Wendy

Status: Active Red Velvet member and solo artistYears active: Red Velvet 2014-present; solo 2021-present

Active Red Velvet member · 2014–present
Active solo artist · 2021–present

Wendy in her official ASND profile portrait, stored locally by CVM Sekai.

Wendy is Red Velvet’s main vocalist and a solo artist whose catalog moves from the healing restraint of Like Water to the sharper pop personality of Wish You Hell. This is her single canonical profile for both the Members and Artists directories.

Profile

Stage name	Wendy (웬디)
Birth name	Son Seung-wan (손승완)
Born	February 21, 1994
Nationality	South Korean
Group	Red Velvet
Role	Main vocalist
Group debut	August 1, 2014
Solo debut	April 5, 2021
Solo debut release	Like Water

1. Early life and training

Wendy was born Son Seung-wan in Seoul and spent part of her youth studying in Canada and the United States. She performed in school choirs, bands and musical productions, building years of practical musical experience before an entertainment company gave it a branding package.

She joined SM Entertainment through its Canadian global audition in 2012 and trained for roughly two years. SM introduced her through SM Rookies in 2014, and she recorded “Because I Love You” for the drama Mimi before Red Velvet’s debut.

2. Red Velvet

Red Velvet debuted on August 1, 2014 with “Happiness.” Wendy became the group’s main vocal foundation across both sides of its musical identity: the brighter, rhythm-driven “red” material and the smoother, stranger “velvet” catalog.

Calling her the member who sings the high notes is technically true and wildly incomplete. She handles transitions, harmony placement, lower support, ad-libs, English phrasing and the difficult job of making dense arrangements sound inevitable. The other voices stay recognizable because Wendy can build around them instead of flattening everybody into one choral color.

That judgment is audible across releases such as “Dumb Dumb,” “Bad Boy,” “Psycho,” “Feel My Rhythm” and “Cosmic.” She can carry a climactic belt, but her quieter work often reveals more about her musicianship: breath placement, consonants, how long she lets a note remain clean before adding texture, and when she deliberately refuses to oversing.

3. The 2019 accident and recovery

During rehearsals for the 2019 SBS Gayo Daejeon, Wendy fell from an improperly prepared stage area and suffered serious injuries, including pelvic and facial fractures. She required hospitalization, treatment and a long rehabilitation period. Red Velvet’s “Psycho” era unfolded without normal five-member promotions even as the song became one of the group’s biggest releases.

Her return should not be compressed into a cheerful comeback montage. Recovery was long, physical work following preventable production failures. When she returned to group activity, the voice was still powerful, but the larger achievement was simply rebuilding enough health and confidence to stand onstage again.

4. Solo career

Wendy made her formal solo debut on April 5, 2021 with the five-track EP Like Water. Its double title tracks, “When This Rain Stops” and “Like Water,” placed her voice inside more open arrangements than Red Velvet usually allows. “When This Rain Stops” became especially important as a song about endurance and comfort, while “Like Water” framed support as something steady rather than dramatic.

Her second EP, Wish You Hell, arrived on March 12, 2024. The title track exchanged the debut’s healing-ballad image for guitar-led pop and a deliberately cheekier farewell to a constrained past self. The record also included “His Car Isn’t Yours,” “Best Ever,” “Better Judgement,” “Queen of the Party” and “Vermilion,” widening the idea of what a Wendy record could sound like.

In 2025 Wendy ended her individual contract with SM Entertainment while remaining part of Red Velvet for group activity. That distinction matters: changing solo management did not equal leaving the group. Her profile therefore belongs in both directories, attached to this one page.

5. Voice, radio and stage work

Outside her albums, Wendy has built a large file of OSTs, collaborations and featured performances. Her work ranges from polished idol pop to acoustic ballads and vocal showcases, often making her a natural choice when a production needs clarity, range and reliable live delivery.

She hosted the radio program Wendy’s Youngstreet, where the job required a different kind of control: listening, timing and maintaining warmth without turning every conversation into a performance. She has also moved into musical theater, a useful extension for a singer whose technique already depends on character and narrative phrasing.

6. Solo discography

Extended plays

Like Water (2021)
Wish You Hell (2024)

Selected solo songs

“When This Rain Stops” (2021)
“Like Water” (2021)
“Airport Goodbyes” (2021)
“Wish You Hell” (2024)

7. RaeRae’s take

Wendy can sing the ceiling off a building, but I prefer the moments where she lowers the volume and lets a line bruise quietly. Power is expected. Judgment is choosing when not to use all of it. Like Water proved she could hold attention without Red Velvet’s production fireworks, and Wish You Hell proved she was not volunteering to become the permanent patron saint of inspirational ballads. Good. Healing can have guitars and a mean little smile too.

YouTube tracking history

Official videos tracked for this artist. Current and cumulative view history is collected by CVM Sekai.