Jonghyun (SHINee) Profile, Bio, & Facts

Jonghyun (종현) was a South Korean singer-songwriter and a member of the boy group SHINee under SM Entertainment. He debuted solo on January 12, 2015, with his first mini-album ‘Base’.  He was also a part of the project group S.M. THE BALLAD.

Jonghyun (SHINee) Profile

Jonghyun (SHINee) Facts:

Early Life

– Jonghyun was born in Seoul, South Korea.
– He went to Seoul Changshin Elementary School and Dongseong Middle School.
– He attended Seoul Applied Music High School and later passed his high school graduation academic qualification examination.
– During middle school, he played the bass in a band and performed at many events.

Personal Life

– He graduated with a bachelor’s from Cheongwoon University (Applied Music) and later gained his master’s degree from Myongji University Graduate School (Film and Musical Studies).
– He has an older sister named Kim Song Dam.
– Jonghyun said the biggest turning point in his life wasn’t when he got into SM Entertainment or when he debuted but was when he dropped out of school in the 10th grade as his life deviated from the majority. His second turning point was when he started working in radio. (Esquire May 2017)
– Ever since he was young, he loved to imagine and get engrossed in philosophical questions. (Esquire May 2017)
– His guilty pleasure was making music with the deliberate intention of stimulating people’s imaginations without telling them his intentions. (SBS Audio)
– He gained a scar above his left eyelid from a fall in the bathroom during A.Mi.Go promotions.
– He liked working in the radio because he felt he was ‘going to work” every day like normal people.
– He was sensitive to scents and liked the scent of musk and woods. (Harper’s Bazaar Dec 2016)
– Fans call him ‘big dam’ and Key ‘little dam’ because of how much they cry while Minho is nicknamed ‘dam repairperson’ because he always consoles them when they cry.
– He once threatened to eat all of Taemin’s ice cream if he didn’t get out of bed which was a trick he learned from Onew.
– He often got lost in deep thoughts while listening to music.
– His mother was the director of a kindergarten.
– He wasn’t a fan of traveling and loved to stay at home.
– He had an ankle injury due to being mobbed by fans and eventually had to get surgery.
– He enjoyed watching movies, dancing, writing lyrics, and playing the piano as his hobbies.
– His official color was blue, and his fans were called “blingers” because of his nickname “Bling Bling Jonghyun.”
– He was bad with directions and used to get lost easily. He once told a taxi driver the way to his old place and then felt too embarrassed to correct himself, and ended up taking another taxi home.
– He dated actress Shin Se-kyung from 2010 to 2011.
– Jonghyun’s ideal type was a cute girl with lots of charm who shows her cute side and flirts a lot.
– Before he used to listen to R&B, jazz and soul songs but after becoming a DJ, his music tastes broadened and he started listening to various genres of music. (SBS Audio)
– He was enrolled in a doctorate program at the Myongji University Graduate School  (Film/Musical Studies) when he passed away.

Career

– He was the main vocalist in SHINee.
– He began training in the S.M. Casting System in 2005.
– He wrote the group’s songs, Obsession and Juliette, which earned them trophies on music shows.
– In August 2015, he had his first solo concert titled “The Story by Jonghyun.”
– He is one of the K-pop idols who has one of the most songs copyrighted under his name.
– He was a songwriter and wrote many songs for other artists including “Gloomy Clock” by IU, “Red Candle” by Son Dambi, “No More” by Lim Kim, and “Breathe” by Lee Hi.
– He hosted a popular radio show called “JongHyun’s Blue Night” until March 9, 2017.
– He authored a book titled “Diphylleia Grayi.”
– He ranked 27 for The Most Handsome Faces of 2017.
– He has a game named after him called “Jonghyun’s Game” and is famous on the variety show “Ask Us Anything.”
– He was part of an SM unit called “The Ballad” with other SM singers like Changmin (TVXQ), Yesung (Super Junior), Zhang LiYin, Taeyeon (SNSD), Zhoumi (Super Junior), Krystal (f(x)), Chen (EXO).
– His song “Moon” from his first studio album “She Is” was sent to the moon in 2020 through Project Mora, a “moon museum,” by storing the information inside a capsule.

Likes & Dislikes

– Jonghyun enjoyed horror films and thrillers and one of his favorite movies was “Phone Booth.”
– He didn’t like instant foods.
– He liked winters over summers.
– He liked hero genres. (Esquire May 2017)
– He loved to write and produce songs.
– He preferred baby girls over baby boys.
– He loved to eat spicy food and meat.
– His favorite perfume was Hermes Voyage perfume.

Abilities

– He was proficient in playing the guitar, bass, and piano.
– He was skilled in imitating a goat and Michael Jackson.
– He was ambidextrous.
– He was not shy or scared of the camera at all.

Personality & Habits

– He said he is the type of person who likes being in a space he can understand and is used to.
– He used to wake up the earliest among all the members.
– He answered phone calls within two seconds.
– He had a curious personality. (Harper’s Bazaar Dec 2016)
– Other members said that he had a habit of singing very loudly in the shower.
– He used to sleep with his eyes open sometimes and had a habit of talking fast when he was nervous.
– He stated that he was a fundamentally pessimistic person and had always shown depressive feelings. (Esquire May 2017)

Suicide by Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

– In December 2017, Jonghyun rented an apartment in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam District for two days and on December 18, 2017, he checked in at the apartment. His sister reported concerns of a possible suicide later that evening as he had sent messages like ‘last goodbye’ and ‘say I did well’.
– Police and rescue workers found him unconscious at 6:10 PM in the apartment and brought him to Konkuk University Hospital but unfortunately, he was pronounced dead at 6:32 PM.
– He is believed to have died from carbon monoxide poisoning as the investigators found coal burning on the frying pan when they entered his apartment. At the family’s request, no post-mortem was conducted. 

Struggle with Depression

– Jonghyun revealed he once came back home drunk, woke up his entire sleeping family, and asked his mom and sister if they were happy. They replied in affirmation and he got envious that they could reply so easily and started sobbing telling them ‘he will try to be happy’ too. (Esquire May 2017)
– He revealed that he was having a difficult time physically and mentally and expressed that he would reduce the amount of work for the sake of his body and mental health. (Harper’s Bazaar Dec 2016)
– He said that he quit radio due to ‘personal reasons’ and he worded it precisely because he didn’t want people to press for the reason. He stated that he would like to return if he felt his personal matters were healed. (Esquire May 2017)
– He sent a suicide note to his close friend Nine9 before his concert on December 9, 2017. In his note, he revealed his struggles with fame and “devouring” depression. Nine9 said that she tried her best to help him but it only postponed his death, not prevent it. (Allkpop)

Major Works

– His popular songs include “Lonely”, “End of a Day”, “Moon” and “Shinin”.

Awards

– Jonghyun won the “Excellence Award – Radio” in 2015 at the MBC Entertainment Awards.
– He also won the “Hallyu Special Award” at the Soompi Awards in 2019.

SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLES
Instagram: @jonghyun.948
Twitter: @realjonghyun90

Streaming Platform Links
Genie | Spotify | Bugs | Melon | Apple Music | Deezer

Jonghyun (SHINee) Photos

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