Seong Son-im (born March 10, 1983), known mononymously as Sonim (ソニン, Sonin), is a Japanese-born Korean actress and singer associated with Amuse Inc. She debuted in 2000 as the lead singer of the pop duo EE Jump. In 2002, she debuted as a solo singer with "Curry Rice no Onna", which then led to the release of her debut album, Hana, in 2004.
In 2003, Sonim made her first acting appearance in the television drama High School Teacher, where she won Best Newcomer at the 36th The Television Drama Academy Award. Eventually, she left her idol music career to pursue theater.
Career
2000–2002: Debut with EE Jump
Sonim was inspired by Speed to become a singer and applied to several auditions, one of which happened to be for Morning Musume's 3rd generation in 1999. Despite not making the group, Kaoru Wada, Morning Musume's manager at the time, scouted her to be part of an upcoming group that later became EE Jump. In January 2000, Sonim moved to Tokyo for EE Jump's activities. After training in New York, EE Jump debuted in October 2000 with the song "Love is Energy!" On November 28, 2001, Sonim released her first solo song "Winter (Samui Kisetsu no Monogatari)" as EE Jump's fifth single.
2002–2005: Solo music career
After EE Jump disbanded in April 2002, Sonim debuted as a solo singer with the release of her first single, "Curry Rice no Onna."
In September 2006, Sonim debuted in South Korea, releasing a Korean-language version of "Curry Rice no Onna" under the title "After Love" (후애 (後愛).
In 2007, she became part of the vocal group Tomboy with Akane Osawa, which debuted in November 2007. In 2007-2009, she starred as Kim in Japanese production of the musical Miss Saigon. In 2007-2011, she played the role of Johanna in the Japanese production of Sweeney Todd.
Personal life
Sonim is a third-generation Korean. She is fluent in Japanese, Korean, and English.
She has said on her personal blog that for years she has been on a vegan diet. In 2009, while preparing for her role in the stage production of Shakespeare's "Henry VI", she began following a macrobiotic diet, which inspired her to become vegetarian. In 2012, she became vegan for respect for all living beings.
Albums
2003-05-14 Hana
DVD
2004-03-17 Sonim Collection
Theatre
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007-2011) - Johanna Barker
Miss Saigon (2008-2009) - Kim
Henry VI (2009) - Joan la Pucelle (Joan of Arc)
Rent - Mimi Márquez (2010), Maureen Johnson (2012-2015)
The Threepenny Opera (2014) - Polly Peachum
Mozart! (2014) - Constanze
Wuthering Heights (2015) - Isabella Linton
Dance of The Vampires (2015-2016) - Magda
Kinky Boots (2016-2022) - Lauren
1789: Les Amants de la Bastille (2016-2018) - Solene Rigot
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (2017-2020) - Cynthia Weil
The Rocky Horror Show (2017) - Janet Weiss
Marie Antoinette (2018-2021) - Margrid Arnaud
Oliver! (2021) - Nancy
The 39 Steps (2022) - Annabella Schmidt/Pamela/Margaret
The Factory Girls (2023) - Harriet Farley
Measure for Measure (2023) - Isabella
All's Well That Ends Well (2023) - Diana
L'art Reste (2024) - Kim Hyang-An
Six (2025) - Catherine of Aragon
Waitress (2025) - Dawn Pinkett
Film
Oh! My Zombie Mermaid (2004), Nami Ishizuka
Snakes and Earrings (2008), Yuri
Television
Koukou Kyoushi 2003 (2003), Beniko Kudo
Anpan (2025), Mimi Yamashita
Shadows of the Ten Ninja (2026), Inbeyama Gozen
Animation
Moana 2 (2024) – Matangi