Korean dramas attract you not only because of their stand-out storytelling but also because of the beautiful voices singing in the background. OSTs are an essential element contributing to the drama’s success – a drama with a great OST will attract a ton more people to watch it! Have you ever been curious about the voices behind those beautiful OSTs? Here is a list of fifteen talented Korean drama OST singers whose voices make the drama that more popular.
Korean Drama OST Singers
Baek Jiyoung
When talking about Korean drama soundtracks, indeed the first name that comes to mind is Baek Jiyoung. It is well-known that she is the “Queen of Drama Music” of South Korea. Many dramas feature Baek’s voice on the soundtrack. Of course, the soundtrack of the dramas she has been featured on have been exceptionally successful, both inside and outside the drama. “That Woman,” OST for the drama Secret Garden, won her the “Best Korean Soundtrack” award at the 2011 Seoul International Drama Awards.
Baek Jiyoung was born on March 25, 1976 and is one of the most famous OST singers in South Korea. Baek’s music consistently becomes a hit, steadfastly ranks high on the charts, makes a bold impression on audiences, and goes beyond the drama’s boundaries into truly successful songs. Her most significant success is performing the song “Don’t forget” in Iris.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ia5nEO1TqbE[/embedyt]
Ailee
Ailee is an Korean-American singer and songwriter. She debuted on February 9th, 2012 under YMC Entertainment. Soundtracks from her always make listeners overwhelmed by emotions and touched by her excellent ability to convey them.
Referring to Ailee’s soundtrack, one can immediately think of extremely famous songs such as “Ice Flower” on soundtrack of Queen of Ambition, “Goodbye my love” on the soundtrack of You Are My Destiny, and ” I Will Go To You Like The First Snow “on the soundtrack of the movie Goblin.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rS7OUGXUik[/embedyt]
Punch
When it comes to young Korean drama OST singers in South Korea, even amongst a vast treasure trove of soundtracks, the list cannot miss the beautiful young female singer Punch. Although she is rather young in the Korean OST music industry, this singer has become a shining pearl in the drama music industry.
Increasingly, Punch’s name is more and more well-known through her famous soundtracks, such as “Every time,” a duet with Chen (EXO), from the soundtrack of Descendants of the Sun and “Stay With Me,” a duet with Chanyeol (EXO), on the soundtrack of Goblin.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsUS8h0dSTU[/embedyt]
Lyn
Lyn’s real name is Lee Sejin, she was born on November 9, 1981 and is a pretty well-known singer. Until now, she has released five albums.
Lyn performed the song “Back in Time,” the famous soundtrack of the historical drama The Moon Embracing The Sun. Another favorite soundtrack is “My Destiny,” the OST for the show My Love from The Star, which earned her the “Best Soundtrack” award at the 50th Baeksang Arts Awards in 2014. All became hits and received the best OST award at year-end awards ceremonies.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D07Q2k04uCU[/embedyt]
Byul
Byul’s real name is Kim Goeun, she was born on October 22, 1983. She is mainly known for her ballads and beautiful vocals. She was discovered by Park Jin Young (JYP) when she got a chance to sing for him at his fan meeting.
Byul released her first album in 2002, titled December 32nd, marking her debut in the entertainment industry. Her next single on the album did not achieve the expected success, causing her to pause from music activities for a while. After that, Byul made her comeback by releasing her fifth album in January 2009.
Some of her soundtracks include “Remember,” the OST for School 2015: Who Are You?, “Beautiful Days,” the OST for Twenty Again, and “Reminds of You,” the OST of Missing You.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlMMfRs4RBg[/embedyt]
Lim Jeong-hee
Lim Jeong-hee was born on May 17th, 1981 in Seoul, South Korea. She is a Korean R&B and Pop singer who debuted in 2005 under JYP Entertainment. One of her notable performances in 2005 was at the 5th Pattaya Music Festival in Thailand, bringing her name to foreign music lovers. She is more famous for street music than music on television or radio. Before her official debut, Lim Jeong-hee held countless street performances, dubbed the “diva of street music,” significantly contributing to attracting a large fan base.
Her popular soundtracks included “Scent of a Flower,” the OST of Emergency Couple, “It Hurts It Hurts,” the OST of Super Daddy Yeol, and “I’ll Be There,” OST of Medical Top Team.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx2IJi94hCQ[/embedyt]
Gummy
Gummy’s natural and emotional voice has never disappointed Korean music lovers. Moreover, when people know that this female singer will sing for a particular drama, they will find that drama and watch it right away to enjoy the drama and hear her emotional voice.
In the increasing amount of Korean drama OSTs, there are many hit songs performed by Gummy – many of which have topped the music charts, such as “You Are My Everything,” on the soundtrack of Descendants the Sun, or “Remember Me, on the soundtrack of Hotel Del Luna.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dD1ZTupRWys[/embedyt]
Taeyeon (SNSD)
Taeyeon’s full name is Kim Taeyeon, she was born on March 9, 1989. She is the leader, main vocalist of SNSD, the leading girl group in Korea directly under the “big man” SM Entertainment. At the same time, she is also a member of SM. The Ballad, a project group that brings together SM’s “huge” vocals. As a solo artist and her usual productions, she has featured in many soundtrack songs. Along with Hyolyn, who we mention later in this article, Taeyeon is one of the few vocalists from an idol group highly appreciated as a singer singing the soundtrack. She is a must-have talent to have in the list of Korean drama OST singers.
