Ailee

Ailee is the stage name of Korean-American singer and songwriter Amy Lee, frequently hailed as the “Korean Beyonce.” Recognized for her powerful voice, commanding stage presence, and a sound that fuses Western and Eastern pop influences, she has earned multiple awards throughout her career.

Denver, Colorado, is her birthplace, while New Jersey is where she spent her childhood immersed in the music of Beyoncé, Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Destiny's Child, Rihanna, and Janet Jackson—artists she has named as key inspirations. After uploading self-produced videos online in 2006 and gaining a growing audience, she competed two years later on the Maury Povich-hosted NBC program The Maury Show, finishing in second place.

Her relocation to South Korea occurred in 2010, when she signed with YMC Entertainment and spent the following two years performing and making guest appearances. Official debut came in early 2012 via the single “Heaven,” included on the October EP Invitation; that same year she also made her acting debut in the KBS drama Dream High 2. Although Invitation collected several awards, it was the 2013 follow-up EP, A’s Doll House, that propelled her to widespread K-pop prominence through the lead single “U&I,” which entered the Gaon singles chart at number one and quickly sold out in stores. “Heaven” also received a Japanese release that year.

Magazine, issued in 2014, reflected greater creative autonomy as she co-wrote four of its five songs, among them the chart-topping “Don’t Touch Me.” A milestone year followed in 2015 with her first solo concert at Seoul Olympic Park’s Gymnastics Stadium and the release of her debut full-length album, Vivid, which featured the energetic single “Mind Your Own Business.” Success continued with the 2016 EP A New Empire, driven by the hit “Home” featuring Mi Rae Yoon of Korean hip-hop group MFBTY.

January 2017 brought the ballad “I Will Go to You Like the First Snow,” which became her signature track and one of the most enduring Korean pop singles in history. Her second studio album, Butterfly, arrived two years later and included the energetic club single “Room Shaker.” Also in 2019 she departed YMC Entertainment for a new contract with Rocket3 Entertainment, and that December she issued her first English-language single, “Sweater,” on the American label Sun and Sky Records.