Ennik Somi Douma (Korean: 전소미; Jeon So-mi) was born on March 9, 2001, in Windsor, Ontario, to a South Korean mother Jeon Sun-hee[6] and a Canadian father of German and Dutch descent,[7] Matthew Douma; her paternal grandfather immigrated to Canada from Heerenveen.
[6] At age four, she made an appearance on television with her father when he was being interviewed by KBS News for his part in clearing snow in the neighborhood.
[6] She stated that she experienced bullying and discrimination at the school because of her mixed ethnicity and wanted to dye her hair black and get surgery to blend in.
[12][13] Jeon completed her secondary education at Hanlim Multi Art School, majoring in Practical Music and Vocal, graduating in a ceremony held on February 7, 2020.
[18] In 2013, as a part of the Seoul Midong Elementary School's Taekwondo demonstration team, she appeared in the Children's Day Special for Let's Go!
[28] After completing a two-and-a-half-year training period, fifteen-year-old Jeon officially debuted on May 4 with the project female group I.O.I and its first extended play Chrysalis under YMC Entertainment.
[33] On August 29, Jeon collaborated with I.O.I band-mates Choi Yoo-jung and Chungha and Ki Hui-hyeon of DIA on the digital single "Flower, Wind and You".
The song, "Deep Blue Eyes", was co-written and co-composed by B1A4's Jinyoung and made available on June 14 through Warner Music Korea.
[52][53] On August 20, 2018, Jeon departed JYP Entertainment, terminating her contract with the agency following a formal discussion and mutual agreement.
[55] Jeon revealed she joined the label soon after her meeting with CEO Teddy Park, citing his authenticity and feeling of content while imagining future plans for her as reasons.
[56] In addition, Jeon believed The Black Label would aid and allow her to focus on her growth both as an artist and a person, which aligned with her interests, in contrast with the constant promotions and releases often seen in the industry.
[56] On February 25, 2019, The Black Label revealed Jeon was preparing to make her debut as a solo artist with a lead single produced by Teddy.
[57][58] Her debut single "Birthday" was released on June 13 with an accompanying music video that surpassed four million views in 24 hours on YouTube.
[65][66] In the sixth episode, Jeon revealed that her next release had been delayed and the series cut short due to travelling restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic.
[68][69] On July 20, in conjunction with the release of "What You Waiting For", Jeon signed with Interscope Records and Universal Music Group for representation outside of Asia.
The ceremony was held at Tapgol Park in Jongno District, Seoul and attended by President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in.
The Blue House revealed they selected Jeon as a multicultural representative for her popularity as an idol promoting Korean content worldwide.
[75] The release peaked at numbers eight and nine on the Gaon Digital Chart and the Billboard Korea K-pop 100 respectively, marking her first top ten single as a soloist.
Jeon is accredited in Taekwondo, having practiced the Korean martial art for over 10 years and taught initially by her father, who himself achieved a fourth degree black belt.
[89] On May 30, 2018, 17-year-old Jeon partook in the fourth degree black belt examination held by Kukkiwon, wherein her skills qualified for the promotion.
[90][91] After she reached age of majority in South Korea, she applied for the conversion in dan and was officially certified as a fourth degree black belt holder,[91] the level of an instructor qualified to run and manage a dojang.
[93] Her personality extended to her own style, including a Louis Vuitton bag she customized with a drawing of a unicorn, which she believed resembles herself.
"[94] For her single "What You Waiting For", Jeon was involved in the planning and styling process for her music video and worked closely with Serian, the current director of Vogue Korea.
[93][94] Jeon also often invests her time in DIY projects, enjoying taking clothing apart, putting the pieces back together, tearing them apart again, and repeating the process again as part of her experiments.
With encouragement and help from in-house producer 24,[97] the initially bright melody turned into a mid-tempo R&B song and was included on her debut single album, Birthday.
"[93] Her time as an I.O.I member contributed to her "Human Vitamin" image, which is also often referenced as one of many reasons she was considered for the endorsement offers she has received.
[111] Outside of the beauty and fashion industries, Jeon was selected as a model for Nongshim's snack Petit Paris Rollbread[112] and hangover product HK inno.N.
[118] In October 2021, Jeon became the public relation ambassador of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and participated in "Korea Contents Week" campaign.