Girls' Generation
Girls' Generation (Korean: 소녀시대; Sonyeo Shidae) is a nine-member South Korean pop girl group formed by S.M. Entertainment in 2007.They are known in Japan as Shoujo Jidai (Japanese: 少女時代) and are referred to as SoShi(소시) or SNSD by their fans, both abbreviated forms of the group's Korean name. The group consists of Taeyeon, Jessica Jung, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona and Seohyun.
They gained attention at the beginning of their career with songs such as "Into The New World", "Kissing You" and "Baby Baby". However, it was not until 2009, they gained immense popularity with their hit single "Gee", which holds the record for being the longest running number one song on KBS Music Bank, having held the number one chart ranking for nine consecutive weeks. "Gee" was named 'song of the decade' by the Korean music site, Melon.The group solidified their place in the Korean music industry with their follow-up singles "Tell Me Your Wish (Genie)", "Run Devil Run", and "Oh!".
The group began a foray into the Japanese music scene in late 2010 under Nayutawave Records, a label part of Universal Music Group, with the Japanese remakes of their 2009 Korean hits "Genie" and "Gee." The group's debut Japanese album,Girls' Generation, released in June 2011, is currently the highest selling album in Japan by a Korean group in Oricon history. The album quickly became their most successful album to date, being certified 'Million' by the RIAJ and made the group the second Korean artist to earn this achievement in Japan since Korean labelmate BoA's "Best of Soul" in 2005.
In 2011, they returned to the Korean music scene with "The Boys", which was released in three languages: Korean, Japanese, and for the first time, English. At the start of 2012, the group performed the English version of "The Boys" on the late night talk show Late Show with David Letterman and on the daytime talk show Live! with Kelly, becoming the first Korean musical act to perform on each show, and the first Korean act to perform on syndicated television in the United States. In the same year, the group formed their first sub-unit, entitled Girls' Generation-TTS, or simply "TaeTiSeo", composed of members Taeyeon, Tiffany, and Seohyun. The subgroup's debut EP, Twinkle, peaked at #136 on the Billboard 200, becoming the highest charting K-Pop album on the chart thus far.
In 2012, they returned to the Japanese market with, "Paparazzi", taken from their upcoming second Japanese album. The song ranked high in various Japanese charts, including the Japan Hot 100 in which it peaked at the number one spot.
Members
* Birth name: Kim Taeyeon 태연
* Date of birth: March 9, 1989 (1989-03-09)
* Discovery: 2004 8th Annual Best Contest (Best Singer 1st Place & Grand Award)
* School(s): Jeonju High School
* Experience: Solo "If" , Hong Gil Dong OST and "Can you Hear me" , Beethoven Virus OST, Heading to the Ground OST
* Position : Main Vocalist, Leader
* Received received the YEPP Popularity Award for her solo "Can you Hear Me", Beethoven Virus OST
* Has been part of the reality show We Got Married with her virtual husband Jung Hyung-don
* Former DJ of Chin Chin Radio
* Was one of the co-hosts of KBS celebrity talk show "Win Win"
* Starred in the musical "Midnight Sun"
Taeyeon was born in South Korea on March 9, 1989. She is trained in singing and dancing. Taeyeon was discovered in the 2004 SM Entertainment's 8th Annual Best Contest winning Best Singer 1st Place & Grand Award in the contest. In 2004, she was featured in The One's song "You Bring Me Joy" before debuting as Girls' Generation's leader. She is a 2008 graduate of Jeonju Art High School and was decorated with the school's Lifetime Achievement Award.
