Collar (commonly stylised in all caps) is a Hong Kong girl group formed from a television channel ViuTV's reality talent show King Maker IV operated by the broadcaster HK Television Entertainment in 2021. The group consists of seven members: Sumling Li, Garie Shum (Gao), Winka Chan, Ivy So, Rejena Simkhada (Day), Marife Yau (Marf), and Candy Wong. They debuted on 12 January 2022, with the first single "Call My Name!".

History

2021–22: Formation

In July 2018, ViuTV's reality talent competition series King Maker[zh] started scouting for potential artists, and after three seasons, three boy bands, namely Mirror, Error and P1X3L were formed, and some contestants debuted as solo singers. Nonetheless, since the first season of show started, there was no girl group that had formed. Hence, ViuTV created King Maker IV as a platform to scout for a brand new girl group in June 2021.

On 25 December 2021, ViuTV announced the winner, first runner-up and second runner-up of King Maker IV, Marife Yau, Garie Shum, and Rejena Simkhada, who were secured the spots of upcoming members of the group. On 12 January 2022, 8 contestants from King Maker IV were announced from the Top 20 of the season, formed the group through a press conference named "Hold Your Breath" which held in Harbour City. In the press conference, the name of the group "Collar", along with five other members, Sumling Li, Natalie So, Winka Chan, Ivy So and Candy Wong, were announced in the lineup.

The music video of Collar's debut "Call My Name!" was released a day after the formation of the group. On 24 January 2022, Pocari Sweat, a Japanese sports drink brand, appointed Collar as endorsers of the brand's 40th anniversary in Harbour City, marking the group's first commercial endorsement.

Collar gained their first peak chart in Metro Radio with their debut "Call My Name!" on 19 February 2022. On 30 May 2022, Collar's first variety show We Are Collar[zh] was broadcast on ViuTV.

Besides "Call My Name!", Collar also released three other singles in 2022, namely "Never-never Land[zh]", "Gotta Go![zh]" and "Off/On[zh]". On 23 December 2022, Collar received a Cantopop rookie award at the Yahoo Asia Multiverse Buzz Awards 2022[zh], being the first award the group received. The group also received rookie awards at the 2022 Metro Radio Music Awards[zh] and Ultimate Song Chart Awards Presentation 2022 on 29 December 2022 and 1 January 2023, respectively. They were also awarded "Best Groups Bronze Award" at Ultimate Song Chart Awards Presentation 2022.

2023: Realignment as a seven-member group

On 10 May 2023, Natalie So announced her leaving from the group in a statement of social media, stating that her mental injury suffered from her boyfriend Moses Li after the 2022 Mirror concert incident[zh] had caused trauma that “could not be healed”, and she was unable to cope with the show business.

Name

According to the group leader Garie Shum, the group's name "Collar" has two meanings: first, it refers to a collar of the shirt, which indicates a person can't breathe when the collar is fastened, means every performance can "hold your breath" and makes the audience hold their breath; second, it refers to a clavicle, which is the most attractive body part of women and defines Collar becomes the most attractive girl group.

Members

Current Members

English nameTraditional Chinese NameMember AliasBirthdayRank in King Maker IV
Sumling Li[zh]李芯駖Sumling(1986-04-18)18 April 1986(age 40)4
Garie Shum[zh] (Leader)沈貞巧Gao(1993-01-07)7 January 1993(age 33)2
Winka Chan[zh]陳泳伽Winka(1998-06-16)16 June 1998(age 27)7
Ivy So[zh]蘇雅琳Ivy(2001-08-04)4 August 2001(age 24)10
Rejena Simkhada[zh]許軼Day(2002-06-04)4 June 2002(age 23)3
Marife Yau邱彥筒Marf(2002-06-11)11 June 2002(age 23)1
Candy Wong[zh]王家晴Candy(2002-12-19)19 December 2002(age 23)8

Former Member

English nameTraditional Chinese NameMember AliasBirthdayRank in King Maker IV
Natalie So[zh]蘇芷晴So Ching(1996-01-31)31 January 1996(age 30)6

Discography

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions
TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
HK
"Call My Name![zh]"202214Non-album singles
"Never-never Land[zh]"2
"Gotta Go![zh]"24
"Off/On[zh]"14
"The Bright Side[zh]"2023
"Take Me Away[zh]"
"idc[zh]"
"Speak Love[zh]"
"Atypical[zh]"
"Back In The Game[zh]"2024
"Chosen Family[zh]"
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart.

Filmography

Television shows

YearTitlePlatformNote
2021King Maker IVViuTV
2022We Are COLLAR[zh]
2023Shiny Summer – COLLAR in Japan[zh-yue]
2024Happy COLLAR[zh-yue]

Concerts

YearDateNameVenueNote
202422–24 MarchCollar Crush Live 2024Star Hall, KITEC

Awards and nominations

Award ceremonyYearCategoryResult
Yahoo Asia Multiverse Buzz Awards2022[zh]Music Rookies (Groups)Won
Metro Radio Music Awards2022[zh]Best RookiesWon
Ultimate Song Chart Awards Presentation2022Best GroupsBronze
Best Rookie GroupsGold
Chill Club Chart Award Presentation2022/23[zh]Best Female RookiesGold

External links