Lee Jung-hyun (born February 7, 1980), also known by her occasional stage name Ava, is a South Korean singer and actress. She was first recognized for her acting abilities with award-winning role in her first film and has been solidified as one of the top international acts from South Korea with her illustrious singing career. She has been known as "the Techno Queen" as she introduced the techno music genre to Korea.[citation needed] Lee is also known as "The Queen of Transformation"[2][3] due to her changing new look for different songs. She is known as one of the first artists who introduced Korean Wave (Hallyu) to China and caused a sensation.[4][5]
Career
As actress
Lee Jung-hyun made her acting debut at the age of 16 in A Petal in 1996, which won her 'Best New Actress' at the 34th Grand Bell Awards, 17th Blue Dragon Film Awards and 16th Korean Association of Film Critics Awards. The film tells the story of a girl who experienced the Gwangju uprising at the age of 15, and its effect on her life in later years. Since 1996, Lee has had numerous acting roles with projects in South Korea, Japan and China.[6][7]
After debuting with an award-winning acting performance, Lee etched her singing career by introducing techno genre to the K-Pop scene and her ever-reinventing styles for each and every song. Lee assumes a unique persona for each release, such as a mermaid, Barbie doll, tribal queen, soldier, Korean folk dancer, belly dancer, or princess of the sea. She has garnered many nicknames over the years, including Techno Queen of Korea, Queen of Performance Art, Ms. Charisma, Little Giant, and Queen of Change.[19][20]
Before releasing her first solo music she featured as a guest vocalist on the Jo PD single "Fever", also appearing in the music video. She also appeared in the music video for Goofy's "The Rule of the Game".[21]
Her early work is techno-style dance music. Her first single, Wa (와, "Come") topped the Korean charts for three weeks, while her second, Bakkweo (바꿔, "Change") won awards for Best Song and Most Broadcast Song. These two songs were covered by artists throughout Asia and Europe. Many of her earlier songs are sung in an angry mood, from the perspective of a rejected lover. These two singles firmly established Lee as one of the top Korean singers who successfully gained popularity throughout Asia with her strong colorful performances.
Ahead of the 2002 general elections, the singer was asked by political parties if they could use "Change" in their campaigns, to which she declined.
Lee released Japanese versions of her early hits Wa and Heaven in December 2004. The single ranked #26 on Oricon chart in Week 3 of January 2005. Heaven was a theme song for the Korean drama Beautiful Days. The drama became widely popular in Japan. On December 31, 2004, Lee was invited to perform Heaven and Wa-come on- and participate at the 55th edition of Kōhaku Uta Gassen, an annual New Year's Eve live music show. In 2006, she released her first Japanese album, This is Hyony.
Lee was the first foreigner to participate in singing the Beijing Olympic 2008 Theme Song.[22]
In 2008, she released her first Mandarin album with title single "Love Me".
With her fifth album, Passion, she switched to a Latin-influenced sound, complete with Spanish Guitar and flamenco-style tap dance.
In May 2009, she released her first Korean mini album Avaholic, featuring a trio of songs, "Crazy," "Vogue It Girl" and "Miro".[23] The music video "Crazy" was choreographed by Brian Friedman.[24] In September 2009, she was invited to open at Lady Gaga's The Fame Ball Tour in Club Answer, Seoul, South Korea. In December 2009, Lee sung her first ballad for the soundtrack of the Korean TV dramaIris. The song, "How Can I Hold Back Tears," takes her to the ballad genre for the first time in her over 10-year singing career.
In 2010, her seventh album was released on May 11, 2010, with the title song, "Suspicious Man." In this title single's music video, Lee once again showed her dynamic performance range by introducing a vengeful assassin with a short blonde do. The seventh album was entitled, "007th."
