SHINee

SHINee (pronounced "shiny") is a South Korean five-member Boy Band, formed by SM Entertainment, that debuted in 2008. The members are:

• Onew, the leader.
• Jonghyun, the main vocalist.
• Key, the main rapper.
• Minho, the lead rapper.
• Taemin, the youngest member and main dancer.

They started very young with a colourful R&B image, and have accrued a whole slew of fans. While Jonghyun is probably the only one whose singing is doted on by the public, every member can now sing (well, Minho might be questionable, but he's the "rapper", so that's okay) and dance competently, which separates them from most other boy groups.

They started very young with a colourful R&B image, have accrued a slew of fans known as 'Shawols' (short for SHINee World), and they've kept up their quality over the years, with several of their albums landing on Billboard's year end charts. They are also known for their incredible live performances and are one of the most popular groups in K-pop. While Jonghyun's and Onew's voices are the most celebrated, and Taemin is the stand-out dancer, every member is known to sing and dance competently.

Discography

Korean:

• Replay - 2008
• SHINee World - 2008
  • A.Mi.Go - 2008
• Romeo - 2009
• 2009, Year of Us - 2009
• Lucifer - 2010
  • Hello - 2010
• The First - 2011
• Sherlock - 2012
• Dream Girl: The Misconceptions of You - 2013
• Why So Serious?: The Misconceptions of Me - 2013
• Everybody - 2013
• Odd - 2015
• Married to the Music - 2015
• 1 of 1 - 2016
• 1 and 1 - 2016
• The Story of Light (EP.1, EP.2 and EP,3) - 2018

Albums

• The First - 2011
• Boys Meet U - 2013
• I'm Your Boy - 2014
• D×D×D - 2016
• FIVE - 2017
• Sunny Side - 2018

---

Band and Member Tropes

• Accidental Pervert: Minho accidently seeing a woman stripping on a show.
• Adult Child: Despite being over twenty now, Jonghyun and Onew are the most immature of the group. When forced to dress up in animal suits during an outing on Hello Baby, Onew (who was a cow) went off by himself to explore in the kiddy play area.
• Badass Boast: Taemin makes one after beating everyone at the Memory Dance King competition during this show.

Taemin: (in Chinese) "Don't be obsessed with me, I'm a legend."

