Who is Hanni?
Hanni is a globally recognized Australian singer of Vietnamese descent. As a pivotal member of the chart-topping K-pop girl group NewJeans, her rise to international stardom has been remarkably swift. Since her debut in 2022, Hanni has not only contributed to NewJeans’ groundbreaking musical success but has also cemented her status as a global fashion and beauty icon through high-profile endorsements with some of the world’s most prestigious luxury brands.
Biography
- Full name: Phạm Ngọc Hân
- Stage name: Hanni (하니)
- Date of Birth: 06/10/2004
- Zodiac sign: Libra
- Nationality: Australian – Vietnamese (Born and raised in Australia but parents are Vietnamese)
- Place of Birth: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- MBTI: INFP
- Current group: NewJeans
Trivia
- She is the only pure foreign member in the group and holds dual nationality of Australia and Vietnam. In 2022, she used an Australian passport at the airport, but her Vietnamese nationality was confirmed through documents from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea.
- Among the members, she is the only one whose birthday is not in April or May.
- She speaks three languages: English, Korean, and Vietnamese.
- She was born and raised in Australia. Although her parents are from Vietnam, she has only traveled there and never lived in the country, so her sense of identity leans more toward being Australian.
- She is skilled enough in Vietnamese cooking to make phở for her group members.
- She can play the ukulele, guitar, and piano.
- Together with Minji, she is known as part of the “bread duo” (빵사즈). The name comes from both being born in 2004 (0=빵, 4=사, plural “s”=즈), though they also genuinely love bread.
- She once mentioned wanting to visit the beaches of Australia with the members, because she likes the sound of stepping on the sand.
- She checks how dirty a mirror is and inspects her hair whenever she looks into one.
- She mentioned taking online classes at her Australian school in 2022. At that time, she was in Year 12 (equivalent to the third year of Korean high school), so it is likely she has since graduated if she passed her exams.
- For the 30th anniversary of Korea–Vietnam diplomatic relations, Hanni and the other NewJeans members sent a congratulatory video message.
- On October 28, 2022, just three months after her debut, she was appointed as a global ambassador for Gucci—the first in her team to represent a high-end luxury brand.
- Her special skill is being able to fall asleep quickly anywhere.
- If she hadn’t become an idol, she said she would have studied hard for a career in languages or science.
- She picks up lyrics and choreography quickly. Her method is to connect lyrics and dance moves in her head like an animation, which helps her memorize faster.
- Before going on stage, she often fiddles with her rings as a ritual to ease nervousness.
- Despite her strong Korean skills, she sometimes mispronounces words or says quirky things.
- She is close to LE SSERAFIM’s Huh Yunjin, as they trained together at Source Music. They have gone to see films like Barbie and The Boy and the Heron together and even took “photo booth” pictures.
- She also became a small hot topic for her thoughtful actions toward fans who recognized her.
- She once shared that since her parents married at 24, she would also like to marry at that age.
- Actress Lee Young-ah has been mentioned as her lookalike. Coincidentally, Lee starred in the 2007 drama Golden Bride as Nguyen Jin-joo, a Vietnamese character.
Pre-Debut Journey
Hanni is an Australian of Vietnamese descent with a father from Hanoi and a mother from Ho Chi Minh City. She has a younger sister named Jasmine Pham. In October 2019, Hanni participated in the Global Audition program organized by Bighit in Australia and was selected.
By 2020, she had moved to South Korea and began her trainee period at HYBE Labels. During her trainee years, she made a cameo appearance in the music video for BTS’s 2021 hit single “Permission to Dance,” alongside her future bandmate Minji. Hanni was also a member of the KPOP cover dance group named “AEMINA Dance Crew”.
Career
Debut with NewJeans
Hanni’s official debut came on July 22, 2022, as a member of NewJeans. The group’s launch was marked by the surprise release of their single “Attention” and their debut album New Jeans. The album quickly made an impact, breaking the record for the highest number of pre-orders for any girl group in K-pop history. NewJeans has since become a prominent force in the industry, with a wide range of group endorsement deals with major brands such as Nike, Levi’s, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, and Apple.
At Bunnies Camp 2024 held at the Tokyo Dome, she performed Seiko Matsuda’s song “Blue Coral Reef,” which became a major topic in both Korea and Japan. Japanese broadcaster Nippon TV showed great interest, and on July 6, Hanni appeared on THE MUSIC DAY and performed the song again.
Songwriting and Musical Contributions
Beyond her role as a performer, Hanni has also contributed her creative talents as a songwriter. She holds songwriting credits for two of NewJeans’ popular tracks, “Hype Boy” and “OMG”. Her involvement in the creative process highlights her artistic depth and her role in shaping the group’s unique sound.
Brand Influence and Endorsements
Hanni’s global appeal has led to numerous high-profile individual endorsements. In February 2023, she was appointed as a global ambassador for Armani Beauty and Gucci. She has since appeared in multiple campaigns for these brands, including one for Armani Beauty’s Power Fabric+ Foundation and Lip Maestro Satin lipstick. She was also featured in a campaign for the Gucci Horsebit 1955 bag alongside actresses Halle Bailey and Julia Garner. Her presence has extended to the covers of prestigious magazines like Elle, W Korea, and Marie Claire Korea.
Controversies/Incidents
Being boycotted in Vietnam
In February 2023, Vietnamese netizens unexpectedly called for a boycott of Hanni. Consequently, a series of fan pages and blogs about Hanni in Vietnam declared their closure. Moreover, even fan pages of the NewJeans music group asserted that they would not update any images of Hanni. Some K-pop fan pages even announced the inclusion of Hanni’s name on a “blacklist”.
It is known that the reason is related to information about Hanni’s personal life, mainly concerning her family. According to some sources on social media, the female idol was boycotted because fans discovered that she and her family had hidden information, intending to “deceive” the audience.
It is known that Hanni’s family is a descendant of the Republic of Vietnam government, which collapsed after losing in the Vietnam Wars. Her family left Vietnam and moved to Australia after the US military withdrew from the country and returned Vietnam to independence in 1975. Families like Hanni’s in Australia and the United States have gathered together to form associations of supporters of the Republic of Vietnam government and are believed to have made statements and taken actions opposing the current Vietnamese government. Many pieces of evidence on social media indicate that Hanni’s grandfather is a prominent member of this organization in Australia.
Therefore, Hanni faced a boycott in Vietnam.
Workplace bullying claim
In 2024, Hanni, along with fellow members of NewJeans, hosted a livestream where they aired various allegations towards HYBE. Among those, Hanni claimed that the manager of a group under HYBE told their artists to ignore her, causing a huge controversy.
HYBE vehemently denying Hanni’s claims. Meanwhile, the parents of NewJeans insisted otherwise, even bringing up further evidence.
Hanni even appeared at the National Assembly inspect regarding work place bullying to voice her perspectives. However, a legal expert said that her appeal will face difficulty to be recognized as workplace bullying.
In the end, it was decided by the National Assembly that Hanni’s case could not be consider workplace bullying.
Outside from Hanni herself, NewJeans also faced a fair share of controversies as a group, which you can read in detailed here.
You must be logged in to post a comment.