Nam Gyu-ri Reveals She Was an SM and YG Trainee Before Debuting With SeeYa

Nam Gyu-ri revealed surprising details about her trainee years before debuting with SeeYa during her appearance on MBC’s Radio Star.

The May 6 broadcast featured actors and idols including Choi Daniel, Nam Gyu-ri, Ahn Ji-young, and Beomgyu.

During the episode, Nam Gyu-ri reflected on her long road to debut and revealed that she had previously trained under both SM and YG Entertainment before joining SeeYa. “I was a trainee at SM and YG, but I couldn’t debut as a singer,” she shared.

The actress and singer explained that she became increasingly anxious after turning 20 without debuting. “I wondered, ‘If I can’t become a singer at this age, how am I supposed to make a living?’” she recalled.

At the time, Nam Gyu-ri was reportedly the final trainee at producer Ryu Jae-hyun’s company when she unexpectedly received a phone call asking her to come to a recording studio and sing a short part of a song.

She revealed that the song eventually became SeeYa’s debut hit, Scent of a Woman. “The composer told me to sing with more emotion and cry more. I actually cried while recording it, and then we won first place just 40 days after debut,” she said, surprising the cast.

Host Kim Gu-ra mentioned that SeeYa was often called the “female version of SG Wannabe” at the time. Nam Gyu-ri then revealed another surprising detail behind the group’s launch. “Originally, SeeYa was supposed to debut as a faceless singer group, but after I joined, they decided to officially debut us normally,” she explained.

Kim Gu-ra jokingly responded that she was naturally complimenting herself, drawing laughter in the studio.

Nam Gyu-ri also shared a behind-the-scenes story about her first broadcast appearance, revealing that the company CEO disliked the professional makeup styling prepared for her and told her to go on stage with almost no makeup instead.

The nostalgic stories quickly drew attention online, with many viewers revisiting SeeYa’s legendary debut era and praising Nam Gyu-ri’s perseverance before finding success.

Sources: 네이트 뉴스