A Beginner’s Guide To Getting To Know The Girls of Dreamcatcher
Originally debuting as a five-member group known as MINX in 2014. The group was reinvented in 2017 after adding two new members to the line up before re-debuting as Dreamcatcher with their first single album Nightmare. The appropriately named single is a reflection of the new direction the group went in, now famous for their nightmare concept, which sees them telling a continuous story through their songs and music videos.
While MINX had a small but loyal fanbase, the company’s decision to rebrand the group seemed to be a smart move as not only has their fanbase, now known lovingly as inSomnia (a portmanteau of the English language “in” and Latin “somnia” meaning dreams), grown exponentially but they have also made contributions to spreading the Hallyu wave toward Japan, where their rock-influenced style of K-Pop music is very popular.
Dream of me ~ Hello, we’re Dreamcatcher!
—Dreamcatcher
JiU is Dreamcatcher’s leader, lead vocalist, and visual. Born in Daejeon, Korea in 1994, she is one of the group’s original members. Known for walking around their dorm room naked, JiU has a carefree style and never misses a meal at the dorm.
JiU, along with three other group members, were contestants on JTBC’s MIXNINE program in 2017. All four girls ended up leaving the program early due to scheduling issues.
It’s very regretful. I decided to go on the show to show different sides to myself, but we decided to leave the program due to conflicting schedules with our Brazil concerts.
—JiU
A fan of girl groups, JiU likes the Japanese metal band Baby Metal and would love to team up with “all the girl groups in Korea at once.”
Another ’94-liner, SuA was born in Changwon, Korea. Like JiU, SuA is one of the group’s original members. She is also the member who trained the longest out of all of them. The most nerve-wracking day of her life was when she auditioned for the agency because she was nervous about being judged.
The audition was just the name, it was the place where I got judged.
—SuA
SuA is the group’s lead rapper and main dancer, and as such she specializes in choreography. She even participated in a b-girl (breakdancing) competition!
There was something I wanted to brag about, and it’s the fact that I’ve entered a b-girl competition. I didn’t win a prize or anything, but I was overjoyed to just take part in the competition.
—SuA
She is a big fan of TVXQ and her role models are BIGBANG and Lee Hyori.
Siyeon is lovingly referred to by fans as the group’s “wolf”. Born in Daegu, Korea in 1995, Siyeon is the group’s main vocalist and rightfully so, as she continually blows fans away with her powerful voice. When she was in school, she was the vocalist of a band for five years.
I was the vocalist of the school band for five years, from my freshmen year in middle school until my sophomore year in high school.
—Siyeon
Siyeon can play piano and during her time with MINX, previously recorded a duet with Boys Republic‘s Onejunn for the song “The Two Of Us” from K-Drama Love & Secret‘s OST. She loves the Japanese band ONE OK ROCK and her role model is Sistar‘s Hyorin.
Perhaps because of her vocal talents, Siyeon also excels at voice impressions, with particularly impressive impressions of pikachu, psyduck, and squirtle!
Handong is one of the two additions to Dreamcatcher. The sole Chinese member of the group, she was born in 1996 in Wuhan. Fans fondly refer to Handon as their “Chinese Princess”.
She looks up to Taeyeon, and in a way, was inspired by her to pursue music as a career. Handong was encouraged to audition in Korea by one of her professors. Thank goodness she took their advice!
A vocalist in the group, Handong likes to sing and has participated in at least one musical during her time in high school. She also took opera and acting lessons in the past.
I’ve appeared in a musical in high school, so I’m very interested in musicals.
—Handong
Despite having a shy personality, Handong is funny and has shown her sharp wit on more than one occasion.
Yoohyeon might be an actual cinnamon roll with her adorable personality. Sometimes referred to as “Firefist of Incheon” or “Tree” (because the other members of the group say she looks stiff no matter what she does), she was born in 1997 in Incheon, Korea and is the lead vocalist in the group. She was inspired to become a vocalist after seeing the Wonder Girls on MTV and decided to become a singer, like them.
Hello, I’m MINX’s Yoohyeon. I’m the lead vocal and tree!
—Yoohyeon
A hardcore gamer, her fellow group members have said they sometimes catch Yoohyeon playing video games until very late at night, even when they have an appearance the next day. She’s been caught on film playing mobile games during behind-the-scenes moments and plays everything from Overwatch to The Sims. She also does excellent impressions of game characters Tracer and Mei from Overwatch.
Yoohyeon can speak Korean, English, Chinese, and German.
Dami is the group’s main rapper and lead dancer. She was born in Seoul, Korea in 1997, and like JiU, Siyeon, SuA, and Yoohyeon, was an original member of MINX.
Dami loves to read, and her favorite author is Haruki Murakami. Although, she also enjoys manga, particularly One Piece.
Dami loves books. So, at the shop or in the car or in the living room, she’s reading.
—Yoohyeon
Back when she was in elementary school, she won first prize at a national choir contest.
I won first prize at a national choir contest, and went to an amusement park using the prize money!
—Dami
In the past, she’s stated that it was her time as a member of a choir that helped her realize she wanted to be a singer because she wanted to keep singing on stage. Like Handong, she is a fan of Taeyeon and says that “Run Devil Run” is her life song as it’s the one that helped her get into the company.
Gahyeon, like Handong, was not an original member of MINX. She was added to the group for their 2017 re-debut. Born in Seongnam, Korea in 1999, Gahyeon is a vocalist, rapper, and the maknae of the group.
She excelled in school and was an honor student whose strongest subject was math.
I’ve been an honor student for three years straight! I was best at math. I’ve won awards in various subjects, but I’ve never missed an award in math.
—Gahyeon
JiU, who is a voracious eater, once said that Gahyeon gives her a run for her money when it came to eating.
I eat a lot, and Gahyeon is my rival! I feel threatened by her.
—JiU
Like many of her groupmates, Gahyeon was moved to become a singer after being inspired by a popular idol, in this case, K-Pop legend BoA.
The girls of Dreamcatcher are true pros, executing their concept flawlessly while letting their natural talents shine through. From dancing to singing, there’s nothing these girls can’t do. And, although each member is talented in their own right, together they are what make Dreamcatcher so special. Thankfully, they all seem to have a genuine friendship, where they love and support each other—after all, how many groups do you know not only accept, but also joke about the fact that their leader likes to be naked? 😉
Dreamcatcher is so incredible that their agency, Happy Face Entertainment, renamed themselves Dreamcatcher Company to show their support for the group!
Dreamcatcher’s latest album Raid of Dream, which has slight Game of Thrones vibes, was released on September 18. The album was a collaboration with the popular mobile game King’s Raid, with lyrics reflecting themes within the game.
Share This Post