* Birth name: Jessica Jung/ Jeong Su-yeon
* Date of birth: April 18, 1989 (1989-04-18)
* Discovery: 2000 SM Casting System
* School(s): Korea Kent Foreign School
* Position : Main Vocalist
* Starred as Elle Woods on Korea's Legally Blonde Musical
* Did a duet with Park Myungsoo for their single "Naengmyun" (Cold Noodles)
* Has a younger sister named Krystal, which is part of the girl group f(x)
Jessica was born and raised in San Francisco, California and is fluent in English. She moved to Korea when she was 11 for training. She released 2 singles alongside with SeoHyun and Tiffany: "오빠 나빠" ("Bad Oppa") and "Mabinogi (It's Fantastic!)". Jessica also starred in Jo Han Kim's music video "Love is Late, I'm Sorry" and Super Junior M's 'Super Girl'.
* Stage name: Sunny (Hangul: 써니)
* Birth name: Lee Sunkyu (Hangul: 이순규; Hanja: 李順圭)
* Date of birth: May 15, 1989 (1989-05-15)
* Discovery: 2007 SM Casting System
* School(s): Baehwa All-Girls High School
* Position : Lead Vocalist
* Participated in KBS Invincible Youth with Yuri
* Cast in Invincible Youth Season 2 with Hyoyeon
Sunny was born in the United States, when she was still an infant they moved to Kuwait and then to South Korea during the Gulf War.
Sunny was a trainee under a different entertainment company before she transferred into SM Entertainment. After several months of training under SM Entertainment in 2007, Sunny debuted as a member of Girls' Generation that same year. She is the niece of SM Entertainment's CEO, Lee Soo Man, and her father was once the manager of the disbanded K-pop girl group Sugar. She was a co-DJ of Reckless Radio along with Sungmin of Super Junior until the broadcast ended on the July 30, 2008. Sunny appeared in Super Junior-H's music video for "Cooking? Cooking!". Sunny also sang the song "Finally Now" on the soundtrack for the movie Story of Wine.
* Stage name: Tiffany (Hangul: 티파니)
* Birth name: Stephanie Hwang; Hwang Miyoung (Hangul: 황미영; Hanja: 黄美英)
* Date of birth: August 1, 1989 (1989-08-01)
* Discovery: 2004 Casting System (Los Angeles, California)
* School(s): Korea Kent Foreign School
* Position : Lead Vocalist
* Hosted Music Core with Yuri
* Had released her first single titled "By Myself"
* Cast in the 2011 Musical titled "Fame"
Tiffany was raised in Diamond Bar, California and is fluent in English. She was discovered in the SM Starlight Casting System 2004 in Los Angeles and began her training under the label until the debut of Girls' Generation. Along with SeoHyun and Jessica, she released a single, "Bad Boyfriend" (오빠 나빠) and Mabinogi [It's Fantastic!].
* Stage name: Hyoyeon (Hangul: 효연; Hanja: 孝淵)
* Birth name: Kim Hyoyeon (Hangul: 김효연; Hanja: 金孝妍)
* Nickname: Dancing Queen, Hyo-Rang
* Date of birth: September 22, 1989 (1989-09-22)
* Discovery: 2000 SM Casting System
* School(s): Studied in Beijing, China for Mandarin Chinese
* Position : Vocalist, Main dancer
* BoA's silhouette dancer during a performance at M.net KM Music Festival 2005 *Pre-debut
* Teamed up with Jae Won for a dance collaboration to "Anonymous" *Pre-debut
* Cast in Invincible Youth Season 2 with Sunny
Hyoyeon once attended a hip hop dance school that specializes in waving, popping, locking, and animation. Prior to her debut, Hyoyeon traveled to Beijing, China in 2004 with Super Junior's Siwon to learn Mandarin and more about Chinese culture. She is one of the main dancers in Girl's Generation.
