Sakura (LE SSERAFIM) Profile, Bio, & Facts

Sakura (사쿠라) is a Japanese singer, songwriter, and member of the girl group LE SSERAFIM under HYBE and Source Music. She is a former member of IZ*ONE and the Japanese girl groups HKT48 and AKB48.

Sakura (LE SSERAFIM) Profile

Sakura (LE SSERAFIM) Facts:

Early Life

– Sakura was born in Kagoshima City, Japan.
– She went to Kagoshima Municipal Seiwa Elementary School and Shigakukan Middle School, a private school in Kisarazu, Japan.
– She dropped out of Fukuoka Prefectural Kurume High School and later graduated from Shigakukan Junior High School.
– In 3rd grade, Sakura attended a musical school.
– She was signed under Nuts production as a child actress.
– In first grade, Sakura was captivated by the musical “Mamma Mia” and started taking musical classes. She passed the audition for Shiki Theater Company’s “Lion King” in upper elementary school and later appeared in a Kobayashi Sachiko play at Hakataza Theater. In 2010, Sakura traveled to New York City to participate in a Broadway Experience training program.

Personal Life

– Sakura’s parents divorced when she was only a year old when her mother remarried, and she has a step-brother named Sataro born in 2010.
– Her parents were both young, 20 and 23 years old when she was born.
– Her ears are her charming points.
– She prepares dinner for everyone because she likes to cook. (BuzzFeed Celeb)
– She has a weird way of running, according to other HKT48 members.
– She dreamed of becoming an idol after watching Girl’s Generation in elementary school and used to sing their songs with her friends at karaoke.
– Her special skills include sleeping anywhere and drawing.
– She received a PS4 and Nintendo Switch as gifts from fans.
– Her symbol color is pink diamond.
– Yoona from SNSD is her role model.
– Her words of wisdom to those moving overseas for jobs or studies are to not be fearful and to not give up. (Ray)
– She wears glasses because of her weak eyesight.
– She revealed that she used to study 10 hours per day during school.
– She has a Scottish Fold pet cat named Maru-chan.
– Her stepfather is a medical worker, and he used to help with math homework till late at night.
– She was a person who lacked confidence in herself before her debut. (source)
– She always carries pickled plums with her. (Sweet Magazine Interview)
– She says she is the most confident among LE SSERAFIM members.
– She developed the habit of hitting the close elevator button repeatedly in Korea.
– She revealed that when joining LE SSERAFIM, she stated that she would only join the group on the condition of not being a leader.
– Her mother initially opposed her becoming a singer, but her grandmother agreed.
– Her dream was to become a doctor when she was young.
– Her wink is considered unusual.
– She was formerly in IZ*ONE along with Chaewon.
– She said she would be a gamer if she weren’t an idol.
– She wants to tell herself ‘Well done’ as she has tried her best and really worked hard. (tmrw magazine Interview)
– The most surprising event in her life was when they heard a stranger’s voice coming from the studio speakers while practicing for “ANTIFRAGILE,” which turned out to be a microphone from the studio above. (Numero Tokyo Interview)
– She likes to watch movies and play games in her spare time.
– She likes many groups, including Girls’ Generation, Blackpink, Twice, and SHINee.
– She is a huge fan of Red Velvet and her favorite member is Irene.
– She was voted as the visual queen by LE SSERAFIM members in Weekly Idol.
– Sakura is known to be the most energetic when playing video games. (엘르 코리아_ELLE KOREA)
– Her representative emoticon is a cat face emoji.
– Her official color is pastel pink.
– Her ideal type is someone who values family, and she said that looks don’t matter much.
– She said that she doesn’t have many friends and couldn’t make friends properly due to her early start in her career.

Family Relationship

– Her maternal grandmother raised her most of the time since her mother would be busy.
– She is close to her stepbrother Sataro and said he is pretty gifted and is fluent in math and English.
– She revealed in a show that she had never seen her biological father or his pictures, but one day a man came to her handshake event, and she had a hunch that it was her father as soon as she shook hands with him.
– It was never confirmed, but she knew she met her father and paternal grandmother that day and said that was the most memorable fan for her.

