2019–2021: Hotel del Luna, Love Poem and Lilac[edit]

IU at a concert in Jeju during the Dlwlrma tour on January 5, 2019.

On April 11, 2019, IU made her film debut in the Netflix anthology series Persona.[228] She portrayed
different characters in each of the four short films which were written and directed by the critically
acclaimed directors Lee Kyoung-mi, Yim Pil-sung, Jeon Go-woon and Kim Jong-kwan.[229][230] It was
the sixth most popular program on Netflix in Korea in 2019.[231] During the summer, IU starred in the
fantasy mystery drama Hotel del Luna, written by the Hong Sisters. She also sang one of the songs
on the soundtrack, "Happy Ending".[232] The drama was a commercial success, recording the highest
ratings in its timeslot throughout its run.[233] IU was set to release her ninth extended play, Love
Poem, on November 1. However, she decided to postpone the EP's release to November 18
following her close friend Sulli's death.[234][235] Her single "Peach" (2012), inspired by Sulli, re-entered
charts as a tribute to the late singer.[236] The EP's eponymous lead single was released as planned,
subsequently peaking at number one on the Gaon Digital Chart, and at number nine on Billboard's
World Digital Songs Chart.[237][238] On November 2, 2019, IU began her second Asian tour, titled Love
Poem, in Gwangju.[239] Nearly 90,000 fans attended her two-month tour during which she visited 10
cities.[240]
For the first time in nine years, IU participated in a soundtrack album with the song "Give You My
Heart" for the hit romantic comedy Crash Landing on You.[241] Released on February 15, 2020, it
debuted at number 71 on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart, 2020,[242] rising and reaching number
one the following week.[243] On May 6, 2020, IU released the single "Eight" featuring and produced
by BTS's Suga.[244] It follows IU's previous singles "Twenty-Three" (2015) and "Palette" (2017) which
together comprise her "coming-of-age" series.[245] The song's title derives from the last digit of the
Korean age "twenty-eight" of both artists.[246] On June 19, 2020, IU released the song "Into the I-
LAND" as the signal song for the survival reality show I-Land.[247]
On January 9, 2021, IU won Song of the Year at the 35th Golden Disc Awards for "Blueming",
becoming the first female soloist to win two grand prizes in the award show's history. [248] While
onstage accepting her award, she hinted that she would be soon returning with a new single titled
"Celebrity" and that the new song would have a refreshing and cheerful pop sound. [249] Two days
later, Edam Entertainment confirmed her return with the pre-release single "Celebrity" on January
27, 2021.[250] On March 3, she announced her fifth studio album, Lilac, which was released on March
25[251] to immediate commercial success; the album debuted atop the Gaon Album Chart, and all
tracks had simultaneously charted in the top 30 of the Gaon Digital Chart. In October, IU announced
that her digital single "Strawberry Moon" would be released on October 19.[252] IU later teased a
special album titled Pieces, which was released on December 29.[253]
2022–present: Broker and The Winning[edit]
 IU performing at The Golden Hour: Under the Orange Sun concert
on September 18, 2022.
IU's first project of 2022 was the collaborative single "Ganadara" with Jay Park, which peaked at
number one on both the Gaon Digital Chart and the Billboard K-pop Hot 100.[254][255][256] Her first
documentary, Pieces:29th Winter, was scheduled to release on March 16 but was later postponed to
March 23.[257]
The following month, IU starred in the film Broker, playing single mother So-young, who initially
decides to leave her newborn at a baby box but later changes her mind and tries to retrieve her
child.[258] Director Hirokazu Kore-eda choose to cast IU after seeing her moving performance in My
Mister (2018), as he felt that she was the only actress who could embody So-young's character.
[258]
Broker was chosen to compete for the Palme d'Or, and its premiere was held at the 75th Cannes
Film Festival.[258] Film critic Ben Rolph praised IU's performance, writing that "it is K-pop singer-turned
actor Lee Ji-eun who leads the ensemble down its path of brilliance as she performs her heart out,
she is the soul of the film."[259] The performance earned her a nomination for Best New Actress at
the 27th Chunsa International Film Festival.[260]
On July 27, 2022, it was announced that IU would hold a concert, The Golden Hour: Under the
Orange Sun, at the Seoul Olympic Stadium on September 17 and 18, becoming the first Korean
female artist to perform there.[13]
On January 3, 2020, it was announced that IU would star in the Lee Byeong-heon's Dream,
a comedy drama about a group of people participating in the Homeless World Cup.[261][262] Filming was
completed in Hungary on April 13, 2022. Commenting on the experience, she said: "It was my first
feature film shooting. It has accumulated more memories than any other work, so I think it will
remain in my memory for a long time."[263] The movie was released on April 26, 2023.[264]
On April 4, 2023, Big Hit Music announced the second collaboration between IU
and BTS member Suga, under his moniker Agust D, for the song titled "People Pt. 2". The song was
released on April 7 as a pre-release track for Suga's first solo album D-Day.[265]
IU released the single "Love Wins All" on January 24, 2024.[266] This would be part of her sixth
EP The Winning which was released on February 20.[267]
Upcoming projects[edit]
IU is set to star as Ae-soon in screenwriter Lim Sang-choon's upcoming television series You Have
Done Well opposite Park Bo-gum.[268] After the release of Lilac, IU began working on her next album.
In February 2023, she said that the album would be about the feeling of wandering, [268] but later in
September she stated that the direction of the project had significantly changed and that the album's
main theme would be desire.[269]

Artistry[edit]
Songwriting[edit]
See also: List of songs written by IU
IU has been credited for writing over seventy-two songs over the course of her career, including
music for her career as a solo artist, songs for other performers and various songs for film or drama.
The first two songs for which she received songwriting credit were Yoo Seung-ho's "Believe in Love",
which she featured on, for the compilation album Road for Hope,[270] and "Alone in the Room" from
her third extended play (EP) Real.[271] Her first self-composition was "Hold My Hand" for The Greatest
Love in 2011.[71][272] Considering the fact that she wrote the song not for herself but at the behest of
the drama's producers, IU found the experience difficult as she had to match the drama's cheerful
tone.[77] On her second studio album Last Fantasy,[273] IU began to take more creative control over her
music, writing six of the thirteen total tracks. Her following studio album Modern Times[274] and its re-
release Modern Times – Epilogue[275] was also mostly written by IU and South Korean lyricist Kim
Eana, who had previously written multiple tracks on Last Fantasy. IU wrote the lyrics to each track
on her subsequent releases, Chat-Shire[169] and Palette,[276] with the exception of one song on the
latter, and served as executive producer of both. The lyrics on her fifth EP Love Poem[277] were
entirely self-written, and she received composition credits on two tracks, "The Visitor" [277] and
"Blueming".[277] IU wrote lyrics to all the tracks on her fifth studio album, Lilac.[278] Additionally, she
helped compose two of the album's singles, "Coin" and "Celebrity".[278] IU has also written and
performed multiple songs for various South Korean films and dramas, including The Producers,
[279]
My Mister,[280] Bel Ami[281] and Hotel Del Luna.[282] Sixteen of the tracks written by IU have been
released as singles, with eleven of those reaching the top of the Gaon Digital Chart, including
"Through the Night"[283] and "Friday",[284] the third and fifth best-selling singles in South Korea, with
more than six million[285] and five million sales, respectively.[286]
According to The Korea Herald, consolation is one of the core themes explored in IU's music, most
notably in "Through the Night" and "Dear Name", both songs both from Palette.[287]