Kim Yoo-jin (Korean: 김유진; born March 3, 1981), known professionally as Eugene, is a South Korean singer and actress. She is best known as a former member of the girl group S.E.S., which went on to become one of South Korea's best-selling artists. Following the group's disbandment in 2002, she subsequently left SM Entertainment and released two solo studio albums.
Eugene was born in Seoul, South Korea. With the suggestion of her grandfather, who settled down in Guam, her family immigrated to Guam after she finished the first semester of 5th grade elementary school. She attended Agueda I. Johnston Middle School from October 1992 until June 1995,[2] and John F. Kennedy High School from June until September 1996. She returned to Korea with her mother and younger sister to finish high school, and eventually graduated from Korea Kent Foreign School, Seoul in June 1999.[3] At high school, more than 80% of her subjects were A credits. In elementary school, only 23 out of 24 subjects were awarded. In middle school, almost all her subjects were excellent.[4]
Eugene made her debut with S.E.S. in 1997. S.E.S enjoyed tremendous success, becoming the top-selling K-pop girl group during their era. The group disbanded at the end of 2002 after Bada and Eugene parted ways from SM Entertainment, while Shoo stayed with SM Entertainment until 2006.
On May 28, 2016, Eugene with S.E.S. members Bada and Shoo attended a charity event, Green Heart Bazaar. In October 2016, Eugene along with Bada and Shoo re-formed S.E.S. to celebrate their 20th anniversary since the debut of the group.[5] They started their project of the 20th anniversary debut with released digital single "Love[Story]", a remake of their 1999 single "Love", through SM Entertainment's digital project SM Station on November 28[6] and its music video released on December 29.[7]
In early December 2016, they aired their ten episode reality show Remember, I'm Your S.E.S., which broadcast through mobile app Oksusu. To accompany their 20th anniversary debut, they held a concert, Remember, the Day, on December 30 and 31 at Sejong University's Daeyang Hall in Seoul.[8]
On January 2, the special album of their 20th anniversary debut Remember was released. The album consists of double lead singles. "Remember" was digitally released on January 1 and "Paradise" was released along with the album on January 2.[9][10] They held a fanmeet as their last project of 20th anniversary debut called I Will Be There, Waiting For You on March 1, 2017.[11]
After S.E.S. disbanded in late 2002, Kim released two solo albums, 'My True Style'and '810303' . Her first album sold nearly 65,000 records and had one hit ballad, "The Best" which included bonus tracks, "Jesus loves me", in which she handwritten the lyrics to this special mashup. She had also previously released a single, " Shout to the Lord " in 2001 under a collaborative Christian album "The Gift" . Besides releasing solo albums, she also starred in four Korean dramas: Loving You, Save The Last Dance for Me,[12]Wonderful Life, and Love Truly.[13]
In 2007 Eugene took over from Lee Hyori as one of the co-hosts of the variety show Happy Together Friends, until the show was overhauled for a third season. After the success of her previous program Eugene's Makeup Diary, cable style network O'live again chose her as the host of new show Get It Beauty which began airing in July 2010.[19]
Eugene has authored two books: Eugene's Beauty Secrets[20] and Eugene's Get It Beauty.[21] She is also the co-president of the clothing brand byMOMO.[22]
In 2022, Eugene will attend a fan sign event in front of the Lotte World Mall Jamsil store from 7pm on the 12th.[32]
Personal life
On May 11, 2011, Eugene announced she would be married to Ki Tae-young, her leading man in the 2009 TV series Creating Destiny.[33][34] Their wedding was held at the Seoul Central Church in Anyang, Gyeonggi-do, on July 23, 2011.[35][36] They were the first couple featured on Super Couple Diary, a reality show filming the daily married life of celebrity couples.[37] Eugene gave birth to their first child, a daughter named Lohee on April 12, 2015.[38] She also gave birth to another girl, Lorin, on August 18, 2018.[39]
After the sinking of the MV Sewol, fans of Eugene began to doubt her belief in the Evangelical Baptist Church of Korea. She explained she is not a believer of the Evangelical Baptist Church, but in the Korean Christianity Baptist Church which separated from the Evangelical Baptist Church 32 years ago.[40]
^Kim Ye-eun (December 17, 2018). "유진-기태영-변우민-이세은, 인컴퍼니와 전속계약 체결..14년 의리[공식]" [Eugene, Ki Tae-young, Byun Woo-min, and Lee Se-eun, a new agency, Incompany (official)]. Naver (in Korean). Newsen. Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
^Yoo Soo-kyung (November 2, 2018). "[단독] 유진X이세은, C9엔터와 계약 종료 ... "함께 새 출발"" [[Exclusive] Eugene X Lee Se-eun ends contract with C9 Enter ... "A fresh start together"]. Naver (in Korean). Hankook Ilbo. Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
^Kim Jae-won (August 9, 2022). "유진, 오랜만에 팬사인회 열고 팬 만난다" [Eugene to hold a fan signing event after a long time and meet fans] (in Korean). spots world. Retrieved August 9, 2022 – via Naver.
