[★TRENDING] Which female idol will rise as this generation’s Lee Hyori?

With the rising increase of idol group members either making their solo debuts or returning to their solo activities on stage, the question as to who will rise as the “post Lee Hyori” has once again come into light.

A short op-ed written by Sports Donga‘s Kim Won Kyum focused on just that question asked above. The following is a translation of reporter Kim Won Kyum’s article.

As girl group members are increasingly going solo, expectations that one of them will rise up as the “post Lee Hyori” is increasing once more. Just recently, SECRET‘s Hyosung made her solo comeback with her first mini-album FANTASIA while former Jewelry member Seo In Young just released her newest mini-album on June 10th. In mid-July, KARA‘s Goo Hara will be releasing her first solo album seven years after her debut with the group while 4MINUTE‘s HyunA is looking to return to her solo activities this August.

Thus far, many female singers have shown possibilities of achieving the Lee Hyori status but none risen so far up to be considered her rival yet. Ivy and Son Dam Bi, for example, have both received attention as the “2nd Lee Hyori” in the past, but their singing career has since then been on the decline.

Here are some of the current qualifiers who may possibly become the “post Lee Hyori.”

The first promising candidate is HyunA. She has an overflowing sense of charisma and a powerful stage performance. She especially receives positive response internationally and is typically referred to already as a K-pop star. The news of her solo album release in August has also gained attention from the media overseas.

There is also high interest in Goo Hara’s first solo venture as she may bring change to the competitive field. Carrying a cute but sexy charm as well, rising fashionista Goo Hara has risen as a potential candidate of the “post Lee Hyori.”

Seo In Young was once a strong candidate but had taken a step back and changed her musical colors (from a sexy singer to a ballad singer). She recently released her 5th mini-album Reverse on June 10th, which has medium-tempo dance songs, and is planning to appeal to emotions in her title track “Lie.”

[+4892, -458] There’s no one that can follow Hyori unnie..

[+4315, -417] You can combine all three of them and they still come short, Lee Hyori has a certain charm

[+3522, -280] None of them

[+3210, -387] Neither of the three? And Goo Hara isn’t good at singing?

[+2566, -1327] Wouldn’t it be HyunA….

[+599, -63] Neither of the three…. Ivy was close…It’s unfortunate..

[+588, -70] Hyosung just……

[+574, -95] None of them can live up to Lee Hyori ㅋㅋ Aren’t they all at the age when Lee Hyori hit the jackpot with her ’10 Minute’ solo?? They’re weaker

[+540, -116] This is random but I think Ailee is better

Source: Sports Donga