Biography
Winter stands as one of the defining figures of the fourth generation of K-Pop. She serves as a principal vocalist and dancer in the globally recognized girl group aespa, which debuted under SM Entertainment in November 2020. Her introduction to the public on October 26, 2020, marked her as the first member of aespa to be officially revealed, setting the stage for the group’s revolutionary avatar-based concept.
Profile
- Real Name: Kim Min-jeong (김민정)
- Stage Name: Winter (윈터)
- Date of Birth: January 1st, 2001
- Zodiac Sign: Capricorn
- Nationality: South Korean
- Hometown: Jung-gu, Busan
- Positions: Lead Vocalist, Lead Dancer, Visual
- Height: 1m64
- Weight: –
- Blood Type: A
- Family: Father, mother, and older brother
Fun Facts
- Winter chose her stage name because her birthday is in winter (January 1) and she has a clear and pure image.
- In Winter’s universe, her ability, Armamenter, is the “ability to wield weapons,” which was decided during a pre-debut interview.
- In music videos and teaser images, she is often shown in different poses alone, which led to speculation that she might be the “villain” in the storyline.
- She was born on January 1, 2001, the first day of the 21st century and the third millennium. In 2025, the year of the Eulsa (乙巳), she was frequently mentioned in the media as a prominent Snake zodiac celebrity born in 2001, but her actual zodiac sign is Dragon.
- She is from Yangsan, Gyeongsangnam-do, and is fluent in the southeastern dialect.
- Growing up, Winter had many relatives who were military personnel, which sparked her interest in the military. Interestingly, her older brother also commissioned as a military police officer in 2022. She once revealed that she dreamed of becoming a soldier before aspiring to be a singer because she thought soldiers were cool.
- She served as the vice president of her middle school in 9th grade.
- She was a dorm roommate with LE SSERAFIM’s Yunjin and Kep1er’s Kim Chaehyun during their trainee days and remains close friends. She is also friends with NMIXX’s Sullyoon; she was happy to meet Sullyoon on Bubble and even approached her to hug her.
- After joining SM, Winter sang BIGBANG’s “If You” at her first evaluation.
- Her role in the team is “bold,” reflecting how people describe her as daring despite her appearance. Her motto is “Let’s live as it flows.”
- As a trainee, she and Ningning focused on a pure and cute image, so they didn’t anticipate aespa’s concept.
- She is not easily affected by heat and rarely sweats.
- Among the members, Winter has changed her hairstyle the most. Others mostly bleach, dye, perm, or cut bangs, but Winter has experimented extensively.
- She is a big fan of Harry Styles.
- She is not good at taking food photos.
Career
aespa: Narrative and Performance Roles (2020–Present)
Winter debuted with aespa on November 17, 2020, with the single “Black Mamba”. The single achieved rapid success, becoming the most-viewed debut music video in K-Pop at the time, garnering over 21 million views. Within the group, Winter fulfills the essential roles of main vocalist and a lead dancer.
Early in her career, she demonstrated her capacity for individual excellence and respect for industry veterans. On December 6, 2020, shortly after her debut, Winter performed a solo cover of BoA’s iconic song “ID; Peace B” at the Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA) as part of a tribute celebrating BoA’s 20th anniversary. In January 2021, she further showcased her vocal abilities by collaborating with producer Raiden during the SMTOWN LIVE Culture Humanity Online Concert, performing Raiden and Chanyeol’s song “Yours”.
Supergroup and Strategic Solo Discography
Winter’s career has been characterized by active participation in high-visibility solo and collaborative projects that strategically develop her personal brand outside of aespa’s demanding metaverse narrative.
Her membership in the supergroup Got the Beat starting in 2022 immediately positioned her alongside the most respected female idols in K-Pop. Beyond group activities, her individual discography is notably varied, demonstrating her agility across musical genres, ranging from powerful K-Pop collaborations to delicate ballad OSTs and official public theme songs.
In 2023, she released the single “Nobody” with Jeon Soyeon of (G)I-DLE and Liz of IVE. This track represented a significant inter-agency collaboration that achieved considerable commercial success, peaking at number 11 on the South Korean Download charts. She also collaborated with Bang Yedam on “Officially Cool” in 2024.
