Lee Ho-dong (; born ), better known by his stage name Hoya or Lee Ho-won, is a South Korean singer, rapper, songwriter, dancer and actor. He served as a rapper and vocalist in boy band

Infinite Infinite may refer to: Mathematics * Infinite set, a set that is not a finite set *Infinity, an abstract concept describing something without any limit Music *Infinite (group), a South Korean boy band *''Infinite'' (EP), debut EP of American m ...

from 2010 and its sub-group

Infinite H Infinite H ( ko, 인피니트H) was the first official sub-unit of South Korean boy band Infinite formed under Woollim Entertainment in 2013. The sub-group consisted of Infinite member Dongwoo and ex-Infinite member Hoya. The sub-unit debuted w ...

from 2013 up until his departure from Woollim Entertainment in 2017. In 2018, Hoya made his solo debut on March 28 with his first mini album "Shower". Hoya made his acting debut in the drama ''

Reply 1997 ''Reply 1997'' () is a 2012 South Korean television series that centers on the lives of six friends in Busan, as the timeline moves back and forth between their past as 18-year-old high schoolers in 1997 and their present as 33-year-olds at thei ...

'' (2012) and went on to star in the dramas ''

My Lovely Girl ''My Lovely Girl'' () is a 2014 South Korean television series starring Rain, Krystal Jung, Kim Myung-soo, and Cha Ye-ryun. Having the K-pop industry as the backdrop, the drama tells the story of two pained individuals who find healing throu ...

'' (2014), ''

Mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and pra ...

'' (2015), ''

Radiant Office ''Radiant Office'' () is a 2017 South Korean television series starring Go Ah-sung and Ha Seok-jin. The series is written by a rookie screenwriter who won the 2016 MBC TV Drama Screenplay Competition in Miniseries category. It aired on MBC fro ...

'' (2017), and ''

Two Cops ''Two Cops'' () is a 1993 South Korean action/comedy film directed by Kang Woo-suk. It stars Ahn Sung-ki and Park Joong-hoon as a pair of police detectives with different outlooks who end up working on a case together. Plot The experienced dete ...

'' (2017), ''

Devilish Charm ''Devilish Charm'' ( is a 2018 South Korean television series starring Choi Jin-hyuk, Song Ha-yoon, Lee Ho-won and Lee Joo-yeon. It aired on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 23:00 ( KST) time slot of MBN and Dramax from September 5 to October 25, ...

'' (2018).

Biography

Hoya was born in

Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...

, South Korea. He dropped out of high school during his first year to pursue his dream as a singer. His father was against the decision thus Hoya had to leave home. He then took the high school qualification exam and passed. Later his father accepted him and now supports Infinite whole heartedly. Hoya auditioned after he dropped out and ended up in his current agency,

Woollim Entertainment Woollim Entertainment () is a South Korean entertainment company founded in 2003 by Lee Jung-yeop. The label is home to artists such as Golden Child, Rocket Punch, Drippin, and Kwon Eun-bi. It has previously handled artists Epik High, Infini ...

. He was a former

JYP Entertainment JYP Entertainment Corporation () is a South Korean multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate founded in 1997 by J. Y. Park. It is one of the largest entertainment companies in South Korea, and operates as a record label, tale ...

trainee. On March 10, 2014, he announced that his real birth name is Lee Hodong, not Howon as he had previously told the public, and that he changed it in order not to share a name with comedian Kang Hodong. Hoya graduated from

Daekyeung University Daekyeung College is located in Gyeongsan, Republic of Korea. History *Jan. 08, 1992 Jungam School Corporation founded *Mar. 05, 1993 Daekyeung College opened *May 15, 1998 Launched Products of “LAGOSOL”, the university's first own bran ...

, majoring in Applied Music. Korea KPOP World Festival 46

Career

2010: Debut with Infinite

Hoya debuted as rapper, vocal and main dancer of South Korean boyband

in 2010. The group officially debuted on June 9, 2010.

2012–2014: Infinite H's debut and acting roles

Hoya made his acting debut in the tvN drama ''

''. The drama was a major hit and raised his popularity. In September 2012, Hoya and fellow Infinite member Dongwoo formed a subgroup called

. The subgroup released their first mini-album, titled '' Fly High,'' in January 2013. In 2014, Hoya starred in SBS' music romance drama, ''

''; which co-stars his fellow Infinite member

Kim Myung-soo Kim Myung-soo (; born March 13, 1992), known professionally as L, is a South Korean singer, actor, and model. He debuted as a vocalist of boy band Infinite in 2010 and its sub-group Infinite F in 2014. He left Woollim Entertainment in August 201 ...

. On September 24, 2014, Hoya was cast as the lead role in the film '' Hiya''. He played a high school student who only dreams of becoming a singer. The film premiered on March 10, 2015.

2015–2017: Departure from Infinite, solo activities

In 2015, Hoya starred in SBS's melodrama ''Mask'', acting as

Soo Ae Park Soo-ae (; born 16 September 1979), known mononymously as Soo Ae, is a South Korean actress best known for portraying Kim In-hae in the 2013 film ''The Flu'' and Oh Soo-yeon in the 2018 film ''High Society''. Soo Ae began her career on telev ...

's brother. In June 2016, Hoya became a contestant in Mnet's dance survival show, ''Hit The Stage''. In December, it was announced that Hoya has been cast in the sitcom ''Strong Family 2017'', which started airing in February 2017. Hoya was a supporting role in MBC's office drama, ''

''. On August 30, it was confirmed that Hoya would not be renewing his contract (which expired June 9, 2017) and would be leaving Infinite as well as Woollim Entertainment. In September, he made his musical debut in ''Hourglass'', a play based on the mega hit Korean drama ''Sandglass''. He then starred in MBC's cop drama, ''

''.

2018–present: Solo debut

In 2018, Lee made his solo debut on March 28 with his first mini album ''Shower''. He was then cast in the romance comedy drama ''

''. In the midst of all, Lee also went to '' Immortal Song 2'' that was broadcast on August 4 and eventually won the episode by getting the highest scores there. Lee also became a dance coach/mentor in KBS variety program, ''Dancing High'' that focuses on teaching and mentoring the teens in Korea about dance. On September 12, Lee also released a digital single titled, 'Baby U' featuring

Kriesha Chu Kriesha Ziskind Teo Tiu (born December 20, 1998), better known by her stage name Kriesha Chu (Korean language, Korean: 크리샤 츄), is a Filipina-American singer based in South Korea. Life and career Early life Tiu was born on December 20, ...

in the music video. Hoya enlisted for military service on February 7, 2019, by announcing it through a post two days before the date; he was discharged on December 6, 2020. On June 9, 2021, Hoya made his comeback with the new digital single album ''1AM''. On April 1, 2022, Hoya signed an exclusive contract with Initial Entertainment.

Discography

Extended plays

Single albums

Singles

Songwriting credits

Filmography

Film

Television series

Television shows

Musical theatre

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control 1991 births Infinite (group) members Living people Musicians from Busan South Korean male rappers South Korean hip hop dancers South Korean male singers South Korean male idols South Korean pop singers South Korean male dancers South Korean male film actors South Korean male television actors