Making their debut in 2020 with the futuristic digital single “Black Mamba,” they are already one of the most affluent K-pop girl groups. Yes, we are talking about SM Entertainment’s aespa and their impressive portfolio that boasts several album records, lucrative brand deals and sold-out shows. These feats have massively contributed to aespa’s growing net worth. So much so that the four group members, Karina, Winter, NingNing and Giselle, are earning millions. But who is aespa’s richest member? Let’s find out.
aespa, whose musical universe centres on digital avatars and the metaverse, is the first girl group from SM Entertainment since the 2014 debut of Red Velvet. Currently, aespa is basking in the success of their May 2023 comeback and first-ever global tour aespa Live Tour 2023 Synk : Hyper Line.
Their third mini album, Welcome to My World, which is the highlight of their comeback, sold over 1.37 million copies on the first day of its release — the highest-ever figure for a K-pop girl group.
What is aespa’s net worth?
With their group name being derived from the words “avatar,” “experience” and “aspect,” aespa is the first K-pop act to include both human and virtual members. The band members have their own digital avatars known as ‘ae’.
Although aespa’s exact net worth is yet to be known, going by the members’ individual earnings, the band’s overall income can be estimated at around USD 4 million.
Currently, Chinese singer Ninning is the richest aespa member, followed by the group’s main vocalist Winter.
How much does aespa earn?
Music
Their immensely popular debut with the cyberpunk-themed concept of artificial intelligence clicked well with audiences and catapulted aespa to fame, which was followed by several TV broadcasts and endorsement deals. A huge portion of the South Korean girl group’s wealth also comes from their music streams, merchandise, album sales, shows and ads.
The group broke records with their 2021 singles “Next Level” and “Savage.” While the former surpassed 100 million streams and was awarded a platinum certification by the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA), “Savage” sold more than 500,000 album copies and earned a double platinum certification.
aespa’s 2021 remake of S.E.S’ song “Dreams Come True” (1998) charted at No. 8 on Gaon’s Digital chart. Following their steady pick up, TIME labelled aespa as a ‘rookie K-POP group to watch in 2021’.
The Seoul-based band got their first No. 1 ranking on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated 23 July 2022) with their second mini Girls. The album accumulated record-high sales with 53,000 copies sold in the US, as of 14 July 2022, Billboard reported via Luminate. It also reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and the Artist 100 charts.
Not just that, their latest album Welcome to My World received more than 1.8 million pre-orders and surpassed their previous record of 1.61 million stock pre-orders with Girls.
The act achieved global fame after performing at Coachella in April 2022.
Brand endorsements
Besides music and group performances, the quartet has also ventured into the world of beauty and fashion.
The Swiss jewellery and watch brand Chopard named aespa their global brand ambassador in September 2022. Following the announcement, the girls became the faces of the brand’s Happy Hearts diamonds collection.
The K-pop group have other luxury brands, such as Givenchy, Mediheal, Clio and Eider, in their portfolio as well. In 2023, they made an iconic appearance by attending the 76th Cannes Film Festival, after which aespa became the first girl group in K-pop history to make an international film festival debut.
Individual net worth of the aespa members
Ningning
As per media reports, with a net worth figure of nearly USD 1.5 million, Ningning is currently the richest member of the group.
Ning Yizhuo, known by her stage name Ningning, attained global popularity after making her debut as the main vocalist and youngest member of SM Entertainment’s fourth-generation girl group.
The majority of her net worth is earned through her promotions and activities as an aespa member. Additionally, the singer has bagged lucrative endorsement deals with renowned brands, such as Acqua di Parma and KB Kookmin Bank, as part of the K-pop group.
Before her aespa debut, Ningning had also been a part of the OST for the MBC animated series Shining Star (2019).
Winter
A successful singing career coupled with multiple ads and endorsements has turned K-Pop idol Winter into the second-richest member of aespa in a short span of time.
Winter’s success mainly reels in the group’s brand deals with Givenchy, Clio, Eider and Mediheal, among others.
Besides aespa, Winter is also part of SM Entertainment’s supergroup and SuperM’s female counterpart, GOT The Beat. The group consists of fellow aespa member Karina, BoA, Girls’ Generation’s Hyoyeon and Taeyeon, and Red Velvet’s Wendy and Seulgi. They released their first music video “Step Back” in January 2022.
As per South China Morning Post (via Korean Mag), Winter now has a net worth of approximately USD 1.2 million.
Karina
The main dancer and lead rapper of aespa, Karina’s net worth is estimated to be around USD 1 million, as per South China Morning Post (via Celeb Vogue).
Other than her projects and brand deals as an aespa member, Karina also appeared in Big Bang singer Taemin’s music video “Want” and its promotional stages.
Additionally, Karina also performed alongside Exo’s Kai in a virtual showcase held by Hyundai Motors and SM Entertainment.
Giselle
Aeri Uchinaga, aka Giselle, rose to prominence after making her debut as the main rapper and sub-vocalist of aespa.
As the fourth-richest member of aespa, a significant portion of Giselle’s USD 1 million net worth is earned through promotions and activities for the girl group.
Besides that, she has collaborated with NCT’s Taeyong, Hendery, Jeno and Yangyang for the song “ZOO,” which was released as part of SM Entertainment’s album titled 2021 Winter SMTOWN: SMCU Express.
Other than music, Giselle, as a part of aespa, is also associated with brands like Chopard, Acqua di Parma and KB Kookmin Bank.
(Net worth as of 14 June 2023)
(Hero and featured image credit: aespa/Twitter)
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