Chou Tzuyu

Chou Tzu-yu (; born June 14, 1999), known mononymously as Tzuyu (, ), is a Taiwanese singer based in South Korea. She is a member of the South Korean girl group Twice, formed by JYP Entertainment in 2015.

Tzuyu released her debut extended play (EP), Aboutzu, on September 6, 2024. Its lead single, "Run Away", became her first number-one single on the Billboard Taiwan Songs chart.

Life and career Early life and pre-debut activities

Tzuyu was born on June 14, 1999, in the East District of Tainan, Taiwan. She started dancing from a young age and trained at a dance academy.

In 2012, Tzuyu was discovered by talent scouts at the Muse Performing Arts Workshop in Tainan, and moved to South Korea in November of that year to begin training. In 2015, Tzuyu participated in the South Korean reality television show Sixteen, created by JYP Entertainment and co-produced by Mnet. As one of nine successful participants, she went on to join the newly formed girl group Twice.

2015–present: Twice and solo debut

In October 2015, Tzuyu officially debuted as a member of Twice with the release of their first extended play, The Story Begins. Its lead single "Like Ooh-Ahh" was the first K-pop debut song to reach 100 million views on YouTube. Since then, she has worked as a presenter on multiple South Korean music television shows.

On August 2, 2024, JYP Entertainment announced that Tzuyu would be making her solo debut with the release of her debut extended play, Aboutzu, on September 6. The EP has six tracks, including lead single "Run Away" and collaborations with Peniel of BtoB and rapper pH-1. On September 26, 2025, Tzuyu released the collaboration single "Blink" with Corbyn Besson, along with an accompanying music video. On July 3, 2026, Tzuyu performed at the Kaohsiung Beer Rock Festival.

Other ventures Endorsements Tzuyu has featured alone in various advertisements, including those for LG U+ and Crocs Korea. She covered the October 2021 issue of L'Officiel Malaysia as a model for the Coach Fall/Winter 2021 collection. In January 2022, Tzuyu was chosen as the new muse of South Korean clothing brand Zooc. In October 2022, she was announced as the muse of Visée, one of Japan's most popular cosmetics brands. In October 2023, she was appointed as the global ambassador for the Pond's Skin Institute's Brand Evolution Campaign. In September 2025, Tzuyu and Jihyo were announced as brand ambassadors for Ponds Philippines.

Philanthropy On February 29, 2020, Tzuyu donated to the South Korean Community Chest, for helping prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Public image and influence

Public image Tzuyu has received widespread attention for her beauty since her debut with Twice, and was nicknamed "Light of Taiwan" by the Taiwanese media due to her popularity. After performing at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2025, the bra that Tzuyu wore was reportedly sold out within a few days. According to Em Enriquez of the Filipino fashion magazine Preview, Tzuyu "singlehandedly" drove sales for the item, which has since earned the moniker of "the Tzuyu bra".

Influence After the flag controversy in 2016, Tzuyu was credited with increasing Taiwanese votes by up to 1-2% in favor of President Tsai Ing-wen. According to Gallup Korea's annual music survey, Tzuyu was the third most popular idol among South Koreans in 2016. She ranked ninth in the 2017 survey and twelfth in 2018. In 2019, Tzuyu was ranked as the second most popular female K-pop idol in a survey of soldiers completing mandatory military service in South Korea. In 2023, Tzuyu surpassed Jay Chou and became the most followed Taiwanese celebrity on Instagram with over 10 million followers.

Personal life In 2016, she passed an exam at Tainan Municipal Fusing Junior High School to certify her middle school education. She attended high school at Hanlim Multi Art School in South Korea, and graduated in February 2019 along with bandmate Chaeyoung.

In 2024, Tzuyu announced that she had completed a master's degree in applied psychology from Miguel de Cervantes European University in Spain. She explained that she pursued the degree online for over a year, as Twice's group activities had slowed down during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Flag controversy

In November 2015, Tzuyu appeared with bandmates Sana, Momo, and Mina on the Korean variety show My Little Television. She introduced herself as Taiwanese and held the flag of the Republic of China (Taiwan) alongside that of South Korea. Mainland Chinese internet users reacted angrily towards Tzuyu's actions due to the political rift between the two countries. Soon after, Twice was barred from Chinese television and Tzuyu was pulled out of her endorsement with Chinese communications company Huawei. Meanwhile, her agency, JYP Entertainment, released a video showing Tzuyu reading an apology, which sparked a furor among the Taiwanese public on election day. The incident gained international attention, as it was believed to have affected the 2016 Taiwanese general election.

Discography

Extended plays + List of extended plays, showing selected details, selected chart positions, and sales figures Title Details Peak chart positions Sales Certifications KOR JPN JPNComb US USWorld Aboutzu Released: September 6, 2024 Label: JYP, Republic Formats: CD, LP, digital download, streaming 3 3 4 19 1 KOR: 398,294 JPN: 20,641 US: 22,000 KMCA: Platinum

Singles + List of singles, showing year released, selected chart positions, and name of the album Title Year Peak chart positions Album KORDL NZHot SGPReg. TWN USPop USWorld "Run Away" 2024 22 40 29 1 — 6 Aboutzu "Blink" 2025 — — — 7 31 — Head First "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Other charted songs + List of other charted songs, showing year released, selected chart positions, and name of the album Title Year Peak chartpositions Album KORDL "Heartbreak In Heaven" 2024 94 Aboutzu "Lazy Baby" 90 "Losing Sleep" 100 "One Love" 98 "Fly" 95 "Dive In" 2025 195 Ten: The Story Goes On

Guest appearances + List of non-single guest appearances, showing year released, and name of the album Title Year Album "Daring Woman" 2015 Two Yoo Project – Sugar Man Pt. 11

Songwriting credits All song credits are adapted from the Korea Music Copyright Association's database unless stated otherwise.

+ List of songs, showing year released, artist name, and name of the album Title Year Artist Album Notes "21:29" 2019 Twice Feel Special As lyricist "Celebrate" 2022 Celebrate "Fly" 2024 Tzuyu Aboutzu "Blink" 2025 Corbyn Besson & Tzuyu Head First As lyricist and composer "Me+You" Twice Ten: The Story Goes On As lyricist

Videography

Music videos + List of music videos, showing year released, and name of the director(s) Title Year Director(s) "Run Away" 2024 Yang Soon-Shik (YSS Studio) "Blink" 2025 Martin Myaka

Filmography

Television shows Year Title Role Note 2015 Sixteen Contestant A survival show designed to select the members of Twice