Biography & History

Shindong was born in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang on September 28, 1985. He was originally born Shin Dong Fed, but was soon renamed Shin Dong Hee. Very little is known about Shindong's personal life, and many thought he was an only child. He has a younger sister. 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' 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.

Shindong is currently a student at Paekche Institute of the Arts. He enjoys making jokes and frequently attends gag performances. He is recognized as Super Junior's "fat member" and is known for his chubby physique. Wanting to present a healthier image to fans, Shindong went on a diet in 2008 and lost around 19 kg. In early 2009, Shindong lost another 10 kg after Leeteuk broadcasted a comment in "Super Junior's Kiss the Radio" saying that Shindong would lose more weight for the fans.

On April 19, 2007, almost two months after Super Junior-T's release of their first single "Rokkugo", Shindong was hospitalized from a car accident when returning home after a recording of the radio show Super Junior Kiss the Radio. Shindong only suffered minor injuries, and was discharged from the hospital on April 23. In May 2010, Shindong proposed to his long time girlfriend using a coded message in the "thank you" column of Super Junior's 4th album.