The name of the group represents the members. CN means code name, and BLUE is a backcronym for burning, lovely, untouchable, and emotional; it is meant to portray the images of Jonghyun, Minhyuk, Jungshin, and Yonghwa, respectively.
The Leader of CNBLUE Has Changed
CNBLUE has been in the industry since 2009. Like any other group, they also went through changes. One of it was the position change of the leader. The leader changed from Jonghyun to Yonghwa. This change was made in 2010 by FNC Entertainment just before the Korean debut of the group. Yonghwa had been actively promoting himself through dramas before the group released their Korean debut. He gained great popularity from the success of the drama You’re Beautiful. This popularity was seen as a chance for the group to be able to gain even more popularity with Yonghwa as their new leader since the group had experienced a failure in their Japanese debut before. They did not manage to get into Oricon Album Charts.
The CNBLUE Former Leader
Before their Korean debut, Yonghwa was only a guitarist. The leader of CNBLUE was Jonghyun. He led CNBLUE from the group’s Japanese debut in 2009 before being replaced by Yonghwa in 2010. Aside from being a leader, he also takes on the position of vocalist and guitarist.
Jonghyun CNBLUE Leader
Jonghyun, born Lee Jonghyun, was the guitarist, vocalist, and former leader of CNBLUE. He was born on May 15, 1990. Before CNBLUE was formed, Jonghyun was an ulzzang at “BESTNINE” alongside Mblaq’s Lee Joon, fellow member Jung Yonghwa, and Block B’s Jaehyo. He was scouted by FNC Entertaiment while they were scouting for Yonghwa. Both of them were then asked to audition with the company. They met Minhyuk at the audition. Eventually, the three were assigned in the same band along with former member Kwangjiin. In this original lineup, Jongyun was appointed as the leader.
CNBLUE Group Leader: Yonghwa and Jonghyun
As of 2010, the group leader of CNBLUE is Yonghwa. Since the change, there has not been any more leader changes. However, the positioning is quite unique. Yonghwa is not the only leader. Jonghyun is also still the leader of CNBLUE. He is entitled to be the ‘2nd leader’. Both of them are said to be working extremely well with each other in terms of being the leaders of the team; Jonghyun is assertive while Yonghwa is talkative. Their personalities fit best with a leader’s duty of leading and speaking for everyone. The other members, too, believe that this is the best leader situation to have.
