| Ayumi/Yumi Itō | |||||||
| Native Name: | Korean: 아유미 / Japanese: 伊藤 ゆみ | ||||||
| Birth Name: | Lee Ayumi | ||||||
| Alias: | Yumi Itō (Japanese alias)[1] | ||||||
| Birth Date: | 25 August 1984 | ||||||
| Birth Place: | Tottori, Japan[2] | ||||||
| Nationality: | Korean[3] | ||||||
| Education: | Korea Kent Foreign School | ||||||
| Agent: | Bonboo ENT[4] | ||||||
| Years Active: | 2001–present | ||||||
| Children: | 1 | ||||||
| Module: |
| ||||||
| Legal names | |
| Kanji: | ゆみ |
| Kana: | いとう ゆみ |
| Romaji: | Itō Yumi |
| Hangul: | 이아유미 |
| Rr: | I Ayumi |
| Mr: | I Ayumi |
| Stage name | |
| Hangul: | 아유미 |
| Hanja: | 亞由美 |
| Rr: | Ayumi |
| Mr: | Ayumi |
Lee Ayumi (born August 25, 1984), professionally known as Ayumi in South Korea and Yumi Itō in Japan, is a Japanese-born South Korean singer, actress and television personality based in South Korea. She debuted under the stage name Ahyoomee in 2001, as the leader and lead vocalist of South Korean girl group Sugar, a position she served in until the group's disbandment in 2006. Following the disbandment, Lee embarked on a solo career in South Korea under SM, releasing two digital singles. In 2008, she returned to Japan and began an acting career under the Japanese stage name Yumi Itō. In 2009, she debuted as a solo singer in Japan, under Avex's Rhythm Zone, taking the stage name Iconiq, and released a studio album, an EP, and seven digital singles.
Lee Ayumi was born in Tottori, Japan on August 25, 1984, to a Korean mother from Seoul and a father who is a second generation ethnic Korean who lives in Japan.[5] She lived in Japan until the age of 15 before moving to South Korea, later attending the Korea Kent Foreign School (ko).
Ahyoomee was scouted by the entertainment company Starworld at a H.O.T. concert,[6] later debuting as a part of Korean girl group Sugar in 2001.[7] The band released two albums in Japan and three in South Korea, to moderate commercial success.
During her career in Sugar, she and Park Soo-jin had a guest appearance on the Gag Concert 200th episode special, in the sketch Poncho Siblings (우비 삼남매), making them the first girl group to appear on the program. In December 2006, Starworld announced they would not offer Sugar new contracts, thus disbanding the group following the expiration of their contracts.
Lee simultaneously changed her romanization of her stage name from Ahyoomee to AhYooMi and released her first digital single "Cutie Honey" on July 13, 2006.[6] The single originally sung by Kumi Koda for the theme song to the Cutie Honey anime series.[8] Her second single, a cover of Kim Gun Mo's song, "Wrongful Meeting", was released on November 7, 2006.
On February 15, 2007, Her previous label Starworld requested SM Entertainment to charges as her management following her contract expiration on February 13.[9] Under SM Entertainment, Ayumi started collaborating with SM Town on their summer and winter albums that year.[10] However, she did not release any solo material at this time.
In 2008, Ayumi moved to West Hollywood, California to study at dance and vocal schools. Through the study in California, she later find new inspiration as a musician.[6] [11]
In 2009, she returned to Japan and made her solo debut as Iconiq with signed Avex label Rhythm Zone.[12] She began her solo activities in Japan with became model for Shiseido's Maquillage cosmetics line and released single "I'm Lovin' You" featuring Exile's Atsushi as a promotional single, where Lee's image was used in billboards for the promotion of the line.[13] [14] [15] Iconiq was marketed around her buzz cut hair-style.[14] [16] [17]
On March 10, 2010, Her debut album, Change Myself, which included the promotional singles "Change Myself" and "Bye Now!", which were used for advertising the Maquillage cosmetic line once more. The album debuted at #3 on Oricon's albums chart, the highest position for a debut album since Yui Aragaki's Sora in late 2007.[16] On August 11, 2010, she released her debut single "Tokyo Lady", which was later included in her first EP Light Ahead in September. The EP was promoted with three music videos directed by Diane Martel. After a two-year hiatus from releasing music, Lee released two digital singles on March 14, 2012, titled LADIES and MAKE IT RIGHT.
In 2015, Lee returned to South Korea, appearing on the JTBC program Witch Hunt, marking her first television appearance in South Korea after nine years.[18]
In August 2016, in an interview with SENSE (ja) magazine, Lee stated she would be going back to being an actress, using the name Yumi Itō. In September of the same year, she starred as Michiru Saiki in the stage play adaption of the manga ReLIFE.[19]
In May 2017, Lee was cast in a Fuji TV drama, Code Blue Season 3.[20] In August 2017, Lee officially resumed her Korea activities with confirmed as a cast member of MBN's new South Korean variety show Flight Girl.[21]
In March 2019, Lee announced that she had signed a contract with the South Korean agency BONBOO Entertainment. On January 20, 2020, Lee announced on her blog that, after eleven years, she would be leaving Avex, after the expiration of her contract.[22]
In September 2022, Lee released a pre-wedding photo revealing that she would marry her non-celebrity foreign boyfriend who is two years older than her on October 30.[23] Her husband, Kwon Ki-beom, is working as a businessman.[24] On January 9, 2024, she announced the pregnancy of her first child.[25] On June 15, Lee announced that she gave birth to her first child, a baby girl, on June 10.[26]
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Sales | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JPN | JPN Hot | JPN Dig. | ||||
| "Cutie Honey" | 2006 | — | — | — | — | rowspan="2" |
| "Jalmosdoen Mannam" (Korean: 잘못된 만남, "Wrongful Meeting") | — | — | — | — | ||
| "I'm Lovin' You" (Iconiq x Exile Atsushi) | 2010 | — | 47 | 8 | — | Change Myself |
| "Change Myself" | — | 73 | 20 | — | ||
| "Bye Now!" | — | 8 | 47 | — | ||
| "Tokyo Lady" | 19 | 21 | — |
| Light Ahead | |
| "Light Ahead" | — | 49 | 62 | — | ||
| "Yeoja" ("Ladies") | 2012 | — | — | — | — | "Ladies" |
| "Make It Right" | — | — | — | — | ||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | The Promised Land | Lee Ayumi | Lead role |
| Waiting for Good News | Rika Aragaki | ||
| 2018 | The Cat in Their Arms | ||
| Code Blue: The Movie | |||
| 2019 | Go Away, Ultramarine | ||
| Walking Man | Kim | ||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Rainbow Romance | Ah Yoo Mi | Supporting role; Sitcom |
| 2008 | Binbo Danshi | Kurata Watana | Supporting role |
| Yottsu no uso | Miyabe | Supporting role | |
| 2012 | Ataru | Kashiwabara Yumi | Cameo |
| 2013 | Machigawarechatta Otoko | Erika Momoyama | |
| 2017 | Code Blue -Doctor Helicopter Emergency Rescue- | Kyoko Machida | |
| 2020 | Backstreet Rookie | Herself | Cameo |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–2018 | Flight Girl | Cast Member | ||
| 2019 | Life Bar | |||
| 2021–present | Goal Girl | Season 2–3 | [30] | |
| 2022 | [31] | |||
|-|rowspan=2 align="center"| Korean Music Awards 2007|rowspan=2 align="center"| Lee Ah-yoo-mi "Cutie Honey"| Album of the year| |-| Best pop album|