All-rounder Artist BIBI: Dark Concept Debut, Acting Recognition & Beating IU With “Bam Yang Gang”

Nicknamed “IU’s dark version” ever since her debut, BIBI became the first female solo junior to surpass IU to win No.1 with a sweet song called “Bam Yang Gang”. How could she sweep the charts despite making a comeback at the same time as IU?

In the middle of the K-pop scene focusing on fandoms, it is not easy for female solo singers, including IU, to survive in comeback competition. However, BIBI did it with “Bam Yang Gang”, a song written, composed and arranged by IU’s ex-lover Jang Ki-ha.

The collaboration between Jang Ki-ha and “Dark IU” eventually succeeded. Although Jang Ki-ha has sung his own songs with other singers or written lyrics for many people, he has never given his own song to anyone. “Bam Yang Gang”, the only exception, gradually became viral through word of mouth shortly after its release on February 13th and then rose to the top spot on music charts.

An “Bam Yang Gang” IU AI cover version spread online but netizens commented that it’s a song IU can never sing. In this way, BIBI is creating hot topics with the one and only song “Bam Yang Gang”. Presenting a completely opposite style from IU, she is also proving herself as an all-rounder artist both as singer BIBI and actress Kim Hyung-seo. 

It was not until the release of “Bam Yang Gang” that BIBI became known widely by the public, but her talents have been recognized by Yoon Mi-rae and Tiger JK, the CEOs of her agency, from the start. Especially, the couple even introduced BIBI as their “daughter born in music”.

BIBI entered the music industry in 2017 by featuring in Yoon Mi-rae and Tiger JK’s song “Good Family”. Her full stage name is “Naked BIBI”, but she made it short as “BIBI” because the full name is a little long. In particular, the stage name expresses BIBI’s desire to show her naked face and honest self like a newborn baby.

Born in 1998, BIBI appeared on SBS’s program “The Fan” and ended up as a runner-up after facing “Car, the Garden” in the final round. Amid the popularity of “Bam Yang Gang”, all of her songs, including the ones she sang in the program, are being re-examined and drawing attention.

After the program, BIBI began showing unexpected moves. In 2019, she released her debut song “Binu”, then imprinted her strong image in the music industry with various dark songs, such as “Step?”, “Kazino”, “I’m Good at Goodbyes” and “Eat My Love”. She then released a full album titled “Lowlife Princess: Noir”, including songs like “Life is a Bi…” and “Sweet Sorrow of Mother”. BIBI also captivated music listeners with her attractive tone in the featuring part of Park Jin-young’s song “FEVER”.

In addition to her unique music color, BIBI also made headlines with her unconventional styling and bold actions during performances, such as throwing condoms at concerts and kissing the audience. 

In 2021, BIBI turned to acting and debuted on the small screen by playing the young version of Kim Seo-hyung’s character in Netflix’s “Whispering Corridors 6: The Humming” and showcased her sense of entertainment on “Girls High Mystery Class”. While developing her filmography, BIBI did not forget to continue her singing career and introduced the OST song “Very, Slowly” for the 2022 popular drama “Twenty-five Twenty-one”. 

In 2023, BIBI successfully established her reputation as actress Kim Hyung-seo after starring in Disney+’s series “The Worst of Evil”. After that, she received an invitation from the Cannes Film Festival and attended the event for her debut film “Hwaran”, in which she acted alongside actor Song Joong-ki.

Making a comeback in 2024 with a completely different image, BIBI gained unexpected success with “Bam Yang Gang”. Appearing on a YouTube content video in November 2022, BIBI shared, “I think my next album will sound very girly. I’ve maintained a very strong image until now, so it’s going to be a twist. I’m curious about people’s reaction to it”, adding “Normally, people tend to grow stronger. But I’m going the other way. What if I transform from a strong woman to an innocent girl? I’m doing an experiment”.

BIBI’s experiment was indeed successful and expectations are higher on what kind of image BIBI will show with her unpredictable moves in the future.