“Women are the ones changing the world”···Exclusive interview with Kim Yuna of Jaurim - 경향신문

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[2026 Frontperson Chronicle: Women Standing Amid the Band Boom] Kim Yuna, vocalist of Jaurim, strikes a pose at a rehearsal studio in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 16th. 2026.04.16 /Senior Reporter Seo Seong-il

The history of South Korean rock bandsespecially that of female ‘frontpersons’is divided into before and after the debut of Kim Yuna (52). The rock band Jaurim instantly captivated the public with their debut song ‘Hey Hey Hey’, and at the center of it was Kim Yuna. Her emergence was close to an ‘event’ that imprinted on Korean popular music the idea that ‘a female vocalist can lead a band’. From the late 1990s, female-vocal bands such as 3rd Line Butterfly, Juliet, Juju Club, and The The appeared in succession.

Kim Yuna is Jaurim’s vocalist and producer. She personally wrote lyrics and composed most of the 12 full-length albums and 5 solo records. This is also why Jaurim has been able to contain sharp critiques of the world and stories about women. Children who grew up watching Kim Yuna became the women artists now driving the ‘band boom’. Many people call Kim Yuna a ‘respected senior’, but Kim describes herself as “an ordinary person who made music a profession” and says she “was simply fortunate for 30 years.”

[2026 Frontperson Chronicle: Women Standing Amid the Band Boom] Kim Yuna, vocalist of Jaurim, is being interviewed by the Kyunghyang Shinmun at a rehearsal studio in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 16th. 2026.04.16 /Senior Reporter Seo Seong-il

Meeting at a rehearsal studio in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 16th, Kim Yuna said that although this is “an era in which women artists are making truly outstanding music,” she would also “like to see women artists talk more about society.” She added, “South Korea has gone through a politically difficult period, and I thought many musicians would speak about the frustration or triumph related to it, but since (the music) did not come out as much as I expected, I was personally disappointed,” and “An artist sings of beauty and sorrow, but at the same time is also a member of society.”

She continued, “When I ask, ‘Are there people who sing about the unreasonable situations they witness by being born as women?’, even then, the number is small,” adding, “There seems to be a tendency for widely known artists to deal only with what is ‘universally acceptable’. It feels like there is an invisible rule. As it is homework for women musicians, I hope more people can do it.”

Kim Yuna of Jaurim at the time of the release of the sixth full-length album in 2006. Kyunghyang Shinmun file photo

Kim Yuna began making music in the fifth grade of elementary school. Through songs she composed herself during her school years, she gained the conviction that “music can move people.” Although she did not end up entering a conservatory due to her parents’ opposition, she went through amateur band activities and eventually came to today’s Jaurim. Although she soared from the moment of debut, the world often treated Kim Yuna like “a cherry on top of a cake.”

“Back then, when I stood on stage, the camera would start at my feet and move up to my face. Even though it was a song I wrote, people said things like, ‘It is team lyric-writing and composing, so why arrogantly put your name on it?’ or ‘That girl is faking the guitar,’ and there were a lot of such comments.”

Having often spoken out about discriminatory gazes toward women, she said she now physically feels the changed times. “Women are changing the world. I have always thought it was something to be proud of to set the word ‘woman’ before me.”

If upbeat band tracks like ‘HaHaHa Song’ and ‘Magic Carpet Ride’ are one pillar of Jaurim’s music, songs that embrace the gloom and anxiety of youthsuch as ‘Shining’, ‘Fallen Blossoms’, and ‘Twenty-Five, Twenty-One’form another. Some say their music ‘soothes the hearts of loners’, and others say it ‘saved their lives’. She said, “I am glad that, for someone, it can be a healing,” adding, “I sometimes think maybe healing is my vocation.”

Cover of Jaurim’s 12th album Life!. Courtesy of NOL Entertainment

One netizen left a reaction to Jaurim’s 12th full-length album <Life!>, released last December, saying, ‘How do they keep that eighth-grade-syndrome sensibility for 30 years?’ In response, Kim Yuna said, “I think the reason people call things imbued with emotions like depression and anxiety ‘eighth-grade sensibility’ is because many adults still carry that sensibility,” adding, “It has become such a difficult era for today’s young people to live; let alone marriage, even self-realization is hard, and that situation seems to keep people’s hearts stuck in ‘eighth-grade syndrome’.”

As for how she works on songs, she said, “I try to learn about other people’s lives on social media and talk a lot with fans,” adding witha laugh, “Every time I write, I try to enter the cave of my inner self, and if ‘eighth-grade sensibility’ comes out, it is probably because I am an ‘otaku’ and cannot help it.”

Thumbnail of Jaurim’s own content ‘Jaurim-ssi oe du myeong’. Screen-captured from the YouTube channel ‘Michinnompengideul’

Marking their 30th year since debut, Jaurim has recently been trying new ways of communicating through YouTube. Since the 11th of last month, they have launched Jaurim’s own content <Jaurim-ssi oe du myeong (Jaurim-ssi and Two Others)>. In this ‘fake documentary’-style content, they freely get messy in various situations and deliver unexpected laughs.

She said, “I insist on my own way when it comes to music, but in other areas I am realizing that what we knew was not everything,” adding, “We considered various formats like talk shows, but we wanted to lower our strict and serious image a bit.” She added, “The charm is that it is not about mocking someone else, but a black comedy where you laugh at yourself.”

Poster for Jaurim’s solo concert held in January, <Midnight Express: Busan>. Courtesy of NOL Entertainment

Kim Yuna is also a mother. “When I decided to have a child, I wanted to become ‘that person’ who makes others think, ‘She gave birth and kept working, so I can do it too.’ Having a child is neither an easy decision nor something everyone has to do, but even so, if there is a woman musician who wants to have a child, I want to say, ‘You can lovingly raise your child and also lovingly grow your music well.’”

At the end of the interview, she returned to talk of ‘the world’. “They say a crazy woman changes the world. Let us love a lot together, get angry a lot, shout with all our might, and build a dignified life.” Jaurim plans to meet audiences through music and performances this year and next as well. Kim Yuna said, “I cannot guarantee how Jaurim’s music will change, but I will keep working until I die.”