What Solo Projects Has SHINee Leader Pursued Outside The Group?

People mix up subunit roles a lot, so I like to start by clearing that up: the member who left in a big, public way was Kris (Wu Yifan), and he was the leader of EXO-M, not EXO-K. The leader most fans think of for EXO-K, Suho, never formally 'stepped down' — he stayed as the group's Korean-side leader. That confusion probably comes from how tangled the Mandarin- and Korean-side activities were back then. As for why Kris left: it boiled down to a legal fight with the agency. He filed to nullify his contract in 2014 citing long hours, unequal treatment, and what he called an unbalanced contract that limited his chances to work in China. There was also a big emotional component — being young, overseas, and under intense pressure can make people burn out fast. After the suit, he pursued solo work and acting in China. So it wasn’t a simple resignation; it was a messy split involving lawsuits, career choices, and personal strain, which unfortunately fractured the group's early cohesion.

I get asked this a lot in fan chats, and honestly I love digging into it with people. The leader of EXO-K, Suho, has had a pretty visible solo path but it’s a bit different from the typical solo-idol trophy run. As a solo singer he released the EP 'Self-Portrait' (and some OST tracks and collaborations), and while those releases did well on charts and warmed the hearts of fans, they didn’t translate into a long list of big-year-end solo music awards like Melon or MAMA wins dedicated solely to him. That said, Suho’s solo recognition tends to come from a broader mix of activities: acting roles, theater, and OST acclaim. He’s picked up acting-related accolades and nominations over the years, and his OST works have gotten praise in drama communities. If you’re compiling a formal list, I’d check the official award ceremony archives and his agency updates, because some of his wins are tied to acting/musical categories rather than strictly as a solo pop music artist. Personally, I always appreciate that his solo work highlights a different side of his artistry, even if the shiny award shelf isn’t overflowing.

Hearing the news felt like someone yanked the carpet out from under a whole community. I was scrolling through my feed on a sleepy Tuesday and suddenly every fan account, every fancam thread, every group chat lit up — shock, disbelief, screenshots, and frantic translations. For EXO specifically, the departures of big-name members like Kris and Luhan (both from EXO-M) had already shown how fast things could escalate: legal statements, trending hashtags, and fans trying to reconcile loyalty to the group with sympathy or anger toward the company or the member involved. At first people split into camps — denial, rage, and consoling each other. Some fans threw themselves into creating commemorative edits, playlists, and fan projects to cope. Others demanded refunds for concerts or criticized the agency for mismanagement. I remember sending late-night texts to fellow fans, trading K-drama-style speculation and trying not to drown in rumors. Over time the tone softened: fan communities that had been echo chambers of blame slowly shifted into practical support for remaining members, streaming pushes to help promotions, and quieter, private messages to the departed member. It was messy, deeply emotional, and oddly bonding — like surviving a weird, painful rite of passage together.

The role of Erudite leader Jeanine Matthews in 'Divergent' is played by Kate Winslet, and wow, what a casting choice that was! I still get chills remembering her cold, calculated demeanor—those sharp suits and even sharper dialogue. Winslet brought this eerie elegance to the character that made her terrifying yet weirdly captivating. It's wild because she's usually in more dramatic or period roles, so seeing her as a dystopian villain was a fresh twist. Funny enough, I rewatched the movie recently and picked up on subtle details in her performance, like how she barely raises her voice but dominates every scene. It made me appreciate how actors can transform when they step into sci-fi or YA adaptations. Also, it sparked a debate among my friends about whether Jeanine or President Snow from 'The Hunger Games' is the more chilling leader—I’m team Jeanine, personally.

