What Happened to Sunmi? The Rise and Fall of a K-Pop Solo Queen

After her days with Wonder Girls, Sunmi quickly rose to become one of the biggest solo acts in K-Pop. But now, as we’re well into 2025, it’s been almost a year since she’s had an official release. It’s surprising to see someone who once ruled the charts slip so quietly out of the spotlight, and it has made people wonder what really happened along the way.

Table of Contents

• From Wonder Girls to Solo Success
• The Birth of “Sunmi-pop”
• The Decline Begins: 2020 and Beyond
• The Female Soloist Struggle
• The NFT Controversy That Alienated Fans
  • The Sunmiya Club Launch
  • Fan Backlash and Sunmi’s Response
  • The NFT Project’s Collapse
• Poor Company Management and Inconsistent Releases
• Current Status and Future Prospects

From Wonder Girls to Solo Success

If there’s one thing that K-Pop fans know about the industry, things move so fast that even the biggest stars can fade if they don’t keep putting out new music. It’s tough for fans to accept sometimes, but once the momentum slows down, the public’s attention shifts elsewhere and unfortunately, Sunmi is a clear example of this.

She first made her name as part of Wonder Girls and had already shown hints of her solo potential with songs like 24 Hours and Full Moon. When Wonder Girls eventually disbanded and Sunmi left JYP Entertainment, it seemed like she was set up for success.

After spending 12 years under JYP, Sunmi admitted that making the move to a new agency wasn’t easy. Still, she felt it was necessary because she needed someone who would push her to grow. She explained that she didn’t want to keep doing the same thing over and over but wanted the freedom to explore different sides of herself, both for the public and her fans. Luckily, she said that the company she joined had a relaxed, supportive environment that gave her the space to do just that.

So, considering everything, her move to Makeus Entertainment, later known as Abyss Company, looked like the right decision, especially when her first release under the new label, Gashina, exploded in popularity.

The Birth of “Sunmi-pop”

From there, it felt like Sunmi could do no wrong. She dropped hit after hit: Siren, Heroine, Noir, Lalalay, each one strengthening her place as one of K-Pop’s top soloists. Along the way, she even carved out her own distinct musical identity, something fans and media eventually named “Sunmi-pop.”

It blended K-Pop’s usual pop, disco, rock, traditional Korean influences, retro sounds, and city pop, all wrapped up in Sunmi’s unique style. The term “Sunmi-pop” gained real traction too. Yonhap News brought it to Sunmi’s attention, and Abyss officially acknowledged it by sharing an article highlighting her signature genre just ahead of her Lalalay comeback. So, for a while, Sunmi had it all: back-to-back hits, critical praise, public love, and a packed schedule.

The Decline Begins: 2020 and Beyond

Everything seemed to be going smoothly for Sunmi — until 2020 hit. That year marked the beginning of a slow but noticeable decline in her popularity. Each new comeback seemed to make less noise than the one before. Her songs stopped topping charts, her name wasn’t trending like it used to, and she wasn’t as visible everywhere anymore. It makes you wonder — what exactly changed, and is there a clear reason behind this shift?

The Female Soloist Struggle

One thing that keeps coming up is how tough it is for female soloists to stay popular long-term. There are a few rare cases, like IU, Taeyeon, Baek Yerin, and Baek A Yeon, who’ve managed to hold onto strong careers, but for most, the public’s attention eventually fades. Newer acts pop up all the time, and people, unfortunately, tend to move on quickly.

Take HyunA, for example — she was once the biggest solo name out there, but after Lip & Hip and her exit from CUBE, her popularity slowly started slipping with every release. The same pattern can be seen with Chungha and even Hwasa. It feels like both casual listeners and K-Pop fans are always looking for the next fresh face, and when releases from older artists slow down, so does the hype around them.

As a Reddit user explained: “i feel like this is fairly common for female soloists[…]They have a bit of a boom, they’re everywhere, they’re top of the charts, but eventually the GP moves onto the next new shiny thing.”

Another person shared that Sunmi really squeezed everything she could out of her signature style, especially during her peak from Gashina through Pporappippam. They thought it was impressive how long she kept that momentum going. But once she stepped away from that familiar sound and tried something different, it didn’t land the same way with the public. They also pointed out that, since Sunmi isn’t viewed as a standout vocalist like Taeyeon, she’s not held in quite the same regard. In their eyes, Sunmi’s career will probably settle into a more modest, steady place now and to them, there’s nothing wrong with that.

The NFT Controversy That Alienated Fans

The Sunmiya Club Launch

Another reason people point to is Sunmi’s and her company’s involvement with NFTs. In 2022, Abyss Company revealed they were launching the “Sunmiya Club,” a collection of digital profile picture NFTs based on Sunmi. Buyers were promised special perks like fan meetings, private parties, and even chances to share profits, all designed to make the NFTs seem like a smart investment.

