Sandara Park Solo Comeback Confirmed 7 Years After 2NE1 Disbandment

Sandara Park will make her long-awaited official solo debut soon.

A representative for the 32-year-old former 2NE1 member confirmed Wednesday that she is making a solo comeback sometime in July. But further details, including the exact date and form of the album, have yet to be revealed, according to South Korean media outlet Star News.

Reports have also circulated that Sandara, or Dara, has already completed filming the music video for her still-untitled album’s main track and is allegedly in the final stages of preparation for its release. But International Business Times couldn’t independently verify this information.

Before rising to fame as a K-pop idol, the singer-turned-variety star first debuted in the Philippine broadcast channel ABS-CBN’s celebrity recruitment show called “Star Circle Quest,” finishing first runner-up in the first season of the show in 2004.

Five years later, Sandara debuted as a member of 2NE1 under YG Entertainment alongside Park Bom, CL and Minzy, which become one of the most popular second-generation K-pop groups. They were popularly known for the tracks “Ugly,” “Lonely,” “I Don’t Care,” “Fire” and “Come Back Home,” among others.

The group, unfortunately, disbanded in 2016. It remains unclear why 2NE1 decided to part ways. But the members reportedly found out about their disbandment separately.

CL and Minzy discovered the news through the media; Sandara found out while filming a reality show in the Philippines, while Bom was in the YG Entertainment office at the time, per Cosmopolitan PH magazine.

Following the disbandment, Sandara ventured into the acting scene and she starred in several reality TV series and K-dramas such as 2013’s “Double Park TV,” 2017’s “Living Together In Empty Room” and “Dara TV,” 2018’s “107th Night” and 2020’s “Dinner Mate,” among others.

In 2021, she finally signed with a new entertainment label called Abyss Company in South Korea. She joined its roster of artists, including GOT7’s BamBam, Sunmi, Park Won, Melomance, and Urban Zakapa.

Sandara also hinted at making a comeback as a soloist in an interview with Dazed Korea last year, saying, “I’ve been active in a wide array of fields, but it wasn’t easy to find opportunities to actually show myself as singer Sandara.”

“Now, I’ve made up my mind to focus on working on a new album. I want to return with a song that will allow me to not only showcase new music but also a new performance and fashion,” she added, according to an excerpt obtained by Soompi.

Sandara will be releasing her first-ever solo album after 14 years in the K-pop industry. She previously released a solo track called “Kiss,” which was part of 2NE1’s 2010 album “To Anyone.”