Younha

Birth Name   : 고윤하 (Go Yoon-ha)
Born              :  April 29, 1988 Seoul, South Korea
Genres          :  Pop, pop rock, jazz
Occupations  :  Singer
Instruments   :  Vocals, piano

Personal Life

Younha 고윤하 Go Yoon-ha, Yunna, born April 29, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea, is a South Korean pop singer who first got her start in Japan, and continues to have success today in both countries. Younha made her debut as an artist at the young age of sixteen. Nicknamed the "Oricon comet" for her success in Japan, she has released eight singles and two albums there with varying degrees of success. Several of her songs have been featured in anime and drama series.  Younha was signed to Epic Records, a branch of Sony Music Entertainment Japan, from 2004 to 2008, after which she moved to Sistus Records, a Geneon Entertainment label. In South Korea, she is signed to Lion Media and Stam Entertainment.

Born in South Korea to music-loving parents, Younha began to play the piano at the age of 5. She developed an interest in Japanese television dramas and began to teach herself Japanese. What began as an interest in Japanese dramas developed into an interest in Japanese music. With the recommendation of an older student in her school's broadcasting club, she began listening to artists such as Hikaru Utada and Misia. Younha began to dream about becoming a singer alongside her favorite artists. 2004 - 2005

In order to accomplish her dreams, Younha began to audition within Korea. She says that she went through as many as 20 auditions. She also commented in an interview that certain companies refused to sign her to their labels because they believed she was not "pretty" enough, although she sang very well.  After a TV drama producer heard her demo tape, her single "Yubikiri", was chosen as the insert song for the Japanese Fuji TV Monday drama Tokyo Wankei ~Destiny of Love~. In October of the same year, she released her official first single, "Yubikiri -Japanese version-".

Younha's second single, "Houki Boshi", was used as an ending song for the popular Bleach anime. It became a hit, debuting on the Oricon chart at #18 and peaking at #12, and propelled Younha into the limelight. With this single, she became the second Korean, after BoA, to have broken the Oricon chart's top 20. Between "Touch / Yume no Tsuzuki" and "Houki Boshi", she released "Motto Futari de". It flopped and only reached #117 on the Oricon Charts, possibly due to a lack of promotion. Her later single, "Touch / Yume no Tsuzuki", debuted at #15, and peaked at #11. After releasing five singles, Younha released her first album entitled Go! Younha. It reached the #10 spot on the Oricon weekly charts.