Wooah (/wuɑː/;wuu-AH;Korean: 우아!;RR: Ua!, stylized inall caps; formerly known aswoo!ah!)[1] is a South Korean girl group under H Music Entertainment. The group consists of five members: Nana, Wooyeon, Sora, Lucy, and Minseo. The group debuted on May 13, 2020.
On March 20, 2020, the girl group "Woo!ah!" was announced on radio channels. The group would be produced by NV Entertainment's director Han Ji-seok and CEO Kim Kyu-sang. Han Ji-seok is an overseas entertainment expert and had worked inSM Entertainment andKakao M, while Kim Kyu-sang is a creative director and had produced and directed numerous artists representing Korea.[2]
2020: Debut with 'Exclamation', Songyee's departure and 'Qurious'
On April 24, the release schedule for the group's debut single album,Exclamation, was published.[3] Subsequently, image and solo film teasers for the members were released in the order: Wooyeon,[4] Minseo,[5] Lucy,[6] Songyee,[7] Sora,[8] and Nana.[9] The group made their debut on May 13 through a press showcase held at the Spigen Hall inGangnam.[10] However, the releases of the single albumExclamation and the music video for the title trackwoo!ah! was postponed to May 15, in order to show more completeness in the group through improvements in both releases.[11]
On August 14, NV Entertainment announced that Songyee would leave the group for personal reasons.[12][13]
The group made their comeback on November 24 with their second single albumQurious.[14][15][16] The group held a press showcase and a comeback showcase for the release one day earlier.[17]
2021–2023: Wish, Catch the Stars, Joy, Pit-a-Pat, and Queendom Puzzle
On May 7, 2021, a teaser photo posted on the group's social medias announced their comeback with their third single album, "Wish". "Wish" was released on May 27 with "Purple" serving as the single's title track.[18][19]
On January 4, 2022, the group released their first pre-release digital single titled "Catch the Stars".[20] On June 9, 2022, the group released their firstextended playJoy and its lead single "Danger". The group's previous single "Catch the Stars" was also included in the EP.[21] On November 16, 2022, the group released their fourth single albumPit-a-Pat and its lead single "Rollercoaster".[22]
Members Nana and Wooyeon have participated inMnet's reality competition showQueendom Puzzle. Nana eventually finished in 2nd place, placing her in the final lineup of the supergroup El7z Up, while Wooyeon finished in 9th place.[23]
On March 27, it was reported that the group will be comeback in April. Later, it was announced that the group will be making their comeback on April 8, with the 2nd digital single "BLUSH", composed byRyan S. Jhun.[24] On April 1, the group released a promotion scheduler for the single.[25] On April 5, the group's social media accounts were changed from woo!ah! to wooah.[26] On April 8, the music video "Blush" was released.[27]
On May 24, it was confirmed that they would be coming back with a new album in June.[28] On May 31, SSQ announced that Wooah would be releasing their second mini albumUnframed on June 17.[29] On June 4, the group released a promotion scheduler for the album.[30] On June 17, the group made their comeback with the release of the EPUnframed, along with its lead single "Pom Pom Pom".[31]
On March 29, 2021, their agency announced Panasonic Korea has selected Wooah as its new brand model.[32]
On March 23, 2023, it was announced that Wooah will be the image model for Japan's popular color contact brand Eye Closet.[33]
On June 1, 2024, their agency H Music Entertainment announced that Wooah has been selected as the models in the Japanese market for the British fashion brand Kangol.[34]
^Lee, Deok-haeng (May 13, 2020)."우아 "너무나 꿈꿨던 데뷔...무대 올라가기 전까지 실감 안나"" [Woo!ah!, "The debut I've dreamed of so much...""I can't believe it until I go on stage".].Xports News (in Korean). RetrievedJanuary 13, 2022.
^Lee, Seul (May 14, 2020)."'2020년 다크호스' 우아, '엠카'로 화려 데뷔 무대 예고" ["2020 Dark Horse" Woo!ah!'s flashy debut stage with "M Countdown".].FN Star (in Korean). RetrievedJanuary 13, 2022.
^"우아 'QURIOUS' 발매 쇼케이스[★포토]".Starnews (in Korean). November 23, 2020.Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. RetrievedNovember 23, 2020 – via Naver.
^Jin-ah, Son (August 16, 2023)."'엘즈업 재데뷔' 휘서·나나·유키·케이·여름·연희·예은의 새 출발 [MK★이슈]" [EL7Z UP Re-debut' Hwiseo·Nana·Yuki·Kei·Yeoreum·Yeonhee·Yeeun's New Starts [MK★Issue]].MK Sports (in Korean). RetrievedAugust 16, 2023 – via Naver.
Exclamation:"2020년 21주차 Album Chart" [Week 21 of 2020 Album Chart]. May 28, 2020.Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. RetrievedMay 28, 2020.
Qurious:"2020년 48주차 Album Chart" [Week 48 of 2020 Album Chart]. December 3, 2020.Archived from the original on December 9, 2020. RetrievedDecember 26, 2020.
Wish:"2021년 23주차 Album Chart" [Week 23 of 2021 Album Chart]. June 10, 2021.Archived from the original on June 10, 2021. RetrievedJanuary 2, 2022.
Joy:"2022년 24주차 Album Chart" [Week 24 of 2022 Album Chart]. June 11, 2022.Archived from the original on June 16, 2022. RetrievedJune 16, 2022.
^"2020년 07월 Album Chart" [July 2020 Album Chart (see #148)].Gaon Music Chart (in Korean).Archived from the original on September 15, 2020. RetrievedFebruary 11, 2021.
"2020년 12월 Album Chart" [December 2020 Album Chart (see #124)].Gaon Music Chart (in Korean).Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. RetrievedFebruary 11, 2021.
"2021년 01월 Album Chart" [January 2021 Album Chart (see #143)].Gaon Music Chart (in Korean).Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. RetrievedFebruary 11, 2021.
"2021년 05월 Album Chart" [May 2021 Album Chart (see #59)].Gaon Music Chart (in Korean).Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. RetrievedJune 10, 2021.
"2021년 06월 Album Chart" [June 2021 Album Chart (see #92)].Gaon Music Chart (in Korean).Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. RetrievedJuly 8, 2021.
^Lee, Do-yeon (January 1, 2021)."52주간의 빌보드 케이팝 100 기록" [Billboard K-Pop 100 Records for 52 Weeks].Billboard Korea (in Korean).Archived from the original on December 28, 2020. RetrievedApril 13, 2021.
