Before debuting in the music industry, Cheetah originally performed as an underground rapper on the streets after dropping out of high school. However, in July 2010 she officially debuted with the song "Stop (Money Can't Buy Me Love)" as a part of the hip-hop duo, Blacklist. With fellow member Lucy, the duo released two songs, "Nothing Lasts Forever" and "Stop". However, the group disbanded shortly afterwards. After Blacklist, Cheetah made several solo appearances including featuring on other rappers' tracks and also appearing on the rap contest TV show
Show Me the Money. In 2012, she joined hip-hop artist
Crush in another duo group, called Masterpiece. The duo released the single, "Rollercoaster" in May 2012. Again, the group performed poorly with the public and resulted in disbandment. In 2014, Cheetah released her first EP, called
Cheetah Itself. The mini-album showcased her powerful rap and drew attention to her talent as a solo artist. The album aided in placing her on the contestant roster for the rap survival spin-off of
Show Me The Money,
Unpretty Rapstar. In early 2015, Cheetah was revealed to be one of the contestants on the TV show
Unpretty Rapstar. Since her rise in popularity from her appearance and win on
Unpretty Rapstar, Cheetah has also appeared in multiple endorsements and fashion spreads. The rapper also participated in designing and releasing a fashion line in collaboration with Push Button. In March 2015, Cheetah was reported as preparing for a new album, to be released later in the year. Cheetah released her first single since appearing on Unpretty Rapstar. The song
My Number was released on August 2, 2015. In October 2015 Cheetah collaborated with
Kim Junsu on his EP and featured in the track
Midnight Show. In the same month, despite being known as a rapper, Cheetah appeared in the MBC singing variety show
King of Mask Singer as a jazz singer. In January 2016, she appeared as a mentor in
Produce 101 and continued to reprise her role in the
second season, in
Produce 48 and in
Produce X 101. In 2018, she released her first Korean-language studio album
28 Identity. In April 2023, she signed with new agency MLD Entertainment. ==Personal life==