Yang Jiwon (Hangul: 양지원; Hanja: 楊知元; born April 5, 1988), commonly known by her stage name Jiwon, is a South Korean idol singer, dancer, actress. She is a member of the Korean girl group Spica, which debuted under B2M Entertainment in 2012. Jiwon is a former member of Five Girls and T-ara.

Biographie

Jiwon was born in Seoul, South Korea on April 5, 1988. After high school she attended Dongguk University, where she joined the theater and film department. Before debuting, she was part of a five-member South Korean girl group Five Girls under Good Entertainment in 2007. Due to financial problems the group never debuted. Before debuting, the group starred in a reality show on MTV called "Diary of Five Girls".

After Good Entertainment was disbanded, Jiwon moved to Core Contents Media and was originally slated to debut under the girl group, T-ara in 2009. Before debuting, the group provided a soundtrack for the Korean drama Cinderella Man called "Good Person". However in early June 2009, she was dropped from the group's line-up, citing differences in music style. She then left the agency company in 2010.

In 2011, she moved to B2M Entertainment and became a trainee. She has been involved in acting and modeling, starring in the Korean movie Death Bell as well as various music videos. Then in December 2011 it was announced that she would be finally making her debut with a new girl group Spica and will be mentored by Lee Hyori who is now under the same agency. The group made its official debut on February 8, 2012, thus making her the last of the former FIVE GIRLS members to debut.

In 2013, she appeared on Korean hip hop duo Baechigi's music video for "Shower of Tears" featuring singer Ailee. In the video, she is shown singing the song but with Ailee's vocals playing instead. Due to schedule conflicts, Jiwon filled in for her as a vocalist to promote the song on music programs with Baechigi. The song eventually went to number one and won a K-Chart award from M! Countdown on January 31, during the time when she was promoting with the duo.



^ (Korean) Moon, Wan-sik. 티아라 소연 "소녀시대 탈퇴 후 가장 힘들었다"(인터뷰)

^ "Baechigi wins #1 + Performances from the January 31st episode of 'M! Countdown'!". 31 January 2013. Allkpop. Retrieved 14 July 2013.