* Birth name: Kwon Yuri (Hangul: 권유리; Hanja: 權侑莉)
* Date of birth: December 5, 1989 (1989-12-05)
* Discovery: 2001 SM 1st Annual Youth Best Contest
* School(s): NeungGok High School
* Position : Vocalist, Lead Dancer
* Experience:
* Appeared in KM Super Junior Show The King's Boyfriend (2005)
* Featured in TVXQ's "Beautiful Life" music video
* Featured in commercials for Choco Pie, Dongil Highvill, and Hot Choco Mite
* Acted in Attack on the Pin-Up Boys
* Starred in MBC sitcom Unstoppable Marriage
* Hosted Music Core with Tiffany
* Participated in KBS Invincible Youth with Sunny
* Featured in K.Will's "My Tears are Dropping / Dropping the tears" MV
* Starred in the 2012 Drama "Fashion King"
Yuri joined the label when she took 1st place in the 2001 1st SM Youth Best Dancer Contest. She appeared in TVXQ's "Beautiful Life" music video and had a small role as a ballerina in Super Junior's first movie, Attack on the Pin-Up Boys. She also had a small role in a television segment, "The King's Boyfriend," which was part of the 2005–2006 KMTV Super Junior documentary, Super Junior Show. Yuri also played a part in the sitcom Unstoppable Marriage alongside Sooyoung.
* Birth name: Choi Sooyoung (Hangul: 최수영; Hanja: 崔秀英)
* Date of birth: February 10, 1990 (1990-02-10)
* Casted: 2002 Korea-Japan Ultra Idol Duo Audition
* School(s): Jungshin All-Girls High School
* Position : Vocalist and Lead dancer
* Experience:
* Debuted in Japan in the duo Route 0 (2002)
* Featured in commercials for Samsung Anycall
* Modelled for Japan Chubbygang and Skoolooks
* Starred in MBC sitcom Unstoppable Marriage
* Starrred in the film Pure Manhwa - Happily Ever After
* Cast in the upcoming 2012 tvN Drama - The 3rd Hospital
Before Sooyoung's audition to Girls' Generation, she made a brief debut in Japan as a singer in the group called Route φ. She first debuted with Marina Takahashi with the song "Start". While in Japan, she became close friends with BoA and Sunday from The Grace as they too were working in Japan as singers at the time. She was previously a DJ of ChunJi along with Sungmin of Super Junior. She was soon replaced by Sunny due to schedule conflicts. Sooyoung also played a part in the sitcom Unstoppable Marriage alongside Yuri. Her High School Graduation was on February 10, 2009.
* Birth name: Im Yoon Ah (Hangul: 임윤아; Hanja: 林允兒)
* Date of birth: May 30, 1990 (1990-05-30)
* Discovery: 2002 SM Saturday Open Casting Audition
* School(s): Daeyoung High School
* Position : Vocalist, Lead Dancer
* Awards/Recognitions
* 2008 Korean Drama Festival: Netizen Popularity Award (You Are My Destiny)
* 2008 KBS Drama Awards: Best New Actress Award (You Are My Destiny)[10]
* 2008 KBS Drama Awards: Netizen Award
* Experience:
* Featured in music videos for TVXQ's "Magic Castle, The Grace's "열정 (My Everything)", Super Junior's "U" and "Marry U", Lee Seung Chul's "Propose"
* Featured in commercials for Sanyo Eneloop, Teun Teun English, Elite, Sunkist Lemondae, Clean & Clear, Sola VitaminC, YeJiMiIn
* Starred in MBC dramas 9 Hits, 2 Outs and Park Jung Geum, and KBS drama You Are My Destiny, MBC drama Cinderella Man
* Featured in SHINee's Japanese version of "Replay" MV
* Starred in the 2012 Drama 'Love Rain' with Jang Geun Suk
Yoona has appeared in several music videos and commercials. She gained a minor role in the Korean drama, 9 Ends 2 Outs (9회말 2아웃) and won a major role in a new drama, You Are My Destiny. In this drama, Yoona portrays a girl who was once blind. You Are My Destiny has the highest rating and number of viewers for daily dramas in its time slot, beating other per popular dramas from major Korean networks, MBC and SBS.[not in citation given] Yoona has been accepted by Dongguk University and will continue her studies. On February 10, 2009 YoonA was spotted at her High School Graduation.
