Michelle Lee (; born September 9, 1991) is a South Korean singer. After successfully auditioning for '' K-pop Star Season 1'' in 2011, she was eventually signed to

YG Entertainment YG Entertainment Inc. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency established in 1996 by Yang Hyun-suk. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management and concert production comp ...

as part of a new girl group called SuPearls. However, after two years of training, the group was suddenly disbanded before they could debut and Lee's contract was nullified. She is now signed to DIMA Entertainment, the affiliate agency of her alma mater, the

Dong-ah Institute of Media and Arts Dong-ah Institute of Media and Arts (formerly known as Dong-Ah Broadcasting College) is a technical college in South Korea specialized in training professionals in the fields of media design, production, and communications. The campus is situate ...

Biography

Early life

Michelle Lee was born September 9, 1991, in Paju, South Korea, to a Korean mother and an African-American father. She grew up in Paju with her older sister and mother, as her father returned to the United States prior to her birth following her parents' separation. Since the age of five, Lee and her sister would listen to their mother's H.O.T. and

Toni Braxton Toni Michele Braxton (born October 7, 1967) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won ...

cassette tapes while trying to match their voices to the pitch of the tune, occasionally even trying to learn the dance moves. However, like fellow Black-Korean musicians

Insooni Kim In-soon ( ko, 김인순; born April 5, 1957), known professionally as Insooni ( ko, 인순이), is a South Korean singer who made her debut in 1978 as a member of Hee Sisters ( ko, 희자매). Since then, she has recorded a total of 19 alb ...

and

Yoon Mi-rae Natasha Shanta Reid (born May 31, 1981), better known by her Korean name Yoon Mi-rae (), often stylized as ''Yoonmirae'', is an American-born South Korean-based solo rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer, who is also a member of Korean hip ho ...

, Lee faced constant discrimination for her biracial identity in school. Her debut single, "Without You", centers around the bullying she suffered. Lee admits to never have left South Korean soil, and occasionally struggles with English.

2011-2012: Career beginnings, ''K-pop Star'', and SuPearls

In 2011, she became a participant in the worldwide ''

K-pop Star ''Survival Audition K-pop Star'' ( ko, 서바이벌 오디션 K팝 스타) is a South Korean reality TV competition series where three entertainment/talent agencies in South Korea hold worldwide auditions to find the next potential K-Pop stars. ...

'' music audition/competition. She has been praised for her powerful voice, wide range, and mature singing skill. She gathered early praise from the 3 judges who are also representatives of SM, YG, and JYP, and was recognized as a strong contender to win the contest along with Park Ji-min. During the group audition stages, the 4-person girl group of Michelle, Park Ji-min, Lee Seung-joo, and Lee Jung-mi drew rave reviews for their renditions of Girls' Generation's The Boys and

Irene Cara Irene Cara Escalera (March 18, 1959 – November 25, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and actress of Black, Puerto Rican and Cuban descent. Cara rose to prominence for her role as Coco Hernandez in the 1980 musical film '' Fame'', and f ...

's Fame, which resulted in all four members advancing to the next stage. After the show she was signed by

and was initially scheduled to debut as a member of the girlgroup Supearls along with Lee Jung Mi, Lee Seung Joo, and

Lee Hi Lee Ha-yi (; born September 23, 1996), known by her stage name Lee Hi, is a South Korean singer and songwriter. She first garnered attention as the runner-up of '' K-pop Star 1''. She debuted with single "1, 2, 3, 4" on October 28, 2012 and rea ...

(who replaced

Ji-min Park Ji-min, also spelled Jee-min, is a Korean unisex given name. Its meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 46 hanja with the reading " ji" and 27 hanja with the reading "min" on the South Korean governm ...

, who signed with JYP at the end of the show). For about two years, the girls underwent training at YG and performed at various small venues.

2013-present: SuPearls' disbandment, joining DIMA Entertainment, and Solo debut

On February 18, 2013, YG announced that plans for their debut had been dropped in order to focus on Lee Hi's solo career. On March 28, 2013, it was officially reported that she had signed with DIMA Entertainment and would officially begin training to debut as a solo artist. She was also featured on South Korean rapper Double K's single "Rewind" for his upcoming album. The music video and single were released on May 3, 2013. Her debut single, "Without You" was released on March 21, 2014, by DIMA Entertainment and

LOEN Entertainment Kakao M (; formerly Seoul Records, YBM Seoul Records and LOEN Entertainment) was a South Korean entertainment company established by Min Yeong-bin in 1978. It is currently one of the largest co-publisher companies in South Korea. The company op ...

. The music video for "Without You" features a young girl (portrayed by Egypt Yoona) writing racial slurs on a wall covered with graffiti. In some scenes, the child dabs her face with white powder in an attempt to give herself lighter skin. Upon discovering her music was posted on Melon, Lee's pent up emotions from childhood "just hit me at once and I just starting crying. I was on the phone with my older sister and we couldn't help ourselves, we just both started crying together."

2015: First Mini-Album "I Can Sing"

On August 4, Michelle released her first mini-album "I Can Sing". The album was primarily written by Michelle and once again was a personal message of strength to others.

2016: ''Tribe of Hip hop 2''

Michelle participated in Tribe of Hip hop 2, and her performance earned her the moniker of Korean Missy Elliott. She is currently on SESESE House.

Discography

K-pop Star Tracks

Solo Debut

"Without You" (2014) "That's Okay" (2014) "I Can Sing" (2015) "ALOLA!" (2017) (Opening for Pokémon: Sun & Moon anime) sung with Yeom Jaeok (TV version) "Life Is" (2018) "Day-By-Day" (2020)

Filmography

Television

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Michelle 1991 births Living people People from Paju 21st-century South Korean singers South Korean female idols Dong-ah Institute of Media and Arts alumni K-pop Star participants South Korean educators South Korean women pop singers South Korean rhythm and blues singers South Korean people of African-American descent 21st-century South Korean educators 21st-century South Korean women singers