It takes years for some stars to be recognized by the public even when they work hard, while for some lucky ones, it only takes one project or song.
Here are seven Korean actors/actresses and K-pop stars who gained incredible fame right after they entered the industry.
1. Jung Hoyeon
Jung Hoyeon was a model before she got into acting.
Her first acting project happened to be 'Squid Game', which is a Netflix's series that made a huge hit around the world last year.
2. Park Min Young
Park Min Young made debut with MBC's sitcom 'High Kick!' in 2006.
'High Kick!' started with a 6% viewing rate, but ended with a viewing rate as high as 20%.
3. Lee Seung Gi
Lee Seung Gi released his first song 'Because You Are My Girl, Noona' (literal title) in 2004, when he was in high school.
The song swept all the major music charts that year.
4. Lee Joon Gi
Lee Joon Gi's debut movie 'King and the Clown' was one of the mega-hit movies in the early 00s.
He left a great impression on the public with his role of crossdresser performer 'Gong-gil'.
5. Choi Ye Bin
Choi Ye Bin kicked off her acting career while still attending one of the top arts universities in Korea―Korea National University of Arts with 'The Penthouse: War in Life'.
'The Penthouse: War in Life' was one of the most-watched dramas in 2020 and 2021.
6. BLACKPINK
BLACKPINK was produced by YG Entertainment, where globally-popular K-pop groups BIGBANG and 2NE1 were made, so lots of K-pop fans were anticipating the next YG K-pop group.
Their debut track 'WHISTLE' was much-loved around the world, and the four girls' uniqueness won many K-pop fans' hearts.
7. aespa
Produced by SM Entertainment in November 2020, aespa marked the agency's first girl group in years after Red Velvet in 2014.
Because of this, they gained a lot of attention even before their debut, but the group's catchy songs played a big role in getting their name out there following their debut.
(Credit= 'hoooooyeony' 'rachel_mypark' 'leeseunggi.official' 'actor_jg' 'yebin__' Instagram, YG Entertainment, SM Entertainment)
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