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Shinhwa (Hangul: 신화, Hanja: 神話) is a South Korean boy band that debuted on 24 March 1998 with six members: Eric Mun, Lee Min-woo, Kim Dong-wan, Shin Hye-sung, Jun Jin and Andy Lee. It has enjoyed success alongside Sechs Kies, g.o.d., Fly to the Sky, Turbo, Fin. K.L., H.O.T. and S.E.S.. Shinhwa is the Korean word for myth or legend.^[1][2][3]

Shinhwa was initially formed under SM Entertainment; however, it moved to Good Entertainment in July 2003, upon the expiration of their contract. Whilst under Good Entertainment as Shinhwa, each of the members pursued their own solo careers under individual companies. The group also mentored Korean boy band Battle. In 2011, members of the group formed Shinhwa Company to continue to perform together. They made their comeback to the music industry in March 2012, after a four year hiatus, during which the band members served individual mandatory military services, with the release of their tenth album The Return and concert tour.

Group members[link]

History[link]

1998-1999: Formation and debut[link]

In order to capitalize on the success of boy band H.O.T. and girl group S.E.S., created by Lee Soo Man, producer and co-founder of SM Entertainment. Lee scouted for possible candidates to create another band to match their standards.

The first member scouted was Shin Hye Sung, who attended Granada Hills High School, after a stand-out audition in Los Angeles, California. Andy Lee was then chosen to join the group as he was once a candidate for H.O.T. At that time his parents prohibited him from joining H.O.T because he was too young. Eric Mun joined not long after Andy. Eric attended John Burroughs Middle School located in Los Angeles, CA and Sunny Hills High School located in Fullerton, CA. Following Eric came Lee Min Woo, who was discovered by a SM scout when he won 1st place at a student dance competition. Kim Dong Wan was spotted by a scout on the street and was initially interrested in acting, but joined after he saw a preview video of the existing members. Finally, Jun Jin made it as the final member through an audition backed by his high school friend, Kangta. Among the six, only two had had previous exposure to the media; Eric and Andy were introduced in 1997 as rappers in fellow SM group S.E.S.'s song "I'm Your Girl".

With the formation complete, the six-member group, named Shinhwa, debuted under SM Entertainment on 24 March 1998 with a performance of their first single "해결사" (The Solver) on KM Music Tank. Their second single, "으샤으샤" (Eusha Eusha), is a light-hearted track where they adopted a cute image to match the concept of the song, complete with outfit in white and blue colors. Their third single, "천일유혼" (Sharing Forever) also charted well but was not as successful as the previous two. However, they were accused of being another copy of H.O.T. and were involved in controversy when a tragic water accident occurred, and "으샤으샤" (Eusha Eusha), which was about a fun trip at the beach, was used as a reminder of the accident.^{[citation needed]} Hence, their debut album Resolver did not perform as well as expected and the band almost disbanded.^[4]

Shinhwa's second album, T.O.P., was released on 19 April 1999. It garnered considerable success with its title song. The album debuted at #4 and peaked at #3, selling 377,500 copies and charting for 24 weeks on the Korean monthly chart.^[5] With the release of T.O.P, Shinhwa began to move away from their "cute" image to an edgier image concept. Riding on the success of their second album, the group received the "1998's Best Music Video from a new male pop group" award from M.Net, their first major music award.

[edit] 2000-2001: Only One and Hey, Come On!

Shinhwa's third album, Only One, was released on May 27, 2000. The album was as successful as Shinhwa's previous two albums, selling approximately 423,873 copies.^[6] It debuted at number one and was the band's first number one album. It contained three successful singles: "Only One", "All Your Dreams", and "First Love". The album spent approximately 24 weeks on the charts.

With the success of Only One, Shinhwa won three awards that year: the SBS Gayo "Popularity Award", the KMTV song "Bonsang Award", and the "Popular Singers Award". Their revised dancing style also garnered them much popularity, as it took after the likes of popular American boy bands N'Sync and Backstreet Boys. The group once again underwent a drastic change in appearance, taking on a distinctly gothic image, with most of the members bleaching their hair. On January 13 and January 14 of that year, Shinhwa also held one their first concerts ever, entitled First Mythology.

