23 Facts About MC Mong

Shin Dong-hyun, better known by his stage name MC Mong, is a South Korean hip hop recording artist, record producer, radio personality, actor and television personality who is known for his comic disposition and his upbeat songs.

MC Mong is one of the most commercially successful hip hop artists in Korea.

MC Mong gained popularity in the early 2000s as an actor on the sitcom, Nonstop, before releasing his debut album, 180 Degree, in 2004.

MC Mong was charged in 2010 with draft dodging, after which he was banned from appearing on major Korean broadcast networks.

MC Mong debuted in 1998 as a member of hip hop group People Crew.

However, MC Mong's break came not from rapping but from acting, when he appeared on the sitcom Nonstop 4 in 2003.

MC Mong's acting abilities on the show won him mainstream popularity.

MC Mong released his fourth album, Show's Just Begun, in 2008.

MC Mong wrote the single, "Jin Shil, Even If You're in Heaven," for the late actress Choi Jin-sil, who had committed suicide the year before.

In 2010, MC Mong's career was put on hold when he was accused of evading South Korea's mandatory military service by having healthy teeth extracted to gain exemption.

MC Mong was ultimately sentenced to a suspended six-month jail term for dodging conscription.

MC Mong made his comeback in 2014 with the album, Miss Me Or Diss Me, which topped nine Korean music charts shortly after its release.

MC Mong released the single, "Love Jumble," from EP Song For You, which topped music charts after its release.

At the second trial held on November 29,2010, after four of MC Mong's dentists came forward to support his case, the fifth dentist, who originally said he had removed teeth number 46 and 47, changed his statement.

MC Mong explained that there was a hole in tooth number 46 and he could not know why the hole was there so he extracted it.

MC Mong further explained that MC Mong had not taken good care of his teeth and as such, most of them needed either care or removal.

MC Mong said that the police told him to write words such as "forceful" and "intense" in his account, and that he was bothered about this constantly when he did not.

In 2004, MC Mong attracted controversy for making homophobic comments during an interview on the television show Most Wanted.

In March 2022, MC Mong was caught trying to leave the country carrying $70,000 in cash, which he had not reported to customs.

MC Mong's agency responded that he had intended to report the money, but was distracted and forgot.

In February 2024, MC Mong was fined three million won for refusing to appear as a witness in a fraud case involving golfer Ahn Sung-hyun.

MC Mong, described as a "key witness", was summoned by the court on three occasions, but refused to appear each time, changing his phone number to avoid being contacted.

MC Mong subsequently attended the trial, where he denied having any knowledge of the transactions between Ahn and Kang, and the court cancelled the fine.