Karina's Profile
- Real Name: Yu Ji-min
- Native Name: 카리나
- Nicknames: Karomi, Katarina Yu
- Birthday: Apr 11, 2000 (25 years old)
- Blood type: B
- Height/Weight: 168 cm (5'6") / 46 kg (101.4 lbs)
- Gender: Female
- MBTI: ENFP (The Campaigner)
- Birthplace: Ji-dong, Paldal-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
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Nationality:
South Korean
- Profession: Singer, Rapper, Dancer, Leader
- Language Skills: Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese
- Current Agency: SM Entertainment
- Debut: November 17, 2020
- Group: aespa
- Years Active: 2020–present (5 years)
Karina, whose real name is Yu Ji-min (유지민), is a South Korean singer, rapper, and dancer under SM Entertainment. She was born on April 11, 2000, in Ji-dong, Paldal-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, and later grew up in Jeongja-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. Karina is the leader of the girl group aespa, where she also serves as the group’s visual, main dancer, and lead rapper. She is also a member of the supergroup Got the Beat.
Early life
Karina was born and raised in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do, in a family of four with her parents and an older sister. From a young age, she displayed a wide range of talents: she could play the piano and guitar, was skilled in swimming, and practiced Taekwondo. She attended Hansol High School until she was discovered in 2016 by an SM Entertainment talent scout through social media. She left school to focus on training and later earned her GED, equivalent to a high school diploma.
Before her debut, Karina was known as an ulzzang (a term used in Korea for someone who is famous for their attractive appearance) and was active on social media. She underwent four years of training at SM Entertainment before officially debuting with aespa.
Career
Karina’s career began in 2016 when she joined SM Entertainment as a trainee after being scouted through social media. After four years of training, she officially debuted as the leader and a member of aespa on November 17, 2020, with the group’s debut single “Black Mamba.” The music video set a record of 21.4 million views within the first 24 hours, becoming the most-viewed debut MV by a K-pop group at the time.
In 2021, Karina’s career took a major leap forward when aespa released the single “Next Level” in May, which peaked at No. 2 on both the Circle Digital Chart and the K-pop Hot 100. In October, the group released their first EP “Savage,” which sold 787,600 copies, making it the best-selling physical debut album by an SM Entertainment artist at that time. Later that year, Karina joined the supergroup Got the Beat alongside Winter and other SM Entertainment female artists including BoA, Taeyeon, Hyoyeon, Seulgi, and Wendy.
From October to mid-December 2021, Karina expanded her individual activities by hosting “Travel Diary Soul: Seoul” with David Lee McInnis, a tourism promotion project by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The program was broadcast to 39.5 million households across 19 countries through the History Channel.
In 2022, aespa released their second EP “Girls” in July, selling 1,844,376 copies and peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. Around the same time, Karina began her first commercial activities, becoming a goodwill ambassador for Maeil Business Newspaper’s “Clean Campaign” in April.
The year 2023 marked strong growth in Karina’s career across multiple fields. In May, aespa released their third EP “My World,” which garnered 1.8 million pre-orders and sold 1,372,929 copies on its first day. That same month, she co-hosted a special episode of Show! Music Core with Lee Min-hyuk and Jungwoo. In September, Karina released the single “Sad Waltz” for the Netflix series Song of the Bandits. Toward the end of the year, she expanded into fashion as the face of YSL Beauty’s Rouge Pur Couture lipstick line.
In 2024, Karina achieved significant milestones in her solo activities. In January, she became the brand ambassador for Converse Korea amid a 13.1% decline in sales. In April, she collaborated with the beverage brand Vita 500 Zero, with its promotional video trending No. 1 on YouTube Korea. In May, she joined KBS’s music program Synchro U and received the Rookie Award in the Show and Variety category at the KBS Entertainment Awards.
By August 2024, Karina reached a new career peak when she was named global brand ambassador for luxury fashion house Prada after attending its Fall/Winter 2024 menswear show earlier that year. In the same month, she was appointed brand ambassador for Musinsa Beauty and muse for Danish outdoor brand Nordisk. Musically, aespa released their first full-length studio album “Armageddon” in May 2024, selling 1.6 million copies worldwide.
At the end of 2024, Karina fronted Shinsegae’s Christmas campaign “Hello, New Santa,” a 10-minute commercial film screened at Shinsegae Square. The campaign delivered positive results, with the Shinsegae Department Store app seeing a 47.1% increase in new customers in their 20s and 30s.
In 2025, Karina’s career continued to expand as she collaborated with the band Jannabi on the single “May the Tenderness Be with You!” released in April. aespa also maintained steady activity with the release of the albums “Dirty Work” in June and “Rich Man” in September.
Fun Facts
- The nickname “stupid cheese cat” came from Karina’s blonde era, and she even joked that searching it on Pinterest only shows her photos.
- When she dyed her hair black, fans switched to calling her “stupid oreo cat,” continuing the hair-color meme.
- Her habit of tapping or punching the camera turned into a running ASMR meme during livestreams.
- Karina often called herself ENFP, sparking the meme “ENFP chaotic Karina” in the fandom.
- Her insanely high level in Gardenscapes earned her the funny title “god gamer” on Reddit.
- Clips of Karina’s over-the-top laughter on Knowing Bros became popular reaction memes.
- The video of Karina learning to ride a bike at 25 went viral for being adorably clumsy.
- The “cat Karina” meme grew from fans editing her expressions with derpy cat faces, especially the oreo–cheese cat versions.
- Winter once joked Karina has “uncle vibes,” adding humor that contrasts with her chic visual.
- Fan edits like “aespa mess” and “try-not-to-laugh” showcase Karina’s slip-ups and giggles, often turned into shorts and GIFs.
- The legendary combo meme: “punching screen ASMR” + “stupid cheese cat.”
- In pet-related content, fans call her “auntie obsessed with Ningning’s lizard Ddongi,” fueling the “zoo in dorm” meme.
- Her “Stamp On It” fancam with GOT the Beat became a meme of “stage fierce vs off-stage puppy-cat.”
- Some playful or controversial nicknames on social media evolved into viral memes.
- Behind-the-scenes compilations show Karina teasing fans with silly answers, perfect material for international meme pages.