Shinhwa's fourth album, Hey, Come On!, was released on June 8, 2001, debuting at #3 with the lead single "Hey, Come On!" rapidly climbing up the music charts. The album's release coincided with the rise of the Korean Wave, spreading the group's popularity overseas. The album was a strong seller and managed to sell 430,706 copies.^[7] Though a success, Shinhwa promoted the album with only one single. In yet another change in appearance, the members took on a cleaner look, moving completely away from the goth image in the previous album. Hey, Come On! charted for 28 weeks on the Korean monthly chart and was ranked #11 on the 2001 year-end chart.^[8]

While their album was a stronger seller, Shinhwa was associated with controversies at the time, giving the group a heavy publicity with the absence of group member Andy and the alleged copying of Shinhwa's popular single, "Hey, Come On!" by Taiwanese boy band, Energy.

On January 31, 2002, Shinhwa released a compilation album entitled, My Choice. The album featured some of the members' favorite songs and some of their most popular tracks as well. In contrast to Hey, Come On!'s strong sales, My Choice was met with moderate success, selling more than 171,368 copies^[9] and debuted and peaked at #4 before it was dropped from the Korean monthly Chart. However, when the yearly chart was released, My Choice ranked #31, selling a total of 183,098 copies.^[10]

[edit] 2002-2003: Perfect Man, Wedding and leaving SM Entertainment

A few months after the release of My Choice, Shinhwa released their fifth studio album, Perfect Man, on March 29, 2002. The album also marked the return of member Andy Lee. The album was accompanied with another change in the group's appearance as they moved away from their "clean" look into a more preppy style by sporting trendy clothing and styles. Perfect Man debuted at #1 on the Korean monthly chart, becoming Shinhwa's second #1 album. The title track became popular among their fans, letting Shinhwa promote the album with a second single, "I Pray 4 U". The album was once again a strong seller, selling 355,333 copies^[11] and was #14 on the year end chart "Top 100 Albums in 2002" where the album sales was 362,639 copies.^[10] It charted for approximately 23 weeks.

On August 25, 2003, Shinhwa experienced one of its first international breakthroughs in Asia when Perfect Man was ranked #10 on the Singapore-Mandarin chart. With this recognition, they were chosen to be Korea's representative in the POP Asia 2002 ceremony in Japan and were later invited to be Korea's representative in Japan's Asia Dream concert (ABU award ceremony).

Towards the end of 2002, Shinhwa made history in the Korean music industry by becoming the longest-running Korean boy band with the release of its sixth album, Wedding, on December 6, 2002.^[12] They also became the second artist in South Korea to release two albums in a single year. Wedding debuted and peaked at #3 and sold 273,714 copies.^[13]

With the expiration of the group's contract, SM Entertainment offered them a second contract but the group rejected it and signed with new company, Good Entertainment. However, they had to go to court to retain the use of their name. Which they won and duly moved from SM Entertainment to Good Entertainment. Because the contract with Good Entertainment did not begin until 2004, Shinhwa members pursued solo activities in 2003.

Shinhwa released a compilation album entitled Winter Story 2003-2004 on December 30, 2003, which sold over 100,000 copies.^[14] The lead single "Young Gunz" was often requested at radio stations. Because it was a success, Shinhwa began releasing Winter Story every winter afterwards.

Shinhwa had another live concert from April 18 to April 20, 2003 named The Everlasting Mythology. They also went on their Winter Story Tour, which traveled to six cities: Seoul, Pusan, Daejeon, Incheon, Daegu, and Kwangju as well as going to Japan with a concert call SHINHWA First Live in Tokyo, where they also held a Japanese fan meeting called Have Fun With Shinhwa On M.Net Tour.

The members of Shinhwa pursued solo activities in 2003. Min Woo went solo under the name "M," releasing his first album entitled Un-touch-able, while Hye Sung collaborated with Kangta and Lee Ji Hoon for a project group S. Jun Jin branched out into acting with the drama Forbidden Love alongside actress Kim Tae Hee. Andy and Jun Jin also participated in a Korean sitcom Nonstop 4 as well as Banjun Drama. Eric also began acting in dramas soon after acting in several CFs.

