Jewelry's 20-Year Bond Remains Unchanged—'True Friends' Embrace Jo Min-ah's Son

The passage of 20 years is enough time to make the relationships of those who once shared the same stage feel like strangers. However, for the girl group Jewelry, it was different. Following a long hiatus, the four members recently reunited on stage, and their connection was highlighted even beyond the performance as they were seen naturally caring for Jo Min-ah's son, Kang-ho. This reunion is drawing attention as a restoration of deep personal bonds that goes far beyond a mere 'full-group event.'

On the 12th, Jo Min-ah shared several photos on her social media (SNS) expressing her feelings about appearing on the KBS2 variety show 'Immortal Songs.' She wrote, "The stage on 'Immortal Songs' with Jewelry and Kang-ho was so joyful and happy. It created precious memories with Jewelry's first stage in 20 years. Ji-hyun unnie and Jung-ah-chang, thank you so much for being so kind and taking such good care of Kang-ho. Jewelry Forever."

The photos captured a warm atmosphere behind the scenes of the Jewelry performance, including the presence of Jo Min-ah's son, Kang-ho. In particular, the image of Lee Ji-hyun carrying Kang-ho on her back left a lasting impression on fans. Seeing a former teammate from their girl group days naturally looking after the child of Jo Min-ah, who has since become a mother, serves as a scene that shows how their relationships from their idol days have not been severed by time but have continued in a different form of life.

The biggest topic of the KBS2 'Immortal Songs: 2026 NEW WAVE Festival in Ulsan' broadcast was indeed Jewelry. It was approximately 20 years since Park Jung-ah, Lee Ji-hyun, Seo In-young, and Jo Min-ah appeared on a broadcast stage together. Starting with 'One More Time,' the four members sequentially performed representative hits that defined Jewelry's heyday, such as 'I Like You So Much,' 'Tonight,' and 'Super Star.'

As the significance of the stage was great, the preparation process was not entirely smooth. Lee Ji-hyun confessed that dancing in heels as she did in the past was not easy, and there were moments when she would forget the choreography immediately after memorizing it. Jo Min-ah also revealed that they underwent considerable practice to bridge the gap between members, as they had to master songs that were unfamiliar to both her and Lee Ji-hyun.

While the 20-year physical gap left traces on the members' bodies, their musical memories were more vivid than expected. As 'I Like You So Much,' 'Tonight,' and 'Super Star' echoed through the Taehwa River National Garden in Ulsan, approximately 10,000 spectators responded to the familiar melodies and choreography, summoning the Jewelry of the past to the present stage. For fans who were in their teens and 20s at the time, it was a stage that called forth memories of their youth, and for current viewers, it was a moment to reconfirm a page of 2000s popular music.

In particular, Seo In-young appeared moved to tears after the performance. She jokingly remarked, "I feel like I'm going to cry again. Maybe it's menopause," but there was a depth of emotion that could not be dismissed with laughter. Park Jung-ah also confessed that she felt out of breath after standing on stage for the first time in a long while, and all four members showed reactions that seemed to physically feel the gap in time.

The history of Jewelry is difficult to explain simply as a popular girl group of a certain era. From the early 2000s, despite member changes, they produced hits across several generations such as 'I Like You So Much,' 'Super Star,' and 'One More Time.' Park Jung-ah, Lee Ji-hyun, Seo In-young, and Jo Min-ah each composed the team's color at different times. This stage was special because it wasn't just any specific era's lineup, but the four members that fans remember standing on stage together.

What is even more interesting is that the four are no longer bound solely by the identity of being former girl group members. Park Jung-ah has expanded her field of activity as an actress, and Lee Ji-hyun continues her professional journey as a beautician. Jo Min-ah, after getting married and giving birth in 2020 and subsequently divorcing in 2022, has built a second career as an insurance solicitor while raising her son alone. She has reportedly been building a new foundation for her life through successful insurance sales recently.

Given that these four people, who have lived such different lives, have met again, the scene involving Jo Min-ah's son, Kang-ho, is even more meaningful. While in the past the members formed a single team by matching choreography and singing on stage, their intimacy has changed into a relationship where they understand and care for each other's families and lives.

The photos released by Jo Min-ah, showing Lee Ji-hyun carrying Kang-ho and Park Jung-ah writing a handwritten letter to the child, symbolically demonstrate this. Indeed, Jo Min-ah expressed her gratitude to the two, saying, "Ji-hyun unnie and Jung-ah-chang, thank you for being so kind and taking such good care of Kang-ho," and Park Jung-ah's handwritten letter to Kang-ho drew significant interest from fans.

The perspective on their relationship naturally overlaps with Jewelry's past history. This is because their relationship, which was only consumed in the public sphere of broadcasting and stages during their active years, has now expanded into a private relationship where they share their respective families and daily lives. This is why the term 'Jjin-chin' (true friends) is more appropriate than the expression 'full group.'

For Jo Min-ah, this stage was a significant burden both emotionally and physically. She revealed that during the preparation process, she could not rest for several weeks due to overlapping schedules, including her father's memorial service and consecutive lectures, and that she was even taken to the emergency room after her vocal cord nodules and herniated disc worsened. She expressed that while her physical strength seemed to collapse all at once once the tension was released, she felt fortunate that the illness allowed her to take a brief rest.

Because of this, this reunion cannot be viewed merely as nostalgia marketing. Rather than forcibly replicating their youthful images to reproduce past glory, it is a way for the four individuals, who have lived their own lives, to sing the songs of the past as their current selves. The girls who once performed intense choreography in heels have grown into adults who have raised children and changed professions while living their own lives.

Nevertheless, in front of music, they became Jewelry once again. The scenes of Seo In-young wiping away tears, Lee Ji-hyun reviving old choreography, and Park Jung-ah and Jo Min-ah synchronizing with the members emphasized the continuity of their relationship over the disruption of time. The reason why the sight of them caring for each other's lives outside the stage—carrying a child and handing over handwritten letters—is more profound than their 'full group' presence on stage is exactly this.

For fans who remember the girl groups of the 2000s, Jewelry's recent stage was not an act of returning to the past, but an event where the past and present meet in one place. And the photos including Jo Min-ah's son recorded that time even more vividly. The fact that the four people who sang together 20 years ago have now become close enough to care for each other's children was a scene that showed what the true 'full group' of Jewelry really is.