Shin Wonho: A Multi-Talented Man
Singer and actor Shin Wonho (Shin) is the leader of the K-pop group Cross Gene that debuted in 2012 under Amuse Entertainment. In the years since his debut, Shin has been very busy with other activities such as TV series, solo music and even his own segment for a radio station.
- Acting
As an actor, Shin has been developing his skills since 2011 with Bachelor’s Vegetable Store and Run 60. Since then, he has consistently been a part of numerous TV shows, including Big, Legend of the Blue Sea, Risky Romance and Love Affairs in the Afternoon. In 2012, he was nominated for his role in Big for the Best Male Model Advertising and Best Rookie Actor awards, both of which he won.
He has also acted in other projects, like the Vietnamese web drama Who is My Future Family and a film titled ZEDD, which was made by all the Cross Gene members in 2014. That movie was made to showcase how the members of the group planned to save the world through their music, even if they all spoke different languages.
- Solo Music
Shin is mostly known for his musical work with Cross Gene, however, he has recently released a number of solo songs. His first solo album was released in October 2018 as an exclusive album titled W in celebration of his birthday. This album contained the song “Serenade,” which is currently the only song digitally available from the ones released in the album.
In 2019, he released another solo track, “Time,” as a part of a relay song project by the group, in which each member would release a song each month produced and/or composed by them. Shin’s song was released in March, making it the third song out of the four in the project.
Most recently, Shin released an album titled Strange Disco, comprised of only two songs, “Invasion” and “KKI (Disco Ver.).” “Invasion” has its own music video that was released in December 2019, making references to previous Cross Gene songs such as “Touch It” and “Play With Me.” However, “KKI (Disco Ver.)” is a solo remake of a Cross Gene song, giving it an interesting disco spin.
- Other
Shin is in charge of a solo segment called Chuus-day for the Japanese radio station FM Yokohama. Here, he plays numerous songs, usually including at least one Cross Gene song. He also reads fan comments and talks about various other topics, sometimes taking on characters. Some recurring characters from his segment include Madame Shin and Boyfriend Shin, who both have specific outfits he dresses up in to evoke one or the other.
Additionally, he runs a blog for the radio segment, in which he gives a summary of what he talked about during that week’s segment and allows fans to leave him comments, which he always reads and occasionally responds.
Feel free to check out his content and show your support on his blog page!
Cover Image: Shin Wonho (Amuse, Inc.)
Written by Danny Parotte
