Hwang Min-hyun / Minhyun (황민현)

Busan-born Hwang Min-hyun has always had a captivating princely air, even earning the title “Prince Charming of K-pop.” And yet, consistent success in his decade-long career has not always been a royal piece of cake despite his talent as a singer-songwriter and those of his bandmates.

Photo from HanCinema / Sports Chosun

Birthday: August 9, 1995

Instagram: @optimushwang

YouTube: @HWANGMINHYUN_PLEDIS

At 16, Minhyun debuted in the boy band NU'EST (an acronym for “New Established Style Tempo”) on March 15, 2012. The quintet had a hot meaningful start, but its fame cooled off after a few years. As a result, four of the members joined the survival reality show Produce 101 Season 2 (2017), bringing their old songs back in the charts. However, only Minhyun won a spot in the competition and went on to join the newly formed k-pop group Wanna One. The 11-member team swept the best new artist awards in 2018, became Billboard’s Best New K-pop Act of 2017, and ranked second on the Forbes Korea Power Celebrity list. At the end of its one-year contract in December 2018, it garnered a total of 49 awards. In 2019, Minhyun rejoined NU’EST, continuing to top charts, win awards, and inspire others to believe in second chances. Serving as a kind of coda to its 10-year run on March 15 last year, the group released Needle & Bubble—a bitter-sweet moment for NU’EST fans, L.O.Λ.E. (from “NU’EST” in Hangeul, 뉴이스트, which looks like “LOVE”).

Beyond music, he appeared in Orange Caramel's music video “Shanghai Romance” (2011) and attended the 2012-13 Seoul Fashion Week as a model for designer Park Yoon-soo's “Big Park.” He then debuted in the small screen, appearing as himself in Reckless Family 3 (2013), and in the silver screen, cast with the rest of NU’EST in the Japanese indie film Their Distance (2015). He later starred in the JTBC coming-of-age drama Live on (2020) as Go Eun-taek, the strict and time-conscious leader of his high school broadcasting club.

In 2022, his adoring fans called Huando gushed over him as he personified his nickname Hwang-jae (a pun on “Emperor” and his last name) in the tvN historical fantasy romance Alchemy of Souls. As Seo Yul, the heir of the prominent Seo family and a cousin of the Crown Prince, he played a wise warm-hearted leader, a loyal friend, and a fierce fighter held in high esteem by his elders and peers. His longing looks, poignant interactions with Mu-deok (played by Jung So-min), and dual-wielding sword fights would make even a non-Huando swoon over his character.

He currently stars opposite Kim So-hyun as Kim Do-ha, a mysterious songwriter involved in a murder case in the romantic fantasy series My Lovely Liar.