[edit] 2004-2005: Brand New and continuous success

Shinhwa's first album with Good Entertainment was entitled Brand New. It debuted at #3 and peaked at #1 in November, selling 320,337 copies.^[15][16] Unlike their previous albums, Brand New had a different beat, transitioning from bubblegum pop to dance songs. The group heavily promoted Brand New with four singles: "Angel", "Oh!", "Crazy", and title track. The album was ranked #4 on the 2004 year-end chart.^[17]

On December 10, 2004, Shinhwa was awarded the Daesang for Best Artist of The Year for the first time at the Seoul Gayo Daesang Awards. Several weeks later, on December 29, Shinhwa was awarded their second Daesang at the 2004 SBS Gayo Daejun Awards, winning two of the possible 4 Daesang in that year with Rain and Lee Soo Young receiving the other two. In 2004, of all musical artists and groups, Shinhwa received the most awards, totaling thirteen or more, from various places: the m.net KMTV Music Video Festival, Seoul Gayo Daesang, Golden Disc Awards and MBC, KBS, SBS Gayo Awards. The awards other than Best Artist of the Year included Best Male Artist, Best Dance Artist, and Overseas Choice Award.

After the success of Brand New they began touring. In August of that year, they held a Korea-China-Japan summer camp called Shinhwa Summer Story 2004. The camp was dedicated entirely for their non-Korean fans. Hundreds of non-Korean fans flew to Korea from all over Asia for the opportunity to spend a few days with the band. They also toured in Japan and held a concert, selling 13,000 tickets within a week.

In yet another change in appearance, Shinhwa's image matured from the preppy style in Perfect Man to a more sophisticated look. They began wearing black suits, which was rather uncommon among boy bands at that time. Although they previously dyed their hair in various colors (from purple to silver), in Brand New they stopped completely, leaving their hair in either brown or black. They also trimmed their hair to a neat style or cut it short, which was uncommon among boy bands because "shaggy hair" was in style.

Though they have written lyrics for their music before, Shinhwa took more creative control over their music and began writing a majority of their lyrics. Eric wrote some rap lyrics for some of the songs while Minwoo Lee took charge and began writing full lyrics. Some songs that he had written are: "All of My", "Oh", and "U". He later went on to write the song "Superstar" for the group Jewelry, which became a hit. The other members also co-wrote various other songs.

Although, Shinhwa was mostly on hiatus throughout 2005, they released two popular singles, "How Do I Say" and "Hey Dude!". They also held the Tropical Summer Story Festival concert. For a majority of 2005, Shinhwa hosted a reality show called Let's Coke Play Battle Shinhwa!. The show was almost identical to the American reality show, American Idol where people audition and sing, hoping to become singers. (see Notable Achievements below.) To end the year, Shinhwa released their second Winter Story album, Winter Story 2004-2005, selling in excess of 102,345 copies.^[18]

[edit] 2006: State of the Art and 1st Asia tour

On January 14, 2006, Shinhwa renewed their contract with Good Entertainment for another 3 years and on March 24, 2006, they celebrated their 8th anniversary, making them the longest-running boy band in Korea.

On May 11, 2006, Shinhwa returned to the K-pop scene, with the release of their eighth album, State of the Art, which debuted at #1. Brand New and State Of The Art became Shinhwa's first consecutive #1 albums in a row. Heavily promoted, the album sold approximately 215,641 copies domestically,^[19] with their lead single "Once in a Lifetime" being #1 on the Hottracks Sales Chart, followed by SG Wannabe's "3RD MASTERPIECE". Their second single, "Throw My Fist" debuted at #1 with Zhang Liyin's "Timeless" at #2. State Of The Art became the third best selling album for the year of 2006, behind SG Wannabe's 3RD MASTERPIECE and TVXQ's "O"-Jung. Ban.Hap. ("O"-正.反.合.).^[20]

After State of the Art, Shinhwa began working on their first Japanese album and single. To prepare for their Japanese album release, Shinhwa held a press conference in Japan on April 14, 2006 and performed at MNET's anniversary celebration in Japan on April 15, 2006. The press conference came as a result of Shinhwa's effort to break into the Japanese market, with the release of their first Japanese language single This is the Sun in Our Hearts on June 14, 2006, which debuted at #9 on the Oricon Chart, and their first official album, Inspiration #1, in Japan on August 16, 2006, which debuted at #4. Both sold in excess of 100,000 copies each. Shinhwa also had their first Asia tour that lasted 5 months. The tour started with their first concert on May 13, 2006 at the Olympic Park, Seoul, and reached Shanghai, Thailand, Singapore, Japan, as well as others locations for a total of 9 cities throughout Asia. Shinhwa also did concerts at Budokan Hall in Tokyo, and Osaka-jo Hall on September 24 and 26th as the part of their Asian Tour.

