Meet K-Pop’s “Strongest Nugu Soldier” Who Was Part Of 9 Different Projects
Kim Minji, also known by her stage name Kimi, has had a long and ever-changing journey in the K-Pop industry. Her career is so long that she even has a different name from what she originally started with!
Known by some as Habin, Kimi has been part of nine different groups and units — including one survival show —since her debut more than a decade ago. She also had an official solo release in August 2017, which was an amazing milestone to achieve. However, Kimi’s career goes back much further than that — to 2011, when she debuted as part of the girl group Leader’S.
1. Leader’S
Kimi joined the group after it was restructured into a 24-member group with three different subunits: the G unit, the N unit, and the T unit. However, the group continued to remain unstable even after Kimi’s debut, with members constantly leaving and unit lineups often changing, which is what caused her next career move.
Kimi was soon moved to Leader’S N unit and, finally, the T unit. These changes all happened within one year. Then — during the group’s first hiatus in 2012 — Kimi departed Leader’S and all of its units.
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2. Scarlet
Two years after her journey with Leader’S, Kimi decided to debut with yet another girl group. This time, she would be part of Scarlet — a four-member girl group under Toilet Music and Funny Collection. Together, the four members released two digital singles, “Do Better” and “Hip Song.” Unfortunately for Kimi, this adventure also didn’t last long, as Scarlet disbanded in 2015 — only a year after their debut.
3. Produce 101
In 2016, Kimi’s next project was none other than the popular survival show Produce 101 — the competition that birthed I.O.I. Though Kimi made it quite far on the show, she was not able to be part of the group. Her Produce story ended during the show’s eighth episode, ranked at the 44th spot.
4. BULLDOK
Later in 2016, Kimi debuted with BULLDOK with the digital single “Why Not.” BULLDOK was a five-member girl group in which Kimi played the roles of leader, main rapper, sub-vocalist, and maknae. Sadly, this group also disbanded in 2018 after Kimi had her official solo debut in 2017.
5. PAPILLON
Despite all these obstacles in her path, Kimi never gave up. Soon after BULLDOK’s disbandment, Kimi debuted as half of the duo PAPILLON. Together with Boseon, the other girl group star part of PAPILLON, Kimi released the digital single “사랑에 빠진 날.” Unfortunately, PAPILLON didn’t last past their debut, and the duo disbanded in 2019 — the same year they debuted.
6. We Girls
Years after her PAPILLON heartbreak, Kimi joined another girl group. She became part of We Girls in 2021, which debuted in 2018 but (similarly to Leader’S) had gone through several lineup changes. Kimi joined alongside members Byeoljji and Hayoon. But the journey was once again cut short when the girl group disbanded in February 2022.
7. ONAIR
In November 2022, Kimi teased on Instagram that she would be part of a new girl group called ONAIR under SW Entertainment. However, due to constant brand, lineup, and strategy changes, the group was never able to release music and make their official debut. In August 2023, the company even added a new member, Hyeum, after Jihye left — but Hyeum unfortunately left the group within the same month.
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In 2024, Kimi also left SW Entertainment. That’s the last known activity from what fans have been calling “K-Pop’s Strongest Nugu Soldier.”
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