Artist Spotlight: Hyori Lee

Hyori Lee is a singer from South Korea, born May 10, 1979. She got her start in music as one of four members of Fin.K.L. (pronounced "finkle", it stands for Fine Killing Liberty). They debuted in 1998 and were one of the most popular Korean pop girl groups. They released several albums before unofficially disbanding in 2002. They reunited in 2005 to release a digital single, but remain disbanded now. They did, however, perform together during one of Hyori's concerts on December 19, 2008.

In 2003, Hyori's first album Stylish...E was released. The album was very well received and won seven Daesangs that year (Daesangs are South Korean Artist of the Year music awards, similar to a Grammy). Hyori released her second album Dark Angel in 2006. This album was overshadowed by controversy when the writers of the lead single Get Ya! were the target of an accusation of plagiarism by the writers of Britney Spears's song Do Somethin'. This generated negative press, and promotion on the album halted, causing it to be unsuccessful. In 2008, Hyori's third album It's Hyorish was released. It has been reported that she will release a fourth album sometime in October 2009. Hyori has also acted, appearing in dramas 3 Leaf Clover, If In Love...Like Them, and various television shows.

Ironically enough, the reason I discovered Hyori is the plagiarism accusation. I'm a huge Britney fan, so when I heard someone was in trouble for stealing from one of her songs, I naturally listened to it. And despite the blatantly obvious similarities betwen the two songs, I liked Get Ya! a lot. Plus Hyori has a great singing voice and she is absolutely gorgeous. So because someone wanted to sue, I found an artist I love and have since bought all her albums. Although her first album was the true hitmaker for her, making her the highest paid female singer in South Korea, I prefer the second and third albums. But they are all very good and worth a listen, even if you don't understand Korean. The melodies and music are good enough to keep you paying attention.

So in celebration of the stunning and talented Hyori, here's a breakdown of her discography.

ALBUMS

Stylish...E (August 2003)

01. Prologue (Drum & Bass)

02. One Two Three N Four

03. Sadness (Like A Fool)

04. 10 Minutes

05. Ice

06. Eve, Sleeping In Paradise

07. Remember Me

08. According To Today

09. Do Me

10. Hey Girl

11. Erase It

12. A Jazz Bar

13. Only One

14. Ghost (I'm Sorry)

Singles

10 Minutes

Hey Girl

Remember Me

Dark Angel (February 2006)

01. Get Ya!

02. Depth

03. Straight Up

04. Dark Angel

05. Dear Boy

06. Winter Freshness

07. Closer

08. Stealing A Glance

09. Shall We Dance?

10. Slave

11. E.M.M.M.

12. 2 Faces

13. Last Goodbye

Singles

Get Ya!

Shall We Dance?

Straight Up

It's Hyorish (June 2008)

01. Unrivaled Hyori Lee

02. Lesson

03. U-Go-Girl (with Nassun)

04. Photo Album

05. A Barber's Daughter

06. Don't Cry

07. Do You Think It'll Be Okay? (with Bigtone)

08. Sexy Boy (with Wheesung)

09. Red Car (with Kim Gun Mo)

10. Hey Mr. Big

11. P.P.P. (Punky Punky Party) (with Nassun)

12. My Life (Foreign Song)

13. Unusual (with Seo Jung Hwan)

Singles

U-Go-Girl

Hey Mr. Big

You can buy Hyori's third album at yesasia. The other albums are out of stock right now. The prices are very reasonable. Albums are frequently about $13.00 USD.

DIGITAL SINGLES/SOUNDTRACKS/OTHER APPEARANCES

2002

Together (Bad Girls OST)

2003

Cleopatra

Even If The Whole World's Love Permitted (3 Leaf Clover OST)

I Pray (3 Leaf Clover OST)

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (with Lee Soo Young & Song Baekkyoung)

Click-B - Forgive Me (with Hyori Lee)

Lee Ki Chan - Oei Geu Rae (with Hyori Lee)

2004

Double-K - Hot Girl (with Hyori Lee)

When The Day Comes (with various Korean artists to promote the re-unification of Korea)

2005

Fine Killing Liberty (Fin.K.L. reunion single)

01. Butterfly

02. Fine Killing Liberty

03. I'm Crazy About You

Anymotion (with Eric Mun) (Samsung Anycall commercial)

Love Ron (with Eun Ji Won)

2006

Anyclub (with Park Teddy) (Samsung Anycall commercial)

Anystar (with Lee Joon Ki) (Samsung Anycall commercial)

Maybee - Candy (with Hyori Lee)

2007

Toc Toc Toc

01. Toc Toc Toc

02. Toc Toc Toc (Version 2)

03. Don't Love Her

04. Scolded

If you enjoy Hyori and you want to check out her work with Fin.K.L., here is a summary of their discography.

FIN.K.L. ALBUMS

1998

Blue Rain (Album 1)

1999

White (Album 2)

S.P.E.C.I.A.L. (Album 2.5, Winter theme)*

2000

Now (Album 3)

2001

Melodies & Memories (Album 3.5, Covers of Korean hits from the 1980s and 1990s)*

2002

Forever (Album 4)

2005

Fine Killing Liberty (Digital Single)

*The ".5" is used in Korean music to signify that it is a mini/limited/special release. Cover albums and themed albums fall into this category.

A few more pictures of Hyori...