Ahn Yujin on Friendship with Karina Before The Viral Collab “I Wanted to Get Closer, She Reached Out First”
On January 28, YouTube channel TEO’s show “Salon Drip 2” featured IVE’s Ahn Yujin as a guest.
Host Jang Do-yeon asked if Ahn Yujin, as a leader, had ever shared struggles with aespa’s leader Karina while performing on the same stage. Yujin responded, “I have wanted to get closer to her for a while. But I couldn’t have a deep conversation because I was so focused on becoming friends. I like to ask her about her experience because the characteristics of our teams are so different. Everyone seems so incredible.”
When Jang Do-yeon asked how Yujin approached Karina, Yujin blushed and said, “Our first meeting was through a dance challenge. Her company specifically said they wanted to shoot with me. I even went to the shop on purpose to dress nicely. I had two plans: first, to ask if I could call her unnie, and second, to ask for her number. But I could do neither. I had too many things to worry about wanted to talk well, dance well, and look good.”
She added that after receiving a suggestion for a collaboration stage at the broadcasting station, Karina came to mind. Yujin managed to get Karina’s number through an acquaintance but hesitated to reach out, worried it might make her uncomfortable. Instead, she expressed her desire to work with Karina if the opportunity arose.
Yujin then shared, “I heard that Karina was talking about me too, so I thought I should reach out, but then she contacted me first.” She looked genuinely moved. Jang Do-yeon commented, “You are both so adorable. Have you gotten much closer now?”
Yujin smiled and said, “We decided to go out for a meal. She also expressed her gratitude, saying that Karina texted her after practice to say she had worked hard“. Yujin added, “These days, I often ask her, can I post this photo on SNS?” showing off her growing friendship with Karina.
Previously, on December 25th, 2024 SBS Gayo Daejeon took place at Inspire Arena in Yeongjong-do, Incheon. Under the theme “Merry Freaky Christmas”, the event was hosted by NCT’s Doyoung, IVE’s Ahn Yu-jin and TXT’s Yeonjun.
The “X-MAS Fantasy” special stage section of 2024 SBS Gayo Daejeon began with RIIZE’s Sungchan & Anton’s cover of “Show Me Your Love (TVXQ & Super Junior), followed by the powerful performance of “Shoot Out” (MONSTA X) by ZEROBASEONE’s Kim Ji-woong and Park Gun-wook.
After that, aespa’s Karina and IVE’s Ahn Yu-jin showed up on the stage and showcased a fantastic collaboration performance of Valerie Broussard’s song “Killer”. As both are leaders of the most famous 4th-generation girl groups, Karina and Ahn Yu-jin drew keen attention last year by doing IVE’s “Baddie” and aespa’s “Drama” challenges together. Reuniting after a year, the highly anticipated duo brought about a captivating performance with their fatal charms that the audience could not take their eyes off them.
Prior to their stage, SBS Gayo Daejeon released a video of Karina and Ahn Yu-jin doing a small skit together. In the video, Karina said, “I like people with pretty dimples, and she was just exactly that kind of person”. Ahn Yu-jin added, “Isn’t it natural for a puppy to be attracted to a cat?”.
Meanwhile, Karina recently went viral for the solo song “UP” she performed at aespa’s concert. As the song topped various music charts, the female idol once again proved her potential as a solo artist.
On February 3rd, IVE will release their third EP album “IVE EMPATHY”. Before releasing their album, the group will introduce their pre-release title song on the 13th of next month.