Career

– She is the vocalist in the group “LE SSERAFIM.”
– On March 14, 2022, Sakura and Chaewon signed with Source Music.
– Sakura was revealed as the first member of LE SSERAFIM.
– On March 21, 2022, Sakura joined the Japanese agency A.M. Entertainment to manage her solo activities in Japan.
– She started her variety show, “Fearless Kkura,” on November 23, 2022.
– Her motto is “Fearless of Stereotypes” in LE SSERFIM.
– She was signed under Off The Record Entertainment from 2018-2021.
– She worked as a host for the Bay FM Japanese radio program “Tonight Under the Sakura Tree” from 2017 to 2021.
– She was under Vernalossom from 2011 and 2021.
– She is also a visual member of LE SSERAFIM.
– She was the fashion model at the Tokyo Girls Collection (TGC) in 2019.
– She was appointed as the Asian ambassador for the beauty brand “Flower Knows” on June 21, 2021.
– She participated in writing and composing LE SSERAFIM’s songs “Good Parts (when the quality is bad but I am)” and “Fearnot (피어나) (Between you, me & the lamppost)” in 2022 and 2023.
– She wrote the lyrics for the song “Zutommo Anken” (ズッ友案件; Forever Friends Matter) for the Japanese girl group =LOVE in 2021.
– She has acted in many film cameras.

HKT48 & AKB48

– Sakura joined HKT48 in 2011 as a trainee and later became the co-captain of Team KIV.
– She was the WCenter for HKT48’s 5th single, “12byou”.
– She also became a member of AKB48’s Team A in 2014 and held a concurrent position until 2017, when it was canceled.
– She was center or WCenter for several AKB48 singles, including “Kiboteki Refrain,” “Kimi wa Melody,” “Negaigoto no Mochigusare,” and “NO WAY MAN,” which was her last appearance as an AKB48 center.
– On May 15, 2021, Sakura announced her graduation from HKT48 after returning to Japan. Her graduation concert was held on June 19, 2021.
– Her final theater performance was on June 27, 2021, at the HKT48 Theater.
– In August 2021, rumors emerged that she would join a new girl group under Source Music.
– On November 1, it was announced that her contract with Vernalossom had ended.
– Sakura’s catchphrase (greeting) in HKT48 was “You too, you too, in everyone’s heart (Sakura bloom!) I’m Miyawaki Sakura, I’m 20 years old, from Kagoshima prefecture.”

IZ*ONE

– In 2018, she competed in the survival show Produce 48 and finished in second place, becoming a member of IZ*ONE with Kim Chaewon.
She was the center in Produce48’s theme song.
– IZ*ONE debuted on October 29, 2018, but disbanded on April 29, 2021, after their special contract ended.
– While in IZ*ONE, she participated in writing the lyrics of the songs “With*One,” and “Yummy Summer” and Japanese versions of the songs, “Fiesta” and “Secret Story of the Swan” in 2020.
– In IZ*ONE’s online concert in September 2020, Sakura performed Red Velvet’s “Monster” with member Kwon Eunbi and revealed that she practiced nine hours a day for the concert and suffered from muscle pain throughout, even needing to correct her posture for the first time in her 10-year idol career.
– After the disbandment of IZ*ONE, Sakura returned to Japan.

Appearances & Endorsements

– She appeared in several endorsements, including “MOLAK,” “Pepsi,” “Flower Knows,” “Kérastase,” and “Louis Vuitton.”
– She has appeared on many youtube channels, including “Tanoshigech -Murajung杏奈-,” “ODG,” “Seungwoo’s Dad,” and “Bam House.”
– She has appeared in numerous shows, including “Everyone’s Kitchen,” “Masked Singer,” “Knowing Brother,” and “Rokuichi! Fukushima”.
– She has appeared on many variety shows, including “Everyone’s Kitchen” and “FEARLESS KKURA (겁도 없꾸라).”

Dramas

– She was cast as the main lead in the Japanese horror series Crow’s Blood and the drama series Majisuka Gakuen 4.
– She appeared in the Japanese web series “AKB48 General Elections Special: The Akiba Papers” and “Doctor Y – Gekai Kaji Hideki” in 2016.
– She was cast in the dramas “Cabasuka Gakuen” in 2016 and “Tofu Pro Wrestling” in 2017.
– She had a guest appearance in iQiyi’s “Shanghai Love Map (恋爱地图上海篇)” in 2018.

Magazines & Pictorials

– Sakura has been featured in many magazines, including “GQ magazine,” “THE STAR,” “VOGUE GIRL JAPAN,” “ViVi,” “MAQUIA,” “MORE,” and “bis.”
– She was featured on “OZINE,” and her solo photobook sold over 60,000 copies.
– In 2022, she appeared in “Sweet,” “Harper’s BAZAAR Japan,” “L’Officiel Singapore,” and “SPUR” magazines.

Brand Launch

– Sakura launched her own cosmetics line called ‘CRAN’ in partnership with the Japanese color contact lens brand ‘MOLAK’ in September 2021, with sales beginning in December of the same year.
– On December 20, 2021, her brand sold 50,000 products within a week of its launch.
– The brand officially closed on November 30, 2022.
– It was announced on April 18, 2022, that she would be the model for the LILY BROWN brand and would be launching her own clothing line in partnership with the brand.