Their concert in Shanghai was successful; all tickets were sold out. When Shinhwa landed at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, almost 1,500 fans were waiting for them, causing a traffic jam around the airport and setting a record in China for having the most fans greet them in the airport. The members had to be escorted one by one out of the airport with personal bodyguards, including 40 policemen and 10 other personal bodyguards. At the concert, a sea of orange and balloons filled the concert. To underline Shinhwa's Shanghai concert as a success, the Chinese media stated that Shinhwa was "hotter than Bi or Lee Junki", two Korean celebrities who are very successful throughout Asia.

[edit] 2007: Solo activities, Volume 9 and 10th anniversary

In 2007, Shinhwa went on hiatus again. They also celebrated their 9th anniversary on March 24, 2007. With Shinhwa on hiatus, the members expanded their solo activities even further, including the members leaving Shinhwa's management company to start their own: M Rising (Min Woo), New Dream Entertainment (Andy),^[21] JF Story Entertainment (Jun Jin),^[22] H2 Entertainment (Dong Wan), and Top Class Entertainment (Eric). Dong Wan also released his first album entitled Kim Dongwan is on July 5, 2007.^[21] Min Woo released his third album on July 10, 2007^[23] and though he had intended to release his third album in the U.S.,^[24] he released it in Korea instead. Hye Sung released his second album on August 8, 2007.^[25] The three solo artists were successful and consider themselves friendly rivals.

The other members managed to pursue their own solo activities as well. Eric finished his drama Que Sera, Sera and although he is currently the only member in Shinhwa who hasn't pursued a solo singing career, reports have mentioned that this is a possibility in the near future.^{[citation needed]} Jun Jin, who released his first single the previous year, finished promoting it and was supposedly preparing for his first album, with the help of Min Woo, which would be released around September.^{[citation needed]} However, he did not release an album or single. Andy starred in the musical, "Music In My Heart (Season 3)."

In the midst of their solo activities, Shinhwa was said to be working on their ninth album. Originally set to be released on October 2007^[21] with tours from October to December, their ninth album was then pushed back to being released in December.^{[citation needed]} However, due to each of the members having hectic schedules, the album release date was pushed into March 2008.^{[citation needed]} While Shinhwa was not expected to release an album in 2007, they released their compilation album Winter Story 2007 on December 6, 2007,^[26] which debuted at #1 on the Korean monthly chart.^{[citation needed]}

Shortly after the release of Winter Story 2007, Shinhwa staged their Asia Concert with a two-day performance on the 8th and 9 December in Saitama, Japan followed by a concert in Shanghai. The concert's theme was "Forever Shinhwa" to commemorate Shinhwa's 9 years of activities and to announce the beginning of their 10th year together.^{[citation needed]}

Celebrating their anniversary, Shinhwa staged a 10th anniversary concert and released their 9th album.^[27] Because the concert was the last concert before the members left for the army, all 22,000 seats available for the concert were sold out.^[28]

After their 10th anniversary and the release of their 9th album, the members continued to work on their solo career. Dong Wan released his 2nd solo studio album and JunJin released his 1st solo studio album and joined Infinity Challenge as the 7th member. Min Woo released his 3rd solo studio album along with Hye Sung who also released his own 3rd solo studio album. Hyesung would then also release Part 2 of his 3rd album on January 2009. Eric would go on to star in a drama, Strongest Chil Woo. Dong Wan then released a single album and Jun Jin also released a mini album. Min Woo released another mini album in Summer of 2009 and Andy continued with his career as a musical actor and released his 2nd studio album.

2008-2011: Mandatory military service[link]

In October 2008 Eric enlisted for mandatory military service, with Dong Wan in November at an army training camp in Gongju, Chungcheongnam-do^[29] Both served non-active duty, e.g. they were public service workers, after undergoing four weeks of basic training. Jun Jin enlisted on October 22, 2009 at the Nonsan military camp in Chungcheongnam-do Province for four weeks of basic training and continued as a public service worker.^[30] On January 11, 2010, Andy also enlisted for mandatory military service and was the only member to serve 21 months of active duty.^[31] Min Woo was the last of the members to enlist in February 2010. He also served non-active duty after undergoing four weeks of basic training. Hye Sung is exempt from military service due to serious and recurring injuries in his knee substained during a concert in 2001.

