IU

Lee Jieun also known by her stage name IU is a South Korean singersongwriter and actress She signed with LOEN Entertainment now Kakao Entertainment in 2007 as a trainee and debuted as a singer at the age of fifteen with the EP Lost and Found 2008 Although her followup albums brought mainstream success it was only after the release of Good Day the lead single from her 2010 EP Real that she achieved national stardom Good Day went on to spend five consecutive weeks at the top of South Koreas Gaon Digital Chart and in 2019 it was ranked number 1 on Billboards 100 Greatest Kpop Songs of the 2010s list With the success of her 2011 albums Real and Last Fantasy IU established herself as a formidable force on the music charts of her native country and further cemented her girlnextdoor image as Koreas little sister Her musical style matured and evolved with subsequent releases deviating from mainstream Kpop styles exploring and mixing various music genres with IU exerting more creative control over her music both as lyricist and producer while consistently retaining her dominance on South Korean music charts Her 2020 single Eight prod by SUGA became her first to reach number 1 on Billboards World Digital Song Sales chart Aside from her music career IU has ventured into acting and hosting radio and television shows starting with a supporting role in the hit teen series Dream High 2011 IUs roles in My Mister 2018 and When Life Gives You Tangerines 2025 received critical acclaim and she earned her first Best Actress in Television nomination at the 55th Baeksang Arts Awards for the former IU has released a total of five studio albums and twelve EPs five of which have reached number 1 on the Gaon Album Chart and thirtyone numberone singles making her the artist with the most numberone songs in South Korea One of the bestselling solo acts in the groupdominated Kpop industry IU became the first solo female Kpop act to perform at the Olympic Gymnastics Arena during the Seoul leg of her 2018 dlwlrma concert tour for her 10th anniversary and also the first Korean female artist to hold a solo concert The Golden Hour at Seoul Olympic Stadium in Seoul on September 17 and 18 2022 Rolling Stone named her the 135th greatest singer of all time in a 2023 ranking She has been included six times in the top 10 of Forbes magazines annual Korea Power Celebrity list since 2012 and attained a peak ranking of number 1 in 2025 In 2014 Billboard recognized IU as the alltime leader of its Kpop Hot 100 with the most numberone songs and the artist with the most weeks at the numberone position on the chart She was named Gallup Koreas Singer of the Year in 2014 2017 and 2025 In 2024 media outlets such as NME and Billboard referred to IU as the Queen of Kpop highlighting her widespread influence and consistent success in the industry In 2025 Forbes Korea referred to IU as the Queen of Kpop and Kdrama noting her influence and success in both the music and acting industries