Likes & Dislikes

– She likes to read mystery novels but sometimes feels scared to sleep after reading them.
– She likes sweet scents, and her favorite scent is vanilla.
– Her favorite comedians are Shimofuri Myojo and Kamaitachi.
– She hates and is scared of ghosts and goblins.
– She started to love rap after watching the survival show “Show Me The Money 9” in 2020.
– She likes faux fur coats. (Cosmopolitan)
– She hates the feeling of falling from a high space.
– Her favorite manga is Demon Slayer and Kingdom.
– She likes the anime Love Live! and her favorite character is Minami Kotori.
– She is a Pokemon fan.
– Her favorite subject in school was math.
– She doesn’t like working out.
– She is afraid of bugs.
– She loves gaming and also has a gaming YouTube channel.
– Rapunzel is her favorite Disney princess.
– She doesn’t like unplanned trips.
– Her favorite color is pink.
– She likes the movie “The Sound Of Music.”
– Her favorite house in Harry Potter is Slytherin.
– Her favorite Korean drama is Goblin.
– She is fond of teddy bears.

Food Preferences

– She likes to eat Yukhoe, sashimi, umeboshi, ramen, and Jjamppong.
– Her favorite Korean dishes are Kyochon Chicken Honey Combo, Kimchi Stew, Sullungtang, Soft Tofu Stew, malatang, and Cheese Balls.
– She likes to eat live octopus and flatfish with beer for late-night snacks.
– She prefers beer over soju and can drink three cans of beer.
– She doesn’t like mint chocolate.
– Her favorite food is ox tongue. (Numero Tokyo Interview)
– She likes to drink green tea latte.
– She prefers puff cream taiyaki over red bean taiyaki.
– She hates vegetables with a strong raw flavor that can’t be mixed with sauces.
– She loves to eat sushi.
– She hates red bean paste and pineapple pizza.

Nicknames

– She has several nicknames, including ‘Kura.’ ‘Saku-chan’, ‘Cherry Miyawaki’, ‘Kura Kim’, ‘Sakurates’, ‘Sakuromi’, ‘Shenyangi’, and ‘cat’.
– She is nicknamed “Kirby” because she has a similar way of making expressions by puffing her cheeks and is often given Kirby dolls by fans at fan signs.
– She revealed that most of her acquaintances in Japan called her by her nickname, “Saku-chan.”
– She really likes to eat Kimichi stew and got the nickname ‘Ddochijjigae’ and “Miyawaki Kimchi Stew” from her fans.
– Her younger brother likes to call her “Sa-chan.”

Abilities

– She is the best at playing games among all the LE SSERAFIM members and won the silver medal for playing Battlegrounds at the 2020 Chuseok Special Idol e-Sports Championships.
– She is the most resistant and doesn’t get scared of horror movies and ghosts.  (Anan Interview)
– She has a good memory and remembers fans from hi-touch events and fan signing events.
– She has the ability of correctly guess people’s blood types. (102.7KIISFM)
– She is not good at figure skating.
– She can express her ideas well and is also a skilled writer.
– She is not skilled at sports.
– She can eat raw lemons without batting an eye.

Celebrity Friends

– She is close with Murashige Anna, Sashihara Rino, Anai Chihiro and Kodama Haruka.
– She is friends with Lee Chaeyeon (IZ*ONE) and Juri from Rocket Punch.
– She is also close with Tsuki (Billlie).

Favorite Groups & Biases

– (G)I-DLE: Minnie
– BLACKPINK: Rose
– NMIXX: Sullyoon
– KARA: Nicole
– Aespa: Karina
– ITZY: Yeji
– NewJeans: Haerin

Achievements

– Her individual teaser video for LE SSERAFIM, released on April 4, 2022, titled “SAKURA,” garnered massive attention by topping YouTube’s World Trend and entering Yahoo Japan and Weibo’s real-time popular search terms. It also ranked third on Twitter’s Worldwide Trend.
– Sakura was ranked 4th among the top 10 most active celebrities in the first half of 2021 by the Japanese media outlet Modelpress. The ranking was determined through more than 10,000 votes and Modelpress’s internal selection criteria.
– Sakura ranked 5th in the idol category of the Japan Search Word Awards (Yahoo!検索大賞2021) in 2021.

Social Media Handles

Instagram: 39saku_chan
Youtube: Sakura Miyawaki | ちゃんねる宮脇咲良
Twitter: 39saku_chan
7Gogo: miyawaki-sakura
Weibo: weibo.com

Streaming Platform Links
Genie | Bugs | Melon

Sakura (LE SSERAFIM) Photos

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