Kim Min-ji (
Korean: 김민지;
RR: Gim Minji; born 3 July 1991), known as Peggy Gou (/ˌpɛɡiˈɡuː/PEG-ee GOO; 페기 구; Pegi Gu), is a South Korean
DJ, singer, songwriter and
record producer based in
Berlin, Germany. She has released seven
EPs on record labels including
Ninja Tune and
Phonica. In 2019, she launched her own independent record label named Gudu Records, and released a
DJ-Kicks compilation titled DJ-Kicks: Peggy Gou, through
!k7 Records. Her debut album I Hear You is scheduled to be released on 7 July 2024 through
XL Recordings.
Gou began classical piano lessons at age eight.[6] At age 14, her parents sent her to
London, England, to study English. She moved back to Korea when she was 18 years old, but six months later she returned to London to study fashion at the
London College of Fashion. After graduating, she worked as the London correspondent editor for Harper's Bazaar Korea, and then moved to Berlin, Germany.[7][8]
Career
Gou was taught to DJ in 2009 by her friend from Korea. She had her first gig in Cirque Le Soir,
Soho, and later performed weekly at The Book Club,
East London.[9] In 2013, she learned to use
Ableton Live and began to create her own tracks. Her first track, "Hungboo", was completed in 2014.[7] "Hungboo" was named for the hero of a Korean fairy tale. She played the track in Korea for the first time at the 2016
Style Icon Awards opening show, featuring award-winning actor
Yoo Ah-in in a
visual art video.[10][11]
Gou made her recording debut in January 2016 on Radio Slave's
Rekids label with The Art of War Part 1, featuring a remix from Galcher Lustwerk.[12] She next released four
EPs[13] including Seek for Maktoop, with hit track "It Makes You Forget (Itgehane)".[14]Maktoop was named after the Arabic word "maktoob", the equivalent to "written" or "destiny".[15] This was followed by the EPs Once in 2018, and Moment in April 2019.[16]Once is the first time she has sung on a record.[17]
Gou released her music on record labels
Ninja Tune and
Phonica in 2018.[23] That same year, "It Makes You Forget (Itgehane)" won Best Track at the
AIM Independent Music Awards.[24] "It Makes You Forget (Itgehane)" was also listed on the tracklist for FIFA 19.[25]
In 2019, Forbes named Gou as one of the Asian leaders, pioneers and entrepreneurs under age 30.[26] She launched her own fashion label KIRIN ("giraffe" in Korean), supported by Virgil Abloh, under the
New Guards Group in February,[27][28][29] followed by her own independent record label, Gudu Records (gudu means "shoes" in Korean) in March.[16] She has stated that she launched Gudu to give artists starting out better opportunities and treatment than she received at the beginning of her career.[30] She next released DJ-Kicks: Peggy Gou, the 69th installment of
!K7's
DJ-Kicks mix compilation in June. The album became her first
Billboard chart appearance, reaching number nine on the Dance/Electronic Album Sales chart, and the second compilation to reach the top 10 after
Moodymann's.[31] In July, Gou released her first
music video for her hit 2019 track "Starry Night" exclusively on
Apple Music, directed by Jonas Lindstroem, and once again featured
Yoo Ah-in, the lead actor in the award-winning South Korean film, Burning.[32][33] The music video was released worldwide on
YouTube in September 2019.[34]
In December 2020, Gou joined Apple Music's New Year's Eve DJ Mixes with 21 other electronic music artists.[35] She next released her seventh single "Nabi" in June 2021, featuring
Oh Hyuk from
Korean indie rock band
Hyukoh,[36] followed by a tribute to her teenage years, "
I Go", that she called "My own reimagination of the sounds I grew up loving."[37]
In June 2023, Gou released "
(It Goes Like) Nanana" through
XL Recordings, featuring a sample from
André Tanneberger’s 1998 song "
9 PM (Till I Come)".[38][39] It is the lead single from her upcoming debut album, I Hear You, set to be released on 7 June 2024. "I Believe In Love Again" with Lenny Kravitz was released as the second single from the album in November 2023, followed by "1+1=11" in April 2024.