The leader of SNSD is a rare internal vocalist of K-pop. Even when working with a group or releasing a solo song, everyone always praises her voice, especially in the role of performing the OST. Taeyeon has successfully released the OSTs of hit dramas such as That Winter, the Wind Blows, Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo, To the Beautiful You, and more.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Q2mth2bX10[/embedyt]
Heize
Since joining the television program Unpretty Rapstar during season 2 in 2015, Heize has become more widely known to Korean music fans. She was even considered a phenomenon on the digital charts of Korean music in 2016. With her stand-out voice and unique style, Heize is increasingly asserting her position.
On top of her regular singing work, Heize has made her own way to the top of Korean drama OST singers. She’s sang many OSTs that we’ve all loved.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1fB–J5qWQ[/embedyt]
Hyolyn (Sistar)
Hyolyn’s real name is Kim Hyo-jung and she was born on December 11, 1990. She is best known as a member of the girl group Sistar and the subunit Sistar19. On November 26, 2014, she made her official debut as a solo artist with her debut album Love and Hate and duo title songs “Lonely” and “One Way Love.”
“Hello/Goodbye” is a solo performance that helped Hyolyn take No. 1 on the Gaon music charts and K-pop Hot100. The song was released on January 22, 2014 and has sold more than 1 million copies.
“Hello/Goodbye” is also a popular song from the drama My Love from The Stars. Because of the nature of Korean entertainment many K-pop fans do not know too much about Korean movies or actors. In contrast, many Korean drama fans are not always that interested in idol groups. Therefore, choosing an idol group member to sing a drama soundtrack is a wise way to boost both sides’ names – especially when the one party has a lot of followers. Of course, not all idol singers can be charming and have a long-term attachment to the soundtrack career. Hyolyn is one of the few idols who can do this.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x5yXXyTB_I[/embedyt]
Sam Kim
Like Ailee, Sam Kim is a Korean-American singer and songwriter. He made his official debut on April 10, 2016 with the song “No Sense” featuring Crush. The singer first gained recognition after placing second place on the third season K-Pop Star in 2013/2014. He debuted as a soloist under Antenna Music and released his first studio album, Sun and Moon, in 2018.
Alongside his individual work, Sam Kim is well-known for his collaborations with other artists – including songs with artists such as Crush, NIve, Loco, and more – and his work with OSTs. He’s performed quite a few popular OSTs, including “Who Are You” from Goblin, “Breath” from It’s Okay to Not Be Okay, and his most recent “여름비 (Summer Rain)” from Our Beloved Summer.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFYcvrKkr90[/embedyt]
K.Will
Our next Korean drama OST singer in K.Will. K.Will was born December 20, 1981 and made his debut in 2007. Throughout his career, he’s released four full-length albums and countless singles. He’s known primarily for his honey-sweet vocals, feel-good songs, and his chart-topping ballads. Some have even dubber him the “Prince of OSTs” because of how beautiful his voice is.
Though he’s worked on many different OSTs – still releasing some even today! – K.Will definitely has some stand-out OSTs. This includes the song “Beautiful Moment” for the drama The Beauty Inside, “Like a Star” for the drama My Love from the Star, and “Talk Love” for the drama Descendants of the Sun.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdHQkkRc-hc[/embedyt]
Younha
If you haven’t heard about Younha yet, then you definitely need to check her out! She first made her debut in 2004 in Japan. Two years later, in 2006, she made her debut in Korea and quickly became one of the most popular singer-songwriter in the country. With her unique vocals, powerful range, and delicate songs, it’s of no surprise that she’s gained so much recognition.
Some of her more popular OSTs include “Nonsense” from the Korean drama Personal Taste, “I believe” from the drama Cinderella with Four Knights, and “My Love from the Star” from the drama with the same name.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPJWeGy_i70[/embedyt]
10CM
In 2010, when 10CM first debuted, it was a duo group. However, in 2017, the one member left due to some accusations. Today, the singer Kwon Jungyeol still works as a solo artist under the name 10CM. Since its debut, 10CM has won multiple awards and sold thousands of records. With the singer’s silky-smooth vocals and their songs catchy tunes, 10CM is one of the most-loved indie artist in Korea.
Some of the most popular OSTs 10CM has worked on includes “My Eyes” from the drama Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, “Lean on My Shoulders” from Hotel del Luna, and the most recent is “Drawer” from Our Beloved Summer.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNP-IqAn1wU[/embedyt]
Davichi
Last on our list of Korean drama OST singers is the duo Davichi. This duo, consisting of Lee Haeri and Kang Minkyung, made their debut in 2008 and have only been gaining traction as the years go by. They’re known for their powerful vocals and stunning ballads. They’ve released a total of three studio albums and six extended plays throughout their career.
Some of their more popular OSTs throughout the years include “This Love” from Descendants of the Sun, “It’s Okay, That’s Love” from It’s Okay, That’s Love, and “Sunset” from Crash Landing On You.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbeoswKG_iM[/embedyt]
Which Korean drama OST singers do you love?
These are only some of the most-talented Korean drama OST singers who give out their beautiful voices to make the drama more prefect. Are there any others that you enjoy? The ones on the list can make you become their fans after listening to their list of excellent music above. If you don’t want to miss any upcoming Korean dramas or fantastic OST singers, then check out our Drama Category or watch the video below!
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX-W31ZzAeU[/embedyt]