Jonghyun

Kim Jong-hyun (Korean: 김종현; April 8, 1990 – December 18, 2017), known mononymously as Jonghyun, was a South Korean singer-songwriter, record producer, radio host, and author under the SM Entertainment label. He was the vocalist of the South Korean boy band Shinee for nine years, releasing twelve albums with the group in both Korean and Japanese. He also participated in SM Entertainment's project group, SM the Ballad, for the release of two EP albums.

Jonghyun was also a solo artist, beginning in January 2015 with the release of his first EP album, Base. It peaked at number one on both the Billboard World Albums Chart and the Gaon Album Chart. On September 17 the same year, Jonghyun released a compilation album, Story Op.1. His debut studio album, She Is, was released on May 24, 2016, followed by his second compilation album, Story Op.2, on April 24, 2017. Jonghyun began his first solo concert tour, The Story by Jonghyun, on October 2, 2015. This was followed by three further concert tours in later years. He was regarded as one of the best vocalists in South Korea. He also received praise for his artistic control and involvement in the creation of his music.

Jonghyun remained musically active as the vocalist of Shinee and as a solo artist until his death on December 18, 2017, when he died by suicide. His final album, Poet | Artist, was released posthumously on January 23, 2018. It was announced, prior to the release, that all profits from the album would be given to Jonghyun's mother and be used to start a charity foundation. In September 2018, the Shiny Foundation was established by Jonghyun's family to help struggling young artists.

Early life and education

Jonghyun was born in Seoul. He has an older sister. His family received welfare support during his school years. During middle school he became involved in a school band, and credits Japanese rock star Yoshiki and his band X Japan for influencing his early interest in composing music. He studied at Seoul Music High School, but dropped out in 10th grade to pursue a music career. He graduated from Chungwoon University's Department of Applied Music, and later received a master's degree in film and musical studies from Myongji University.

Career

2005–2014: Career beginnings

Jonghyun was scouted by SM Entertainment when he was 15 years old, after playing in a song festival with his band at school. As a trainee, he featured on the Zhang Liyin song "Wrongly Given Love". Jonghyun debuted as part of the five-member boy group Shinee on May 25, 2008, on SBS' Inkigayo. He started contributing to the group as a songwriter the following year, writing the lyrics to their fourth Korean single, "Juliette", which was included on the group's second EP, Romeo. Jonghyun said he was inspired by the 1968 film Romeo and Juliet, and he wanted to write a romance story that "will make everyone interested but also a story which everyone can identify with".

Jonghyun was one of twenty idols from various South Korean groups that recorded the song "Let's Go", which promoted the 2010 G20 Seoul summit. He provided vocals along with labelmates Sungmin of Super Junior, Seohyun of Girls' Generation and Luna of f(x). Jonghyun, along with TRAX's Jay, Super Junior's Kyuhyun, and Jino, participated in SM the Ballad, a project group formed by SM Entertainment with a focus on ballads. The group released their debut EP, Miss You, on November 29, 2010.

Jonghyun appeared on KBS' Immortal Songs: Singing the Legend, a 2011 television competition program where singers perform new versions of old songs by "legendary singers". Jonghyun won the first round and defeated his labelmate, Yesung of Super Junior, but left the show after the first episode due to his busy schedule. The show subsequently came under fire from viewers, who claimed the program's harsh elimination method and structure left Jonghyun in tears on stage.

Jonghyun received composition credits for the track "A Gloomy Clock", which was included on IU's third studio album, Modern Times, in October 2013. The song, which Jonghyun gave to IU as a friend, also features his vocals. Two months later, Son Dam-bi released the song "Red Candle", which was also written by Jonghyun. He provided vocal direction for the track, in addition to lyric writing and composition.

Jonghyun began hosting the MBC radio program Blue Night in February 2014. MBC said they chose Jonghyun to host because of his dedication to music-related activities and passion for music. He later began a segment on the show where he wrote songs based on stories submitted by listeners. After a four-year hiatus, SM the Ballad returned on February 13, with a new line-up and their second EP, Breath. Jonghyun performed the title track "Breath" as a collaboration with Girls' Generation's Taeyeon. In August, fellow Shinee member Taemin released his first EP, Ace, for which Jonghyun wrote the track "Pretty Boy".

2015–2016: Base, Story Op.1 and She Is

On January 12, 2015, Jonghyun made his solo debut with his first EP, Base. The EP was promoted with two singles, "Deja-Boo" and "Crazy (Guilty Pleasure)". Jonghyun wrote the lyrics to every song on the EP, which featured collaborations with Zion.T, Younha, Wheesung and Iron. It peaked at number one on both the Billboard World Albums Chart and the Gaon Album Chart. On January 9, television network Mnet confirmed that Jonghyun would appear on the entertainment program 4 Things Show. Taemin, Davichi's Minkyung, and Zion.T appeared as Jonghyun's friends during the episode. In March 2015, Jonghyun composed and wrote the song "Playboy", which was included in Exo's second Korean album, Exodus. A month later, Lim Kim released "No More" on her third EP, Simple Mind, which was also composed and written by Jonghyun.

Jonghyun released a new compilation album of self-composed songs originally performed on his radio show MBC Blue Night. The compilation album, Story Op.1, was released on September 17, 2015. The following month, he held his first solo concert, The Story by Jonghyun, as part of SM Entertainment's concert series The Agit. He performed a total of 12 sold-out shows. Each concert featured a different guest, including Shinee's Onew and Taemin, IU, Zion.T, Jung-in, Lim Kim, Oksang Dalbit, Coffee Boy, Nine, Lee Ji-hyoung, Soran, and poet Ha Sang-wook.

Jonghyun appeared on the debut of the Mnet program Monthly Live Connection, which brought together two artists from different musical backgrounds to collaborate on one song. Jonghyun released the single "Elevator" on October 14 as part of the TV program. Following that, he collaborated with Soran's Go Young-bae in creating the single "I Guess Now It's the Fall", and with singer-songwriter Jung Joon-young in creating the single "Aewol". The same month, Jonghyun was selected as one of the top five K-pop idol vocalists by a survey completed by 40 anonymous music industry officials. Jonghyun published a novel, titled Skeleton Flower: Things That Have Been Released and Set Free, on November 19, after previously selling it in limited quantities at his concert. The book contains stories about songs written by Jonghyun, as well as photos that he took himself.

Jonghyun composed and wrote the track "Already" for Taemin's first studio album, Press It, which was released in February 2016. He also composed and wrote a track called "Breathe" for Lee Hi's album Seoulite, which was released in March 2016. Jonghyun released a collaboration single with Heritage titled "Your Voice" on March 18, 2016, as part of SM Entertainment's SM Station project. On May 24, 2016, SM Entertainment released Jonghyun's first studio album, She Is, consisting of nine songs, most of which were written and composed by Jonghyun. The album spans various genres, including electro-funk, EDM, and R&B. Jonghyun said that "one can feel his passion as a singer-songwriter the most" on She Is. In December 2016, Jonghyun released another SM Station single titled "Inspiration". He held a series of concerts, titled Jonghyun – X – Inspiration, in Seoul and Busan, attracting 17,000 spectators.