Sera was the former leader and main vocalist of the popular girl group Nine Muses. On August 1, 2015, Ryu released her first solo EP album, "SeRen:Ade." In September 2015, Ryu held her first solo concert in Hongdae, for which 600 people attended. In March 2018, Ryu founded a new agency OCTO and announced that she would continue solo activities with her real name, Ryu Se-ra. An agency official has stated that the name OCTO carries a meaning of a new beginning. On March 2, Ryu released a single album "Stay Real," managed and published by her new agency. Later that month, Ryu held a second solo concert titled "Spring Rain" at the Olympic Hall Muse Live stage, followed by a concert titled "Sun Shower" held on June 23, 2018, at the CKL stage. Since 2014, Ryu has been active on YouTube, where she shares her solo activities and song covers with her fans.
Recently she appeared on MBN's brand new program, "Miss Back," where she opens up and gets candid about her life since high school, during the promotion as Nine Muses, her life after leaving the group as well as suffering from panic disorder. What came through even more brightly was that she did not lose herself or her strength in such difficult times and showed great empathy towards other performers even when she was not doing so great. She shares her struggle as well as her journey to healing on the show.
She started by filming an M/V reaction video to a rookie group and stated, "I hope these younger generations do really well. There are more than 60 to 70 girls' groups a year that hope to debut, but less than 1% of the groups survive until the following year. I can't handle the promotion of many idols, but other companies do it. I wonder if I can (do) play a role that cannot be done."
She then talks about being diagnosed with panic disorder in August of 2019, saying that the medicines' side-effects are sometimes severe, often leading to memory faults. She added that her career wasn't really going just as she had planned and said that she even had to take out a loan for the first time she held a concert by herself. However, despite such difficult circumstances, Sera still put on a bright smile. About her optimism, she said, "I want to show you that people with weak hearts like us can do it because I saw my lowest during the blank period. I want to be someone with hope."
After the episode aired, Sera was flooded with positive comments and messages of hope on online forums and portals and news sites. We also hope that Sera can cope well with her disorder and return to a flourishing career soon!
