Shownu (셔누) is a South Korean singer and dancer signed under Starship Entertainment. He is currently a vocalist, main dancer, and leader of the boy group Monsta X.
Pre-Debut
Shownu ws born Son Hyun-woo (손현우) on June 18, 1992 in Changdong, Dobong-gu, Seoul, South Korea. Inspired by Rain to become an idol, Shownu auditioned for JYP Entertainment in 2009, placing first. Shownu trained at JYP for two years, but left the company citing conflicts with the company and stagnation.
After leaving JYP, Shownu became a backup dancer for Lee Hyori. He accompanied her for promotions and on tour, as well as appearing in her music videos; "Bad Girls" and "Going Crazy".
After he auditioned and joined Starship Entertainment, he became part of the project Nu Boyz, alongside future Monsta X members Jooheon and Wonho, as well as #Gun.
In December 2014, he competed in Mnet's survival reality show No.Mercy. Shownu was selected as one of the winners of the program and gained the opportunity to join Monsta X.
I. Career
Shownu debuted as the leader and main dancer of Monsta X on May 14, 2015 with the mini album Trespass. Along with being the main dancer of Monsta X, he also contributes to the group's choreography.
In June 2016, Shownu made his first solo appearance in a magazine for InStyle Korea.
Since debut, Shownu has appeared on several variety shows including being a cast member on Lipstick Prince of Law of the Jungle in Papua New Guinea.
In 2018, Shownu also collaborated on the British band PREP's lead single "Don't Look Back" alongside Hwang So-Yoon of Se So Neon.
In 2020, prior to the release of Monsta X's eighth EP Fantasia X, Shownu injured his back, and the group delayed their comeback by two weeks to allow Shownu time to heal properly from his injury. Prior to Monsta X's live-streamed concert "Live From Seoul with Luv", scheduled for July 25, Shownu had to undergo emergency left eye retinal detachment surgery, and so the concert was postponed to August 8, to give him time to recover from surgery.
In August 2020, it was announced he would be featuring on the soundtrack for She's My Type, alongside groupmate Minhyuk, marking his first soundtrack appearance, independent of Monsta X, since 2011. The song is titled "Have a Goodnight", and was released on September 11. On October 15, Shownu released a rock-style song for the soundtrack of Tale of the Nine Tailed, titled "I'll Be There".
In November 2020, Shownu began appearing as a judge on Mnet's Cap-Teen, a survival reality show.
In May 2021, Starship announced that Shownu would be taking a hiatus from Monsta X and would not promote for their upcoming ninth EP due to health problems related to his eye retinal detachment. Following Shownu's recovery, he enlisted for his mandatory military service on July 22, 2021. He will server as a public service worker due to his retina detachment.
II. Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | No.Mercy | Contestant | Mnet |
| 2015 | Our Neighborhood Arts and Physical Education | Contestant | KBS2 |
| 2016 | Law of the Jungle in Papua New Guinea | Main Cast | SBS |
| 2016 | Running Man | Contestant | SBS |
| 2016-2017 | Lipstick Prince | Main Cast | OnStyle |
| 2016 | Hit the Stage | Contestant | tvN |
| 2017 | History Repletion: Oh! Cool Guys | Cast Member | Channel A |
| 2018 | King of Mask Singer | Contestant | MBC |
| 2018 | Dae Jang Geum Is Watching | Cameo | MBC |
| 2018 | Real Man 300 | Main Cast | MBC |
| 2019 | Yum-Yum Yum-Yum | Main host | Mnet |
| 2019 | My Little Television V2 | Cast | MBC |
| 2020 | Hidden Singer | Contestant | JTBC |
| 2020 | Cap-Teen | Judge | Mnet |
| 2021 | Hungry For Delivery? Order It First! | Cast | MBC with SM C&C |
| 2021 | Goedam 2 | Jong-chan | Netflix |
III. Trivia
- Shownu appeared in the MV for Sistar's "Shake It".
- Shownu revealed on television that he never gets angry, but he does get irritable when he isn't fed on time.
