[HK news article] CNBLUE ~ The talented and skilled with an idol face

This is a whole page news article in a Hong Kong newspaper, Ming Pao, dated Jan 11, 2012. I tweeted the photo earlier. I told you the paper is considered the most credible and accountable paper here. Intellectuals read it and it’s educators’ choice too.

I like the title already and the content is very positive too. Though there isn’t much new info that we as fans don’t know, I think people here who don’t know CNBLUE before will have a good impression reading this. I totally need to translate it. But I did it in a hurry and was to too lazy to translate the sub headings and photo captions. Please bear with my sub-standard English too! 

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CNBLUE debuted in Korea in 2010 Jan. Except leader Jung Yonghwa being born in 1989, all members are 90’sers and their average age isn’t even 21. The band is so solid already. They attribute that to their music training which began in 2009 June. Then the still “nameless” indie band, CNBLUE, carried their instruments around, performed on the streets, in malls and live houses. Drummer Kang Minhyuk reveals that they were often hungry saving money for transport. And there were only a handful of audiences. But those a hundred something performances they made have resulted in their improved instrument and vocal skills. Lee Jungshin says, “We had a tough life during that period, but we grew in many areas because of that. The live performance experiences we’ve gained are just invaluable.”

Half a year later, CNBLUE debuted in their home country, Korea, with the first mini-ablum Bluetory, sweeping the champions of all charts. They signed a major record label only until last year, releasing the first single In My Head in October, surfacing officially to the main music scene from their indie activities. On the 19^th of the same month, they held a street concert in Shibuya, attracting thousands of fans. But they had to end the show after performing “In My Head”, for the Police asked them to end the concert due to safety concern. Still the single’s sales have exceeded 100,000 and it was crowned a golden record.

CNBLUE pick the Japan major debut as the most important event in 2011. Actually they’ve released albums when they were still an indie band, and have performed in big venues like Yokohama Arena. What’s the difference before and after major debut? “Like what you said, we’ve released a few albums and singles during our indie band days and have performed in big concert venues. So there’s really no big difference. And we have been doing music with the same mind set and passion from the beginning till now. We just hope more music fans can appreciate our music. Anyway, we’re just too happy to have the Asia tour too, holding a formal concert here in Hong Kong. We fell so fortunate.”

CNBLUE don’t want to forget their first feelings playing music together, so they’ll hold a live house tour from the 13^th to 23^rd next month in several band live shrines, namely Liquid Room, and Club Quattro. They can’t possibly do street lives in Japan or Korea nowadays, maybe they should do one here in Hong Kong? All members say this is a great suggestion. Lead vocal Jung Yonghwa came to Hong Kong filming “Running Man” earlier says, “Soho, I want to do it in Soho.” Lee Jungshin, however, likes to perform in the Peak.

When CNBLUE came for the K-Pop concert here last year, they were so well received. Foreighn reporters who saw them the first time were totally surprised and praised them. When told about that, CNBLUE boys all clap, with Jung Yonghwa and Kang Minhyuk holding each other’s hands tightly. All satisfying looks on their faces. Kang Minhyuk says, “The fans’ support is our energy, making us work hard continuously. So we’ve been anticipating this concert in Hong Kong.” The foreign reporters thought they were just idols, didn’t know they are such a great band. Jung Yonghwa appears often in variety shows and he’s in dramas, “You’re Beautiful” and “You’ve Fallen For Me”. Though dramas can help gain popularity, will it ruin their image of professional musicians? He says, “No! The main vocal of CNBLUE is so different from the person in dramas. I think people won’t be confused. If so, maybe I need to think of another name to be used as an actor. Or another name when I sing, too?” Then he jokes that it may be even better if he can change his face.

CNBLUE boys love music and so they chose this business. They have been bothered by the title “a fake band made of just very tall boys”. In their early debut days, netizens mocked them for their instruments weren’t plugged during performances, saying they were faking. For the audiences who have seen them live, they can be sure those accusations are false. CNBLUE don’t just work hard to improve their live playing skills, they are continuously creating their own music too. Jung Yonghwa and Lee Jonghyun are responsible for most of the composition work. For the three tracks in their newest single In My Head, the title track and Mr. KIA are Jung Yonghwa’s works, while “Rain of Blessing” is Lee Jonghyun’s. Jung Yonghwa says, “All of them are our creation. We are satisfied with all. We won’t show anything to our fans that we don’t like ourselves! So if you ask us to pick a favorite, we just can’t! Writing music is a natural thing to me. I won’t tell myself: ‘I must write a song today.’ I don’t think I can if I force myself. So whenever I have inspiration, I’ll try to remember it immediately.” Lee Jonghyun has a special habit however, “When I want to write music, I look at some old photos and I will be inspired.” Kang Minhyuk has taken part in lyrics writing for “Sweet Holiday”. Will he and Lee Jungshin participate more in the creative department in the near future. Jung Yonghwa answers before they can, “Of course! They are real interested in music and lyrics writing. They’ve actually written much, especially Kang Minhyuk. He’s very ambitious about creating music, though he’s still in learning process.”

In the concert last week, there’s this video about CNBLUE’s music world, including their music “roots” that made them dedicate themselves to music. What kind of music do they prefer? Jung Yonghwa who likes Bon Jovi and Kang Minhyuk who likes Marron 5 reply, “We mainly listen to Korean music lately. We don’t have preference for any singers. We just listen to all new releases.” Lee Jungshin who likes Mr. Big doesn’t have a preferred singer neither, but he listens to much electronic music  lately. Only Lee Jonghyun who likes Eric Clapton says he has the same preference, “I still like blues a lot.”

In 2012, CNBLUE hope to meet with fans from all over the world. The Hong Kong concert is the first stop of their Asia tour. They also have plans for joint concerts with FTIsland (of the same agency) in England and France.

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Digital versions of the pics from the online articles. 🙂