MAJOR MINNIE

Thai singer Minnie of the K-pop band (G) I-DLE is more than a performer. A talented musician, composer and a Miu Miu darling, she is well on her way to becoming a musical household name.

- Renée Batchelor

Nicha Yontararak, who is known by her stage name Minnie, is an up and coming dynamo in the K-pop scene. Petite and doll-like in person, with beautiful features and immaculate skin, one wonders if her cute nickname has anything to do with her stature. Beneath the perfect package lies a talented musician (she plays the piano and is keen to learn guitar), composer (she writes several of the band's songs) and polyglot (she speaks Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese, as well as her native Thai.)

To understand Minnie's career in music, one needs to delve a bit deeper into her upbringing and family background. Minnie grew up with a musical mum. She says, "My first memory of music is my mum playing piano. My mum is really, really good at playing the piano and she plays it every day." In fact, Minnie's mother taught her piano from the age of four and her uncle, Nat Yontararak, is a classical pianist, composer and music teacher. It's safe to say that music runs in her blood, or at least has been a big part of her life since she was young.

Her early musical inspirations included singer-songwriters who happened to play the piano like Vanessa Carlton and Alicia Keys. Seeing her daughter's interest in both piano and singing, Minnie's mum began sending her for weekly vocal lessons from the age of six at a music academy, which she attended all the way to the auditioning stage of her career. Shy at first, Minnie's mum rewarded her if she performed on stage, giving her the push to explore her talent and share it with a wider audience.