Formed in 1998, Shinhwa is the longest-running boyband in K-Pop history. Founded in South Korea, the group’s members - Eric Mun, Lee Min-woo, Kim Dong-wan, Shin Hye-sung, Jun Jin, and Andy Lee – signed with SM Entertainment, the country’s largest entertainment agencies. Their debut album, Resolver (1998), was not a commercial success and the group didn’t achieve chart success until the release of their second album, T.O.P., in 1999. The album was the first major success by a K-Pop boyband, climbing to number 3 on the South Korean Albums chart. Their first number 1 album, Only One, was released in 2000 and was followed by Hey, Come On! (number 3 in 2001), Perfect Man (number 1 in 2002), and Wedding (number 3 in 2002). At the height of their career, Shinhwa left SM Entertainment and signed with Good Entertainment, releasing their first album for the label, Winter Story, at the end of 2003. The group continued to release hit albums including Brand New (number 1 in 2004), Winter Story 2004-2005 (number 3 in 2004), State of the Art (number 1 in 2006), the Winter Story 2006-2007 EP (2007), and Volume 9 (number 1 in 2008). During an extended break from recording and performing together, each of the members pursued solo careers and set up their own companies. Each member also needed to serve their mandatory military service, which led to an extended hiatus. Shinhwa left Good Entertainment and set up their own Shinhwa Company to manage their own careers and issue their own albums, which included the number 3-charting The Return (2014) and three albums that reached number 2: The Classic (2013), We (2015), and Unchanging Touch (2017). Over the course of their career, Shinhwa has been honored with over three dozen awards including 10 MNET Asian Music Awards, six Golden Disc Awards, six SBS Gayo Daejeon Awards, and five Seoul Music Awards.