^2003년 가요음반판매량 [2003 Album Sales Figures] (in Korean). Recording Industry Association of Korea. Archived from the original on October 14, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
^2004년 가요음반판매량 [2004 Album Sales Figures] (in Korean). Recording Industry Association of Korea. Archived from the original on July 18, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
^ ab"Gaon Digital Chart" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Archived from the original on February 4, 2015. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
^Park Seo-yeon (May 31, 2022). "펜트하우스' 유진, 인생 최악의 경험으로 안내한다..상금 최대 4억원" [Penthouse' Eugene, guides you to the worst experience of your life.. Up to 400 million won in prize money] (in Korean). Herald POP. Retrieved May 31, 2022 – via Naver.
^Kang Seon-ae (June 10, 2022). "유세윤X유진X봉태규X유병재, 사연 많은 커플 결혼식 해준다…'오 마이 웨딩' 12일 첫방" [Yoo Se-yoon X Yu-jin X Bong Tae-gyu X Yoo Byung-jae, married a couple with many stories... 'Oh My Wedding' premieres on the 12th] (in Korean). SBS Entertainment News. Retrieved June 10, 2022 – via Naver.
^Ha Su-jeong (October 11, 2022). "유진·은지원·황제성, 新예능 '뜨겁게 안녕' 호스트x10월 말 첫방 [공식]" [Eugene, Eun Ji-won, Hwang Je-seong, the new entertainment 'Goodbye Hot' host x first broadcast at the end of October [Official]] (in Korean). Osen. Retrieved October 11, 2022 – via Naver.
^Lee Jun-hyun (July 22, 2022). "유진, 국내 한부모 지원 캠페인 '나의 반쪽' 재능 기부…선한 행보 이어간다" [Eugene to donate talent for 'Half of Me', a domestic single-parent support campaign... keep doing good] (in Korean). Ten Asia. Retrieved July 22, 2022 – via Naver.
^Lee, Seul (February 11, 2023). "BTS, 대상 2관왕…NCT 드림 '네온빛' 물든 '한터뮤직어워즈' (엑's 현장)[종합]" [BTS wins 2 grand prizes... NCT Dream 'Hanteo Music Awards' dyed with 'neon light' (X's site) [Comprehensive]] (in Korean). X-ports News. Retrieved February 13, 2023 – via Naver.
^Jung Hee-yeon (January 1, 2022). "이제훈-김유정 장르/판타지 최우수상 [SBS 연기대상]" [Lee Je-hoon-Kim Yoo-jung Genre/Fantasy Grand Prize [SBS Acting Awards]] (in Korean). Sports Donga. Retrieved January 2, 2022 – via Naver.
^Lee Han-lim (August 20, 2021). "'서울드라마어워즈 2021', 한류드라마상 온라인 투표 진행" [Seoul Drama Awards 2021', online voting for Hallyu Drama Awards] (in Korean). The Fact. Retrieved August 20, 2021 – via Naver.