However, the announcement didn’t sit well with many fans. Concerns quickly grew over the massive environmental damage NFTs cause, the way they often lead to art theft, and how easily they can be used for shady activities like money laundering so, it’s not hard to see why a lot of people were upset.

Fan Backlash and Sunmi’s Response

A fan told her, “I love you and you have my support in every project of yours, except for this one.” But instead of addressing fans’ concerns, both Sunmi and Abyss stood firm on their decision. After the backlash, Abyss released a statement saying the NFT project was meant to help Sunmi’s music and character live on in a “more diverse space,” and to honor the love and support from fans over the years. Rather than calming the situation, it only made fans even more frustrated.

Sunmi’s own response didn’t help either — in fact, it made things worse. She told fans that everything she does, from making music to writing lyrics, is for them. She shared that for 15 years, she had always worried about what her fans would enjoy, and to her, it was only natural that sometimes her choices might upset or disappoint them. She even asked, “Don’t you know me well?” and said she just hoped fans would trust her, because she wanted to show them even better things in the future.

However, the most controversial part of the statement was when she said: “If you’re hurt and you’re tired, then you can leave. I’ll keep being on stage, so if you miss me sometimes, please come back.” What really upset fans, though, was when Sunmi told them to leave the fandom if they didn’t agree with her decisions. That came across as dismissive and hurtful to many, with a user saying: “Not her trying to make her fans feel bad, you made a bad choice, just face it.”

Fans were especially puzzled when Sunmi appeared to prioritize her NFT project over her fans. Some felt she was pressuring them to support or invest in the project and as a result, many fans chose to stop supporting her. The negative feedback spread beyond her fanbase, causing a lot of people to lose interest in anything Sunmi-related, from her music to her appearances on variety shows.

The NFT Project’s Collapse

As expected, the NFT project didn’t go as planned, and things quickly took a turn for the worse. In late 2022, the collapse of Terra-Luna and the bankruptcy of the U.S. crypto exchange FTX triggered a massive market crash. As a result, the value of Sunmi’s NFTs dropped drastically, from millions of won per unit to just a few tens of thousands.

Sunmi had heavily promoted the project, even appearing in videos with MetaKongz CEO Lee Doo Hee to talk about her NFT venture. Because of her strong involvement, some investors accused her of a “rug pull”—a scam where creators make exaggerated promises to lure in investors before disappearing with their money.

In defense, the issuing company claimed they had met all milestones outlined in the original roadmap and used the funds for operational costs and developing a new platform. Despite the company’s explanation, many fans lost respect for Sunmi over the incident and decided to stop supporting her altogether.

Poor Company Management and Inconsistent Releases

However, if we’re being completely honest, the main reason for Sunmi’s drop in popularity seems to be the way her company has been handling her career. As we mentioned, after joining her current company, she released hit songs and went on a successful world tour, with many shows selling out, with reports saying that the Seoul concert sold out in just five seconds after tickets went live, and even adding more dates due to high demand. But things started to take a downturn after 2020.

The comebacks became sparse, mostly digital singles or albums, and since then, she’s only had one mini-album. With such a long wait between releases, and songs that began to sound similar to the public, it’s no surprise that Sunmi’s popularity started to fade. Her company appeared to be unsure about her direction, giving her just one comeback a year, hoping that would be enough to maintain public interest. After each release, Sunmi would disappear from the spotlight for extended periods, losing the hype and attention people might have had.

Even her fans have noticed the issue. Many mentioned how Sunmi often talks about working on new music and has mentioned plans for a full album, including a promise for a 2019 summer release. But then, she would suddenly say there wouldn’t be new music anytime soon, and there was no mention of an album after that. Fans have speculated that her company might be rejecting, delaying, or even canceling her comebacks altogether but of course, we have no confirmation of that.

Current Status and Future Prospects

Since her comeback with the single Balloon in Love last June, Sunmi has been active in festivals and events, appeared on variety shows, and even teamed up with Chungha for the track Salty. However, she hasn’t had any solo releases that aren’t collaborations or OSTs. It’s hard to believe she was once one of the top soloists in K-Pop, and now she’s barely in the spotlight.

It seems like her only chance of regaining her previous success is by releasing another hit that resonates with the public, drawing attention back to her. But even then, it would depend on her company to capitalize on that viral moment, which, given their track record, seems unlikely.

Do you think Sunmi can reclaim her former glory, or has her time in the spotlight passed? The combination of industry challenges for female soloists, controversial business decisions, and poor management has created a perfect storm that has significantly diminished her once-dominant presence in K-Pop. While a comeback is always possible in the fast-moving world of K-Pop, it would require strategic planning and execution that has been notably absent from her recent career trajectory.