:DamDam (담담 / 淡淡)

:DamDam — real name Oh Soyeon (오소연) — was born on December 18, 1994, somewhere in Jeju Province, South Korea. From early on, she showed a strong affinity for music, eventually making her way into the South Korean music industry as a young artist.

She made her first public appearance as a musician under her real name, Oh Soyeon, on June 27, 2016, with the digital single Staff Only. The debut marked the beginning of a slow-burning but sincere career in the Korean indie and pop scene. Over the next few years, she continued releasing singles that showcased her melodic sensibility — tracks like Rainy Day, Seollenda, and Ctrl+Z built a small but loyal listenership.

In August 2018, she released Bad Child, her first mini-album, which is considered a highlight of her early career. The release showed off a more refined musical identity and cemented her reputation as a thoughtful singer-songwriter.

Around 2020, :DamDam began uploading demo versions of new songs to SoundCloud and YouTube — an early sign of the independent, direct-to-fan approach she would later fully embrace. This period also marked her gradual transition away from working under a label.

By 2022, she had fully departed from her previous agency and relaunched herself under the new stage name :DamDam (담담 / 淡淡). The colon at the front of her name (:DamDam) is an intentional stylistic choice — a kind of smiley face, making her name visually unique. On May 19, 2022, she officially re-debuted as :DamDam with the digital single 두고 가셨어요 (You Left Me Behind), which had originally circulated as an unreleased demo. That same year she released Father’s Dream (아버지의 꿈), another deeply personal track.

From 2023 onward, :DamDam shifted into a prolific phase, releasing a consistent stream of singles and building one of the most intimate artist-fan relationships in Korean indie music. Every Tuesday at 9:00 PM KST, she hosts a YouTube livestream called 담담하지 않은 담담 라이브 (“Not-So-Calm DamDam Live”), where she performs three fan-requested songs live. This weekly ritual has become a defining part of her identity.

In late 2024, she released her debut EP 24Frame, a five-track project that marked a major milestone — her first extended release as :DamDam. The EP blended two sides of her artistry: folk singer-songwriter warmth and electronic pop texture, with singles like ELLA and Slump introducing her to a wider audience.

Throughout her career, :DamDam has also maintained a strong presence on SoundCloud and continues to create content entirely on her own terms — recording, editing, producing, and designing everything herself. She also provides Korean, English, and Japanese subtitles for her YouTube content, a testament to her dedication to connecting with fans across borders.

Her MBTI type is INFJ, and her introspective, imaginative nature clearly runs through every note she writes.