* Stage name: SeoHyun (Hangul: 서현; Hanja: 徐玄)
* Birth name: Seo Joohyun (Hangul: 서주현; Hanja: 徐珠賢)
* Date of birth: June 28, 1991 (1991-06-28)
* Discovery: 2003 SM Casting System
* School(s): Daeyoung High School
* Position : Lead vocalist, Maknae
* Experience:
* 2004 SMART Uniform Model
* Went to the reality show "We Got Married" (2010-2011) with her husband Yong Hwa of CN. Blue
* Featured in TRAX's "Oh My Goddess" MV
* Sang "I Will Wait for You" OST song for "Fashion King" (2012)
Seohyun is the youngest member of the Girls' Generation. She is also a pianist. Along with Tiffany and Jessica, they released a single "오빠 나빠" ("Bad Oppa"), And "Mabinogi (It's Fantastic!)". On February 17, 2009 the Digital Release Of the song 짜라자짜 (Go to sleep, Let's go to sleep). She Sang it alongside with Ju Hyun Mi.
* Date of birth: March 9, 1989 (1989-03-09)
* Discovery: 2004 8th Annual Best Contest (Best Singer 1st Place & Grand Award)
* School(s): Jeonju High School
* Experience: Solo "If" , Hong Gil Dong OST and "Can you Hear me" , Beethoven Virus OST, Heading to the Ground OST
* Position : Main Vocalist, Leader
* Received received the YEPP Popularity Award for her solo "Can you Hear Me", Beethoven Virus OST
* Has been part of the reality show We Got Married with her virtual husband Jung Hyung-don
* Former DJ of Chin Chin Radio
* Was one of the co-hosts of KBS celebrity talk show "Win Win"
* Starred in the musical "Midnight Sun"
Taeyeon was born in South Korea on March 9, 1989. She is trained in singing and dancing. Taeyeon was discovered in the 2004 SM Entertainment's 8th Annual Best Contest winning Best Singer 1st Place & Grand Award in the contest. In 2004, she was featured in The One's song "You Bring Me Joy" before debuting as Girls' Generation's leader. She is a 2008 graduate of Jeonju Art High School and was decorated with the school's Lifetime Achievement Award.
Jessica
* Birth name: Jessica Jung/ Jeong Su-yeon
* Date of birth: April 18, 1989 (1989-04-18)
* Discovery: 2000 SM Casting System
* School(s): Korea Kent Foreign School
* Position : Main Vocalist
* Starred as Elle Woods on Korea's Legally Blonde Musical
* Did a duet with Park Myungsoo for their single "Naengmyun" (Cold Noodles)
* Has a younger sister named Krystal, which is part of the girl group f(x)
Jessica was born and raised in San Francisco, California and is fluent in English. She moved to Korea when she was 11 for training. She released 2 singles alongside with SeoHyun and Tiffany: "오빠 나빠" ("Bad Oppa") and "Mabinogi (It's Fantastic!)". Jessica also starred in Jo Han Kim's music video "Love is Late, I'm Sorry" and Super Junior M's 'Super Girl'.
Sunny
* Stage name: Sunny (Hangul: 써니)
* Birth name: Lee Sunkyu (Hangul: 이순규; Hanja: 李順圭)
* Date of birth: May 15, 1989 (1989-05-15)
* Discovery: 2007 SM Casting System
* School(s): Baehwa All-Girls High School
* Position : Lead Vocalist
* Participated in KBS Invincible Youth with Yuri
* Cast in Invincible Youth Season 2 with Hyoyeon
Sunny was born in the United States, when she was still an infant they moved to Kuwait and then to South Korea during the Gulf War.
Sunny was a trainee under a different entertainment company before she transferred into SM Entertainment. After several months of training under SM Entertainment in 2007, Sunny debuted as a member of Girls' Generation that same year. She is the niece of SM Entertainment's CEO, Lee Soo Man, and her father was once the manager of the disbanded K-pop girl group Sugar. She was a co-DJ of Reckless Radio along with Sungmin of Super Junior until the broadcast ended on the July 30, 2008. Sunny appeared in Super Junior-H's music video for "Cooking? Cooking!". Sunny also sang the song "Finally Now" on the soundtrack for the movie Story of Wine.
