Lee Jun-ho (entertainer)
Lee Jun-ho, known mononymously as Junho, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, dancer, composer and actor. He is a member of the South Korean boy band 2PM.
In 2013, Junho debuted as an actor in the Korean movie Cold Eyes. Junho is most known for his roles in Twenty, Good Manager and Rain or Shine.
Pre-debut
Junho first gained public attention when he won Superstar Survival in 2006. The show started with twelve teenage competitors and, as the weeks went on, they were eliminated one by one until three were left. The process followed a similar style to that of reality show Survivor. Junho signed a contract with JYP Entertainment after winning the contest, placing first out of 6,500 competitors. Future 2PM bandmates Taecyeon and Chansung had also competed.Education
Junho took an undergraduate program at Howon University with his bandmates Chansung and Wooyoung. In addition, along with Chansung, he is continuing a master's degree of cinematography at Sejong University.Music career
2PM
In 2008, he took part in Mnet's Hot Blood Men which follows the extreme training of 13 trainees in order to become a member of the boy band One Day. One Day spawned two boy bands, 2AM and 2PM.Six months after Hot Blood was aired on TV, 2PM debuted with their first single "10점 만점에 10점" from their first EP Hottest Time of the Day, but it wasn't until their second EP which skyrocketed their success in the Korean music industry. As of 2017, the group has released six studio albums in Korea and four studio albums in Japan.
Solo activities
Junho debuted as a solo singer in Japan with his first solo mini album, Kimi no Koe, for which he produced, composed and wrote all the tracks. The album landed on no. 1 in Tower Records′ charts and no. 3 on Oricon's daily chart. On July 9, Junho began his first solo tour, Junho 1st Solo Tour Kimi no Koe which ended on August 29 in Tokyo.On July 9, 2014, Junho released his second self-composed Japanese mini-album, FEEL. FEEL topped Oricon's daily album chart the day of its release. From July 3 to August 13, Junho embarked on his second solo tour in Japan titled Junho Solo Tour 2014 - Feel which traveled to five different Japanese cities.
On July 15, 2015, Junho released his third Japanese mini-album, SO GOOD. The album ranked third in Oricon's weekly music chart, and sold more than 40,000 albums in its first week. He embarked on his 2015 Japan tour Last Night in seven cities, which started July 7.
In September, he released his first album in Korea, a special compilation album titled One. The album contained Korean version of 11 self-composed Japanese songs that were released in the past. He concluded his solo concert "Last Night" at Seoul which was held at the Olympic Hall in Olympic Park, Seoul, from September 19–20.
In 2016, Junho released his fourth Japanese mini-album, DSMN. The album topped Oricon Daily Chart and also the daily sales rankings at Tower Records. Moreover, the pre-released single "DSMN" was also popular in Japan's ringtone website. He embarked on his fourth Japanese tour Hyper which concluded to a 20,000 audience in Tokyo on August 25.
On the 3rd and 4th of December Junho held a special Encore Concert "LAST HYPER NIGHT" in Nippon Budokan. For the 4th of December concert, there was a live viewing event throughout Japan.
In 2017, Junho released his fifth Japanese mini-album 2017 S/S in Japan. The album achieved the best records for Junho thus far, peaking at number two on Oricon's weekly music chart. From July to August, Junho embarked on his fifth Japanese tour 2017 S/S.
In the same year, his first Korean mini-album Canvas was released, marking his official debut in the Korean music industry as a solo artist.
In January 2018, Junho released the single, “Winter Sleep” in both Korean and Japanese. Starting from January 20 to February 24, Junho embarked on his first solo winter tour in Japan, the Winter Special Tour “冬の少年” which included nine stops in five cities.
On July 11 of 2018, Junho released his seventh Japanese mini album Imagination. On the daily album chart of Japan's largest music statistics-tracking company Oricon for July 10, the mini album took No. 1 with estimated sales of 27,270 units. His summer solo tour "Flashlight"' started in late June and continued until early September, with thirteen stops in five cities in Japan.
