South Korean Group SHINee’s Jonghyun Dies at 27

Veteran South Korean boy group SHINee’s lead vocalist Jonghyun, has reportedly committed suicide. He was 27.

According to Yohnap News, the singer was found unconscious at a residence in Cheongdam-dong, southern Seoul, before being rushed to the hospital where he ultimately passed away. Jonghyun’s sister made an initial call to report that she believed her brother was committing suicide. It is believed the vocalist died of carbon monoxide poisoning after lighting coal briquettes in the apartment.

The Gangnam Police department stated:

“On December 18, 2017 at 4:42PM, Jonghyun’s older sister reported to police that her brother was about to commit suicide. We went to his residence and discovered that he had attempted to commit suicide with brown coal briquettes lit inside a frying pan.

Emergency responders were with us at the time so we rushed him to the Konkuk University Hospital in a state of cardiac arrest.”

In addition to being one of the five members of SHINee, Jonghyun was a solo artist, a popular radio jockey, actor and author. He was also known for his songwriting and production capabilities, becoming the first artist from S.M. Entertainment (the group’s label) to have participated in the primary writing, organizing, and composing for an album. Jonghyun also often wrote songs for other artists, including bandmate Taemin.

Jonghyun had released his solo debut LP She Is in 2016, a second compilation album titled Story Op.2 in 2017 and had just wrapped his solo concert titled ‘Inspired’ earlier this month.

UPDATE

S.M. Entertainment has released an official statement regarding Jonghyun’s death:

“This is SM Entertainment. We are sorry to be the bearer of such tragic, heart-breaking news. On December 18th, SHINee’s Jonghyun left us very suddenly. He was discovered unconscious at a residence in Chungdam-Dong, Seoul and was rushed to a nearby hospital but was pronounced dead.

Our sadness cannot compare to the pain of his family, who had to say goodbye to a son and a brother, but we have spent a long time with him, and the SHINee members along with the SM Entertainment staff are all in deep mourning and shock.

Jonghyun loved music more than anybody else and he was an artist who did everything to perform his absolute best on stage. It breaks our heart to have to bring this news to fans who loved Jonghyun so much.

Please refrain from reporting on rumors and guesswork so the family of the deceased can honor him in peace. As per the wish of the family, the funeral will be held quietly with his relatives and company colleagues.

Once again we show our deepest condolences to Jonghyun on his last journey.”