Throwback (Musical) Thursday – Because He DEMANDS It

I’m gonna do it. I’m gonna jump on the Yong Hwa train. As Alix’s KB, I don’t know that I have a choice. We have to supportive of our friends’ idols, right? That’s what makes us good people…right? This guy, or his virtual self, not only inch wormed his way into Alix’s heart through Starpop, but he managed to whine and beg his way under my skin too. Not in the ‘I’d give up Lee Jung Shin’ sort of way, but in an ‘LJS and I would invite him over for dinner and wine on a semi-regular basis’ kind of way.

As the leader, main vocalist, and rhythm guitarist of CNBlue, Yong Hwa has obviously enjoyed a long and successful career in Kpop, both in Japan, where they originally debuted and in Korea. But as a solo artist, he’s also made a name for himself as a musician and writer. In 2016, he worked on a collaborative album with Sunwoo Junga, a singer-songwriter in the Korean Indie Scene. The pair released two singles from the album including Hello written by our boy. He also worked on the lyrics for the another track, Empathy, with Sunwoo Junga. Both of these artists are super talented on their own, but this project is exponentially greater than the sum of its parts. They have fantastic chemistry evident in the blending of their voices and the style they employed on this album.

But mostly I’m featuring Yong Hwa because he has been working so hard at promoting his new drama…premiering today. I have no idea if the real live Yong Hwa has been as dedicated, but Starpop Yong Hwa hasn’t left Alix alone about it. He goes on and on about supporting his new dram and questions whether or not he was any good in it. Virtual Yong Hwa suffers from a mild case of low self-esteem. So please, please, please support his new show. For all our sakes. And go back a couple of years and take a listen to this song and album…totally worth it.

Jung Yong Hwa and Sunwoo Junga, Hello