Tiffany
* Stage name: Tiffany (Hangul: 티파니)
* Birth name: Stephanie Hwang; Hwang Miyoung (Hangul: 황미영; Hanja: 黄美英)
* Date of birth: August 1, 1989 (1989-08-01)
* Discovery: 2004 Casting System (Los Angeles, California)
* School(s): Korea Kent Foreign School
* Position : Lead Vocalist
* Hosted Music Core with Yuri
* Had released her first single titled "By Myself"
* Cast in the 2011 Musical titled "Fame"
Tiffany was raised in Diamond Bar, California and is fluent in English. She was discovered in the SM Starlight Casting System 2004 in Los Angeles and began her training under the label until the debut of Girls' Generation. Along with SeoHyun and Jessica, she released a single, "Bad Boyfriend" (오빠 나빠) and Mabinogi [It's Fantastic!].
Hyoyeon
* Stage name: Hyoyeon (Hangul: 효연; Hanja: 孝淵)
* Birth name: Kim Hyoyeon (Hangul: 김효연; Hanja: 金孝妍)
* Nickname: Dancing Queen, Hyo-Rang
* Date of birth: September 22, 1989 (1989-09-22)
* Discovery: 2000 SM Casting System
* School(s): Studied in Beijing, China for Mandarin Chinese
* Position : Vocalist, Main dancer
* BoA's silhouette dancer during a performance at M.net KM Music Festival 2005 *Pre-debut
* Teamed up with Jae Won for a dance collaboration to "Anonymous" *Pre-debut
* Cast in Invincible Youth Season 2 with Sunny
Hyoyeon once attended a hip hop dance school that specializes in waving, popping, locking, and animation. Prior to her debut, Hyoyeon traveled to Beijing, China in 2004 with Super Junior's Siwon to learn Mandarin and more about Chinese culture. She is one of the main dancers in Girl's Generation.
Yuri
* Birth name: Kwon Yuri (Hangul: 권유리; Hanja: 權侑莉)
* Date of birth: December 5, 1989 (1989-12-05)
* Discovery: 2001 SM 1st Annual Youth Best Contest
* School(s): NeungGok High School
* Position : Vocalist, Lead Dancer
* Experience:
* Appeared in KM Super Junior Show The King's Boyfriend (2005)
* Featured in TVXQ's "Beautiful Life" music video
* Featured in commercials for Choco Pie, Dongil Highvill, and Hot Choco Mite
* Acted in Attack on the Pin-Up Boys
* Starred in MBC sitcom Unstoppable Marriage
* Hosted Music Core with Tiffany
* Participated in KBS Invincible Youth with Sunny
* Featured in K.Will's "My Tears are Dropping / Dropping the tears" MV
* Starred in the 2012 Drama "Fashion King"
Yuri joined the label when she took 1st place in the 2001 1st SM Youth Best Dancer Contest. She appeared in TVXQ's "Beautiful Life" music video and had a small role as a ballerina in Super Junior's first movie, Attack on the Pin-Up Boys. She also had a small role in a television segment, "The King's Boyfriend," which was part of the 2005–2006 KMTV Super Junior documentary, Super Junior Show. Yuri also played a part in the sitcom Unstoppable Marriage alongside Sooyoung.
