Lee Na-eun
South Korean actress (born 1999)
Lee Na-eun | |
|---|---|
 K-POPIT 케이팝잇 · CC BY 3.0Lee in September 2024 | |
| Born | (1999-05-05) May 5, 1999 Cheongju, South Korea |
| Education | School of Performing Arts Seoul |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2015–present |
| Agents |
|
| Musical career | |
| Genre | K-pop |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2015–2022 |
| Label | |
| Formerly of | April |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 이나은 |
| Hanja | 李娜恩 |
| RR | I Naeun |
| MR | I Naŭn |
Lee Na-eun (Korean: 이나은; born May 5, 1999), also known mononymously as Naeun, is a South Korean actress, model and singer. She is a former member of the South Korean girl group April, formed by DSP Media in 2015. She is best known for her roles in television series A-Teen (2018), A-Teen 2 (2019) and Extraordinary You (2019).
1. Early life and education
Lee was born on May 5, 1999, in Cheongju, South Korea.[4][5] She attended School of Performing Arts Seoul and graduated in February 2018.[6]
2. Career
2.1. 2015–2022: Debut with April and acting career
Lee was first introduced as a member of April by DSP Media on July 22, 2015.[7] The group debuted on August 24 with the EP Dreaming and the title track "Dream Candy" (Korean: 꿈사탕).[8][9] Lee made her official acting debut in the VR web drama "April Love" in 2016. She also made a minor appearance in KBS2's My Father Is Strange in 2017.[10]
On February 1, 2018, Lee alongside April bandmate Lee Jin-sol collaborated in their digital single track "My Story" which was released on February 7.[11] On May 2, 2018, Lee alongside bandmate Lee Jin-sol released their 2nd collaboration track "Stars In The Night Sky" for SBS TV television series Switch.[12] The same year, Lee was cast in the teen drama A-Teen (2018) and the second season of the series in 2019. Lee also starred in MBC's school fantasy drama Extraordinary You, based on the hit Daum webtoon July Found by Chance.[13] From October 2019 to February 2021, she hosted Inkigayo alongside Jaehyun of NCT and Minhyuk of Monsta X.[14]
On March 1, 2020, Lee and bandmate Lee Jin-sol released their 3rd collaboration song "Matter of Time" as part of seventh extended play Da Capo.[15] On June 19, Lee was featured in Ravi's Paradise EP with the title track "Rain Drop".[16] On November 8, Lee and Eric Nam released the duet "Attraction" as part of the soundtrack for Daum's webtoon Bunny & The Boys.[17] Twelve days later, Lee was confirmed to star in Taxi Driver.[18] However on March 8, 2021, Lee officially left the cast following Lee Hyun-joo's bullying accusations made against her. About 60% of the filming was completed on March 8, 2021. Lee Na-eun's scenes were removed.[19]
On January 28, 2022, DSP Media announced April's disbandment.[20] On June 2, Lee her signed a contract with Namoo Actors and officially announced, that she will promote as an actress.[21]
2.2. 2022–present: Return to acting
On November 16, 2023, Lee made her special appearance in Flex X Cop, played a role as a celebrity.[22] On January 31, 2024, Lee returns full-fledged acting in the action thriller series The Defects, which confirmed on July 18, 2025.[23][24] On February 22, Lee also made a special appearance as a victim in the crime investigation drama Crash.[25] On February 28, 2025, Lee launched her own YouTube channel.[26] On April 25, Lee signed a contract with HIAN for activities in Japan and became selected as a exclusive model for Kobunsha's JJ magazine to commemorate its 50th anniversary.[27] On September 22, Lee, alongside A-Teen 2 co-star Choi Bo-min, would be reunite in a short-form drama My Little Chef.[28] In July 2026, Lee would be making her stage debut in the play Closer as Alice, with Jeon Sung-min and So Joo-yeon.[29]
3. Discography
| Title | Year | Peak chart position | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KOR | ||||||
| Circle | Hot [30] | |||||
| As featured artist | ||||||
| "Rain Drop" (비♡) (Ravi featuring Lee Na-eun) |
2020 | —[1] | 91 | Paradise | ||
| Collaborations | ||||||
| "My Story" (내 이야기) (with Jinsol of April) |
2018 | — | — | Non-album single | ||
| "Matter of Time" (시간차) (with Jinsol of April) |
2020 | —[2] | — | Da Capo | ||
| Soundtrack appearances | ||||||
| "Stars In The Night Sky" (밤하늘 별) (with Jinsol of April) |
2018 | — | — | Switch OST Part 5 | ||
| "Attraction" (끌림) (with Eric Nam) |
2020 | —[3] | — | Bunny & The Boys OST | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region. | ||||||
4. Filmography
4.1. Television series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | My Father Is Strange | Drama staff | Cameo (episode 24) | [10] |
| 2017–2018 | Modulove | Herself | [36] | |
| 2019 | Hip Hop King – Nassna Street | Song Ha-jin | [37] | |
| Extraordinary You | Yeo Joo-da | [38] | ||
| 2024 | Flex X Cop | Han Yu-ra | Cameo (episode 6, 9–10) | [39] |
| Crash | Kim Min-ju | Cameo (episode 4) | [40] | |
| 2025 | The Defects | So-mi | [41] |
4.2. Web series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | A-Teen | Kim Ha-na | [42] | |
| 2019 | A-Teen 2 | [43] | ||
| I Have a Secret | Cameo | [44] | ||
| 2020 | Twenty Twenty | [45] | ||
| 2026 | My Little Chef | Choi No-ma | Short-form drama | [46] |
4.3. Television shows
| Year | Title | Role | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | I Am An Actor | Contestant | [47] |
| 2018–2019 | One Night of Entertainment | Reporter | [48] |
| 2019 | High School Lunch Cook-off | Host | [49] |
| 2019–2021 | Inkigayo | [14] | |
| 2020 | Get it Beauty 2020 | Main MC | [50] |
| My Dream Is Ryan | Student teacher | [51] | |
| School Meal Restaurant | Host | [52] | |
| 2020 SBS Gayo Daejeon | [53] |
4.4. Radio shows
| Year | Title | Role | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–2021 | Avengirls | Friday host | [54] |
4.5. Music video appearances
| Year | Title | Artist | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | "Stop stop it" | Got7 | [55] |
| 2019 | "Vacance in September" | Kim Jae-hwan and Stella Jang | [56] |
5. Theater
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Closer | Alice | with Jeon Sung-min and So Joo-yeon |
6. Ambassadorship
- 22nd Bucheon International Animation Festival (2020)[57]
7. Awards and nominations
| Award | Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand of the Year Awards | 2020 | Female Acting Idol of the Year | —N/a | Won | [58] |
| MBC Drama Awards | 2019 | Best New Actress | Extraordinary You | Nominated | [59] |
| V Live Awards | 2019 | Favorite Web Series Actress | A-Teen 2 | Won | [60] |
Notes
Related articles
This article is based on the Wikipedia article “Lee Na-eun”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the edit history for the list of contributors. Image credits appear under each image.