On December 5 of the same year, Junho released a Japanese compilation album ‘Junho the Best‘, containing sixteen tracks. From December 6 to 8, Junho held his Last Concert "JUNHO THE BEST" in Nippon Budokan.
In January 2019, Junho released his second Korean compilation album titled Two. Lee will hold a solo concert series titled “Junho the Best in Seoul” in March.
Composition
The first song Junho was credited for on a 2PM album was "Give it to Me" in 2011, on their second studio album Hands Up.Junho's first contribution to a Japanese release was "Kimi ga Ireba", released as part of 2PM's fourth Japanese single Beautiful on June 6, 2012 and which was also included on their second Japanese studio album, Legend of 2PM.
In 2012, Junho coupled with actress Kim So-eun on MBC's Music and Lyrics for the song "Sad Love", written by Kim So-eun and composed by Junho. The single was a hit and debuted at top 10 spots on various music charts, and was chosen as the theme song of MBC's weekend drama Feast of the Gods. He also collaborated with Vanness Wu in the song "Undefeated" for Taiwanese drama Ti Amo Chocolate soundtrack.
The song "Move On", written by Junho and fellow member Jang Wooyoung, which was included in 2PM's 2PM Best~ 2008-2011 in Korea album, topped Japan's Recochoku Chart. In 2013, Junho participated as a composer for Wooyoung's Korean debut EP 23, Male, Single with the song "Be With You". The song "Love Is True", which featured vocals from Junho and Nichkhun, was included in the bonus CD of 2PM's Go Crazy! Korean album released in 2014. In 2016, Junho wrote the song "Versus", which was recorded as a duet with Hwang Chan-sung and was released in the limited edition version D of 2PM's Japanese album Galaxy of 2PM.
As of February 2019, Junho is credited with a hundred songs at the Korea Music Copyright Association, placing him on number 7 of the top ten idols with most copyrighted songs.
Acting career
Junho made his film debut in the action thriller Cold Eyes, where he impressed viewers for his acting. The film was a success, and broke 4.5 million admissions.In 2015, Junho featured in martial arts period drama Memories of the Sword, acting as Kim Go-eun's love interest. He next starred alongside Kim Woo-bin and Kang Ha-neul in the coming-of-age film Twenty by indie director Lee Byung-heon.
In 2016, Junho had a supporting role in tvN's thriller Memory.
In 2017, Junho starred in the hit office comedy drama Good Manager. He was praised for his villainous acting in the drama as the arrogant director of finances. The same year, Junho landed his first lead role in JTBC's romantic melodrama series Rain or Shine. He played a psychologically scarred survivor of a fatal incident.
In early 2018, Junho was cast in his first Japanese movie Rose and Tulip, written by popular manga artist Akiko Higashimura, in which he played a double role.
He was then cast in the SBS romance comedy drama Wok of Love, playing a star chef. The same year he was cast in the historical comedy film Gibang Bachelor.
In 2019, Junho was cast in the legal drama Confession.
Other activities
In 2012, Junho was appointed as the honorary ambassador of the 24 Hour Famine Program hosted by World Vision.In the same year, along with the 2PM members, Junho participated in MBC's God of Victory, where they were pitted against the members of Shinhwa. Junho won the segment "Breaking Chopsticks With His Butt", as he was able to break 28 chopstick pairs with his rear end in under 15 seconds.
In 2013, Junho's solo variety show titled 2PM Junho's SAY YES -Friendship- was broadcast on Tokyo MX. The show features Junho travelling across different places in Japan to make friends along with invited Japanese celebrities.
On May 30, 2019, Junho began his military service as a public service worker. Due to a severe shoulder injury he suffered in 2010 during acrobatics practice and for which he underwent a large surgery in 2012, he was judged unfit for active duty. He will be discharged on March 20, 2021.