[1] Karina was born and raised in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea,[2][3] in a family consisting of her parents and an older sister.

[4] She attended Hansol High School until she was discovered by an SM Entertainment representative through social media and trained for 4 years before her debut.

[15][16] On December 17, she was announced as a member of SM's supergroup Got the Beat alongside bandmate Winter and other female labelmates such as BoA, Girls' Generation's Taeyeon and Hyoyeon, and Red Velvet's Seulgi and Wendy.

[24] It was also confirmed on the same day that Karina will be a special DJ of the MBC FM4U's radio show Lee Seok-hoon's Brunch Cafe on April 18 and 19.

[26] Following her debut introduction video, the phrase "Karina is a God" has been adopted by fans and the press[27][28] noted by her public image and role in her group,[29] with the magazine Paper calling her a "dynamic dancer, an attentive leader, and a sultry rapper to her group",[14] while making her a recognisable figure among South Korea's MZ population.

[36] Her endorsements expanded in 2023, starting in November, when Lotte Chilsung selected her as model for their "Kloud Krush" alcohol beverage.

[37] In December, Vogue Korea announced that she became the new face of YSL Beauty's "Rouge Pur Couture" lipstick line.

[41][42] That following April, she was selected as the model of Vita 500 Zero, a popular Vitamin C drink brand in Korea, with the company's hopes of expanding their market to younger consumers.

In January 2025, the coffeehouse chain Pascucci, operated by SPC Group, appointed Karina as their first celebrity model since the franchise was introduced to the country in 2002, as she is considered a highly recognisable face in the younger market.