Lena Park

Biography

Park Jung-hyun (Korean: 박정현; born March 23, 1976), also known as Lena Park (Korean: 리나 박), is a South Korean and American singer who debuted in 1998 with the album, Piece×piece1 February 1998 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Intro0:532나의 하루4:073P.S.I Love You3:5542geTHer3:385반전4:306The Player4:107오랜만에 (Acoustic Version)4:408요즘 넌...4:079사랑보다 깊은 상처4:2410Interlude0:2311다시 받아주겠니?4:3212오랜만에 (R&B Version)4:31. She is also widely known in South Korea as her nickname "national fairy" due to her petite body and powerful singing voice.

Early life and education

Born in Los Angeles, California, Park began singing as a child in the choir of her father's church. She won several singing contests before recording an amateur gospel album in 1993 when she was 16 years old.
Park attended UCLA for one year before beginning her singing career in 1998. She later transferred to Columbia University School of General Studies, where she graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in English and Comparative Literature in 2010, and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.

1998–2002: Piece, A Second Helping, Naturally and Op.4

Park released her first Korean album, Piece×piece1 February 1998 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Intro0:532나의 하루4:073P.S.I Love You3:5542geTHer3:385반전4:306The Player4:107오랜만에 (Acoustic Version)4:408요즘 넌...4:079사랑보다 깊은 상처4:2410Interlude0:2311다시 받아주겠니?4:3212오랜만에 (R&B Version)4:31, in 1998. The album sold more than 500,000 copies. She did not speak Korean very well at the time, which made it hard for her to connect with fans. In 1999, A Second Helping was released. It also was well received by both fans and the critics. Park's third album, Naturally×Naturally17 October 2000 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1아무말도, 아무것도...6:092You Mean Everything to Me4:36310분전으로4:374늘 푸른4:175純情3:576힘내!!!4:187까만 일기장4:348싫어4:389거짓말처럼4:1310It's Me4:0311Better Now5:0012지금은 아무것도 아냐4:48, was mixed in both South Korea and the United States.
After a yearlong break from singing because of her studies in the United States, she came back in 2002 with her album called Op.4. More comfortable with the media, she became much more accessible for talk shows and performances. In 2002, her song "꿈에" (In a Dream) was a big success and enabled her to enter foreign markets, such as Singapore. The South Korean government select Park to represent South Korea in the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2002 FIFA World Cup. At the end of 2002, a "best of" album was released and she played a series of concerts. Live recordings from these concerts were compiled into her first special live album in CDs and DVD. Park, along with Brown Eyes (band), Chemistry (band), and Sowelu, formed the special unit conveniently called "Voices of Korea/Japan" and made the title song for the 2002 FIFA World Cup Official Album – Songs of Korea/Japan. The Korean version of Mulan uses her song "Eternal Memory×Eternal Memory1998 · Single · DemoSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Eternal Love4:17". She later debuted in the Japanese music industry where she received moderate success.

2005–2009: On&On, Come To Where I Am and 10 Ways To Say I Love You

She is especially proud of her fifth Korean language album, On & On, because she felt that she was finally comfortable and confident singing and composing in Korean. It took her about two years to make the album and, during that time, she became very involved with the production and creative work behind the album; she helped with many of the song arrangements, played the piano and guitar for some of the tracks, and composed four of the songs on the album. In 2007, she performed the opening theme Inori~You Raise Me Up～ (祈り～You Raise Me Up～) of the Japanese anime television series Romeo x Juliet, which is a Japanese cover of Rolf Løvland and Brendan Graham's song You Raise Me Up. The single also includes a cover of the English version. Her sixth Korean album, Come To Where I Am×come to where I am11 December 2007 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Funny Star4:182눈물빛 글씨4:543달아요3:454마음이 먼저4:285The Other Side4:126Hey Yeah3:507믿어요5:078헤어짐은 못됐어요3:479우두커니4:3010순간5:1511Smile4:4812Everyday Prayer3:40, was released on December 11, 2007. All songs were written and produced by herself. On February 27, 2009, she released her seventh album titled 10 Ways To Say I Love You×10 ways to say I love you26 February 2009 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 9 tracks1치카치카2청순가련 리나 박3나 같은 사람 너 같은 사람4만져줘요5비밀6Sunday Brunch7비가8사랑은 이런게 아닌데…9만나러 가는 길 with nine new tracks and "Secret" (비밀) as lead track. On June 6, of the same year, she released a repackaged edition to include another title track, "Flood of tears" (눈물이 주룩주룩).

