Charges fly over Ailee photos leak

The nude photo scandal surrounding singer Ailee took a twist on Tuesday as a U.S.-based Korean pop news site that uploaded the photos stuck to its story that it had taken the images from an online forum.On Sunday, allkpop posted a set of nude photos of the singer in an article titled “Purported pre-debut nude photos of Ailee leaked.” In response, Ailee’s agency, YMC Entertainment, released a statement which said, “The photos were from a camera test shoot for a famous underwear company that Ailee

Nov. 12, 2013

Inaugural exhibitions of MMCA Seoul present latest in contemporary art

The latest trends and forms of contemporary art will go on display starting Wednesday at the newly opened Seoul branch of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea. The museum, located in the heart of Seoul next to Gyeongbokgung Palace, is marking its opening in a big way, presenting five exhibitions that encompass diverse forms of contemporary art in exhibition spaces that measure a total of 10,450 square meters. “The new museum has set its role as a comprehensive museum integra

PerformanceNov. 11, 2013

Park orders probe into shoddy restorations

President Park Geun-hye ordered her staff Monday to strictly investigate cultural restoration projects, saying those found responsible for shoddy repair work should be severely punished.Park gave the order to her chief of staff Kim Ki-choon ahead of a meeting of senior presidential secretaries early in the day, citing recent revelations that the ancient Sungnyemun Gate was poorly restored, according to her senior press secretary Lee Jung-hyun.“This morning, President Park ordered a strict invest

CultureNov. 11, 2013

Simon Rattle on contemporary music and future

There is no doubt that Sir Simon Rattle is the Midas of the classical music circle. He invigorated the British regional City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and raised its name to an international level. Most recently, he has expanded the musical realm of the Berliner Philharmoniker since becoming its chief conductor and artistic director in 2002. From Bach to the contemporary Bruckner and Pierre Boulez, the maestro, who is said to “know what and why of the orchestra,” has brought a breath of f

PerformanceNov. 11, 2013

Lee Min-ho to conclude world tour in January

Actor Lee Min-ho will hold a finale performance for his 2013 world tour, “My Everything,” in Seoul next January. The actor released an album titled “My Everything” in May and embarked on a world tour spanning nine venues in six countries including Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines and China. “Many fans in the country were disappointed because Lee Min-ho left Korea for his Asia tour after only one performance,” a representative for the actor stated. “Our original plan of finishing the tour in Kore

Nov. 11, 2013

‘Coup d’Etat’ makes top 50 best album covers list

The artwork on the cover of G-Dragon’s recent album has nabbed 20th place in Complex Magazine’s “50 Best Pop Album Covers of the Past Five Years.” The star’s second studio album “Coup d’Etat” is the only album by a Korean artist that earned a spot on the list. The album cover features a bright red background with a black symbol that can be interpreted as a modified peace sign. The symbol also resembles the emblem for voting in Korea. Complex Magazine writer Dale Eisinger described G-Dragon as a

Nov. 11, 2013

Norazo works with Noh Hong-chul for next single

Duo Norazo is collaborating with comedian Noh Hong-chul for their upcoming single “Wild Horse.” The single, set to be released on Wednesday, will be a lively, upbeat number similar to the group’s previous hit “Superman,” which was released in 2008 as part of their third studio album “THREE GO.” “Infinite Challenge” member Noh recently collaborated with indie band Rose Motel for the program’s popular annual music festival. This year’s performances were held at Imjingak in Gyeonggi Province where

Nov. 11, 2013

Lady Gaga takes flight with ‘Artpop’ global release

NEW YORK (AFP) ― Multi-platinum selling diva Lady Gaga took off in a custom-made flying dress to proclaim a new cultural revolution for Monday’s global launch of her third album, greeted by mixed reviews.Fighting to retain her “Queen of Pop” crown, Gaga strapped herself into the fly suit, clamped on a helmet and wearing little else but a cut-out black leotard and knee-high sparkly white stiletto boots, took off and propelled through the air at a press conference in a Brooklyn warehouse.“Artpop”

PerformanceNov. 11, 2013

ABBA mulls possible ‘Waterloo’ reunion

FRANKFURT, Germany (AFP) ― Legendary Swedish pop group ABBA could reunite next year to mark the 40th anniversary since they won the Eurovision Song Contest and were catapulted to global stardom, singer Agnetha Faltskog revealed on Sunday.“Of course it’s something we’re thinking about,” 63-year-old Faltskog told the German weekly Welt am Sonntag in an interview.“There seem to be plans to do something to mark this anniversary in some way. But I can’t say at this point what will come of them,” she

PeopleNov. 11, 2013

CJ chairman checks into SNU Hospital again

CJ Group chairman Lee Jay-hyun was rehospitalized at Seoul National University Hospital on Sunday due to an illness, the group said.The chairman underwent a kidney transplant in late August and had been recovering at home since his recent discharge from SNU Hospital on Oct. 31, only to re-enter the hospital just 10 days later due to a viral infection, according to CJ officials.“Chairman Lee had been taking immunosuppressant drugs to aid his recovery from the kidney transplant, which made his imm

PeopleNov. 11, 2013

Rowling donates 25 million pounds to help children

“Harry Potter” author JK Rowling has donated almost 25 million pounds ($40 million) of her fortune to help orphans and troubled children across Eastern Europe.According to British media on Sunday, 18.9 million pounds from the sale of Potter spin-off book “The Tales of Beedle the Bard” went to the writer’s Lumos charity.Unnamed private donors, believed to be Rowling, have given another 5.4 million pounds to the charity, which works to end the suffering of kids in institutions. According to the re

PeopleNov. 11, 2013

Netizens cracking down on plagiarism scandals plaguing K-pop world

The recent charges of plagiarism involving local hip-hop artist Primary has brought the Korean music industry’s notorious past and ongoing allegations of plagiarism to the fore.Many are now questioning how these accusations will impact the future of the industry. Thanks to the infinite capabilities of the Internet, netizens have been exposing supposed plagiarism.“As bad as an accusation of plagiarism can be, the resolution of plagiarism in Korea might actually be far worse,” said one industry in

PerformanceNov. 11, 2013

Primary plagiarism scandal escalates

The controversy surrounding alleged plagiarism by celebrated hip-hop artist Primary is escalating as listeners find more similarities between Primary’s songs and the creations of David Schreurs, a producer for Dutch jazz singer Caro Emerald. Accusations of plagiarism surfaced earlier this month with the release of “I Got C,” which Primary produced with comedian Park Myung-soo for the popular MBC entertainment program “Infinite Challenge.” The song topped most of the major music charts in Korea.

PerformanceNov. 10, 2013

Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra to honor Galileo with authentic period music

There may be many ways to honor Galileo Galilei’s (1564-1642) contributions to the study of the heavens, and listening to classical music under the stars seems to be a very romantic and fitting one.In fact, Galileo was a true music lover, with his father being a respected lute player-composer and his brother and nephew both famous musicians of their times. Since 2009, the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s improvement of telescopes, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra from Canada has been creating a sensat

PerformanceNov. 10, 2013

U.S., Israel lose UNESCO voting rights

PARIS (AFP) ― The United States and Israel lost their UNESCO voting rights Friday after suspending funding to the organization in 2011 over Palestinian admission, a source from the U.N. agency told AFP.Neither the U.S. nor Israel provided documentation by Friday needed “to avoid losing their right to vote,” the source said on condition of anonymity. Both countries stopped paying their contributions to the global cultural body after the Palestinians gained membership two years ago, provoking a ma

CultureNov. 10, 2013