Hong Kyung-min (born February 9, 1976 in Seoul, South Korea) is a South Korean singer and actor. Debuting in 1997 as a rock-ballad singer with the song “Now” (“이제는”), he released his first album, Dedicate, in July of that year, followed by Free Throw II Shot in 1998. Despite his early efforts, Hong struggled to find a significant place in the pop music market, however, this changed in 2000 with the release of “Shaky Friendship” (“흔들린 우정”) from his third Latin-inspired album, Hong Kyung Min 3, which became a major hit. Reaching number 2 on charts, and selling over 280,422 copies in the first year, the album earned him the title of “Korea’s Ricky Martin”, winning the Bonsang award at the 2000 Golden Disc Awards. In March 2001, he released Hong Kyung Min 4, which peaked at number 10 and featured the hit single “Take It” (“가져가”). His fifth album, Forever and a Day, saw a brief return to pop ballads with the title track “After” (“후”), reaching number 6 on the charts. Upon completing his military service in 2004, Hong returned with his next albums, Listen and Repeat, and Evolution of Rhythm, marking his return to the rock genre. Music for My Life, Life for My Music, followed in August, 2007; a reflective pop ballad album featuring tracks like “Fool” (“못난이”) and the self-penned “Neighbour People, Fighting!!” (“동네 사람들, Fighting!!”). Hong continued his musical journey with upbeat dance record, Keep Going, released on June 28, 2008, which peaked at number 27, featuring the track “Come Back, Come Back” (“돌아와 돌아와”), a collaboration with hip-hop duo Mighty Mouth. He followed this with the albums Someday (2009) and Special Edition (2010), with the latter climbing to number 14. Hong re-emerged in 2016 with the single “Cheer Up Song” featuring Cha Tae-hyun, continuing to release singles such as “Archive People” (2019), “Takedown” (2020), and “More Money” (2021). In 2024, he made a comeback with the single album Into My Playlist Pt.9, featuring DOHWA.