Uee

Kim Yu-jin (born April 9, 1988), better known by her stage name Uee (sometimes romanized as U-ie), is a South Korean singer and actress.

Kim Yu-jin was born April 9, 1988, in Daejeon, South Korea.

Her father, Kim Sung-kap, is a retired professional baseball player and former head coach for the South Korean teams, Nexen Heroes and SK Wyverns.

She has an older sister, Kim Yu-na.

Uee attended Guwol Girls' Middle School and Incheon Physical Education High School.

While in high school, she was a swimmer and competed in the Korean National Sports Festival.

She later graduated from Sungkyunkwan University's School of Art, with a degree in Performing Arts.

Uee originally desired to be an actress and went to many auditions, but she debuted as a singer first.

In 2007, Uee was a member of the girl group Five Girls under Good Entertainment, which also included Yubin, Jun Hyoseong, Yang Jiwon, and G.NA.

The group starred in a reality show on MTV called Diary of Five Girls, but disbanded before their scheduled debut due to Good Entertainment's financial troubles.

Before debuting, she was once a hot topic in South Korea.

On May 30, 2008, while watching her father's baseball game in Mok-dong Stadium, she was caught by the camera.

The announcer introduced her as the daughter of Coach Kim Sung-kap.

The name 'Mok-dong Girl' became number 1 in internet search terms.

In August 2008, after appearing as Yubin's friend in the MBC show Introducing the Star's Friend, she again became popular because of her friendship with the Wonder Girls member and her resemblance to Moon Geun-young.

She later joined Pledis Entertainment.

She is best known for being a former member of South Korean girl group After School from 2009 to 2017, and has acted in various television dramas including Queen Seondeok (2009), Ojakgyo Family (2011), Jeon Woo-chi (2012), Golden Rainbow (2013), High Society (2015), Marriage Contract (2016), and My Only One (2018).

In April 2009, Uee joined the girl group After School with their single "Diva".

She became known for her "honey thighs" and proved popular with the general public, often topping online search rankings on various Korean websites.

In July, she made her acting debut in MBC's historical drama, Queen Seondeok, which was well received and won various awards.

She was subsequently cast in SBS's musical drama You're Beautiful, which started airing in October.

Later that month, she joined the project group, 4Tomorrow, which consists Han Seung-yeon, Hyuna, and Gain; and released the single "Dugeundugeun Tomorrow" on October 6, 2009.

That same year, she joined the MBC's reality show We Got Married and was paired with Park Jae-jung.

Uee ranked eighth on Forbes Korea's list of most hardworking idols in 2009–2010.

Uee had lead roles in two television dramas in 2011.

In Birdie Buddy, she played a country girl who strives to become a professional golfer.

The drama's director, Yun Sang-ho, praised Uee's "flawless acting", saying, "I believe actors from idol groups such as Uee and Luna improve more quickly because they have so much talent and passion".

In Ojakgyo Family, Uee played a university student with a difficult family history.

She earned praise for her natural acting and received Best New Actress awards at the Paeksang Arts Awards and KBS Drama Awards.

Uee released her first solo single, "Sok Sok Sok" (쏙쏙쏙), on June 21, 2011.

She also co-hosted the variety show Night After Night.

In January 2012, Uee became a permanent host on the KBS music show, Music Bank, along with Lee Jang-woo.

From November 2012 to February 2013, she starred as princess Hong Mu-yeon in Jeon Woo-chi, a historical drama set during the Joseon Dynasty.

When she was cast for the role, Uee expressed her desire to be seen as a serious actor, saying "I want to do away with the 'idol singer-turned-actor' in this piece and really step up my performance".

During the shoot, she was praised for her ability to immerse herself in the character and give a detailed performance.

She continued hosting the show until April 2013.

Uee was a permanent cast member of SBS' survival variety show Barefooted Friends in 2013.

During the show, she performed the song "Hero" at a special concert.

The song was produced by Duble Sidekick and co-written by Uee, and subsequently released on the soundtrack album My Story, My Song on August 19.

On May 31, 2017, Uee graduated and left After School and its agency, Pledis Entertainment.