Jonghyun

Background

Kim Jong-hyun is a name that will continue to impact lives within and outside South Korea. He went by his mononym, Jonghyun, and was born on April 8, 1990, in Seoul, South Korea. He was an Aries and of Asian descent. His childhood was unique. He had one sister and was born into an average Korean family. He spent most of his childhood with his mother as his father was away most of the time. He clung to music as an escape and dropped out of high school in the 10th grade to follow his passions. He subsequently enrolled at Myongji University.

He played in various bands in high school, one of which was called Zion. He was scouted by SM Entertainment in 2005 and placed in the boy group SHINEE in 2008. Their debut was in May of the same year. In 2010, he joined SM The Ballad, a splinter group, and was one of the 20 artists on the ‘Let’s Go’ single. After nine years with SHINEE, he debuted his solo career in 2015 with an extended play called “Base.” He held his first solo concert in the same year, selling out each show, and then released his second compilation album in 2017. The album was called “Story Op.2.” The K-pop singer was working on a new album that was to be released in 2018. However, after his tragic passing, “Poet | Artist” was released posthumously in January 2018.

He had more fame than most people get in a generation. He was full of life and died by suicide on December 18, 2017, at 27 years old. His death was linked to depression from his struggles with fame. He was survived by his sister and parents, who set up a foundation in his honor to help struggling young artists.