Shin Dong-hee (born September 28, 1985), better known by his stage name Shindong, is a Korean pop singer, actor, presenter, and one of the four lead dancers of the super boy band Super Junior. He is a dancer but also a rapper, often co-writing rap lyrics with Eunhyuk. He is an extremely popular radio personality and show host on various programs, noted for his comedic style.
Shindong was born in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang on September 28, 1985.Having a love for dancing, Shindong signed up for the 2002 Goyangsi Youth Dance contest and won the grand prize. A year later, he joined the contest again and won gold. In 2004, Shindong joined the Mnet Epi Contest and won both the gold prize and popularity award. In 2005, Shindong signed up for the SM Best Youth Contest and won first place for Best Comedian, achieving the grand prize. He signed a contract with SM Entertainment and received lessons to further improve his dancing ability.
Months after joining the company, Shindong was put in the large all-boy rotational group Super Junior as a member of its first generation, Super Junior 05. He decided to use the stage name 'Shindong' due to his birth name sounding similar to band mate Donghae. 'Shindong' (신동) is derived from his surname and the first character of his birth name. It is also the Korean word for "child prodigy."
With a total of twelve members, Super Junior 05 officially debuted on November 6, 2005 on SBS's music program Popular Songs, performing their first single, "TWINS (Knock Out)". Their debut performance attracted over 500 fans and also garnered oversea viewers from both China and Japan. A full studio album was released a month later, which debuted at #3 on the monthly MIAK K-pop album charts.
In March 2006, SM Entertainment began to recruit new members for the next Super Junior generation. However, plans changed when the band's growing popularity became apparent, and the company declared a halt in forming future Super Junior generations. The group dropped the suffix "05" and became officially credited as Super Junior.
The re-polished group hit big after they released their first CD single "U" the following summer, which became Super Junior's most successful single in the music charts until the release of "Sorry, Sorry" in March 2009.
During his career with Super Junior, Shindong was put into two subgroups, smaller groups that are branched off of the larger Super Junior group. In February 2007, he was placed in the trot-singing Super Junior-T. A year later, he became a member of Super Junior-Happy.
His fans are called Shinfriends.
