His most recent drama, My Lovely Liar just ended and everyone who watched is still in awe and not over this sweet emperor-like actor, Hwang Minhyun. Some knew him since he was an idol, mostly, not. Here’s your guide to this man’s wonders, which will only lead you to the Truth.
Honest to his craft
Since his debut on March 15, 2012 as part of NU’EST, he was very vocal about his dream of being a singer. He continued to pursue his dreams with WANNAONE after making it to the final lineup from Produce 101 Season 2 and came back to be “Happily Ever After” with NU’EST through the pre-release track, UNIVERSE, a medium tempo R&B and pop genre track that was composed by Bumzu and Prism Filter where Minhyun participated in writing the lyrics.
While promoting with NU’EST, he also participated in composing lyrics for their album tracks such as “Moon Dance” and his solo in their last full-length album, Romanticize, titled “Earphone”.
In addition to his portfolio as a singer, he even made his musical theatre debut as Count Axel von Fersen in the Seoul revival of the musical Marie Antoinette, which ran from August until November 2019.
His first solo original soundtrack that was released in December 2021 was also iconic. “I’ll Be With You Every Day” was well-fitting to the heart fluttering moments in the MBC series, The Red Sleeve. From then on, he got a lot of opportunities to be in other project’s soundtracks especially for his own drama series. He had his own version of “Just Watching You” in the 2nd season of Alchemy of Souls and “Alarm” for My Lovely Liar.
Until now, he persists to be his best version by taking vocal lessons to enhance his range and versatility.
His Hidden Side
Besides the title track if his solo debut album, Truth or Lie, released on February 27th of this year, which give listeners a chance to see and hear a side of Hwang Minhyun that they’ve never seen before, his Hidden Side may also be those that we do not see in his professional bio.
He is one of the K-pop idols who is know for their love of cleaning. For him, everyday is a cleaning day! He starts off each day making his bed before he goes on to dust, vacuum, and more making sure that his place is always spick and span.
Minhyun does not only maintain his surroundings clean, but his well-being too. He maintains a thorough dietary routine, taking a variety of supplements before and after meals and eating salad on days after he felt he overate. He even eats a less typical selection like chicken breast and cherry tomatoes on his late night Weverse live. He explained that he sticks to his routine because “you shouldn’t try to be an idol if you’re going to keep on eating everything you want. You must take constant care of yourself so that if something important comes up suddenly you won’t be caught off guard and can feel like you’re always ready for anything.” His attitude toward being an idol would make us admire him more.
@optimushwang has been his Instagram handle ever since. It does not only reflect how much he is an Optimus Prime fanboy, but also his outlook in life. In a 2019 GQ magazine interview, Minhyun revealed that he uses wallpapers of Optimus Prime on his phone and computer. He values the character as a hero and likes his positivity and the sacrifices he makes to save his team and defeat their enemy.
Filling a Crossword of covers
His passion on learning and improving himself made him do a lot of covers – from his favorite songs to an existing soundtrack that he had a privilege to have his own rendition. He really listens and appreciates a wide variety of music.
The list of these songs, whether it’s a snippet or a full version, can fill a crossword. He even performs other artist’s song in his fanmeets if he appreciates it so much. He’s known for singing along during his live broadcast when it’s a song he’s familiar with.
On his birthday in 2020, he gifted his fans with his own version of 想見你想見你想見你 (Miss You 3000), the soundtrack of the popular Taiwanese drama, “Someday or One Day”. He also shares the same birthday with the second male lead in the drama, Patrick Shih who played Mo Junjie.
Check out the video here:
These are some of the songs that he notably covered throughout his career and is certainly in his playlist:
♪ Your Ocean by Hopipolla
♪ 8 letters by Why Don’t We
♪ Marry Me by Gu Yoon Heo
♪ You Wouldn’t Answer my Calls by 2AM
♪ A Thousand Years by Christina Perri
♪ Himawari no Yakusoku by Motohiro Hata
♪ UN Village by Baekhyun
♪ Time Walking on Memory by NELL
♪ What was That by Acourve
♪ Maybe it’s Not our Fault by Baek Yerin
Minhyun also had an opportunity to be featured for the next release of the ‘Votiz’ project with lyrics written by R&B singer-songwriter Colde, that is “Again” which also came out with a Music Video and band version.
Portraying as a Perfect Type
He might have just landed his lead role this year, but he already started portraying roles that would certainly fit one’s type since 2016.
Their Distance, his acting debut that started in Japan, where he played as Sang Soo, a Korean convenience store employee and college student who falls in love with Kokaze, was bittersweet as it tackles the different ideas of love that was also interpreted through the roles of his fellow Nu’est members.
Playing another dreamy role in his Korean TV series debut through LIVE ON, he was Go Eun Taek, the head of the club who is strict and a perfectionist. Minhyun shared about his character, that Go Eun Taek is someone who looks lonely at times but continues to receive love. He also returns that love in whatever ways possible. It is a must-watch for teenagers especially that it discusses the cause and effect of bullying.
The second lead syndrome will hit you when you watch Alchemy of Souls. Decorating the character of Seo Yul, a nobleman perfect in literary, character, and appearance, Hwang Min Hyun surely impressed viewers with his growth as an actor.
Setting three years after the 1st season, Seo Yul wrenches your heart with his sacrifice for his first love. His chemistry with his co-stars will certainly get to you, too. This project proved him to be one of the sought-after actors in Hallyu.
Stepping up his game to the romantic-comedy genre, Hwang Minhyun just wrapped up his successful team-up with Kim Sohyun. His role in My Lovely Liar as Kim Doha piqued a lot of interests and created a lot of Hwangdos (how his fans are called).
Recently, he’s now working on another series adapted from the webtoon with the same title, Study Group. Let’s look forward to how he will bring life to the student, Yoon Ga Min.
Smile for the camera
With top-tier visuals and physique, brands certainly go for Minhyun and Moncler got that deal since 2019. He was able to endorse for Mac, Clarins, Jo Malone, Lancome, Guerlain and Estee Lauder, among others, as part of his magazine shoots.
But Hwang Minhyun loves to be behind the lenses more. He takes pictures of scenes he’s stumbled upon, like rainbows and sunsets. Aside from nature, he also loves taking photos of landscapes and buildings. He even dedicated an Instagram, @optimus_sisun where he posts the images he captured with his camera. Fujifilm X-T30 is one of his favorite gears. He’s hoping he can take a photo from the stage next time – to capture his beloved Hwangdos. Who know, you might be part of it soon!
A combination of being in front or behind the lenses, Hwang Minhyun also started vlogging as a hobby as he keeps a record of the special moments he would like to share to Hwangdos.
A Cube closer
Everything that we’ve run through about Hwang Minhyun shows how much he managed the past 11 years of his life singing and acting, while enjoying the present with his hobbies and lifestyle.
Let’s meet him up close and witness him UNVEIL his skills through his mini concert here in Manila.
Happening on October 8, 2023, Sunday at 6PM, at the New Frontier Theater, Quezon City.
Tickets are still available at https://www.ticketnet.com.ph/event-detail/2023-HWANG-MIN-HYUN-MINI-CONCERT-IN-MANILA
2023 HWANG MIN HYUN MINI CONCERT ‘UNVEIL’ IN MANILA was made possible by PULP LIVE WORLD and TONZ Entertainment
