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Im Yoon-ah (; born May 30, 1990), also known mononymously as Yoona, is a South Korean singer and actress. After training for five years, she debuted as a member of girl group Girls' Generation (and later its subgroup Girls' Generation-Oh!GG) in August 2007, which went on to become one of the best-selling artists in South Korea and one of South Korea's most widely known girl groups worldwide. Apart from her group's activities, Im has participated in various Korean drama, notably You Are My Destiny (2008), which marked her career breakthrough and earned her the Best New Actress award at the 45th Baeksang Arts Awards.
Im has since achieved further public attention and acting acclaim with a variety of role-types in The K2 (2016), Big Mouth (2022), and King the Land (2023). Her film work includes Confidential Assignment (2017), Exit (2019), her first leading role, and (2022), all of which are among the highest-grossing films in South Korea. On May 30, 2019, Im released her debut extended play A Walk to Remember, charting at number three on South Korea's Gaon Album Chart. In 2025, Im starred in the wildly popular Bon Appétit, Your Majesty, where she was cast as a three star Michelin chef who was transported back in time to become the chief royal cook for a Joseon king.
The success of Im's music and acting careers have led her to various CF deals, notably long-term collaborator Innisfree, and have established her as a top Korean idol-actress of Korean Wave.
Im graduated from Daeyoung High School in 2009. She went on to major in Theatre studies and graduated from Dongguk University in February 2015, receiving a lifetime achievement award at the graduation ceremony. Her fellow Girls' Generation member, Seohyun, attended the same university. She was also chosen as an ambassador for the university in 2014, alongside Apink's Son Na-eun and actress Park Ha-sun.
In May 2008, Im was cast her first leading role in KBS's drama You Are My Destiny, playing the character Jang Sae-byuk. The drama achieved viewer ratings of up to 41.5%, and Im received wider public recognition. She considered the role a turning point in her career,
and won two "Best New Actress" awards at the 2008 KBS Drama Awards and 45th Baeksang Arts Awards.
In 2009, Im was cast in MBC's drama Cinderella Man along with Kwon Sang-woo.
In March 2012, Im was cast in a lead role alongside Jang Geun Suk in KBS2's drama Love Rain, a fantasy drama about fate where the offspring of an ill-fated couple who met in the 1970s, meet and fall in love with each other in the modern era. Im played two characters: Yun-hee of the 70s and Ha-na of modern times. Although the drama scored low domestic viewership and was criticized for its failure to relate to the viewers, Im's acting received positive reviews. Yoon Ga-ee of OSEN wrote: "The speed at which her acting is improving is blinding. She has matured to the point where you want to ask, 'When did her acting get so good?' The criticism that trailed behind her during Cinderella Man is now nowhere to be found." Choi In-kyung of Hankook Ilbo said her acting was continuously improving and "Yoona is completely immersed in her character and has now become 'Hana' herself." The drama garnered much positive overseas interest and was sold to Japan for $10 million, the second highest price for a KBS drama at the time, partly due to Im's popularity.
In December 2013, Im starred alongside Lee Beom-soo in KBS2's romantic comedy drama Prime Minister & I. Loosely based on the musical film The Sound of Music, Im played Nam Da-jung, a young and stubborn reporter who falls in love with the prime minister. The drama received low ratings but Im's performance was praised and she won an Excellence Award at the 2013 KBS Drama Awards for the role.
In March 2016, Im released her first solo single "Deoksugung Stonewall Walkway", a collaboration with the South Korean indie group 10cm, as part of SM Station. The urban-pop song peaked at number 24 on Gaon Digital Chart. Fuse described it as "breezy and easy-listening" and complimented how "lovely" Im delivered the song.
In September 2016, Im starred in tvN's action thriller The K2. Tired of being typecast with a candy-like image and having always been burdened by the idol-actress prejudice, Im cast away the public perception and focused on the role as her "personal challenge." Her effort gained positive viewers' recognition, and earned her acting acclaim from critics.
In January 2017, Im made her film debut in action film, Confidential Assignment. Im performance was well-received, and she won several awards such as the AFA Next Generation Award at the Asian Film Awards and the Newcomer Award at the Korean Film Shining Star Awards. She then starred in MBC's historical drama The King in Love, an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Kim Yi-ryung. In September 2017, Im released her second solo single "When The Wind Blows" as part of SM Station.
In 2018, Im joined the second season of Hyori's Homestay as a new helper. She released her third solo single "To You" at the conclusion of the variety show. In August 2018, a Girls' Generation subgroup named Oh!GG was formed with Im alongside the four other members who had decided to renew their contracts with SM entertainment; the group released the single "Lil' Touch".
