Lead singer, 27, of South Korean boy band Shinee 'kills himself' with carbon monoxide after sending final message to his sister saying: 'Tell everyone I've had a hard time'

Kim Jong-hyun was found unconscious in an apartment in Seoul, South Korea
The 27-year-old was lead singer of the boy band Shinee before going solo in 2015
He wrote a message saying 'it's been too hard' before killing himself with carbon monoxide, it has been reported

By Julian Robinson for MailOnline and Reuters

Published: 11:27 GMT, 18 December 2017 | Updated: 22:36 GMT, 18 December 2017

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The lead singer of South Korean boy band Shinee has killed himself after sending a message to his sister saying: 'Tell everyone I've had a hard time', it has been reported.

Kim Jong-hyun was found unconscious in an apartment in Cheongdam-dong, in the upscale Gangnam district of the capital Seoul.

The 27-year-old singer, also known as Jonghyun, is said to have checked into a serviced residence for two nights and was discovered by police today after his sister raised the alarm.

Kim Jong-hyun (pictured), the lead singer of South Korea's top boy band Shinee, has died in an apparent suicide after being found unconscious in a flat, it has emerged

Local reports say he sent a final message to his sister saying: 'It's been too hard. Please send me off. Tell everyone I've had a hard time. This is my last goodbye.'

He is then reported to have killed himself with carbon monoxide.

Kim was part of the five-member K-Pop boyband Shinee that had become one of the country's most popular in recent years.

They released their debut album, The Shinee World, in 2008.

Kim Jong-hyun was found unconscious in an apartment in Cheongdam-dong, in the upscale Gangnam district of the capital Seoul. He was taken to a hospital (pictured) but later died

The group has won a number of awards for their spectacular dance routines and a Japanese-language version of one of their hits, Replay, sold more than 100,000 copies in that country.

Kim went solo in 2015 and had performed two solo concerts in Seoul earlier this month.