After graduation, Yiruma returned to South Korea and released his debut album,
Love Scene, in 2001. His breakthrough came when the track "When Love Falls" was used as the theme for
Choi Ji-woo's character in the hugely popular drama
Winter Sonata. The surge of interest in his music led to him holding his first solo concert in April 2002. He gained wider public recognition for composing the soundtrack of the animation
Doggy Poo and performing the piano versions of the soundtracks from the popular 2006 drama
Spring Waltz. After completing his military service, he made his comeback with a nationwide tour spanning twenty different cities and featured
Kim Bum-soo and
Lee Hyun-woo as guest singers. On 1 January 2009, he became a
DJ for
KBS 1FM ''Yiruma's Music from All Around the World''. Yiruma's 2011 compilation album
The Best: Reminiscent, 10th Anniversary debuted at number three in the
Billboard classical charts in July 2020 and reached number one just two weeks later;
Billboard classical charts had done away with its rules of only counting albums sold in the United States and recognizing albums released in the last eighteen months. His music has seen a resurgence in popularity due to the
COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020. Several videos of his compositions posted on
YouTube and other social media platforms have garnered millions of views, including "River Flows in You". From 2010 to 2011, Yiruma began presenting the
MBC music program
Wednesday Art Stage () alongside singer
Bobby Kim. The duo initially raised eyebrows due to their vastly different musical backgrounds and genres and the fact that they had no hosting or presenting experience but their candidness won audiences over. He and Kim returned when the program was revived in 2013 and rebranded as
TV Art Stage (TV 예술무대). They were joined by actress and former newsreader
Kim Sung-kyung. In 2010, Yiruma filed a civil suit against his then-label Stomp Music to terminate his exclusive contract due to unfair payment percentages, with the judge mediating an agreement that the company should pay 30% of the profits to him. He filed a second lawsuit in 2018 as the company had failed to fulfill the condition. However, Stomp Music appealed the initial trial and the case was brought to the
Supreme Court. In April 2024, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal and ordered the company to pay Yiruma his overdue share of the profits, which had amounted to 2.6 billion won (US$) by then. ==Personal life==