On 30 October 2010, Eric was discharged from military service.^[32] Dong Wan was discharged on December 17 after serving 24 months as an administrative worker at the Seodaemun-gu District Office.^[33] Andy was discharged from active duty on October 31, 2011 from the Ministry of National Defense in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.^[34] Jun Jin was discharged on 14 November 2011,^[35] after working at the Gangnam Management Corporation, managing the culture center’s fitness club and parking lot.^[36] This was followed by Min Woo on March 2, 2012, after serving as a public service officer in Seoul Station.^[37]

[edit] 2011-present: Shinhwa Company and The Return

On 1 July 2011, Shinhwa became the first K-pop group to own their own entertainment company, when they established the 'Shinhwa Company', a joint venture agency for members to perform as a group. It is helmed by Eric and Min Woo as CEOs, with the remaining members are shareholders. The Company manages the group as a whole, whilst members' individual activities are managed by their respective agencies.^[38]

Open World Entertainment CEO, Seok-Woo Jang, holder of the rights to the name of Shinhwa, granted permission to use the name as long as they stay together as a group. Open World holds the rights to Shinhwa's overseas concerts with Shinhwa Company, and overseas licensing of the group's albums. Also, the heads of Top Class Entertainment and Liveworks Company, are directors of Shinhwa Company, with the former in charge of promotion and management in general, and the latter provides support regarding albums, concerts and promotions.^[39]

A press conference to lauch Shinhwa's comeback was held on 5 March 2012 at CGV cinema in Cheongdam-dong, which was also streamed live by Mnet Media.^[40] The group released their tenth studio album The Return on 23 March 2012, with pop-electro lead track "Venus", composed by Andrew Nelson and lyrics by Min Woo.^[41] The music video is directed by Kim Kwang Suk with a modern vampire theme and high intensity choreography.^[42] This was followed by their comeback concerts 2012 Shinhwa Grand Tour in Seoul: The Return at Olympic Gymnastics Arena on 24 and 25 March 2012, also marking their 14th anniversary.^[43] The tour continued onto Japan, China and Taiwan from the end of April.

Notable achievements[link]

Throughout its existence, Shinhwa has achieved many successes and has been awarded many honors. One of their first notable achievement was when they made history in the Korean music industry when they released their sixth album, Wedding on December 6, 2002, becoming the longest-running Korean boy band in existence. Shinhwa is still holding the record as they have not yet disbanded. In addition to becoming the longest-running boy band in South Korea, Shinhwa also holds the record for the only boy band to stay together for a decade and not lose members along the way nor add another one in (Member Andy's departure does not necessarily count as he came back into the group). Just as well, Shinhwa is also the only group to ever has all its member branch out to do solo activities with the group still together.^{[citation needed]} Shinhwa has sold an excess of 5 million records worldwide, an incredible feat for an Asian group and one of the highest album sales in Asia.

In July 2004, they were selected to represent Korea in the MTV Buzz Asia Awards along with Namie Amuro for Japan and F4 for Taiwan. They were also selected to sing at the finale. Shinhwa was also the most searched artist in the Yahoo! Singapore search engine for an entire week in 2004, becoming the first Korean artist to do so, on their first visit to Singapore in October 2004.

The group was also the face of Swiss watch brand Radoin Asia for a January 2005 campaign.

In March 2005, along with their management team, Good Entertainment, music channel, MNET and Coca-Cola, the group hosted a reality TV show, called "Let's Cokeplay Battle Shinhwa." The show, which set out to search for a new Shinhwa (new legend group), lasted 8 months long and attracted over 1,800 applicants throughout Korea to audition. The final show took place on November 4, 2005 at Olympic Park, Seoul, where Shinhwa members chose the 6 final members of the new Shinhwa from the 12 finalists. The 6 male winners (making the group now known as Battle), along with 2 other female finalists (as solos) immediately underwent training and debuted in 2006 under Good Entertainment.

A star was named after Shinhwa in 2005. In order to commemorate its launching, USC Korea, the official Korean partner USC (Universal Star Council), an American website that provides services for registering names for stars in the sky, offered a star to be named after them. The star is among the Aries constellation. Coincidentally, it matched the debut date of Shinhwa which falls on March 24, 1998. The star Shinhwa is the brightest among the more than 2 thousand stars with Korean names that can be seen with the naked eye. The star is best seen in November.^{[citation needed]}

In 2006, Shinhwa was chosen as best Korean singer overseas, according to a poll held by Arirang International Broadcasting. A vote was issued on the internet, allowing only foreigners to vote. Shinhwa's song "Once In A Lifetime" won 60% of the vote, beating Kang Ta, who came in second with 20.3 percent followed by TVXQ with 17.3 percent. Super Junior took fourth place followed by Bada, Se7en, BoA, SG Wannabe, Buzz, and Baek Ji-young, with all of them winning less than 1 percent of the votes.^[44] Shinhwa won the award again in 2007 for their song Pretty, beating TVXQ by a close percentage of 50.76% to 48.55%. The other candidates, Super Junior, Se7en, Rain, Big Bang, BoA, SS501, Paran and Jang Nara, all received once again less than one percent of the votes.^[45]