Winter has become a reliable vocalist for dramatic soundtracks, contributing to major South Korean dramas. These contributions include a duet with Ningning, “Once Again,” for the Our Blues OST (2022), which charted at 119 on the Gaon Digital Chart, as well as the solo tracks “Voyage” for the Castaway Diva OST (2023) and “With You” for the My Demon OST (2023).
Personal Life
Early Life
Kim Min-jeong was raised in Nampo-dong, Busan, South Korea, attending Yangsan Samsung Middle School and later Yangsan Girls’ High School. A defining characteristic of her upbringing was the pervasive influence of military discipline. Her family structure was unique among K-Pop idols, with multiple members, including her father, her older brother, and other relatives, serving in the armed forces.
The Path to SM Entertainment
Winter’s entry into SM Entertainment was neither straightforward nor conventional. Her journey began in 2016 when she was discovered by an SM talent scout while performing with friends at a high school dance festival. Interestingly, she had never previously voiced her aspirations of becoming a singer to her family, who expressed surprise at her subsequent decision to audition.
The initial scouting encounter contained a competitive dynamic that foreshadowed her later professional tenacity: the SM staff member had actually intended to scout her older brother, who had accompanied her to the event. Winter, however, demonstrated a superior performance, capturing the scout’s attention. Despite this promising start, she did not secure immediate acceptance and was forced to audition for SM Entertainment three separate times.
The pivotal moment in her trainee career occurred when she had been rejected twice. Desperate to debut under her dream company, Winter played a crucial strategic card: she informed an SM contact that she was in discussions to join a rival agency. This move compelled SM Entertainment to extend a final audition invitation. Her success in this third attempt led to her signing with the powerhouse label in 2017. She subsequently underwent three and a half years of rigorous training before debuting with aespa in 2020.
Net Worth
As a leading member of one of SM Entertainment’s most successful fourth-generation groups, Winter has rapidly accumulated wealth. Her estimated net worth is approximately USD 1.2 million. This valuation places her among the financially successful members of her cohort, notably exceeding the reported net worth of some of her peers, such as Giselle’s estimated USD 1 million.
Relationships
ENHYPEN’s Jungwon
On December 10, 2024, photos and a short video surfaced online claiming Winter and Jungwon were seen together at a whiskey bar in Cheongdam‑dong, Seoul. The post alleged they spent time together, then left separately — Winter heading out first, followed shortly by Jungwon. The “evidence” included a masked man on a phone (claimed to sound like Jungwon) and a woman in a red tracksuit similar to one Winter had worn earlier — prompting some fans to believe it was Winter.
Additional speculation even referenced a past comment by Jungwon that he liked “winter,” which some interpreted as a hidden nod to Winter — though many netizens criticized this as a far‑fetched “proof.”
On December 11, 2024, their respective agencies — SM Entertainment (Winter’s agency) and BELIFT LAB (Jungwon’s agency) — publicly denied the rumors, calling them “groundless.”
On December 12, 2024, Jungwon personally addressed the rumors during a live broadcast, explicitly denying that he was dating Winter — and denying related claims that he smoked.
BTS’s Jungkook
Winter was the subject of widespread speculation in late 2025 regarding a possible romantic relationship with BTS member Jungkook. The rumors spread rapidly across social media platforms, fueled by alleged photographic evidence and circumstantial links.
Netizens presented several pieces of evidence, including the alleged similarity and placement of tattoos depicting three dog faces on both artists. Further claims involved matching casual wear, such as shorts, slippers, bracelets, and customized in-ear monitors. A minor but telling detail was the observation that both idols appeared to have manicured or polished their ring fingernails only one day apart.
The speculation was significantly amplified by reports that Jungkook, while serving his mandatory military duty, had attended an aespa concert—an occurrence deemed highly unusual, given his reported history of not attending concerts by other girl groups under the HYBE umbrella. Additionally, some users suggested that a slight modification of Jungkook’s Instagram ID referenced Winter’s real name, Kim Min-jeong.
The reaction from the respective agencies, SM Entertainment and BigHit Music (HYBE), was highly unconventional. Both companies maintained an absolute silence regarding the rumors.
You must be logged in to post a comment.