Jang Won-young

Biography

Jang Won-young (Korean: 장원영; born August 31, 2004) is a South Korean singer. She is a member of the South Korean girl group Ive under Starship Entertainment and former member of project girl group Iz*One, having finished first in Mnet's girl group survival reality television show Produce 48 in 2018.

== Early life and education == Jang Won-young was born in Ichon-dong of Seoul, South Korea, on August 31, 2004. She has an older sister, actress Jang Da-ah (birth name: Jang Jin-young), who is an artist under King Kong by Starship. After debuting with Iz*One, the group's label Off the Record announced Jang's intentions to complete education via home-schooling in April 2019. She subsequently left Yonggang Middle School and took the qualification exam, passing with perfect scores in Korean, English, and mathematics, which attributes to her being bilingual, speaking Korean and English fluently. Jang graduated from the School of Performing Arts Seoul on February 9, 2023.

== Career ==

=== 2018–2020: Produce 48 and Iz*One ===

From June 15 to August 31, 2018, Jang represented Starship Entertainment alongside An Yu-jin and Cho Ka-hyeon on the girl group survival reality television show Produce 48. She eventually placed first and debuted with Iz*One. Iz*One's Korean debut extended play (EP) Color*Iz was released on October 29, 2018, under the label Off the Record, with "La Vie en Rose" serving as lead single. Both the EP and its lead single received immediate commercial success, leading the group to win the New Artist of the Year award at several shows, including Golden Disc Awards and Seoul Music Awards. The group's Japanese debut single, "Suki to Iwasetai", was released on February 6, 2019, under UMG's EMI Records subsidiary. Along with the group's Japanese debut promotion, Jang was selected alongside the Japanese member Sakura Miyawaki to center a collaborative performance between Nogizaka46, Keyakizaka46, and AKB48 at the FNS Music Festival. In September 2019, Jang made her runway debut at the 29th Tokyo Girls Collection's 2019 Autumn/Winter fashion festival at Saitama Super Arena. She also appeared at the Kitakyushu edition of the festival later that year. On February 17, 2020, Iz*One released their first Korean-language studio album Bloom*Iz, on which Jang co-wrote the track "Dreamlike." The song was named by music webzine Beats Per Minute as the 19th best song of 2020, with critic J.T. Early praising the song for its "bright and irresistible force".

=== 2021–present: Ive, Music Bank, and solo activities ===

After Iz*One's disbandment on April 29, 2021, Jang returned to Starship Entertainment as a trainee, along with group mate and labelmate An Yu-jin. In September 2021, Jang was announced as the new host of the program Music Bank with Enhypen's Sunghoon. For their performance on the program, they were awarded with the Best Couple Award at the 2021 KBS Entertainment Awards. On October 12, she and Leeteuk were chosen to host the 2021 Asia Artist Awards, which would be held in December of that year. On November 4, 2021, Starship Entertainment revealed Jang as one of the six members in their new girl group Ive. On December 1, 2021, Jang officially debuted as a member of Ive with the release of their single album Eleven, led by the single of the same name. In September 2022, Jang attended the 2022 Paris Fashion Week as an ambassador for luxury fashion brands Miu Miu and Fred Joaillier. That same month, her contract as the host of Music Bank was extended. On December 13, Jang hosted the 2022 Asia Artist Awards with Leeteuk. Three days later, she also hosted the 2022 KBS Song Festival with Na In-woo and Kim Shin-young. In January 2023, Jang stepped down as Music Bank host after sixteen months in the role.

Ive released their first studio album, I've Ive, in April 2023, on which Jang wrote two tracks, "Mine" and "Shine with Me". On August 18, she hosted the Friday night first concert of KCON LA 2023. A month later, Jang was announced to be the host for the 8th Asia Artist Awards with co-hosts Kang Daniel and Sung Han-bin, which would be held in December of that year. Following her appearance at Paris Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2024, Jang was named by influencer marketing platform Lefty as the 13th top influencer of Paris Fashion Week, with her appearance generating an estimated media value of $3 million for Miu Miu. On October 13, Ive released their extended play, I've Mine, on which Jang wrote the track "OTT". On November 26, it was announced that Jang would be hosting the 2023 KBS Music Bank Global Festival alongside Rowoon on December 15. On April 29, 2024, Ive released their second extended play Ive Switch, on which Jang wrote the track "Blue Heart", her fourth work as a solo lyricist. In an interview with Nylon, she stated that the song was inspired by her experiences in the entertainment industry, where women faced hyperscrutiny from media and fans. In September 2024, Jang was announced to be the host for 9th Asia Artist Awards, which would be held in December of the same year, with co-host Sung Han-bin. It was also confirmed in November 2024 that Jang would be hosting the 2024 KBS Music Bank Global Festival alongside Zico and Kim Young-dae on December 20. This marked her third consecutive year of hosting the KBS Year End Festival. On February 3, 2025, Ive released their third Korean-language EP Ive Empathy, on which Jang co-wrote the title track "Attitude". The single peaked at number 7 on Circle Digital Chart. In April 2025, Jang was announced as the host for the 10th Asia Artist Awards, which would be held in December of the same year, with co-host Lee Jun-ho. This marked her 5th consecutive year hosting the award. On August 25, 2025, Ive released their fourth Korean-language EP Ive Secret, on which Jang co-wrote the lead single "XOXZ". The song was later named by Billboard as one of the best K-pop songs of 2025, with a staff writer for Billboard Korea noting how the track's "self-possessed attitude speaks clearly: asking for everything, with total confidence". On November 2, 2025, Jang performed her first solo track "8", as part of the setlist for Ive's Show What I Am World Tour. The track, which Jang co-wrote, was later released as part of Ive's second studio album Revive+. "8" peaked at number 17 on the Circle Digital Chart. Jang also co-wrote lyrics for "Bang Bang", which was released as a pre-release single for Revive+ on February 9, 2026. On May 30, 2026, Jang was seen having a cap on top of her head while verifying her identity at Gimpo International Airport, leading to civil complaints. Later on, The Chosun Ilbo reported that private citizens are also able to verify their identities with their hats on and argued that Jang faced a reverse discrimination as a celebrity.