Yuju (singer)

Early life and education

Yuju was born Choi Yu-na on October 4, 1997 in Goyang, South Korea, as the youngest of two daughters in her family. From an early age, Yuju enjoyed sports, dancing and singing. In her first year of middle school, Yuju won a singing contest encouragement award without formal training. Afterwards, Yuju attended a vocal academy to pursue singing and learned to play guitar due to her interest in composing. Yuju gained more performance experience in city and provincial competitions since her second year of middle school.

After graduating from the School of Performing Arts Seoul, Yuju enrolled at Sungshin Women's University to study Contemporary Practical Music.

Career

2011–2014: Pre-debut

In 2011, Yuju competed in the first season of K-pop Star, where she was eliminated in the first round. That same year, Yuju became a trainee at Cube Entertainment, but she left after four months when her vocal project team was cut. Yuju then trained for around a year and a half at LOEN Entertainment. Concurrently, Yuju showcased her vocal improvement at music events, winning the Gyeonggi Arts Festival excellence award and grand prize in 2011 and 2012, respectively. After leaving LOEN, Yuju won gold in the solo category of the 2013 Dong-A Student Song Festival, a nationwide competition. She eventually auditioned for and signed with Source Music in 2014, totaling around three years of training at agencies.

2015–2021: GFriend

Main article: GFriend

In January 2015, Yuju made her debut as a member of GFriend with the lead single "Glass Bead" from EP Season of Glass. Her stage name, given by the CEO, signifies "owner" and has the added meaning of being an owner of powerful singing ability.

In April 2015, Yuju and Loco released "Spring Is Gone by Chance" for the soundtrack of South Korean television drama A Girl Who Sees Smells. The song placed first on the Music Bank OST chart for ten consecutive weeks, won Best OST at the 2015 Melon Music Awards, and was the fourteenth best-performing single in South Korea that year. An acoustic version of the song was also released. Moreover, "Spring Is Gone by Chance" regularly re-enters domestic music charts in spring, establishing itself as a seasonal song. The soundtrack later achieved 100 million streams and 2.5 million downloads on Gaon.

In July 2015, Yuju drew interest on MBC's King of Mask Singer for her singing prowess as the youngest contestant at the time. Soon after, GFriend released their second single "Me Gustas Tu". During the promotions of the song, a fan-taken video of members falling eight times while performing on a slippery stage went viral, gaining international attention. The group was praised for their professionalism, especially Yuju, who suffered a twisted finger during the performance. The event boosted the group's popularity, and Gfriend continued to see commercial success as their next song "Rough" won 15 times on music show programs.

Yuju recorded "Billy & The Brave Guys" for the soundtrack of the animated movie Chicken Hero, which was released on February 18, 2016. In March 2016, she collaborated with Sunyoul of Up10tion for a song called "Cherish".

In October 2017, Yuju and Wheesung were declared as the final winners of SBS' Fantastic Duo 2 stars special, performing their winning piece "Even Thought of Marriage". She was the first and only K-pop female idol to win on the said television show's special. Following that, Yuju's collaboration song with Jihoo of IZ titled "Heart Signal" was released.

In June 2018, Yuju released her first solo digital single "Love Rain" featuring Suran.

In May 2021, Yuju became the host and protagonist of web show Yuju is Halli Queen, as the defending champion in Halli Galli. On May 5, Yuju served as MC for the KBS Korean Children's Song Contest. On May 22, Yuju left Source Music upon the end of GFriend's exclusive contract.

2021–present: New agency, solo debut with ''Rec.'', and ''O''

On September 1, 2021, Yuju signed an exclusive contract with Konnect Entertainment, following GFriend's dissolution and departure from Source Music. On November 24, Yuju released a remake of Jo Sung-mo's "By Your Side", a Lovers in Paris soundtrack hit, as part of the "Cyworld BGM 2021" project.

Yuju debuted as a soloist on January 18, 2022, with the extended play Rec. and its lead single "Play" (놀이). In July 2022, music production and publishing company MZMC Inc. Korea shared that Yuju joined the team, having written Yurina Kawaguchi's "Look at Me" Korean version lyrics. On July 28, 2022, she released her second digital single "Evening" featuring rapper Big Naughty. From August to December 2022, Yuju was a fixed radio DJ at KBS Cool FM's Station Z.KBS Cool FM's Station Z fixed DJ:

• In December 2022, it was revealed Yuju sang the main theme song for Lotte World's Magic Matches and the Dreaming Night, a stage adaptation of "The Little Match Girl".

On February 13, 2023, it was announced Yuju would be releasing her second extended play titled O, alongside the lead single "Without U" on March 7. On August 16, 2023, Yuju released the single "Rewind" as part of the +memory project. On September 8, 2023, it was announced that Yuju would be releasing her new single "Dalala" on September 20. Yuju decided not to renew her contract with Konnect after it expired mid-April 2024. In late 2024, Yuju became a mentor for the Korean-Taiwanese boy group survival program Scool.

In early 2025, Yuju participated in GFriend's tenth anniversary reunion, which included the single album Season of Memories and concert tour. On March 12, Yuju signed an exclusive contract with At Area. On August 12, Yuju released her third extended play In Bloom, with the lead single "Reply".

Artistry

Yuju didn't aim to become a singer-songwriter professionally at first. She started writing lyrics and composing for her own satisfaction by writing notes, recording melodies on her phone, and experimenting with self-recording in a studio. After signing as a soloist in 2021, Yuju said her deeper involvement in music-making came naturally, with encouragement from company employees and composers. She co-wrote each song on her solo debut EP Rec. and was the sole lyricist on her second EP O. A major turning point was Yuju's digital single "Dalala," her first lead single as the main composer and sole lyricist. The appeal of creating "Dalala" influenced Yuju's career direction: "I want my songs to go through my hands. I want to be an artist who is not too dependent."

Yuju explained she actively writes lyrics since "singing is ultimately about putting sound into words." She tries not to differentiate lyrics from her usual way of speaking. To draft diverse lyrics, Yuju reads books and meets people to understand their life stories. Yuju's songwriting is also inspired by personal experiences. Her debut lead single "Play" reflected her mixed emotions at the time of leaving her previous company. "Dalala" was inspired by the casual way she hummed on a liberating night stroll.

As GFriend's main vocalist, Yuju received attention for her powerful singing. For her solo activities, she worked on developing other aspects of her singing ability, focusing on delivering lyrics in a relatable way, rather than vocal range.

Discography

Extended plays

Singles

As lead artist

Collaborations

As featured artist

Promotional singles

Soundtrack appearances

Compilation appearances

Composition credits

All song credits are adapted from the Korea Music Copyright Association's database unless stated otherwise.

Videography

Music videos

Other videos

Filmography

Film

Television shows

Web shows

Radio shows

Hosting

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

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