In this article, we’re going to check out the details about some of K-pop’s best girl-group leaders and their leadership moments!
#1 (G)I-DLE’s Soyeon
(G)-IDLE’s Soyeon is known for the popularity she achieved when she was a contestant on Produce 101: Season 1 and ranked 20th. Later on, the member of (G)-IDLE, who was born in August 26, 1998, joined another survival show, Unpretty Rapstar 3, and came in third. She was a talented trainee under CUBE Entertainment, known for her rap skills, and as soon as she debuted as a member of the group (G)-IDLE, she was able to show off more of her talent by producing her group’s songs and writing the lyrics. The member, whose real name is Jeon So-yeon (전소연), introduced herself as a ‘Charismatic Leader‘ who has a different type of charm than any other leader in a girl-group. Rather than being cute and acting pretty, (G)-IDLE’s Soyeon has an awesome talent and that goes beyond just being an idol, since she is also a registered author or composer in KOMCA (Korean Music Copyright Association).
#2 Red Velvet’s Irene
Red Velvet’s Irene is one of the oldest members of the group, and was born in March 29, 1991. She debuted with her group, Red Velvet, in 2014 and fans are amazed by her beautiful, youthful face instead her real age, which is almost the same as the maknae from SNSD, Seohyun. Irene has been known for beautiful face since she was born, and she was immediately cast with SM Entertainment through a public audition in 2009. She became part of the pre-debut team in SM Rookies before she was she joined her group. Irene best leader moments have been shown many times, as her fans also know she’s a very kind-hearted and humble leader who is very caring and always protects the other members.
#3 SNSD’s Taeyeon
SNSD’s Taeyeon is the leader of her group, which debuted in 2009. Kim Tae-yeon (김태연) was born in March 9, 1989, and is the oldest of the members. Beside being a leader, she is a lead vocalist, which is a very important position in the group. With her beautiful voice, Taeyeon is really popular and has become one of the legendary singers in the K-popindustry. As a leader, isn’t very active about taking care of the members, but she is known for her nickname, ‘Kid Leader‘, because she has such a petite figure as the oldest or a leader. Despite being called a ‘Kid Leader‘, SNSD’s Taeyeon doesn’t present herself as a tiny or childish person, but more like a woman who has her own charisma and strength. Her voice could be her own weapon to hypnotize everyone who’s listening to her songs.
#4 IZ*ONE’s Eunbi
Kwon Eun-bi (권은비) is the leader of IZONE, a girl-group that was debuted after winning a survival show called Produce 48. Eunbi was born in 1995 and is one of the eldest members in the group. She was chosen as the leader by a vote done on one episode of IZONE’s reality show, “IZONE CHU” on November 1, 2018. The members of IZONE were planning a prank so Eunbi had no idea that she would be chosen as leader, but when the results revealed that the members wanted her to be the leader, she broke down in tears. IZONE’s Eunbi is one of the best leaders among K-pop girl-groups, since she is hardworking and has a beautiful appearance as an idol, as well. She was given the nickname of “Mother” of IZONE because she is a charismatic member and takes care of the other members like they were her children.
#5 MAMAMOO’s Solar
MAMAMOO’s Solar was born with the real name Kim Yong-sun (김용선), on February 21, 1991, and is the eldest member of her group. Through ‘Life Bar‘ that aired on tvN, Solar revealed her struggle to be the leader of the group. “I have always been the youngest, even at home. But when I entered (agency), I was the oldest. It was very strange because I became the oldest,” said Solar. “At that time, I (treated members) more strictly.” Solar later said that she almost never praised members. “Now that I think about it, there is rarely a time when I praise the members. In particular, there is no time where I praise Hwasa,” Solar said. It was really hard for Solar to adjust to her position as leader and take care of the other members but as time goes by, each member is being responsible to the others and works to be considerate of their feelings. That’s why MAMAMOO is one of the legendary girl-groups today.
#6 TWICE’s Jihyo
The member of TWICE, Jihyo, was chosen as leader of the group when she made her debut in 2015 under JYP Entertainmnet. Jihyo’s real name as Park Ji-hyo (박지효). She was born on February 1, 1997, and was a trainee for 10 years. She is one of the idols with the longest trainee periods and has had a very pretty face since she was still a kid. Jihyo is also known by her nickname, ‘Angel Leader‘, since she is so sincere while taking care of the other members. Several members of this girl-group have confessed that Jihyo is like the glue that holds TWICE together. On another occasion, TWICE’s Sana revealed that Jihyo is the one who removes her makeup when the members are already tired after having a tight schedule. She puts the other members’ needs first, before her own, and makes sure there’s no one left behind. Jihyo is definitely a leader with a pure heart and she once stated that she will improve herself to be an even better leader in the future.
#7 GFRIEND’s Sowon
Kim So-jung (김소정), also known as GFRIEND’s Sowon, is the leader of this girl-group which was debuted in 2015. Beside being leader of her group, Sowon used to be a talented student who was part of a cheerleading team and was trained for 5 years. She’s the visual of the group for her beautiful appearance and because she has the longest pair of legs among female idols. Although she is one of the oldest members, she doesn’t like to be called the eldest. She is the figure of a leader, protector, and mother to the other members, and uses good leadership and careful attention as part of her role. As an example, when Yuju fell several times, she looked very worried and helped Yuju stand up. Sowon is the complete package, from being a visual, dancer, and leader of her group. With her beautiful appearance, her talent and skills make everyone fall in love with her. Many of her fans have said that GFRIEND’s Sowon is very kind, cheerful, and positive when it comes to teamwork and acts sweetly to her fans.
#8 APINK’s Chorong
A-PINK’s leader, Park Cho-rong (박초롱), is one of the oldest members of the group and was born on March 3, 1991. As reported from an online media source, Chorong is also known as a talented member of the K-pop industry. Not only is she the leader in her group, APINK’s Chorong is also an experienced songwriter. She wrote the song titled April 19th while thinking about the fans and about her first stage performance with APINK. She’s been given the nickname ‘Mama Rong‘ because she serve as a maternal figure in the group. The members have been together for more than seven years and haven’t had any scandals, since they have a strong leader like Chorong. Chorong is a good leader and takes good care of the other group members, but she’s also talked about the pressure of being a leader and how the group went through a conflict in one episode of ‘Life Bar‘, aired on tvN. She explained that she has to be responsible to the group and sometimes it was depressing for her to be the one to comfort the others when she doesn’t have a way to take any of the weight off her shoulders.
