Minzee (민지)

Kim Min-ji, known professionally as Minzee, built her public profile through O-24, a South Korean girl group in which she served as vocalist, rapper, center, and maknae — but it is her subsequent pivot to acting that has defined her more recent years. A reported decision to turn down a HYBE girl group offer in order to pursue a drama career underscores a deliberate repositioning that has brought her sustained media attention, most recently through the JTBC Friday series *Shining*.

From idol to lead actress

Eight years passed between Minzee's earlier acting work and her return to a leading drama role in *Shining*, where she plays Mo Eun-ah, a character framed around first-love nostalgia. Coverage noted her "delicate emotional performance" as a point of praise even as the series struggled commercially, with viewership ratings beginning at roughly 1 percent and falling to a record low of 0.8 percent — a figure that made *Shining* the lowest-rated JTBC Friday drama in the channel's history. The gap between critical reception of her performance and the show's ratings trajectory was a recurring thread in coverage of the series through its run into early 2026.

Group background

Prior to her acting focus, Minzee was a member of O-24, where she held the roles of vocalist, rapper, center, and maknae. Her time as an idol is also referenced in connection with IZ*ONE, the project group that brought her wider recognition. Her friendship with fellow former IZ*ONE member Kwon Eun-bi — described in a 2026 appearance on the variety program *Salon Drip* as a relationship in which the two "spend all day together" — reflects the lasting personal ties from that period. She also noted on the same program that idol activities helped her overcome significant shyness.

Standing

Minzee's trajectory — idol career, reported refusal of a second idol opportunity, and a sustained push toward dramatic roles — positions her among a recognized cohort of former group members who have transitioned into acting. A solo fan meeting held in Tokyo in June 2026, for which all 1,000 tickets sold out in 30 seconds, pointed to a fanbase that has followed her across both phases of her career.