2nd generation · DSP Media / RBW
KARA / 카라
KARA were the group that made the second generation's move into Japan look inevitable, and they restarted as five after a fifteen-year gap in the line-up.
Last updated:
Mister travelled furthest, Lupin and STEP carry the Korean peak, and the recent material belongs to Gyuri, Seungyeon, Nicole, Jiyoung and Youngji together.
Come here for a reunion that worked, which is rarer in Korean pop than the announcements suggest.
ギュリ규리 · GyuriView in Japanese
スンヨン승연 · SeungyeonView in Japanese
ニコル니콜 · NicoleView in Japanese
ジヨン지영 · JiyoungView in Japanese
ヨンジ영지 · YoungjiView in Japanese
ハラ하라 · HaraView in Japanese
ソンヒ성희 · SungheeView in Japanese| Members | Birth date | Blood type | MBTI | Nationality | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ギュリ | 1988-05-21 | 38 | 162cm | AB | ESTJ | South Korea |
| スンヨン | 1988-07-24 | 38 | 160cm | A | Not disclosed | South Korea |
| ニコル | 1991-10-07 | 34 | 165cm | A | Not disclosed | South Korea · United States |
| ジヨン | 1994-01-18 | 32 | 167cm | O | ENTP | South Korea |
| ヨンジ | 1994-08-30 | 32 | 165cm | A | ISFP | South Korea |
| ハラ | 1991-01-03 | 35 | 162cm | B | Not disclosed | South Korea |
| ソンヒ | 1989-05-17 | 37 | 165cm | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | South Korea |
Ages are as of 2026-09-17.
Follow a few songs from the starting point to the group's current sound.
Mister MVMister is the one that crossed over, and the routine is why.
STEP MVSTEP is the brightest of the Korean singles and the best for the sense of lift it has live.
When I Move MVWhen I Move belongs to the reunion and sounds like five adults enjoying themselves.Verified English information is not yet available for this section.
Verified English shopping links are not yet available.
What anchors KARA is the second-generation move into Japan and where the group stands after its restart. The girl group debuted in 2007 and cannot be left out of any account of how second-generation K-pop reached Japan; the work today is gathered around the five of Gyuri, Seungyeon, Nicole, Jiyoung and Youngji.
The way in is Mister, Lupin and STEP. Mister gives the choreography and pop appeal that became widely known in Japan, and Lupin and STEP show the presentation as Korean signature songs. Pandora and Damaged Lady, from the stretch between 2012 and 2013, are key works for the cool, hard expression and the renewed concept of a girl group.
MOVE AGAIN in 2022 and I Do I Do in 2024 are where the restart stands. Following the music video and performance video for When I Move and then the music video for I Do I Do gives the air of the current five. Mister, then Lupin, then When I Move covers the move into Japan, the Korean signature songs and the present.
Editors' take Mister / Lupin / When I Move — three songs cover a second-generation move into Japan and the present after a restart, from a five-piece.
No. 15 of 210 groups with recorded activity in Japan (top 7%)
The denominator is the 210 groups, out of 525 covered by KPOP DISCOVER, whose raw score reaches at least one point. The score adds 10 points per Japanese-market release, 3 per Japan-related track, 12 per member from Japan, and 8 per official Japanese account. Japanese-market releases carry the most weight because they are the most direct evidence of activity; related tracks add track-level detail; members from Japan stand for Japanese-language communication and continuity; official accounts stand for a permanent point of contact. The weights are an editorial judgement, not a statistical optimisation, and the ranking tracks release volume in Japan closely. Source: releases, tracks, members, and official links recorded by KPOP DISCOVER (updated 2026-09-17).
How this score is calculated →View in Japanese
KPOP 