praise and ratings, and many viewers also praised IU's performance. The 7.3% rating made the drama one of the highest rated on cable television. On July 23, IU sang with Zico, a Korean artist. This track also became successful.
For the 10th anniversary of her career, she released a single in October 2018. A video was also shot for it. 16 hours after its release, the song already had a million unique plays.
On October 28, the second tour of Asia began, which was also timed to coincide with the tenth anniversary of his singing career.
Career of singer Aya (Svetlana Nazarenko)
Svetlana understood that proper education was necessary to develop a career, and having numerous awards for performances at vocal festivals was not enough. Already quite famous and popular in her homeland, she entered the Institute of Arts in the department of pop vocals, graduated with honors and decided to conquer Moscow.
Aya came to Moscow with Pritula’s brothers, Dmitry and Leonid. Together with them, she founded the group “City 312”. Already in 2017, Svetlana received the title of Honored Artist of the Russian Federation. And this is not surprising, because in her creative treasury there are many albums, both solo and recorded together with the group “City 312”:
- magnetic albums “Good Night” and “Broken Radio”,
- record “213 roads”,
- solo albums “Sveta-tea” and “Music of Dreams”,
- disks of the “Turn around” group, “Out of reach” and others.
Compositions performed by Aya became the soundtracks for the films “Peter FM”, “Day Watch”, “New Year’s Tariff”, “While the Fern Blooms”, “Your World” and many others.
