Girls’ Generation’s Sunny leaves SM Entertainment

Sunny, a Korean-American singer and entertainer from South Korea who debuted as a member of girl group Girls’ Generation in August 2007, has confirmed her separation from SM Entertainment, a South Korean multinational entertainment agency.

On Tuesday, SM Entertainment said in a statement, “Our exclusive contract with Sunny has come to an end.” The agency expressed its gratitude to Sunny and lauded her talent. 

Sunny took to her Instagram account to confirm her separation from SM Entertainment Co., Ltd. She wrote on Instagram, “I want to express my gratitude to SM Entertainment who gave great help so that 19-year-old Lee Soon Kyu could debut as Girls’ Generation’s Sunny.” She went on to say that she wanted to leave the agency to see herself in a new environment. 

Sunny’s real name is Susan Soonkyu Lee. Sunny is one of the most famous Korean singers. In her career, she has been a part of original soundtracks, television shows, musical acting and radio hosting. 

Sunny was born on May 15, 1989, in Orange County, California, United States. Later on, her family moved to South Korea. In 1998, Sunny joined SM Entertainment to pursue her dream of becoming a singer. In 2007, she made her debut as a member of the female group Girls’ Generation. In 2009, the group released their hit single “Gee.” Subsequently, the group became one of the best-selling artists in South Korea. The group also gained immense popularity worldwide.

Girls’ Generation was composed of eight members: Taeyeon, Sunny, Jessica, Yuri, Sooyoung, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yoona, and Seohyun. However, Jessica left the group in 2014. 

The group became popular with singles “Genie”, “Oh!”, and “Run Devil Run”. “Oh!” won the prestigious Golden Disc award for Album of the Year in 2010. Their studio album, I Got a Boy, won Video of the Year at the inaugural YouTube Music Awards in 2013.