On Wednesday, Jan. 6, Google Data was released that revealed the most-searched idols in South Korea in 2020. As we enter 2021, let's take a look at the past by checking out who are the most-searched female idols in the country last year.
Sitting at number one is "The Nation's Little Sister", IU! In a year where girl groups dominated, IU proved herself as a forced to be reckoned with by proving she is not only the most popular female soloist in the country but also one of the most famous musical acts in general.
IU is not only active as an idol, but also as an actress. On Jan. 3, 2020, it was announced that IU would star in the film "Dream," acting alongside Park Seo Joon. Filming for the drama started in May 2020. In terms of her music, IU released the song "Give You My Heart" on Feb. 15, 2020, as part of the soundtrack of "Crash Landing on You."
On May 6, 2020, IU released the single "eight," produced by BTS member Suga, who also featured on the track. It is the third part in IU's coming-of-age series, following "Twenty-three" (2015) and "Palette" (2017). "Eight" derives from the age of both idols, who are 28-years-old in Korean age.
The second most-searched female idol in South Korea is Red Velvet member Irene. However, it may not be for positive reasons. Back on Oct. 21, 2020, a fashion editor exposed a female idol for lashing out and mistreating her on set. In an Instagram post, though no idol was named, she included the hashtags #psycho and #monster, the title of two songs Irene was involved in.
Soon after, Irene made an official statement to her Instagram account, admitting it was her and apologizing for her past action. SM Entertainment also released a statement, saying Irene had met with the fashion editor and apologized personally.
Despite the public apology, many people had slammed the female idol for the controversy. Some stylists, dancers, and make-up artists who had worked with Irene in the past had come out to defend her and say she is a kind person, while others came out and said they had similar experiences with her. Clinique removed all promotional material of Irene, who is their brand spokesperson. She has not had any solo activities since then but did appear alongside Red Velvet in SMTOWN's "Culture Humanity" live concert on Friday, Jan. 1.
From 3-25, the most-searched female idols in South Korea are:
3. Girls' Generation's Yoona
4. BLACKPINK's Jennie
5. Girls' Generation's Taeyeon
6. TWICE's Nayeon
7. MAMAMOO's Hwasa
8. IZ*ONE's Jang Wonyoung
9. Red Velvet's Seulgi
10. Oh My Girl's Arin
11. TWICE's Sana
12. Sunmi
13. Chungha
14. APRIL's Naeun
15. Red Velvet's Joy
16. TWICE's Jihyo
17. BLACKPINK's Jisoo
18. TWICE's Momo
19. IZ*ONE's Kwon Eunbi
20. Red Velvet's Yeri
21. BLACKPINK's Rosé
22. TWICE's Chaeyoung
23. IZ*ONE's Kim Minju
24. Oh My Girl's YooA
25. TWICE's Jeongyeon
Did your favorite female idol make the most-searched rankings?
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Written by Alexa Lewis
