Former CNBLUE member Lee Jong-hyun shared his feelings for the first time in eight years after the 'Jung Joon-young group chat' controversy.
On the 11th, Lee Jong-hyun posted a long message on his social account and said, "I was once a member of CNBLUE, but due to my immaturity I left the team and it has already been eight years since I lived at a distance from the world. While living as a non-celebrity rather than a public figure during that time, I have always carried the burden in my heart over the misunderstandings and criticisms the team and members received because of my past actions."
Earlier, Lee Jong-hyun said, "There were several years when I turned my back on the world. After that I learned to work to try to live," and "It is small, but for eight years I have enjoyed and worked professionally in beauty marketing," posting an update that he has been living as an office worker after leaving the entertainment industry. He added, "From now on I will live communicating more with people as the person Lee Jong-hyun," but the public reacted strongly against this.
In 2019, Lee Jong-hyun was embroiled in controversy for reportedly participating in the so-called 'Jung Joon-young group chat' where illegal recordings were shared and inappropriate conversations took place, causing an uproar. His agency drew a line, saying, "We were only in contact because of acquaintance and are not related to this incident," but as specific circumstances emerged, they said, "We reached Lee Jong-hyun and confirmed the facts. Watching videos on KakaoTalk and engaging in misogynistic and sexually inappropriate conversations, as reported, is deserving of criticism and he reflects on that. If he had proper sexual awareness he would not have stood by, and he regrets that he did not act differently. Lee Jong-hyun is taking the public's criticism of his flawed sexual morals and values deeply to heart and feels deep regret and self-reproach. As a public figure he will be careful with all his words and actions, and he will reflect and atone," and apologized.
Afterward, calls from fans for Lee Jong-hyun to be expelled grew louder, and when it was additionally revealed that he had sent sexually harassing DMs to a streamer while in self-reflection, Lee Jong-hyun ultimately voluntarily left the team in August 2019, saying, "I am sorry to those who were hurt by my inappropriate words and actions and to all who were greatly disappointed." When he later resumed SNS activity and expressed a desire to communicate with the public and live, cold responses poured in.
Eventually Lee Jong-hyun deleted the update and expressed his feelings about the controversy. He said, "Because of my personal embarrassing circumstances and lapses that I could not fully disclose at the time, I feared that my remaining in the team might rather leave greater damage and stains on the team. Leaving the team was entirely my fault and my choice, and that responsibility was a burden I had to bear. Because of shame over my actions at the time and the sense of responsibility for them, I chose to leave the entertainment world and live cut off from the world," he confessed.
He went on, "After leaving the entertainment industry, my personal life also went through various trials. I formed a family but am also in the process of disentangling for the sake of our separate paths," confessing marriage and divorce and drawing attention. He added, "Now I will face my past mistakes instead of avoiding them, and I want to come out into the world and live proudly as a human being. This post is definitely not written to return to the entertainment industry. I wrote this with courage to clarify facts and prevent unverified rumors or misunderstandings related to certain brands and business aspects concerning the work I currently do as a private person. I want to offer sincere apologies and thanks to CNBLUE members who may have suffered from unnecessary misunderstandings for a long time, and I want to correct the wrong misunderstandings," he added.
But Lee Jong-hyun deleted the post soon after uploading it. The later reuploaded message omitted the divorce details, which drew attention. At the same time he added, "I want to make clear that some of the brands and products currently being mentioned on SNS have no direct connection to me." As boycotts against specific brands followed claiming he participated in marketing, he repeatedly emphasized that they were unrelated to him.
In an additional post, Lee Jong-hyun said, "I will always sincerely cheer for CNBLUE and the members who gave me the most brilliant and beautiful memories in my clumsy days and created precious memories. I will carry that gratitude and apology deep in my heart for the rest of my life," and "With this post I do not intend to have any further SNS activity or additional communication. I will now completely return to an ordinary non-celebrity life, reflect on the past, and live as a person who is not shameful to society and who is responsible," conveying his intention to stop SNS activity entirely and live quietly.
This corrected his initial remark that he would "live communicating with more people as the person Lee Jong-hyun." Lee Jong-hyun left a final greeting: "I once again sincerely apologize and thank everyone who cared for the lacking me and the members. I hope everyone stays healthy and peaceful."
[Photo] OSEN DB, SNS
[OSEN]