On June 22, 2012, Lee was appointed as an honorary ambassador for the Korea-China Cultural Industry Conference, called CICON.[29][30]
Personal life
Lee married orthopedic doctor Park Yoo-jung in a private ceremony in 2019.[31][32] During her appearance on Stars' Top Recipe at Fun-Staurant, her husband, whose face was censored due to privacy concerns, was dubbed as "Baby". His face was eventually revealed on her re-appearance on the show in 2023.[33]
On December 7, 2021, Lee announced that she is pregnant on her YouTube channel.[34] On April 23, 2022, Lee's agency confirmed that Lee gave birth to her first daughter, Park Seo-ah on April 20, 2022.[35]
On June 14, 2024, Lee announced her second pregnancy on Stars' Top Recipe at Fun-Staurant.[36]
In music arcade games
Lee's music has been featured in rhythm games. "Wa" and "Bakkwo" were included in the Korean dance games "Let's Dance" and "TechnoMotion". These songs were also featured in the Korean releases of Dance Dance Revolution 3rdMix, as well as the Dance Dance Revolution 4thMix games. Also, "Nuh" (Trance Mix) was featured in EZ2Dancer.
Her song "Come On!" is featured in the Pump It Up NX Absolute dance machine, both a short Chinese version and the full song version appearing in it.
Currently, "I'll Give", "Going Crazy" and other songs are featured on Audition, an online dance-rhythm game.[37]
^Shim Eom-kyung (December 8, 2021). "임신' 이정현, 어느새 D라인에 얼굴 부기…36.5kg의 흔적은 사라졌어" ['Pregnant' Lee Jung-hyun, face swelling on the D-line... Traces of 36.5 kg have disappeared] (in Korean). SPOTV News. Archived from the original on December 9, 2021. Retrieved December 8, 2021 – via Naver.
^Oh Yoon-joo (April 23, 2022). "이정현 득녀…"20일 출산, 산모·아이 건강" [공식입장]" [Lee Jung-hyun's daughter... "Birth on the 20th, mother and child health" [Official position]] (in Korean). My Daily. Retrieved April 23, 2022 – via Naver.
^Tae, Yu-na (June 14, 2024). "'둘째 임신' 이정현, 먹덧 터졌다더니 뼈밖에 없네…"몸무게 2kg 증가" ('편스토랑')" ['Second Pregnancy' Lee Jeong-hyeon, said to have had stomachache, but all she has is bones... "Weight increased by 2 kg" ('Pyeon Restaurant')] (in Korean). Tenasia. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024 – via Naver.
^Han Hyun-jeong (May 6, 2022). "박찬욱X박해일X탕웨이 '헤어질 결심' 6월29일 개봉[공식]" [Park Chan-wook X Park Hae-il X Tang Wei 'Decision to break up' opens on June 29 [Official]] (in Korean). Maeil Star Today. Archived from the original on May 6, 2022. Retrieved May 6, 2022 – via Naver.
^Kim Na-yeon (May 10, 2022). "이정현X문정희X진서연 '리미트', 하반기 개봉 확정[공식]" [Lee Jung-hyun X Moon Jeong-hee X Jin Seo-yeon 'Limit' confirmed for release in the second half of the year [Official]] (in Korean). MT Star News. Archived from the original on May 10, 2022. Retrieved May 10, 2022 – via Naver.
^Park, Jae-hwan (August 25, 2022). "연상호의 상상력은 어디까지?" 넷플릭스와 '기생수' 만든다" ["How far is Yeon Sang-ho's imagination?" Creating a 'parasitic water' with Netflix] (in Korean). KBS Media. Archived from the original on January 9, 2023. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Naver.
^Kim, Hyun-rok (November 7, 2022). "헤어질 결심, 43회 청룡영화상 13개 부문 최다 후보…한산 헌트 10개 후보[공식]" [Decision to break up, the most nominations in 13 categories at the 43rd Blue Dragon Film Awards... 10 candidates for Hansan and Hunt [Official]. SporTV News (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 8, 2022. Retrieved November 7, 2022 – via Naver.