To celebrate her 29th birthday, Im released her debut extended play A Walk to Remember on May 30, 2019. The EP became the fastest-selling album in its first 24 hours by a female soloist. In July of the same year, Im starred in the disaster action film Exit alongside Jo Jung-suk. It became the most popular movie of the summer and one of the highest-grossing films in South Korea by attracting over nine million viewers. Her first leading role earned her several wins and nominations, including her first Blue Dragon and Chunsa Film Art Awards Best Actress nominations, and a Best Actress win at the 1st Asan Chungmugong International Action Film Festival.
At the end of 2020, Im returned to the small screen in JTBC's office drama Hush, where she played an intern reporter. In 2021, Im starred in Lee Jang-hoon's romantic drama film and also appeared in A Year-End Medley, a romantic comedy film by Kwak Jae-yong. The former earned her a second Blue Dragon Best Actress nomination and her first Baeksang Best Actress nomination.
In 2022, she was cast in the TV series Big Mouth as Lee Jong-suk's wife. She also reprised her role in the action-comedy sequel, , which subsequently also became one of the highest-grossing films in South Korea like its predecessor. She drew acclaim for both performances, the latter giving her first Best Supporting Actress award at the 58th Grand Bell Awards and her third Blue Dragon Best Actress nomination. Meanwhile, the former earned her Top Excellence Award for Actress in a Miniseries at the 2022 MBC Drama Awards.
In 2023, she was cast as the lead in the romantic-comedy drama King the Land alongside Lee Jun-ho. The series ranked number one on the Netflix's Weekly Global Top 10 in non-English TV show category for 3 weeks.
In 2025, she was cast in the lead role in the fantasy romantic television series Bon Appétit, Your Majesty alongside Lee Chae-min. Netflix identified the series as one of its hit titles in its third-quarter 2025 earnings report. Studio Dragon also cited the series as one of the works that contributed to its return to profitability in the third quarter of 2025. In the same year, Im reunited with director Lee Sang-geun in his second feature film Pretty Crazy. She received widespread praise for her performance in this film and it gave her first Best Actress award at the 29th Chunsa Film Art Awards and her fourth Best Actress nomination at the 46th Blue Dragon Film Awards. Im also released the digital single "Wish to Wish" on December 19, 2025.
Before debuting in 2007, she became a model for the skin care brand Clean & Clear and Haitai Beverage's aid drink brand Sunkist Lemonade & Grapefruit Ade. In 2010, she became the first idol to endorse S-Oil, a large South Korean petroleum and refinery company. In 2012, she appeared in at least 20 commercials and was ranked fifth among celebrities with the most commercial appearances by TVCF, South Korea's largest advertisement information site. In 2013, she became the first overseas endorser for Alcon Taiwan.
From 2009 to 2020, Im was a long-term spokesperson for Amorepacific's cosmetics brand Innisfree. Other major endorsements included Michael Kors, in which she became the brand's first ambassador in Korea, Asia-Pacific spokesperson for luxury cosmetics brand Estée Lauder, Danish jewellery brand Pandora, South Korean DB Insurance, Tous Les Jours, Crocs, and Lee Jeans.
In October 2021, she became the first person to be selected as global ambassador for Italian luxury fashion brand Miu Miu. In January 2023, Im became the global face of the Miu Miu's 2023 Spring Summer collection campaign, alongside Emma Corrin, Kendall Jenner, Quintessa Swindell, Karolin Wolter, and more. In July 2023, Hong Kong-based luxury jewellery brand Qeelin announced her as its brand spokesperson. In October 2023, Im became the global face of the Qeelin's Wulu 18 Diamond campaign. In December 2023, she became the global face of the Qeelin's Bo Bo Collection campaign alongside Liu Shishi.
In January 2024, she became the global face of the Qeelin's Wulu Echo Collection campaign. Later in May 2024, she became the global face of the Qeelin's New Yu Yi Collection campaign alongside Lay Zhang. As of August 28, 2024, Im has been promoted to global brand spokesperson for Qeelin. On October 1, 2024, Im was selected as the brand ambassador for Italian luxury house Valentino, after attending the first show of creative director Alessandro Michele to present the brand's Spring/Summer 2025 Collection. On February 27, 2025, Amorepacific's premier beauty brand Sulwhasoo appointed Im as its global brand ambassador.
In 2019, Im became the first female celebrity to be appointed as an ambassador by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization. Starting September 2019, an advertisement campaign "Imagine Your Korea" was launched to improve Korean tourism awareness and attract more foreign tourists. The advertisements were displayed in countries such as China, Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia. It was also displayed in Times Square every day until January 2021.
On 30 December 2025, The 10th National Brand Awards introduced Im Yoona as a representative icon who expanded the global status of K-content through her work encompassing movies and dramas, and highly praised her accumulated influence in various fields. Im was honored with an award in the "Global Influence of Popular Culture" category. She was recognized for her contributions to promoting Korean culture globally through her active career as an actress and artist.
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| + List of singles, showing year released, selected chart positions, sales figures, and name of the album ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Year ! scope="col" colspan="2" | Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Sales ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Album |
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