Park was born on February 18, 1990, in Gwangju and grew up in Songpa District, Seoul. She has an older brother, Park Shin-won, a guitarist and composer.^[6] In 2001 and 2003 respectively, Park made her first two appearances in music videos for “…Do You Love Me!” and “Flower”, both by singer Lee Seung-hwan.^{[note 1]} She then underwent formal training in singing, dancing and acting under his supervision at Dream Factory.^[9]

After graduating from Youngpa Girls’ High School, Park attended Chung-Ang University. She studied there for eight years, then graduated with a degree in Theater in February 2016.^[15][16] Park received a service award at the convocation ceremony for her achievement as an artist ambassador for the university.^[17]