• Berserk Button: For Minho, losing a competition. This is the guy who couldn't even make himself lose a soccer game to his little cousins.
• Bishonen: All of them, but mostly Taemin.
• Boy Band: One of the most well-known in Korean music.
  • The Heartthrob: Key.
  • The Bad Boy: Jonghyun.
  • The Cute One: Taemin.
  • The Older Brother: Onew, but also Minho.
  • The Shy One: Again, Taemin.
• Butt Monkey: Onew, though he often sets himself up as this. Sometimes Taemin as well, since as maknae the others are free to boss him around.
• Camp Straight: Key has flamboyant dress sense, acts like a mother to his bandmates, and can perform most girl group dances better than the girl group themselves. As far as we know he's straight.
• Catch Phrase: "We're the shining SHINee!"
  • "Is this the reality you wanted?" - Jonghyun during Hello Baby.
• Cloudcuckoolander: Taemin, who apparently loses things left and right. He once lost his phone and wasted a lot of time looking for it, and finally just ended up buying a new one. Only to find his old phone again. With the first phone. In the same spot.
  • From Hello Baby: "Onew's hand touched the fried chicken!". It Makes Sense in Context. Only it doesn't.
• Colour-Coded for Your Convenience: Particulary noticeable in "Love Like Oxygen" and "Juliette", where all the members wear different-colored pants.
  • Full blown in the "Hello" music video, which gives the members different-colored outfits.
  • Also during their SHINee World Concert. A little blinding. Onew was green, Jonghyun wore blue, Key was pink, Minho was orange and Taemin was yellow.
  • Even their blankets are color-coordinated. See fourth picture.
• Cool and Unusual Punishment: In one episode of Yunhanam, the losers of a tug-of-war game had to go bungee-jumping (Minho, Key, and Taemin).
• Cute Shotaro Boy: Pretty much Taemin's entire role as team maknae.
• The Dandy: Key, who likes to make his own clothes, experiment with hairstyles, and do his own eye makeup.
• Darker and Edgier: Their "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer" concepts were basically this.
  • Taemin's solo debut.
• Deadpan Snarker: Key at times.
• Dude Looks Like a Lady: See here. Though, special mention goes to Taemin.
• Determinator: Minho, who doesn't understand the meaning of the word 'defeat'.
• Even the Guys Want Him: Jonghyun, who had a couple fanboys calling for him during performances and fanmeetings. Rumored that he has the most fanboys, too.
• Fan Community Nicknames: SHINee World, a.k.a. Shawol.
  • There are also nicknames for fans of the individual members:
    • Onew fans are MVPs.
    • Jonghyun fans are Blingers.
    • Key fans are Lockets.
    • Minho fans are Flames.
    • Taemin fans are Taemints.
• Fan Nickname: Onew has Ontokki and Dubu, Jonghyun has Jjong, Key has Kibummie, Minho has Ming, and Taemin has Taem and Taeminnie. There are lots of others as well though.
  • Actually, they all have nicknames they use in promotions and the like. You can hear them in their song "The SHINee World".
    • Onew is "Leader Onew"
    • Jonghyun is "Bling Bling Jonghyun"
    • Key is "Almighty Key"
    • Minho is "Flaming Charisma Minho"
    • Taemin is "Powerful Taem, Taemin"
• Fan Service: There are numerous rehearsal fancams of them playing or touching or flirting with each other.
  • The "Lucifer" music video, obviously.
  • The skits "Story of Chunhyang" and "The Rich Man and the Poor Man" the members acted out in Hello Baby.
  • Key eating a donut on television.
  • This particular OnKey moment. Key's screaming does not help.
  • Rumors that the "Sherlock" teaser photos were fanservice for disappearing from the K-pop scene to promote in Japan.
• Five-Man Band
  • Onew: The Hero by position, but probably closer to The Smart Guy in terms of personality.
  • Jonghyun: The Lancer. The second oldest, the lead singer, and often the main talker in interviews. He and Onew have joked about being the two parents/authority figures of the group, usually with Onew playing good cop and Jonghyun playing bad cop.
  • Key: The Smart Guy, for his wittiness. Not The Chick, no matter what some fans might think. Also has elements of The Lancer.
  • Minho: The Big Guy. The tallest and most athletic in the group. Was also pretty mute for a good several months after SHINee's debut.
  • Taemin: The Chick, with elements of the Team Pet. Seems to bring out the happy, doting, generous natures in the other members, in spite of being a brat himself at times.
  • Yoogeun: The Team Pet and/or the Tagalong Kid for several months on Hello Baby.
• Gag Penis: Onew's dick has been referred to as the "Dubulge" and actually appears quite large. Although, that could just be the skinny jeans.
  • The rest have their own nicknames for their "bulges" as well.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Jonghyun, who consistently held a grudge against Minho and his tallness and couldn't stop talking about it.
• Heavy Sleeper: Minho, who once slept for a full forty-eight hours.
• He's Got Legs: When Taemin crossdressed as f(x)'s Krystal for Key's "My First Kiss" solo. His slender legs are often praised on their own anyways, and the skinny jeans help.
• Hotter and Sexier: Some are calling "Lucifer" this, what with the singing about chains, the hip action in the choreography, lots of shots of the guys touching themselves and/or glaring steamily into the camera, Jonghyun's backless vest, and Minho's shirtless teaser picture.
  • Now they've actually been in chains!
• Ho Yay: In spades with all the members, but Jonghyun and Key deserve special note, to the extent that Key usually refers to Jonghyun as "honey". There's a YouTube channel dedicated entirely to video clips of them pumping up the gay together, like sharing Pepero.
  • Minho and Taemin definitely as well. They have a very brotherly relationship and are often seen hugging or messing around together.
• I Want to Be a Real Man: When he was young, Taemin once looked really pretty. See Viewer Gender Confusion. He mentioned that he actually takes being called cute a compliment nowadays, since there are now many idols younger than him. A notable example is him crossdressing for "My First Kiss" performances. Now he's starting to mind, as when it was announced that he was nominated for "Male Idol That Looks Most Like a Girl," he facepalmed.
• Inelegant Blubbering: Jonghyun when he cried, most noticeable during their first win of "Juliette". Onew and Key also, at times.
• Jerkass: Key tends to be either this or a Jerk with a Heart of Gold.
• The Klutz: Onew, though he tends to exaggerate this trait with over-the-top pratfalls. Seems more intentional and for laughs than not nowadays.
• Lethal Chef: Taemin, who somehow managed to screw up ramyun by adding honey, milk, and an assortment of other condiments. Minho cursed after tasting it.
  • Also Taemin and Onew's first attempts to make soup in Hello Baby.
• Manly Tears: Minho, the few times he cries on stage. He just tears up a bit and stares off into the distance with his chin lifted, the epitome of dignity.
• Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy: Key's friendship with fellow labelmate Amber is seen as this.
• Mistaken Age: When Key first met Onew, he thought Onew was younger and used informal language until he eventually realized Onew was actually two years older than him. He also initially thought Minho was older than him, even though they're the same age.
  • Jonghyun also thought Onew was younger at first (they're five months apart), and tried to take care of him. Onew just went along with it.
• Mr. Fanservice: Jonghyun and Minho are generally seen as the darker, cooler, sexier members of the band, and play this up to appeal to the fans. They're also more likely to show off their muscular physiques.
• The Musical: Onew has started participating in these lately, his most recent project being the South Korean adaption of Rock of Ages. Key also participated in the musicals Catch Me If You Can, Zorro, The Three Musketeers and School OZ.
• Name's the Same: Key shares his real name — Kim Kibum — with two other idol singers, one from Super Junior and one previously from U-KISS.
• Nice Guy: Onew. Basically everyone that knows him have talked about how mild-mannered, caring and courteous he is.
• One of Us: Judging by a picture released of the shelf of Manga and Manhwa in their house, it appears that at least one of them is.
• Raised by Grandparents: Key. To be more specific, by his grandmother, but only because his parents were so busy working all of the time.
• Real Men Wear Pink: Key, primarily. Apparently he wouldn't normally wear it though.
• Rich Bitch: Key, who was raised as an only child in a well-to-do family. His dad is supposed to be a stock-broker, he's been sent overseas to study (more than once, according to some accounts), and his parents could afford to send him to fancy water-sports training camps during junior high school. Sometimes this upbringing shows in his attitude.
  • Averted with Onew, who was raised as an only child in a well-to-do family (owning a shop or business is considered being well-off in Korea, and his parents are butchers) and attended SM Academy (which is quite supposedly expensive). In spite of this, he's extremely polite and humble.
• Screams Like a Little Girl: Key. Just watch the scene in Hello Baby where they first meet Yoogeun.
  • Hello Baby is filled with instances of Key screaming like a little girl.
  • When he was forced to ride a rollercoaster in Japan. Poor Key.
• Stage Names: Onew for Jinki and Key for Kibum.
• Supergroup: Three of the members:
  • Jonghyun was in a project group called SM The Ballad. Fellow labelmates included in the project are TRAX's Jay, Super Junior's Kyuhyun, and newcomer Jino.
  • Key was in the project group Toheart with Woohyun of INFINITE.
  • Taemin is in another project group called SuperM.
• Team Mom: Key is believed to be this due to smothering Taemin with care.
  • Key certainly likes to believe he is. The others seem to just see him as the bossy, bratty sister.
• Trademark Favorite Food: Fried chicken for Onew, steak for Taemin.

