Lee Dong-hae

Losing his father was really painful for Lee as his father had a major influence on him and on his career.

Lee Dong-hae enlisted himself as a conscripted policeman on October 12, 2015. He was discharged on July 14, 2017.

Rumor has it that he has dated a number of girls, including his long-time friend Dara, ‘Girls’ Generation’ singers, Im Yoon-ah and Jessica Jung, and many other girls.

Dong-hae was born in Mokpo, Jeollanam-do, South Korea, on October 15, 1986. His family name is Lee, and his name Dong-hae translates to ‘East Sea.’

Initially he wanted to become a football player, but since his father couldn’t realize his dream of becoming a singer, he wanted his son to become a singer. Also, Lee was inspired by a professional South Korean singer and decided to give singing a shot. What started as a mere audition in his seventh grade turned out to be a full-time career for Lee.

He attended Myongji University and graduated with a major in Arts. He also attended music classes in order to make a career out of music.

When he won the Best Outward Appearance Award at SM Youth Best Contest, he was approached by ‘S M Entertainment’ and was eventually signed by the company in 2001. Henceforth, he started his training in singing, dancing and acting.

After his training, he was put into a band called ‘Smile’ which had four other members. Due to some reason, the band didn’t work out. It was then renamed as ‘Super Junior 5’ in 2004. The group later came to be known as ‘Super Junior.’

Lee made his debut appearance as one of the members of the band on November 6, 2005 in a music show called ‘Popular Song.’ The show was aired on SBS network and ‘Super Junior’ came to be known as ‘SJ’ and ‘SUJJU.’ At its peak, the band had thirteen members, becoming the world’s biggest boy band.

The band’s debut album, ‘Twin,’ was released in 2006. Its first single, ‘Knock Out,’ became a major hit, taking the album to the third spot on one of the music charts.

The album’s second single, ‘Miracle,’ became an even bigger hit as it topped almost all the music charts of the country in 2006.

Their next single ‘U’ became one of the most downloaded songs in Korea. It gave the band a lot of awards and recognition.

Their second album, ‘Don’t Don’ was released in September 2006, and ended up ruling the music charts for weeks. Though the album did not receive a great critical reception, it still became the best-selling album of the year in Korea.

In 2006, Lee made his acting debut in a horror documentary titled ‘Mystery 6.’ He played a guy who could see and feel ghosts around him.

In the same year, he made his debut appearance in a music video in which he played a cyborg that was once human.

In 2007, he became a part of the movie, ‘Attack on the Pin-Up Boys,’ in which he played an interesting role.

In the same year, he released a track titled ‘Spoken.’ The track was a part of ‘O: The 2nd Asia Tour,’ a concert tour by another pop group named ‘TVXQ.’ He was also featured in the music video of an all-girl group named ‘Girls’ Generation.’ The video was titled ‘Kissing You.’

In 2010, he released ‘Strong Heart,’ the OST of the TV series, ‘It’s Okay, Daddy’s Girl.’