# Kang Mi-na

Kang Mi-na (Korean: 강미나; born December 4, 1999), known mononymously as Mina, is a South Korean actress, singer and rapper. She is best known for finishing ninth in Mnet's K-pop girl group survival show Produce 101. She is a former member of the girl groups I.O.I and Gugudan, as well as its subgroups 5959 and SeMiNa. Kang is also best known for her roles in the television series Dokgo Rewind (2018), Tale of Fairy (2018), Hotel del Luna (2019), Summer Guys (2021), Moonshine (2021–2022), Café Minamdang (2022), and Welcome to Samdal-ri (2023).

## Early life

Kang Mi-na was born in Icheon, and later moved to Jeju City when she was eight years old. She graduated from School of Performing Arts Seoul in 2018.

## Career
### 2016–2017: Produce 101, I.O.I and Gugudan

In January 2016, Kang, together with fellow trainees Kim Na-young and Kim Se-jeong, represented Jellyfish Entertainment on reality girl group survival show Produce 101 for the chance to debut in a Mnet girl group.
The program came to an end on April 1, 2016, and the final line-up of South Korean girl group I.O.I was announced, made up of the top 11 poll-winners. Kang finished ninth overall, with 173,762 votes, becoming an official member of the girl group.
On June 10, 2016, YMC Entertainment revealed that Kang would not be taking part in I.O.I's unit promotions, but would instead return to her agency to debut and promote with upcoming South Korean girl group, Gugudan.
In July 2017, a Gugudan subgroup named Gugudan 5959 was formed with Kang and fellow member Hye-yeon. They debuted with the single "Ice Chu" on August 10, 2017.
In June 2018, a Gugudan subgroup named Gugudan SeMiNa was formed with Kang and members Sejeong and Nayoung. They debuted with the release of their self-titled single album on July 10, 2018.

### 2018–present: Acting career

Kang made her acting debut in the MBC romantic comedy series Children of the 20th Century in 2017, playing the younger counterpart of Han Ye-seul's character. The same year, she played her first lead role in the 2-episode tvN drama History of Walking Upright.
In 2018, Kang began hosting the music program Show! Music Core. She then starred in the action web film Dokgo Rewind alongside Sehun of Exo, and played a supporting role in tvN fantasy romance drama Tale of Fairy.
In March 2019, Kang was confirmed as part of the cast for Law of the Jungle in Thailand. The same year, Kang played Kim Yuna in tvN fantasy drama Hotel del Luna.
In 2021, Kang was cast in the web drama Summer Guys which premiered on March 30. In June 2021, Kang made a cameo appearance in tvN fantasy-romance drama My Roommate Is a Gumiho. Later the same year, she starred in the KBS2 historical drama Moonshine as Han Ae-jin, the only daughter of a noble family. In 2022, she was cast in Café Minamdang as Nam Hye-joon.
On June 28, 2023, it was announced that Kang had departed from Jellyfish Entertainment after her contract expired. On July 3, Kang signed with Story J Company.

## Discography
### Singles

| Title | Year | Album |
| "Peach Paradise" (계룡선녀전) | 2018 | Tale of Fairy OST Part 2 |

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2022 | Midnight Horror: Six Nights | Soo-hyun | Segment: Convenience Store |
| 2023 | Usury Academy | Da-young | |
| TBA | Love Untangled | Go In-jeong | |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2017 | Children of the 20th Century | Sa Jin-jin (young) | |
| 2017 | Drama Stage – "History of Walking Upright" | Mi-na | One-act drama |
| 2018 | Tale of Fairy | Jum Soon-yi | |
| 2019 | Hotel del Luna | Jung Soo-jung / Kim Yoo-na | |
| 2021 | My Roommate Is a Gumiho | Jin-ah | Cameo |
| 2021–2022 | Moonshine | Han Ae-jin | |
| 2022 | Café Minamdang | Nam Hye-joon | |
| 2023–2024 | Welcome to Samdal-ri | Jo Hae-dal | |
| 2024 | Drama Special – "Youngbok, Sachiko" | Koo Young-bok | One-act drama |

### Web series

| Year | Title | Role |
| 2018 | Dokgo Rewind | Kim Hyun-sun |
| 2021 | Summer Guys | Oh Jin Dal-rae |
| 2025 | Twelve | Kang-ji |

### Television shows

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2016 | Produce 101 | Contestant | Survival show that determined I.O.I members Finished 9th |
| 2018–2020 | Show! Music Core | Host | |
| 2019 | Law of the Jungle in Thailand | Cast member | |

### Music video appearances

| Year | Song Title | Artist | Ref. |
| 2017 | "Someone to Love" | Honeyst | |

## Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee / Work | Result |
| APAN Star Awards | 2024 | Best New Actress | Welcome to Samdal-ri | Won |
| KBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Best New Actress | Moonshine and Café Minamdang | Won |
| MBC Entertainment Awards | 2018 | Rookie Award – Music & Talk | Show! Music Core | Won |
| MBC Entertainment Awards | 2019 | Female Excellence Award – Music & Talk | Show! Music Core | Nominated |