Styles[link]

Musical style[link]

Shinhwa has changed musical styles many times throughout their existence, beginning with typical bubblegum pop songs (as seen with their song Eusha, Eusha) like other pop singers at the time. They also did regular pop songs as well, with the release of their 4th album Hey, Come On!. Shinhwa would continued to release pop music (although they have done alternative rock as well) until their contract with SM Entertainment ran up. It would be in the release of their 7th album, Brand New that Shinhwa would transition into dance songs. With the release of their 8th album, State Of The Art, Shinhwa can still be seen having dance songs as well as, though their hit song, Once In A Lifetime shows a more slow pop style. Because they have change many musical styles over the years, Shinhwa have created a variation of popular music for their fans and general K-pop listeners, though throughout the years, they have as well created their own distinct style of music.

While Shinhwa is known best as artists who do dance songs, the members have branch out to do various styles. Min Woo's first album show him as an R&B singer, though his #1 hit song, Just One Night is more of a jazz genre. His later albums would be R&B/dance vein of his previous albums. Hye Sung have branch out to do ballads song, as ballads are becoming popular throughout South Korea. Dong Wan,Jun Jin and Andy had also followed within his footsteps, doing ballad songs.

Dance style[link]

Shinhwa is often hailed as one of the best dance groups in South Korea, winning many dance awards such as M.net/KM music video festival "Best Dance Music Video" and Best Music Video For The Dance Section Awards. Their dances are often filled with heavy choreography, with a few free style moves once in a while (often from Min Woo). They also feature break dancers in the background of many of their performances as well as female dancers dancing with and around them. Shinhwa's own members Min Woo and Jun Jin also break dance and often teach it to their fans. Shinhwa's unique style of dancing is credited to member Min Woo, who is their main choreographer (although they do have another choreographer as well). Min Woo was discovered by an SM Entertainment scout while he was in a dance group, which can explain why he has choreographed some of Shinhwa's most technically challenging dances. Jun Jin, another member who is skilled in dancing as well assists Min Woo. Their dance moves has been describe as "evil," "complicated," and "difficult-to-follow" with few people being able to copy their dance moves.

Image[link]

Like most popular bands, Shinhwa has change their appearances various times. In their early days, Shinhwa were generally marketed as a typical boy band with cute looks and matching outfits (as seen with their performances and music videos). They later transitioned this "cute" image concept into a more darker tone with the release of their second and third albums, bleaching their hair and wearing dark make up. Their outfits also matched their appearances, being either shiny or dark. With the release of their fourth album, Shinhwa would change from the gothic style of before into a much more simple and cleaner look. Their fifth album would change them into a more preppy style. With the style, Shinhwa would began to sport mondern trend clothing and styles. Shinhwa would continue this preppy style into their sixth album, though it was obvious that they were beginning to mature their looks. When they released their seventh album, Shinhwa began to change their appearance once again, wearing black suits and looking significantly more sophisticated than most boy bands at the time. They also stopped with the dyeing hair and heavy make up, as well as leaving their hair shaggy and long. Shinhwa's eighth album continued their sophisticated look, with the group wearing black suits for most of their performances. For their 9th album, Shinhwa's new look was displayed in their MV Run, in which they describe it to be "Mexican Mafia". Shinhwa has adopted a "vampire" concept mixed with an aristocratically Greek-gods look for their 10th album, The Return.

Discography[link]

Albums chart[link]

The chart positions are based on data from Music Industry Association Korea. Unlike the Oricon Chart and the Billboard Chart, the charts are released monthly, not weekly.

