The remaining three members of K-pop band CNBLUE have renewed their contract with their agency and will release an album this year.
Agency FNC Entertainment announced that it signed new contracts with CNBLUE’s Jung Yong-hwa, Kang Min-hyuk and Lee Jung-shin.
"We will do our best to provide the best support to CNBLUE so that the band can keep shining in the K-pop world,” it said, SBS News reported.
Last March, Kang Min-hyuk and Lee Jung-shin were discharged from the military following Jung Yong-hwa, who completed his military service in November 2019.
CNBLUE have been in the business for 10 years since debuting in South Korea in 2010 with the album “Bluetory” containing the main track “I’m a Loner.”
They will be making their comeback as a three-member group with a new album that will come after their last was released three years and eight months ago.
Lee Jonghyun quit CNBLUE in August 2019 while serving in the military after YouTuber Park Min-jung revealed the direct messages he sent to her on Instagram.
“First of all, I would like to once again apologize to those who have been hurt by my inappropriate words and doings as well as those who feel greatly disappointed about me,” Jonghyun said in a statement, according to Ten Asia.
He added, “Besides, although it is late, I still would like to announce my withdrawal from CNBLUE. I also expressed my intention to leave the group in my discussion with the members since I feel sorry that they have suffered damages because of me. I feel so ashamed and embarrassed to disappoint fans who believed me.”
Park Min-jung posted on Instagram a screenshot of Jonghyun’s direct messages to her, which read, "I'm watching your YouTube regularly" and "Your belly fat is so cute.”
This came after Jonghyun was embroiled in the controversy involving convicted singer Jung Joon-young, who uploaded videos of women without their consent on KakaoTalk chat rooms. The inappropriate conversations between the two men about women were revealed by the media.
FNC Entertainment is also home to K-pop groups SF9, AOA, P1Harmony, N.Flying, Cherry Bullet and FT Island.