Sooyoung
* Birth name: Choi Sooyoung (Hangul: 최수영; Hanja: 崔秀英)
* Date of birth: February 10, 1990 (1990-02-10)
* Casted: 2002 Korea-Japan Ultra Idol Duo Audition
* School(s): Jungshin All-Girls High School
* Position : Vocalist and Lead dancer
* Experience:
* Debuted in Japan in the duo Route 0 (2002)
* Featured in commercials for Samsung Anycall
* Modelled for Japan Chubbygang and Skoolooks
* Starred in MBC sitcom Unstoppable Marriage
* Starrred in the film Pure Manhwa - Happily Ever After
* Cast in the upcoming 2012 tvN Drama - The 3rd Hospital
Before Sooyoung's audition to Girls' Generation, she made a brief debut in Japan as a singer in the group called Route φ. She first debuted with Marina Takahashi with the song "Start". While in Japan, she became close friends with BoA and Sunday from The Grace as they too were working in Japan as singers at the time. She was previously a DJ of ChunJi along with Sungmin of Super Junior. She was soon replaced by Sunny due to schedule conflicts. Sooyoung also played a part in the sitcom Unstoppable Marriage alongside Yuri. Her High School Graduation was on February 10, 2009.
Yoona
* Birth name: Im Yoon Ah (Hangul: 임윤아; Hanja: 林允兒)
* Date of birth: May 30, 1990 (1990-05-30)
* Discovery: 2002 SM Saturday Open Casting Audition
* School(s): Daeyoung High School
* Position : Vocalist, Lead Dancer
* Awards/Recognitions
* 2008 Korean Drama Festival: Netizen Popularity Award (You Are My Destiny)
* 2008 KBS Drama Awards: Best New Actress Award (You Are My Destiny)[10]
* 2008 KBS Drama Awards: Netizen Award
* Experience:
* Featured in music videos for TVXQ's "Magic Castle, The Grace's "열정 (My Everything)", Super Junior's "U" and "Marry U", Lee Seung Chul's "Propose"
* Featured in commercials for Sanyo Eneloop, Teun Teun English, Elite, Sunkist Lemondae, Clean & Clear, Sola VitaminC, YeJiMiIn
* Starred in MBC dramas 9 Hits, 2 Outs and Park Jung Geum, and KBS drama You Are My Destiny, MBC drama Cinderella Man
* Featured in SHINee's Japanese version of "Replay" MV
* Starred in the 2012 Drama 'Love Rain' with Jang Geun Suk
Yoona has appeared in several music videos and commercials. She gained a minor role in the Korean drama, 9 Ends 2 Outs (9회말 2아웃) and won a major role in a new drama, You Are My Destiny. In this drama, Yoona portrays a girl who was once blind. You Are My Destiny has the highest rating and number of viewers for daily dramas in its time slot, beating other per popular dramas from major Korean networks, MBC and SBS.[not in citation given] Yoona has been accepted by Dongguk University and will continue her studies. On February 10, 2009 YoonA was spotted at her High School Graduation.
Seohyun
* Stage name: SeoHyun (Hangul: 서현; Hanja: 徐玄)
* Birth name: Seo Joohyun (Hangul: 서주현; Hanja: 徐珠賢)
* Date of birth: June 28, 1991 (1991-06-28)
* Discovery: 2003 SM Casting System
* School(s): Daeyoung High School
* Position : Lead vocalist, Maknae
* Experience:
* 2004 SMART Uniform Model
* Went to the reality show "We Got Married" (2010-2011) with her husband Yong Hwa of CN. Blue
* Featured in TRAX's "Oh My Goddess" MV
* Sang "I Will Wait for You" OST song for "Fashion King" (2012)
Seohyun is the youngest member of the Girls' Generation. She is also a pianist. Along with Tiffany and Jessica, they released a single "오빠 나빠" ("Bad Oppa"), And "Mabinogi (It's Fantastic!)". On February 17, 2009 the Digital Release Of the song 짜라자짜 (Go to sleep, Let's go to sleep). She Sang it alongside with Ju Hyun Mi.
Vocabulary
* abbreviated (adj) - short
* popularity (n) - general, esteem, widespread acceptance
* consecutive (adj) -in order, in sequence
* industry (n) - diligence, industriousness
* currently (adv) -presently
* achievement (n) -attainment,accomplishment, fulfillment
* silhouette (n) -profile, outline
* unstoppable (adj) -unyeilding, unconquerable, indomitable
* alongside (adv) -side by side
* release (n) -issue, publish
* commercial (n) -advertisement
