Uhm Jung-hwa

This is a Korean name; the family name is Uhm.

Uhm Jung-hwa
Background information
Also known as	Madonna of Korea
Born	August 17, 1969 (1969-08-17)
Origin	Jecheon, North Chungcheong, South Korea
Genres	K-pop, Dance, Electro-pop
Occupations	Actress, Singer, Lingerie designer
Years active	1993–present (singing)
Labels	Sim Entertainment (current) Trifecta Entertainment Sony BMG UMG EMI
Website	ilovejunghwa.com

Korean name
Hangul	엄정화
Hanja	嚴正化
Revised Romanization	Eom Jeong-hwa
McCune–Reischauer	Ŏm Chŏnghwa

Uhm Jung-hwa (born August 17, 1969) is a South Korean female Korean pop artist and actress. Uhm began her career as a chorus member of MBC, one of the three major South Korean broadcasting companies, in 1989. She made her film debut in the 1992 film Marriage Story and released her first album Sorrowful Secret, in 1993 on Samsung Music.

She is considered to be one of the most influential women in the Korean entertainment industry, and numerous Korean female artists recognise her as a role model.

Life and early works

Childhood and youth

Uhm was born in Jecheon, North Chungcheong, South Korea. She is the second child of Uhm Jin-ok, a music teacher who died in a motorcycle accident when she was four, and Yoo Gyeong-sook. Her younger and only brother Uhm Tae-woong is an actor. Following her father's death, her family found themselves in a difficult financial situation.

Music career

1990s

Uhm Jung Hwa officially debuted as a singer in 1993 with her first album Sorrowful Secret. By the mid-90s she established herself as one of the top Korean female singers and entertainers with a series of hit singles: Sad Expectation (Hangul: 슬픈 기대), A Love Permitted Only by Heaven (하늘만 허락한 사랑), Betrayal of the Rose (배반의 장미), and Tell Me (말해줘 with Jinusean). Jung Hwa's fourth album, Invitation, became one of the highest selling albums of the year and received positive reviews from critics and fans. She released two of her most recognizable singles of her career, Poison and Invitation (초대). She remained successful the following year, in 1999, with her fifth album 005.1999.06, which sold well over 900,000 copies. It remains one of the best selling albums by a female artist and cemented her status as the "Queen of Korean Pop" in South Korea.

2000's and onwards

During the 2000s, UJH began to focus more on her acting career and committed her self to taking a variety of acting roles. She also began to pursue and experiment with different musical genres, in particular electronica. In 2004, she released her double cd Self Control, which featured songs composed by Jung Jae Hyung, Fractal and Roller Coaster. Music critics praised UJH for her ability to re-invent her image and sound.

After a two year break from the music scene, she released her ninth studio album Prestige. Throughout the year she released two singles: "Come 2 Me" and "Wind Song" (바람의노래) each enjoyed positive critical reception. In early 2007 she won a Korean Music Award for best electronic dance record.

In the summer of 2008 she released her first EP titled "D.I.S.C.O" with help from long time friend Yang Hyun Seok of YG Entertainment. The lead single "D.I.S.C.O" featured popular boy band member T.O.P from the group Big Bang. The EP was very successful and was further promoted by the digital single "D.I.S.C.O PT.2" which was a remix version of "D.I.S.C.O" and featured G-Dragon, the leader of Big Bang.

Film career

Uhm Jung hwa has established herself as one of Korea's top actresses. In 2002, she played the main role in the film Marriage Is a Crazy Thing, for which she won a Paeksang Arts Awards for Best Actress. She is also known for her roles in the films Singles, Princess Aurora and Haeundae which became one of the highest grossing movies in Korea.

Fashion Line

Uhm Jung-hwa launched her new clothing & lingerie line, ‘Corner Suite‘ and ‘ZHUM in New York‘, which made 10 million USD within 3 months of its release. ‘Corner Suite’ became an instant hit when the line debuted on online markets. The line immediately sold out. Future plans include putting her line of clothes on more home shopping channels, as the demand for it is great.

Discography

Korean Albums

Album Title	Release Date	Sales
*SORROWFUL SECRET	1993	-
*슬픈기대	1996	-
*後愛	1997	-
**BEST....My Songs	1998	314,131
*Invitation	1998	850,000
005.1999.06	1999	900,373
*All Details	1999	150,000+
*Queen of Charisma	2000	645,021
*花	2001	400,403
*SELF CONTROL	2004	210,000+
*Prestige	2006	100,342+
*D.I.S.C.O (EP)	2008	80,022+

Korean Digital Singles

• tvN Remix version (2006)
• Come 2 Me NEW REMIX (2006)
• D.I.S.C.O PT.2 (2008)

Filmography

Films

• Dancing Queen (2012)
• Mama (2011)
• Bestseller (2010)
• Five Senses of Eros (2009)
• Haeundae (2009)
• Insadong Scandal (2009)
• Changing Partners (2007)
• Seducing Mr. Perfect (2006)
• My Piano (2006)
• Princess Aurora (2005)
• All for Love (2005)
• Mr. Handy (2004)
• Singles (2003)
• Marriage Is a Crazy Thing (2002)
• How to Top My Wife (1994)
• Blue Seagull (1994)
• On a Windy Day We Must Go to Apgujeong (1993)

TV series

• He Who Can't Marry (KBS, 2009)
• Get Karl! Oh Soo Jung (SBS, 2007)
• Tropical Nights in December (MBC, 2004)
• Wife (KBS, 2003)

We are Yoggy - A Yoga VHF - 2002

External links

• Official website
• Uhm Jung Hwa at Trifecta Entertainment home page