Lee Hyori

An immensely popular pop singer and actress in her native South Korea, Lee Hyo-ri -- born May 10, 1979 -- got her start as part of the K-pop group Fin.K.L, formed in 1998. After recording a number of albums with that group, Lee moved into the role of television presenter and solo artist. Her first album, Stylish...E, was released in 2003, and won the singer a great deal of awards and sales. Her acting career also took off around this time, as she starred in a dramatic television series entitled Three Leaf Clover. In 2006 Lee released a second album, Dark Angel, which was a big seller due to its racy nature. Lee released the digital single "Toc Toc Toc" in 2007 to coincide with and act as a soundtrack to her latest dramatic venture, a television miniseries called If in Love...Like Them. Her third album, It's Hyorish, arrived in summer 2008 and featured the single "U-Go-Girl." Lee returned two year later with her fourth album, H-Logic.

Accusations of plagiarism on the part of composer Bahnus were later confirmed and Lee issued a public apology before going on hiatus. During her time away from the music scene, she contributed pieces to online publications, got involved with animal rights activism, and hosted a television music show. Lee made her comeback in 2013 with Monochrome, which debuted a new retro-jazz sound and a full live band. After promotion ended for the album, she took another break from the industry. She wouldn't return until 2016, when she reactivated her social media accounts and announced her new album. Black arrived in the summer of 2017, continuing the sonic maturation and experimental production started on Monochrome. Black featured Lee's songwriting, production, and composition on most of the album, as well as appearances by Killagramz, Los, Absint, and Lee Juck. ~ Chris True & Neil Z. Yeung, Rovi