Choi Min-ho

Minho was rumored to have been in a relationship with Sulli, an ex-member of the girl group ‘f(x).’ He is also said to have dated Yuri, another musician from the band ‘Girl’s Generation.’ There has not been any confirmation though, as Choi likes to keep his private life hidden from the media and his followers.

Minho was born on December 9, 1991, in Incheon into a well-established sports family. His father, Choi Yun-Kyum, is a well-known soccer coach, and as a result, he was fascinated with the game of soccer, throughout childhood. At one time, his father encouraged him to make a career in the sport, but Choi was not very serious about the prospect.

As he grew up and started school, he continued playing soccer, but his father soon realized that his son was not fit enough to play the sport. The reason was his small frame and less speed, compared to that of an average soccer player. Choi eventually gave up on the dream and started concentrating on his studies.

As soon as he entered teenhood, his obsession with show business became evident. This interest led him to work on his looks, and he immediately started trying his luck as a model. He did a few local stints in the early years of his modeling career. His academics suffered, but he was hell-bent on making it big in the field.

Later, he joined the arts and culture film major program at the prestigious Konkuk University and honed his skills further.

In 2006, he was accidentally discovered by ‘S.M. Casting System’ and was signed on by them. This was the true beginning of his rise to fame, and for the next two years, he concentrated on his modeling career, walked the ramp for many famous designers, and appeared in various magazines and on numerous billboards.

Seoul Broadcasting System’s (SBS’s) show, ‘Inkigayo,’ became the launch-pad for the boy band ‘Shinee,’ which consisted of five members. On May 22, 2008, the band released their debut album, titled ‘Replay.’ It was received well by audiences and critics alike and debuted at #10 on the ‘MIAK’ music charts.

Minho was slowly turning out to be the most popular member of the group and became the first one from the group to be featured in both the Korean and the Japanese versions of the single ‘Gee,’ by ‘Girl’s Generation.’ He featured in several other music videos by other bands. In 2009, he joined the show, ‘Let’s Go! Dream Team.’

His rising national popularity slowly translated into him getting offers in a variety of fiction series. He made his debut as an actor in the 2010 drama, ‘Pianist.’ Its critical and commercial success paved way for him to feature in other series, such as ‘Salamander Guru and The Shadows.’

2012 turned out to be major year for him, as he was offered the lead role in ‘To the Beautiful You,’ which was the South Korean adaptation of a Japanese manga, ‘Hana–Kimi.’ Choi trained very hard for his role as an athlete and took professional training in high jump.

In July 2013, Minho made a major appearance in ‘Medical Top Team,’ a drama which was not as commercial or critically successful as it was expected to be. Nevertheless, Minho received praises for his role and critics agreed that he had grown tremendously as an actor.