Choi Yu-na (Yuju) is a South Korean singer and actress who is best known for being a former part of the 6-piece k-pop group, GFriend, that also includes Sowon, Yerin, Eunha, SinB, and Umji. Yuju made her debut with the group in the year 2015 and before becoming a part of Source management, she was a trainee under LOEN Entertainment (later known as Kakao M). As a member of GFriend, she has worked on several musical projects which include the likes of Time for Us, LOL, Time for the Moon Night, Fever Season, Parallel, Rough, Flower Bud, Sunny Summer, The Awakening, Snowflake, Rainbow, Season of Glass, Me Gustas Tu, Love Whisper, Memoria, Fingertip, Fever, and many others. Yuju has also either won or been nominated for several awards along with her GFriend groupmates such as Gaon Chart Music Awards, Asia Artist Awards, Genie Music Awards, Golden Disc Awards, Seoul Music Awards, Mnet Asian Music Awards, Melon Popularity Award, Melon Music Awards, YinYueTai V-Chart Awards, MTV Europe Music Awards, Japan Gold Disc Award, and Soribada Best K-Music Awards while the band has also amassed an impressive social media fan base with more than 4 million followers on Instagram, more than 1.5 million followers on Twitter, more than a million followers on Facebook, and more than 1.5 million subscribers on YouTube. Moreover, over the years, Yuju has also collaborated with several other artists such as Loco, Jihoo, Sunyoul, and Suran.

Born Name

Choi Yu-na

Nick Name

Yuju, Angela, YeoJaeYi

Sun Sign

Libra

Born Place

Ilsan-gu, Goyang, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea

Nationality

Education

Yuju went to the School of Performing Arts Seoul, which is located in Gung-dong, Guro-gu, Seoul, South Korea, along with her fellow GFriend groupmates Sowon, Yerin, Eunha, SinB, and Umji.

Occupation

Singer, Actress

Family

• Sibling – Yuju has an older sister.

Manager

Yuju is represented by –

• Source Music (Former)
• Konnect Entertainment

Genre

K-Pop, Dance-Pop

Instruments

Vocals, Guitar

Labels

Source Music (Former), King Records Co., Ltd., Konnect Entertainment

Build

Slim

Height

5 ft 7 in or 170 cm

Weight

48 kg or 106 lbs

Boyfriend / Spouse

Yuju has said that her ideal type is someone who is like model and actor, Kim Woo-bin.

Race / Ethnicity

Asian

Yuju is of South Korean descent.

Hair Color

Dark Brown

Eye Color

Dark Brown

Sexual Orientation

Straight

Distinctive Features

• Toned body
• Often sports forehead bangs
• High cheekbones

Brand Endorsements

As a member of GFriend, Yuju had been a part of a number of commercials for brands such as Pepsi, Hyundai Sonata, and several others.