Tours and concerts[link]

• First Live Concert: The First Mythology (2001)
• Second Live Concert: The Everlasting Mythology (18–20 April 2003)
• Winter Story Tour 2003-04 (31 December 2003 to 14 February 2004)
• Winter Story Tour 2004-05: Shinhwa Live in Seoul (December 2004)
• Shinhwa - 2005 Japan Tour - Osaka (21 January) and Tokyo International Forum (23 January)
• Tropical Summer Story Festival (June 2005)
• Shinhwa 2006 Asia Tour: State of the Art - Seoul (13–14 May), Shanghai (8 July), Busan (15 July), Bangkok (19 August), Singapore (10 September), Tokyo (24 September) and Osaka (26 September)
• 2006 Japan Tour Inspiration#1 in Tokyo - Nippon Budokan, Tokyo (September 2006)
• Shinhwa Must Go On: 10th Anniversary Live in Seoul - Olympic Gymnastics Arena (29 and 30 March 2008)
• 2012 Shinhwa Grand Tour: The Return (2012)

Awards[link]

Controversy[link]

"Hey, Come On!"[link]

In July 2002, Taiwanese boy band Energy covered Shinhwa's song, Hey, Come On! causing tensions between the fans of Shinhwa and Energy. As it was later noted, Jeff Vincent and Peter Rafelson who wrote Hey, Come On! had sold the song to Energy, therefore, it was legal. Even so, fans of Shinhwa were angry over that fact. The Taiwanese group 5566 also covered Shinhwa's "Dark", a song included in Shinhwa's 4th album.

Leaving SM Entertainment[link]

In 2003 SM Entertainment's 5-year contract with Shinhwa ended, thus allowing the band to either sign another contract or switch label. Lee Soo Man, the head of SM Entertainment, only wanted to sign on Erik, but due to his offer, he rejected. He wanted to stick with the group as Shinhwa and not go solo. The band rejected the offer and switched over to the fairly new management at the time, Good Entertainment. The movement sparked controversy when Lee denied their permission to use the name Shinhwa with the different company. However, after the argument was taken to court, Shinhwa won, allowing them to hold the rights to use the name "Shinhwa", which they bought with their own money.

See also[link]

• K-pop
• Contemporary culture of South Korea
• Korean music
• List of Korean musicians

References[link]

External links[link]

• Shinhwa Company official homepage (Korean)
• Shinhwa Company official YouTube Channel
• Shinhwa Good Entertainment official homepage (2004 - 2008) (Korean)

Jun Jin (Hangul: 전진; Hanja: 前進, literally: "move forward") was born Park Choong Jae (Hangul: 박충재; Hanja: 朴忠裁) on 19 August 1980. He is a South Korean singer, actor and entertainer, known as a member and rapper of six-member boy band Shinhwa. He debuted as a dancer and rapper in Shinhwa in 1998 but started singing small parts in 2002; the release of Shinhwa's 5th album. He debut as a solo artist in November 2006 with single Love Doesn't Come.

Biography[link]

Jun Jin was the first born child of singer Charlie Park (Hangul: 찰리박), also known as Park Young Chul (Hangul: 박영철), who debuted with a solo album Casanova Sarang in 2004. Jun Jin's birth mom left him and his two younger siblings when he was young, due to his father's wandering lifestyle. His father remarried, but the two divorced during Jun Jin's teenage years. His father's third wife proved to be a loving mother as she took care of Jun Jin like her own son. She also located Jun Jin's birth mother and reconnected the two. Although he wasn't able to see her frequently, the two did promise to keep in touch.

1998: Debut with Shinhwa[link]

Backed by his high school friend, An Chil Hyun, Jun Jin was able to make it through the audition as a member for Shinhwa. He debuted with them as a rapper, alongside Eric Mun and Andy Lee. However, in the release of Shinhwa's fifth album Perfect Man, he began singing small parts. He would still continue to sing small parts with the release of Shinhwa's later albums until the band switched to a different label, Good Entertainment. Under Good Enter, Jun Jin advanced further, singing a solo song entitled "Painfully Loving You." Jun Jin soon released a single, "Sarangee Ohji Anahyo" (Love Doesn't Come), thus starting his solo career.

Jun Jin starred in the hit 2004 KBS drama "Forbidden Love" in 2004, alongside popular actress Kim Tae Hee. He also starred in various other Banjun Dramas as well. In 2009, he and the other members of Infinite Challenge appeared in an episode of MBC drama Queen of Housewives.

2006-2007: Solo artist[link]

Jun Jin released his first single in November 2006 titled "사랑이 오지 않아요" (translated to "Love Doesn't Come"), with a total of five songs, including the title song and its instrumental. Surprisingly, he decided to go into ballad even though he is known for his strong dance skills. However, this is because ballads are popular in Korea right now; dance artists such as Baek Ji Young and even Jun Jin's own group Shinhwa have released ballads for their lead singles as well. The single did fairly well on the chart, though not a major hit. In December 2006, Jun Jin was hospitalised; although recommended to stay in the hospital, he quickly left and returned to his promotional schedule.

