Lee Ji-hyun (Korean: 이지현; born December 12, 1986),[2] better known by her stage name Qri (Korean: 큐리), is a South Korean singer and actress. She debuted as a member of girl group T-ara in July 2009, who went on to become one of the best-selling girl groups of all time.[3]

Qri
이지현
Qri in June 2017
Born	Lee Ji-hyun (1986-12-12) December 12, 1986 (age 35) Goyang, South Korea
Occupation	Singer actress
Musical career
Genres	K-pop R&B electropop
Instrument(s)	Vocals bass
Years active	2009–present
Labels	MBK EMI Japan Banana Culture[1]
Member of	T-ara QBS
Musical artist
Korean name
Hangul	큐리
Hanja	居麗
Revised Romanization	Kyuri
McCune–Reischauer	K'yuri
Birth name
Hangul	이지현
Hanja	李智賢
Revised Romanization	I Ji-hyeon
McCune–Reischauer	Yi Chihyŏn

Early life and education

Lee Ji-hyun was born on December 12, 1986.[4] She has studied at Juyeob High School, and then attended Myungji University, enrolling in the Department of Theatre and Visual Arts, the same class as fellow group member, Boram.^{[citation needed]} She was a model, bassist of the rock band Six Color, and a famous ulzzang before her debut as a T-ara member.^{[citation needed]}

Music career

T-ara

Qri was the last of the three new members to be added to the group after two former members Jiae and Jiwon quit in mid-2009.[5] It was later mentioned on tvN's Taxi that she was introduced to the CEO of Core Contents Media by her original company.^{[citation needed]}

In July 2013, Qri became the new leader of T-ara under the group's rotating leadership system.[6]

QBS

Qri, Boram and Soyeon formed a subgroup called QBS in May 2013, focused on the Japanese market.^{[citation needed]} The subgroup released their debut single titled "Kaze no You ni" (風のように, Like the Wind) on June 26, 2013.^{[citation needed]}

Solo career

In 2021, Qri released her very first solo digital single "Suri Suri". Qri was revealed to have participated in the writing and production of the song. There wasn't a music video filmed for the song.

On September 29, Qri expressed her gratitude to her fans for the song's success through Instagram. The song topped iTunes Vietnam for 3 days as well as charting in other countries. The song also debuted at #1 on multiple Chinese weekly charts including Migu China.[7]

Acting career

In September 2009, Qri made her acting debut in the drama Queen Seondeok as Kim Yu-shin's wife.[8] She made a cameo appearance alongside other members of T-ara in the drama Master of Study in 2010,[9] and was then given a lead role on KBS's drama Southern Trader Kim Chul Soo's Update.[10] Qri also made a cameo appearance alongside group member Soyeon in SBS' drama Giant.[11]

She was cast alongside groupmate Eunjung for KBS' drama King Geunchogo in 2011, starting from episode 47.[12]

Other ventures

Endorsements

Prior to her debut as a singer with T-ara, Qri was a famous Ullzzang who worked with several brands and shopping malls.

Being one of the most in-demand models since 2009, Qri worked with many renowned Korean brands including Casamia Furniture and Galbanara. She also became the face of multiple A-List brands including LG Group and Maybelline New York.[13]

In 2021, Qri became an advertising model for Castellbajac, she filmed multiple videos for the brand which were all released online.[14]

Fashion design

In 2018, Qri announced the launch of her first self-designed product collection with "Celebrity hat brand" Sebs named "Seb.Q" . The collection featured colored hats and hoodies. It was announced that Qri participated in both the designing and production of the products.[15] The project was a huge success with all products selling out and constantly being restocked since 2018.[16]

In 2021, Qri established her own jewelry brand named "Qriel" for which she modeled herself.[14]

Discography

Filmography

Film

Television series

Web series

Variety shows

Awards

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Qri.

• Qri at IMDb