Religion

Roman Catholicism

Best Known For

• Being a member of the girl group, GFriend, which also includes Sowon, Yerin, Eunha, SinB, and Umji and has been formed by the entertainment company, Source Music. The group made its debut with the release of the EP, Season of Glass, on January 15, 2015, and has since released a large number of singles, albums, music videos, and EPs such as Time for Us, LOL, Fever Season, Season of Glass, Flower Bud, The Awakening, Me Gustas Tu, Rainbow, Fingertip, Love Whisper, Memoria, Snowflake, Parallel, Rough, Glass Bead, Sunny Summer, Time for the Moon Night, and many others.
• Having been a part of GFriend‘s 3rd EP, Snowflake, which was released on January 25, 2016, and included tracks such as Rough, Snowflake, Someday, Say My Name, Luv Star, and Trust. The EP was ranked at number #2 in the Gaon Album Chart, at number #195 in the Oricon Albums Chart, and at number #10 in the U.S. Billboard Chart. One of the tracks, titled “Rough”, became particularly popular winning Gaon Chart Music Award in the “Song of the Year (January)” category, Golden Disc Award in the “Digital Bonsang” category, Melon Music Award in the “Best Dance (Female)” category, and Mnet Asian Music Award in the “Best Dance Performance – Female Group” category as well as getting ranked at number #3 in YouTube’s top 10 “Most Viewed K-Pop Videos Around the World in January 2016” and at number #2 in the top 10 “K-pop MVs most beloved by South Koreans in 2016”. Rough also accomplished the feat of becoming the most downloaded song in 2016 according to Gaon Chart’s 2016 Year End Download Chart.
• The 6th EP, Time for the Moon Night, which was released on April 30, 2018, by the girl group GFriend and which peaked at number #1 in the Gaon Album Chart, at number #63 in the Oricon Albums Chart, and at number #6 in the U.S. Billboard Chart. It comprised of songs like Time for the Moon Night, Love Bug, Bye, Flower Garden, Tik Tik, and You Are My Star and also won a Melon Music Award in the “Best Music Video” category. Additionally, it was nominated for a Gaon Chart Music Award in the “Song of the Year (April)” category, Golden Disc Award in the “Digital Daesang” category, and Soompi Award in the “Music Video of the Year” category. In 2018, the EP’s track, “Time for the Moon Night”, also became the first song of the year to win all the prizes in musical programs.
• Releasing GFriend‘s 7th EP, Fever Season, on July 1, 2019, which was ranked at number #1 in the Gaon Album Chart, at number #73 in the Oricon Albums Chart, and at number #10 in the U.S. Billboard Chart
• Having won a large number of awards, as a member of GFriend, which include Gaon Chart Music Awards, Golden Disc Awards (GDA), Melon Music Awards (MMA), Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA), Seoul Music Awards (SMA), Soribada Best K-Music Awards (SOBA), The Fact Music Awards, Japan Gold Disc Award, MTV Europe Music Awards, MBC Show Champion Awards, 13th Annual Soompi Award, Asia Model Award, and numerous others
• The immense global popularity of the girl group GFriend as it had gained a huge fan base on social media with more than 4 million followers on Instagram, more than 1.5 million followers on Twitter, more than a million followers on Facebook, and more than 1.5 million subscribers on YouTube

First Album

As a member of GFriend, Yuju released her first studio album, LOL, on July 11, 2016, via Source Music and LOEN Entertainment and it consisted of songs such as Fall in Love, Navillera, LOL, Water Flower, Mermaid, Distance, Gone with the Wind, Compass, and Click. Moreover, it was ranked at number #3 in the South Korean Albums (Gaon) chart and at number #7 in the US World Albums (Billboard) chart and was also nominated for a Golden Disc Award in the “Disk Daesang” category in 2017 as well as a Soompi Award in the “Album of the Year” category the same year.

Personal Trainer

Yuju stayed fit by working out on a regular basis alongside her other GFriend group mates and the members often posted their gym pictures and workout videos on Instagram as well.

