Kim Hyun Joong

SS501 Leader

Birth name: 김현중[Kim Hyun Joong]

Born: June 6, 1986 (age 24)

Origin: Seoul, South Korea

Genres: K-Pop, J-Pop, pop

Occupations: Singer, Actor

Instruments: Vocals,Guitar, Piano

Labels: DSP Entertainment

Pony Canyon

Blood Type: B+

Nickname : Cow, Dog

Height : 180cm

Weight : 68kg

Hobby : Swimming, Soccer, Gym workout, Basketball

Specialty :Dance

Things that he hates : Insects, Birds

Motto : You only live once

Animal that you describe yourself as : Lion

Family members : Grandmother, Father, Mother, Elder Brother[Young Joong], Myself

Idol : Seo Tai Ji (Legendary Rock Singer in Korea)

Part which you are most satisfied of : Eyes

Something that you must do before sleeping : Bathing

Method for relieving stress : Traveling

Things that you bring in your bag : iPod, Contact Lenses, Wallet, Mobile Phone

Thing that you do most seriously : Work

Favorite color : Black

3 wishes :

1. Become a world-class, universal star

2. Gathering fans from all over the world and hold a free concert for them

3. After which, to live a peaceful and happy life

Early Life

He was born on June 6 1986 in Seoul, South Korea. He has one older brother. As a young boy, he worked extremely hard and did various jobs such as delivering newspapers, pizzas and chickens as well as serving food in restaurants. He dropped out of Hanyang Industrial High School to pursue a career in music after hearing the song "Ultramania" from the US rock band, Seo Taiji. This was the start of his rebellion. He ran away from home to pursue his career but often faced difficulties soon afterwards as he had no money, food or shelter. A couple of months later, he returned home to concentrate on his studies but never lost sight of his dream.

Career

In June 2005, Kim Hyun Joong debuted as the leader of the band, SS501 with their first single "Warning". Following their successful debut, they released their second song "Snow Prince" later on in the year. They were inactive in the next couple of years in Korea due to one of the member's throat condition but became active again following their success of their comeback single "Deja Vu". The band also tapped into the Japanese market under the name of "Triple S Japan" in 2007. They officially debuted on March 25, 2007, when SS501 will had first official meeting with the group. In Korea, their fan club members number around 41,700. Their first Japanese single "Kokoro" had multiple versions with one version of the band and the five other versions of the members singing individually.

In May 2008, Kim Hyun Joong joined the MBC reality programme, "We got Married" which is a variety shows that pairs up Korean celebrities to indicate what life would be like if they were really married. Hyun Joong's wife, Hwang Bo was six years his senior and they achieved high popularity acting as a newly wed couple. They were known as the "Lettuce couple" and went to win MBC'S Best Couple Award in 2008. The couple made their official exit from We Got Married on December 14, 2008 due to scheduling conflicts presented by Boys Over Flowers.

In October 2008, Hyun Joong was cast in the Korean version of Hana Yori Dango as one of the famous members of F4. His portrayal of the calm and soft spoken F4 member, Yoon Ji-Hoo in Boys Before Flowers won him many fans across the world. The drama's popularity soared and had high audience ratings, peaking at 34.9 million in Korea alone.

Currently, he is about to release a new Korean album with his band, SS501 and will kick off their Asian tour in August 2009.