• Vitriolic Best Buds: Although they probably consider other members their closest friends within the group, Minho and Jonghyun definitely qualify. They try to hurt each other, have water fights, and insult each other. But they also fanservice it up, compliment each other, declare their love for each other, and have epic hugs.
  • Can be seen as Slap Slap Kiss if viewed with Yaoi Fangirl goggles. Especially since they've apparently actually kissed.
• Yoko Oh No: It was confirmed in October 2010 that Jonghyun had been dating actress Shin Se-kyung. This was the general reaction from both his fangirls towards her and her fanboys towards him. However, it seems like many fans may have actually accepted the relationship because SHINee's fanclub numbers have been on the rise. Unfortunately the couple broke up due to busy schedules.
• Zettai Ryouiki: Believe it or not, Key wore grade C with shorts for a Girls' Generation "Genie" cover. Also in their School of Rock crossdressing uniforms.

Music and Music Video Tropes

• Auto-Tune: Present in many of their songs.
• Cool Big Sis: The object of SHINee's affections in their first music video, "Noona Is So Pretty (Replay)", as well as the whole concept behind SHINee's Yunhanam. Also a convenient self-insert object for older fans...
• Shirtless Scene: Minho's solo performance won't be remembered for his dancing, that's for sure.
  • Their "Sherlock" teaser photos. Also regarded as porn by almost everyone in the kpop fandom AND industry.
• Fun with Acronyms: Rather than using English letters though, they use Korean syllables. An example would be "A.Mi.Go." which stands for a much longer Korean saying.
  • "Y.O.U." standing for "Year Of Us". Very clever.
• Shout-Out: Their whole Romeo mini-album was a shout-out to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.
  • Similarly, their newest mini-album Sherlock is a shoutout to Sherlock Holmes.
• Translated Cover Version: Many of their songs qualify.