Yuju Favorite Things

• Food – Rice, Sweet potatoes

Yuju Facts

1. At the time of her baptism, she was named ‘Angela’.
2. Ever since her younger years, Yuju had poor eyesight and used to either wear glasses or contact lenses. Then, in 2018, she finally underwent eye surgery to correct her vision.
3. She appeared as a contestant in the first season of the reality TV competition series, K-pop Star 1, in 2011. However, she got eliminated in the first round itself.
4. Her stage name ‘Yuju’ means ‘affection’.
5. Before becoming a part of Source Music, she had been a trainee under the entertainment company, Kakao M (formerly known as Seoul Records, YBM Seoul Records, and LOEN Entertainment).
6. She made her debut with GFriend with the release of the song, Glass Bead, in 2015.
7. YouTube ranked the music video for the song, Glass Bead, from the EP titled Season of Glass at the 9th spot in the top 10 “Most Viewed K-Pop Videos Around the World in January 2015” list. Soon after, on January 28, 2015, the girl group was named as one of the “Top 5 K-Pop Artists to Watch in 2015”.
8. In 2015, GFriend‘s another track, Me Gustas Tu, was released and while the group was performing in one of the promotional events for the song, the members fell on the stage several times owing to the slippery floor. This brought much attention their way and their video of that particular show also became viral in September 2015 and GFriend members were highly praised for their professionalism. During the incident, Yuju even twisted one of her fingers and fell on stage for around 8 times.
9. While Yuju was studying in the School of Performing Arts Seoul, one of her classmates was singer DK of the boy group, Seventeen.
10. Alongside rapper Kwon Hyuk-woo (a.k.a. Loco), she sang the track, Spring Is Gone by Chance, for the suspense fantasy romantic TV series, A Girl Who Sees Smells, in the year 2015. The song received much positive acclaim and won “OST Chart First Place” for ten weeks in a row on the music program, Music Bank, as well as it was also rewarded as the “Best OST” at the 2015 Melon Music Awards. Moreover, the song also reached the 5th spot on the Gaon Digital Chart.
11. Previously, she went for a JYP audition but was not successful in her endeavor.
12. Yuju is skilled at composing lyrics.
13. GFriend‘s fame skyrocketed when it was nominated as the only girl group in the 2015 MTV Europe Music Awards in the “Best Korean Act” category alongside boy groups such as B1A4, BTS, Got7, and VIXX.
14. She is capable of hitting perfect high notes.
15. Her GFriend co-members often refer to her as the ‘hidden card’ of the girl group.
16. She sang the song titled Billy & The Brave Guys for the soundtrack of the animated movie, Chicken Hero, which was released in February 2016.
17. In 2016, Yuju collaborated with Sunyoul of the boy band, UP10TION, and released the song, Cherish, which was ranked at number #31 in the Gaon Digital Chart.
18. She has been nicknamed ‘YeoJaeYi’ because she is weird.
19. She has credited South Korean singer, songwriter, and actress, IU, as her idol.
20. GFriend‘s first-ever fan meet, named “Dear Buddy”, was organized in April 2017.
21. Sometimes while she is asleep, she claps her hands.
22. Yuju paired along with Jihoo of the band, IZ in 2017 and they released the song, Heart Signal. The same year, she collaborated with composer Jung Key on the song titled First Love and it was ranked at number #38 in the Gaon Digital Chart.
23. As a member of GFriend, she has made appearances in a number of shows such as GFriend! Look After Our Dog, Mamamoo x GFriend Showtime, GFriend Summer Vacation in Okinawa, GFriend Loves Europe, One Fine Day, GFriend – Where R U Going?!, and The Friends in Adriatic Sea.
24. Out of all the GFriend members, she was the first one to participate in the singing reality TV show, King of Mask Singer.
25. Yuju is the GFriend member with a sporty personality and loves figure skating as well as rhythmic gymnastics.
26. In October 2017, she appeared on the television show SBS’ Fantastic Duo and was eventually announced as the winner alongside Wheesung. With this, she became the first Korean female idol to be declared as the winner of Fantastic Duo 2.
27. In 2018, she worked with singer, songwriter, and record producer, Suran, and released the song, Love Rain.
28. She is fluent in English.
29. Yuju suffers from acrophobia which is an extreme or irrational fear of heights.
30. In May 2021, she served as an MC for the “Korean Children’s Song Contest”.
31. In May 2021, it was revealed that all the members of GFriend had parted ways with Source Music upon the end of their contracts and the group had disbanded.
32. In September 2021, Yuju signed a contract with Konnect Entertainment.
33. Yuju released her debut solo EP titled Rec. in January 2022.
34. In July 2022, Yuju teamed up with rapper Big Naughty for a new digital single titled Evening.
35. In March 2022, she released her 2nd EP titled O.
36. In September 2023, Yuju released a new single titled DALALA.
37. Follow GFriend on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, Spotify, iTunes, and Facebook.
38. Follow Yuju on YouTube.

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