Sori (singer)
Kim So-ri, professionally known by the mononym Sori, is a South Korean singer and actress. She is a former member of the duo CocoSori and the project girl group Real Girls Project.
Life and career
1990–2014: Early life and career beginnings
Kim So-ri was born on July 21, 1990 in Mapo District, Seoul, South Korea. As a teenager, she migrated to Japan for her secondary education. Additionally, she became a cheerleader at her high school, which became the "base experience that made her yearn for the stage." Following three years in college, Kim returned to South Korea to pursue a career as a singer, where she signed with the South Korean entertainment company Mol Entertainment in 2013. She debuted as an actress the following year in KBS2's romantic comedy television series , in which she portrayed a high school student.2016–2018: CocoSori and Real Girls Project
Following three years of training, Kim debuted under the mononym Sori as one-half of the duo CocoSori with the single "Dark Circle" on January 4, 2016. The duo's image was compared to the girl group Crayon Pop due to their similar musical direction and unconventional music videos. CocoSori auditioned to become members of the project girl group Real Girls Project on May 6, 2016, resulting in Sori scoring a spot in the group. The group debuted with the single "Dream" on August 24, 2016. Consequently, she was billed as one of the main cast members of Amazon Video's musical drama television series The Idolmaster KR, a South Korean adaption of the video game series of the same name. The series premiered on April 28, 2017 and ran for twenty-four episodes prior to its conclusion on October 6, 2017.Alongside former Real Girls Project groupmates Heo Young-joo, Lee Ye-eun, and Yukika Teramoto, Sori competed as one of Mol Entertainment's four representatives in JTBC's reality television competition Mix Nine, during which she became the subject of controversy following a comment made by the judge Yang Hyun-suk regarding her age and the state of her career. She released a single titled "To Myself" in the midst of the controversy on November 5, 2017. Sori ultimately finished in seventh place in a field of ninety-seven female contestants and therefore became a member of the resulting girl group during the final episode on January 26, 2018. However, the group was defeated by their male counterpart for the opportunity to debut, where the former garnered 7,866 points against the latter's 8,114 points.
2018–2020: Solo career beginnings
Sori announced her debut as a solo artist through her official YouTube channel on July 31, 2018. She launched a Makestar project in order to fund the expenses of her debut on August 1, 2018. The project ultimately concluded on August 28, 2018 with over $20,000 raised by approximately 250 supporters. Sori's debut single titled "Touch", featuring the rapper Basick, was released on September 4, 2018 in conjunction with the premiere of its music video. The song was arranged, composed, and penned by the record producer Gamen Rider. The music video was directed by the film director Hong Won-gi of the video production company Zanybros. "Touch" was performed for the first time during its showcase held at the Dongja Art Hall in Seoul, South Korea on the day of its release. The single enjoyed minor commercial success, where its physical version debuted and peaked at number 49 on the Gaon Album Chart. To promote the single, Sori performed on music programs and radio programs, and held street performances as well. A Japanese version of the "Touch" was released as her debut single in Japan on November 14, 2018, with the music video premiering two days later. The Japanese version was performed for the first time during its showcase, which was held for four days at the HMV flagship in Harajuku, Shibuya.Sori launched a Kickstarter project on December 7, 2018 in order to fund the expenses of her sophomore release. Throughout its run, she documented herself preparing the rewards for the supporters of the project on her YouTube channel. The project concluded on December 21, 2018 with over ¥3,000,000 raised by around 260 supporters. The music video for the song titled "I'm Ready", featuring the rapper Jaehyun, subsequently premiered ahead of its release. It was directed by the film director Kyotaro Hayashi. The single was ultimately released on December 26, 2018 through several music portals. "I'm Ready" was composed and penned by Gamen Rider, who previously worked on "Touch". Promotions for the single were held the following month due to the holiday season, which included a collaborative performance with the internet personality StarTy in Hongdae, Seoul. "I'm Ready" was re-released on February 8, 2019 in Japan prior to Sori's first fanmeet titled
Following CocoSori's disbandment on March 6, 2019, Sori became the host of a segment titled Sori Action for TBS' variety show Fact in Star. Its first episode premiered on March 13, 2019, in which she analysed the music video of "Noir" by the singer Sunmi. Sori subsequently became a cast member of Channel J's travel documentary Travel to Ibaraki Without Knowing Japanese, which premiered its first episode on April 20, 2019. She announced that she will be releasing a collaboration with the record producer Folded Dragons as her third single through her official Patreon page on May 17, 2019. A Kickstarter project was subsequently launched in order to fund the expenses of the single, which ran from May 23, 2019 until June 20, 2019. The project concluded with approximately ¥1,900,000 raised by 245 supporters. Sori revealed the title of the song as "I Am Not Alone" with an accompanying still from its music video on July 1, 2019. The single was ultimately released in conjunction with the premiere of its performance-oriented music video on July 10, 2019. It was directed by the film director Park Sang-won of the Zanybros. "I Am Not Alone" was arranged and penned by the rapper Grace under the pseudonym Storm. Sori became a cast member of the second season of Mnet's reality television series Somebody'', which premiered its first episode on October 18, 2019. She subsequently performed at the series' joint concert titled "Some Days" and "Some Nights", which was held on January 18, 2020 at the Sangmyung Art Center in Hongji-dong, Jongno District.
2020–present: Television work and upcoming fourth single
Sori made a cameo appearance as a jazz club singer in the fourth episode of OCN's television series Rugal, which premiered on April 5, 2020. She portrayed a fictionalized version of herself in Naver TV's romantic drama television series Almost Famous, which was based on her personal struggles. Prior to the development of the series, Sori quietly retired from the music industry without informing her company and fan base and was employed as a part-time barista, however she returned shortly after online petitions emerged that demanded for her career to resume. Almost Famous premiered its first episode on July 7, 2020. She released a single titled "Melting Love" as a part of the series' original soundtrack on July 16, 2020. Sori subsequently announced that she will be releasing her fourth single the following month through her official YouTube channel on July 31, 2020. In conjunction with the announcement, she launched a Kickstarter project in order to fund the expenses of the single and would run until August 30, 2020.Filmography
Television
Music videos
| Year | Title | Director | Ref. |
| 2018 | "Touch" | Hong Won-gi | |
| 2018 | "I'm Ready" | Kyotaro Hayashi | |
| 2019 | "I Am Not Alone" | Park Sang-won |