As a member of Se So Neon In 2016, at age 18, Hwang founded
Se So Neon with drummer Gangto and bassist Fancy Moon. In 2017, the group had released their first EP
Summer Plumage (여름깃), and won Rookie of the Year and Best Rock Song at the
Korean Music Awards. By 2018, both members had left to perform their
mandatory military service, with Hwang recruiting Park Hyun-jin and U-su to take their place. In 2020, Hwang and Se So Neon were named
Fender's Global Artist of the Year, and were nominated for three additional Korean Music Awards. In 2021, the group were the only Korean act to be included in
YouTube Music's global foundry program. In 2023, Se So Neon's performance at
Sungkyunkwan University was boycotted by students after social media comments by Hwang surfaced online. Hwang had previously publicly responded to the
Nth Room scandal in 2020 by sharing an
op-ed which criticized
South Korean society for downplaying
sexual exploitation and due to the high number of members in the
Telegram chats, called for all men to be treated as potential criminals. In 2024, Hwang and Se So Neon performed at
SXSW despite a
boycott by over 100 artists over the festival's sponsorship by the
United States Department of Defense. Two days after the performance, the band released an apology expressing their regret, citing ignorance due the lack of
Gaza-related coverage in South Korean media and extending condolences to civilians affected by the
Gaza war. After the departure of U-su in 2022, and Park Hyun-jin in 2025, Hwang remains the only active member of Se So Neon.
Solo career In 2018, Hwang began to release music under a solo moniker, So!YoON!. Her name was stylized "to build a new character and deliver the energy that's embedded within the way it's written". In July 2018, Hwang appeared on
YB's single "Drifting Free". In October 2018, she appeared on
Prep's single "Don't Look Back" alongside
Shownu of
Monsta X. Hwang's debut solo album
So!YoON! was released on May 21, 2019 and includes features from
Sumin,
Mid-Air Thief and
Sam Kim. The album is a blend of indie rock, electronic and dream pop, and alternative R&B and was designed to show Hwang's musical ability to expand into different genres. In choosing an album cover, Hwang sent a handwritten letter to Australian artist
Patricia Piccinini to use her sculpture "The Rookie" as a basis for the artwork. From 2019 to 2022, Hwang had a string of appearances as a featured artist for various Korean indie artists. She appeared on Avin's studio album
TRANCE (2019) in the song "OMW" with Dbo. In August 2020, Hwang featured on "Do Not Disturb" by Woo. In April 2022, Hwang appeared on "Fort" by Kim Doeon. The same month,
Vogue Korea named her as one of the biggest female musicians in South Korea. In June 2022, Hwang performed the official Korean version of "
Be Sweet" by
Japanese Breakfast. On March 14, 2023, Hwang released her sophomore studio album
Episode1 : Love. The album includes lead single "
Smoke Sprite" featuring
RM of
BTS, who Hwang met without intending to spark a collaboration with. After sharing their music to each other, they decided to write "Smoke Sprite" together. The album also features guest contributions from Jibin and
Park Ji-yoon. In the music video for "Bad", Hwang portrayed a
same-sex relationship, telling
NME "there are many shapes and forms of love, and I just wanted to best visualize it. I wasn't particularly focused on it being the same-sex relationship, [but] I knew that gender shouldn't hold importance when representing love". On August 19, 2023, Hwang co-wrote and featured on "
Tik Tak Tok" by indie rock band
Silica Gel. The song was nominated for multiple awards at the
Korean Music Awards, including Song of the Year. In December 2023, Hwang performed a concert for
Tiny Desk Korea, the international version of
NPR's
Tiny Desk series. In September 2024, Hwang appeared at
Alexander McQueen's 2025 Spring/Summer show. On March 10, 2025, Hwang collaborated with
Hoshi X Woozi to release "Pinocchio" on the duo's debut single album
Beam. == Personal life ==