Late-night scribbles and rainy-city neon blended into the first sparks of 'HER, DARK LEADER'. I was reading a stack of political essays and then flipped to a battered anthology of myths, and both voices started arguing with each other in my head: the dry cadence of realpolitik versus the flamboyant, tragic arcs of queens and monsters. That clash — ordinary systems of power meeting mythic psychology — became the engine for the plot. I wanted a story where a woman's ascent to absolute control felt both eerily modern (think surveillance, PR machines, populist speeches) and ancient, as if Zeus-level bargains and curses still framed every decision. The protagonist's moral grayness came from watching how small compromises spiral in real life: an offhanded lie, one broken promise, a policy made “for the greater good” that mutates into something monstrous. Aesthetics and tone drove a lot of narrative choices. Musically, I kept picturing synth-laden choral pieces and shoegaze that could score a coup; visually I borrowed from high-contrast noir, cathedral interiors, and ruined statues with vines — so the plot needed scenes that let those images breathe: a coronation done under flickering power, a secret meeting in a cathedral basement, a demolished statue reclaimed by protesters. I leaned on classic tragic templates — echoes of 'Macbeth' for ambition and fate, the moral ambiguity of 'Blade Runner' for who counts as human and who is expendable, and the psychological intensity of 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' where inner demons externalize as literal threats. But I also threaded in softer influences: folktales where bargains always have a hidden cost, and modern memoirs about leadership that show how charisma can feel both authentic and performative. Practically, the plot emerged by blending timeline jumps and shifting perspectives so the reader experiences both the public rise and private sediment of choices. I wanted readers to see the trope of the charismatic leader from multiple angles — the fervent follower, the cynical advisor, the betrayed sibling — so plot beats are often mirrored: a rally that looks triumphant from the podium and catastrophic from the crowd. Real-world events — protests that turned ugly, whistleblowers, climate crisis panic — seeded specific scenes, but the heart is human: how love, fear, and grief become the fuel of political myth. Writing it felt like carving a statue that keeps revealing unexpected veins of marble; whenever I reread certain chapters I notice new echoes, and that keeps me hooked.

I get excited whenever this topic comes up, because it's one of those things where the line between individual and group blur in a lovely way. There aren’t many awards handed out that say “best group leader” and pin it to one person, so most of the formal recognition tied to BTS’s leadership actually comes as group honors that RM accepted or led the band through. The big, formal one that often gets mentioned is the South Korean government's Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit in 2018 — that was awarded to BTS for spreading Korean culture worldwide, and RM, as group leader, was part of that honor. Beyond that, BTS has won major international prizes under his leadership: multiple Billboard Music Awards, American Music Awards, MTV awards and big domestic trophies at shows like Mnet and Melon, plus Grammy nominations that marked huge milestones. So if you’re counting trophies that reflect his leadership, look at the group’s global achievements and the national commendation like the Order of Cultural Merit — they’re the clearest, official nods to what he’s helped build with the members. For a fuller list, the band’s official pages and major music award archives are great to browse; it’s rewarding to see how many different stages RM has led them onto.

Honestly, some of my favorite deep-dives into RM's songwriting come from long-form interviews where he isn't being rushed — those let him unpack the why behind lines. I usually start with features on Billboard and Rolling Stone: they do multi-page conversations that often dive into lyrical themes, how he drafts in his notebook, and the translation choices he faces when writing in Korean and wanting global nuance. Another place I keep going back to is the 'Genius' material and the artist breakdowns on YouTube. When RM annotates lyrics or sits through a lyric-by-lyric video, you get the most granular glimpse of his thought process — line edits, the image he wanted, what he cut. Also, the BTS documentaries like 'Burn the Stage' and 'Bring the Soul' include behind-the-scenes studio moments where he talks about composing, collaboration with producers, and the emotional seeds of songs. If you hunt on YouTube, Apple Music (Zane Lowe interviews), and BTS' official channels or Weverse, you'll find clips where he literally shows his notebooks or talks through a draft. I love revisiting those to hear the stray lines that never made it, because they reveal the craft almost more than the finished product.

I got chills the first time I rewatched the Kalos saga as an adult—Ash’s encounter with Team Flare’s leader plays out like a slow burn. Ash actually crosses paths with Lysandre during the Kalos arc when the gang is spending time in Lumiose City and traveling around Kalos; at first Lysandre seems like a charismatic, almost philanthropic figure, not the obvious villain. It isn’t a single big showdown at the start, more a series of unsettling run-ins where he appears polished and in control. The real, full-on revelation of him as Team Flare’s leader and the climactic clash happens later in 'Pokémon the Series: XYZ' when Team Flare’s plan is laid bare and the stakes skyrocket. That final arc is where Ash and Lysandre go from uneasy acquaintances to direct opposition—there’s moral weight to it, and watching Ash respond felt like the sort of growth moment I cheer for. If you want the emotional payoff, the latter part of 'Pokémon the Series: XYZ' is where it lands for me.