Hyuna is a K-Pop idol and rapper known as the face of the idol group 4Minute, for her Breakup Breakout solo career after that, and as PSY's love interest in his super-hit "Gangnam Style".
Born Kim Hyun-ah on June 6, 1992, she debuted as a member of the idol group Wonder Girls in 2007. However, a few months after that, she left the group due to health problems.
She returned two years later as 4Minute's main rapper, and released her debut solo song "Change" in 2010. She also sang as a duo with B2ST's Hyunseung as Trouble Maker, and as a member of the trio Triple H (no relation to the wrestler) with Pentagon's Hui and Dawn.
After 4Minute's disbandment in 2016, Hyuna continued as a solo artist. She became even more well-known for being that pretty girl in Psy's viral "Gangnam Style" music video. They have since collaborated again in a handful of Sequel Songs and consider each other good friends. In 2018, Cube Entertainment kicked Hyuna and Dawn from the label for dating each other in secret. She then joined Psy's record label P Nation
. The couple left P Nation following the expiration of their contracts in August of 2022, and in November of that same year Hyuna announced they had broken up.
In January of 2024 Hyuna was announced to be dating former B2ST member Yong Junhyung, sparking massive backlash due to Yong's involvement in the Burning Sun scandal.
- Change (non-album single, 2010)
- Oppa Is Just My Style (non-album single with PSY, 2012)
- Flower Shower (non-album single, 2019, later included in the EP I'm Not Cool)
Extended plays:
- Bubble Pop (2011)
- Singles: A Bitter Day & Bubble Pop
- Melting (2012)
- Single: Ice Cream
- A Talk (2014)
- Single: Red
- A+ (2015)
- Single: Roll Deep (feat. Ilhoon of BTOB)
- A'wesome (2016)
- Single: How's This?
- Following (2017)
- Single: Babe
- Lip & Hip (single album, 2017)
- I'm Not Cool (2021)
- Singles: Flower Shower & I'm Not Cool
- 1+1=1 (2021, with Dawn)
- Single: Ping Pong
- Nabillera (2022)
- Single: Nabillera
As a member of Trouble Maker:
- Trouble Maker (EP, 2011)
- Single: Trouble Maker
- Chemistry (EP, 2013)
- Single: Now (There Is No Tomorrow)
As a member of Triple H:
- 199X (EP, 2017)
- Single: 365 Fresh
- Retro Futurism (EP, 2018)
- Single: Retro Future
Tropes that apply to Hyuna and her music:
- Animal Metaphor: Butterflies representing her, used in several music videos, most prominently "Nabillera". They symbolize freedom, capriciousness and beauty.
- Beneath the Mask: Hyuna is well-known for being confident and outspoken, but in 2019, publicly disclosed that she suffers from mental illness. In an open letter to fans, she revealed that she has been diagnosed with depression, a panic disorder, and vasovagal syncope (fainting due to sight of blood/extreme emotional stress) and does not want to hide her pain anymore.
- Color Motifs: Red. She has an entire single named after the color, and the motif lives on even after Cube expelled her (as in her first post-Cube release, "Flower Shower," where she sings that she embodies red). Very fitting for one who is bold, confident, and passionate.
- Fanservice:
- Her solo works are generally more provocative than her work with 4minute. Perhaps the most egregious fanservice-y moment is the infamous kiss with Hyunseung at MAMA's 2011.
- During one now-viral performance of Red, she took off her shirt and danced the rest of the song in her bra.
- Female Empowerment Song: "Bubble Pop", which is about how she does not need to be judged by others' standards. Also, like, half her other songs.
- Good Bad Girl: Although famous for her provocative dances and suggestive songs, in interviews and TV appearances, she's a sweet, goofy and polite person.
- Gratuitous English: There are some English phrases throughout her songs, such as "Ice cream, ice cream / I'll melt you down like ice cream" in "Ice Cream" and "I got fancy lip and hip" in "Lip & Hip."
- Hotter and Sexier: "Bubble Pop", especially after it got banned from the airwaves due to provocative dancing and outfits. It's more provocative than her previous songs and what 4Minute normally did.
- Mood Whiplash:
- Her EP Melting is this. First off you have "Don't Fall Apart" where you have Hyuna literally sounding off on the haters.
- Both "Ice Cream" and "Very Hot", which is the only song she wrote, are typical hip-hop songs that literally have Hyuna talking about her sexiness, although "Ice Cream" is a more hilarious take at this.
- "To my Boyfriend" is a soothing tear jerker that talks about her future man. The one song that is completely different is "Unripe Apple", which is a cutesy song about a girl trying to keep her virginity.
- Then there's "Change" and "Bubble Pop" which are two entirely different singles. "Change" shows her badass side whilst "Bubble Pop" is more fun and light-hearted.
- Official Couple: Her ex-boyfriend is DAWN (formerly known as E'Dawn), an erstwhile member of Pentagon and Triple H. Cube Entertainment actually kicked them out for dating, saying in an official statement: "After numerous discussions, it is with great pain that we have come to the conclusion that it will prove difficult for us to rebuild the broken loyalty and trust between these two artists, HyunA and E'Dawn; as a result, we have made the decision to force them out from our label." Their expulsion has only strengthened fan support for the couple, although they announced their breakup in November of 2022.
- Pretty in Mink: She wore a fur cape in the "Trouble Maker" music video.
- Ship Tease: With Hyunseung for their performances of their duet "Trouble Maker." They kiss each other on the lips onstage when they perform the song, but as far as what's known to the public, it was purely a stage romance.
- Shout-Out: The music video for "Bubble Pop!" has a shout-out to Beyoncé's "Crazy in Love.", including the same Iconic Outfit and Unflinching Walk.
- The "Red" music video has multiple references to modern-era Miley Cyrus, including a wild house party and 55gorilla stuffed animal riding a giant disco ball.
- Stuffy Old Songs About the Buttocks: "Lip & Hip" is a song about seducing someone using lips and hips, but the music video for the song emphasizes the "hip" part way more.
- Three Minutes of Writhing: "Bubble Pop" and "Ice Cream". About 15 seconds of writhing in "Gangnam Style." Her role in "Oppa Is Just My Style" is this, in contrast to PSY's... energetic dance movements.
- Women Drivers: Near the start of the video for Ice Cream she runs down a clown with an ice cream van, nobody cares, including the cops standing nearby.