2012: Parallax

After announcing the release of her eighth studio album, videos of her with composers she was working with for her album introducing her songs were released online. Shortly after, on June 19, 2012, her album Parallax×Parallax19 June 2012 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1그렇게 하면 돼3:562실감4:123도시 전설4:524미안해3:445Raindrops3:316서두르지 마요4:527손해 (損害)3:458Any Other Man4:039You Don't Know Me3:3010바람소리 속에 그대가3:3511Song for Me4:35 was released with the title track, "Sorry" (Korean: 미안해), being a remake of the Spanish language song Mientes by Mexican pop band Camila. After that, in July she featured for the Psy song What Would Have Been(어땠을까;ottessulkka), that sold over 2.000.000 digital copies in 2012. At the end of the year she released the Christmas song White Winter (하얀 겨울) with Kim Bom-soo and the special album Gift, with a reboot of Parallax album songs and where she sings again the songs of I Am a Singer program.

2013–present: Mainstream success

In 2013 she released the cover of Atlantis Girl (아틀란티스 소녀), originally sung by BoA, for hwangseongje project superhero 1st Line up, the O.S.T My Everything for the variety show We Got Married and the O.S.T. My Wish/Only In My Heart (마음으로만) for The Heirs drama. On September 18, 2013, she won the special episode of I Am A Singer - Best 10 (나는 가수다 명곡 Best 10), beating Insooni for only three votes.
In 2014 she started the project Syncrofusion with Next Year (그 다음해) and the M/V of Double Kiss, closing it in October with "Syncrofusion 싱크로퓨전) 2nd Lena Park + Brand New Music" and a cover of her song Sweet (달아요; feat. Verbal Jint) as lead track. She participated twice in the program Immortal Songs 2 (불후의 명곡2), for the first time for Lee Sun-hee special, singing Turning the Pages of Memories (추억의 책장을 넘기면), the second time for Michael Bolton singing Completely. In December she collaborated with Dynamic Duo for "SsSs" (싱숭생숭) digital single.
In September she became an English-speaking DJ for the newest KBS radio show, One Fine Day, on KBS World Radio New.
In December, Park officially signed a management contract with LOEN Entertainment (now kakao M)'s indie sub-label "Mun Hwa In". Again in December, she participated in Mnet program The Master for three episodes, singing a different version of her hit 꿈에 ("In Dreams"), 하비샴의 왈츠 (Miss Havisham's Waltz) and left the program covering 담배가게 아가씨. In December 21, Lena Park has been confirmed to join to Begin Again 2, the second season of a reality program where famous musicians from South Korea travel overseas to sing. During December 22–25 she has held her solo winter concert, named "Let It Snow" as the last year, at the SK Olympic Handball Stadium.
During the first months of 2018, she recorded for the reality show Begin Again 2 while on February 27 she sang for the 10th anniversary of the death of composer Lee Young-hoon. On April 7 she sang with others artists for POSCO's 50th Anniversary Celebration Concert at the Pohang Culture and Arts Center and on April 21 she sang 창밖의 여자 ("The Woman Outside The Window") for the first part of Cho Yong Pil special of Immortal Song.
In May, the Lena Park team appear for the first time in Begin Again 2 in the last part of the seventh episode introducing her team, replacing the Kim Yoon-ah team. In the program she could sing some of her hits like 꿈에 (In Dreams), 달아요 (Sweet) and You Mean Everything To Me, duetting very often with the member of her team, in particular with Lee Su-hyun of Akdong Musician. Her cover of Someone Like You by Adele got a lot of success on TV. Naver site web, surpassing 50.000 likes. After (비긴어게인 2), on June 19 she released the single The Wonder 1st DS with 같은 우산 (Same Umbrella) as title track and starts The Wonder Tour during the summer. In November 20 she return with The Wonder 2nd DS and sings again in the Christmas period with the concerts The Wonder: Let It Snow.
In February 2019 she sings Dream for the 30th anniversary of the amusement park Lotte World and after few days she released the song 대한이 살았다, and its music video, for the 100th anniversary of the first South Korean independence movement (March 1st Movement) with Yuna Kim and 정재일 (Jeong Jae-ill). In April her return for the third season of Begin Again (비긴어게인3) is announced and she will be part of the same team with Henry, Su-Hyun, Harim and the new members Lim Heon and Kim Feel. In May she was selected by Disney Korea to promote Aladdin with John Park (존박) and on May 13 their Korean pop version of A Whole New World (아름다운 세상; arumdaun sesang) was released. After few days, on May 13, she released the O.S.T. 별빛처럼 (byeolbijjeorom; Like A Starlight) for the drama My Absolute Boyfriend (절대그이; Jeoldae Geui). On July 10 her 9th full-length album was announced to be released on July 18, seven years later to her last project Parallax (2012). On July 18 she released the 9th album The Wonder×The Wonder19 July 2019 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 8 tracks1같이3:102기억하자3:013Seventeen3:234같은 우산3:475The End4:286Minimal World (미니멀 월드)4:047연애중3:398같이 (Inst.)3:10 with a music video for the title track 같이 (Gachi; With You) and besides the last digital single published in 2017 and 2018, the new tracks 기억하자 (kieokahaja; "Remember") and "Seventeen", written and composed by Lena, are included.
In October 2022, she held a 4-day solo concert 'Now' at the LG Art Center Seoul from October 19 to 22.