In January 2007, Jun Jin took part in the Hallyu Festival in Osaka which also featured band mate Lee Min Woo, Kangta of H.O.T, SG Wannabe and actor Song Seung Heon at the Osaka Dome.^[1]

In early January 2007, Jun Jin filmed a music video with Taiwanese singer Linda Liao. The music video was by the Korean group, The Name, titled "It Could Be Love." He later recorded a duet with Lao, entitled "Forever" and also has a version in Mandarin. He later released a repackage version of "Love Doesn't Come," which included the duet with Lao. The repackage version fared better in sales, selling 44,724 at the end of 2007.^[2] In mid-2007, Jun Jin left his group's management company and set up his own call JF Story Entertainment ^[3] to concentrate on his solo career more. But has since been managed by Open World Entertainment.

2008-2011: Television and military service[link]

He released his first full length solo album on 25 April 2008. Titled New Decade, the first single from the album was "Wa". The single encountered controversy when the music video was given a 19+ rating due to sexual content, in effect banning the video from major networks.^[4] On 26 April, Jun Jin held his first solo concert at Shibuya Public Hall, Tokyo. An extra show was added when the 2,500 tickets sold out in five minutes.^[5]

Jun Jin appeared variety programme Infinite Challenge firstly in April 2008 as a replacement for Haha, officially known as 'the 7th member' in June 2008. Later he joined We Got Married in early 2009 with actress Lee Shi Young as his "wife". The couple was dubbed "Gundam Couple" due to Lee Shi Young's obsession with Gundam. They officially departed from the show on May 3, 2009 due to the restructuring of the show's format.

He later released a mini album, titled Fascination. The title-track "Hey Ya" featuring Son Dam Bi and Big Tone did fairly well on the charts but a track on the mini album titled "Like A Fool" featuring his "wife" Lee Shi Young managed to fare better on the charts. The album was a mild success.

Jun Jin enlisted for mandatory military service on 22 October 2009 as a public service worker after undering four weeks of basic training Nonsan military camp in Chungcheongnam-do Province.^[6] He was discharged on 14 November 2011,^[7] after working at the Gangnam Management Corporation, managing the culture center’s fitness club and parking lot. He then participated at his agency’s 1st Open World Festival Tokyo on 26 November.^[8]

2012-present[link]

Since being discharged he held the Jun Jin: The singer's Christmas Day fan meeting in Taipei on 25 December 2011.^[9]

In March 2012, Jun Jin played the male lead in tne music video of "U.F.O" by girl group Stellar, who is produced by band mate Eric, under his agency Top Class Entertainment.^[10]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Singles[link]

Filmography[link]

Television series[link]

• 2003 - Nonstop 4
• 2004 - Forbidden Love aks Nine-Tailed Fox
• 2005 - Let's Go To The Beach

Variety shows[link]

• 2005: Love Letter (ep 1 to 14) - SBS
• 2005: X-Man - SBS
• 2006: Heroine 6
• 2006: New X-Man - SBS
• July 2006: Infinity Challenge - Quiz Challenge with Shinhwa (Season 4 Episode 11 & 12) - MBC
• April 2008: Infinite Challenge - replaced Haha as 'the 7th member' host - MBC
• 2008: Family Outing (Guest ep 9 & 10) - SBS
• 2009: We Got Married - regular partnered with Lee Shi Young - MBC

Music videos[link]

• "U.F.O" by Stellar - March 2012

References[link]

External links[link]

• Open World Entertainment - Jun Jin's Official Site

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (November 2008)

Lee Min Woo (Hangul: 이민우, Hanja: 李玟雨), mononymously credited as M as a solo artist, was born on 28 July 1979. He is a South Korean entertainer, known as a member of six-member boy band Shinhwa. Lee was the fourth member picked for the group. As part of Shinhwa, he has recorded nine studio albums as a vocalist and a rapper. Though he left the group's management company in early 2007, Lee has stated that he is still part of Shinhwa and that the band will never disband.

Lee first started his solo act in 2003 when Shinhwa was on hiatus. He has since released three studio albums. Aside from singing, Lee has also appeared in Korean television dramas and movies, with and without his bandmates. Throughout his career with Shinhwa, Lee has changed his looks along with his bandmates. From having a cute image in the early days and transitioning to various looks, Lee and his bandmates never lost their strong fanbase.