96 girls from Korea, Japan to vie for ‘Produce 48’ in June

Mnet’s new audition program “Produce 48” will start airing in June, the TV network said Wednesday. “Produce 48” will broadcast competitions among 96 trainees from both South Korea and Japan, contesting for four months to debut as a global girl group.Members of popular Japanese girl group, AKB48, will also be part of the 96 contestants.Trainers will include Lee Hong-ki of FT Island, Soyou, rapper Cheetah and choreographer May J Lee.The survival show will be the third of its kind by Mnet, followin

PerformanceApril 11, 2018

Korean ‘King of Pop’ lives on after half a century

Cho Yong-pil is widely referred in Korea as “Gawang” -- the king of singing or pop music. The nickname is hardly an exaggeration, as the famed singer has performed everything from pop, rock, trot and folk to even songs comparable to contemporary K-pop, in an unparalleled music career.“I found such a nickname actually burdensome. That was never my goal when I sang, I don’t know about being the top, or setting records. I just did it because I love music,” he said at a press conference Wednesday in

PerformanceApril 11, 2018

Lee Tae-hwan to star in ‘What's Wrong With Secretary Kim’

Rising actor Lee Tae-hwan will star in upcoming drama “What‘s Wrong With Secretary Kim” (tentative title).Lee has joined the crew of the much-anticipated drama series, the production company announced Wednesday. The drama is based on a popular web novel of the same title. Due to its popularity, the work has been made in to a web cartoon series as well. Lee Tae-hwan (Fantagio)Actress Park Min-young is to take the lead role, playing the character of Kim Mi-so, a secretary to a wealthy business man

TelevisionApril 11, 2018

Seeing family through eyes of daughter-in-law

The word “myeoneuri,” which means daughter-in-law in Korean, denotes much more than just a legal familiar relationship. It is a word loaded with layers of meaning, reflecting the position that a daughter-in-law occupies in the patriarchal Korean society.In recent years, entertainment contents discussing daughters-in-law have been a hit, such as documentary film “Myeoneuri: My Son’s Crazy Wife” and webtoon “Myeoneuragi.” Both works explore the reality of marriage, portraying what it is like to be

TelevisionApril 11, 2018

[Album review] EXO-CBX’s album inspired by days of the week is top-notch

EXO-CBX“Blooming Days”IRIVERThank God EXO-CBX’s new album is nothing like its previous funky-disco tune from “Hey Mama” or the ear-drum bursting EDM sound from EXO’s “Power.” In the world of K-pop where boy bands are given credit for their powerful performances and indiscreet use of synth sounds, the EXO unit’s toned-down “Blooming Days” EP soothes the listeners with a fragrant spring breeze. What is brilliant in this seven-track album is that each track correlates to a day of the week while lyr

PerformanceApril 11, 2018

Choi Soo-young to star in novel-based film

Actress and singer Choi Soo-young has been cast in a film based on a novel by Japanese novelist Yoshimoto Banana, which started filming in Japan on April 1.According to Zoa Films, Choi will play the protagonist Yumi and her co-star Tanaka Shunsuke will play another main character Nishiyama in the upcoming film “Memories of a Dead End.” Choi Soo-young (Zoa Films)Yoshimoto, one of the most popular Japanese writers in Korea, is well-known for works such as “Lizard” and “Kitchen” -- her debut work w

FilmApril 11, 2018

D.O. of K-pop boy band EXO cast for new tvN series

K-pop boy group EXO's Do Kyung-soo, better known by his stage name D.O., has been cast in a new TV series set to air later this year on cable channel tvN.The network said Wednesday that the singer, 25, and actress Nam Ji-hyun, 23, have been cast for the main characters of "Dear Husband of 100 Days." This image provided by tvN shows Do Kyung-soo (L) and Nam Ji-hyun. (Yonhap)In the romantic comedy, Do will play Prince Lee Yul of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), a fictional character who loses his m

TelevisionApril 11, 2018

[Trending] #What is Love #Twice

K-pop super star Twice released a spring-themed song “What is Love?” Monday and the internet went crazy for the girl group’s return.(Related article: Twice asks ‘What Is Love?’)  Twice (JYP Entertainment)The song has swept the local music charts as soon as it was released, ranking the top spots on every chart at 9 a.m. Tuesday. The group’s name “Twice” also skyrocketed to the first spot of Naver’s trending bar Monday, while “Twice What is Love” ranked fifth on the same day.The music video for “W

PerformanceApril 10, 2018

Olympics for magicians to kick off in July in Busan as organizers anticipate NK's participation

BUSAN -- More than 110 top guns of the magic world will gather in the South Korean coastal city of Busan this summer to take part in the World Championships of Magic competition, organizers said Tuesday.The organizing committee for the competition, which is hosted by the International Federation of Magic Societies, said the triennial event will bring together 113 top-notch magicians from 22 countries -- 56 from five European countries, 22 from five North and South American countries, 34 from Asi

CultureApril 10, 2018

UAE media zero in on K-pop mania amid recent SM gala concert

Media outlets of the United Arab Emirates have offered extensive coverage of a recent K-pop gala concert thrown by SM Entertainment, South Korea's largest entertainment agency, last week in Dubai.The concert, "SM Town Live World Tour VI in Dubai," was held at the Autism Rocks Arena in Dubai on Friday. A total of 14 acts, including EXO, Red Velvet and TVXQ, participated in the joint label concert. The company announced that some 15,000 gathered at the event.Gulf News, a Dubai-based English langua

PerformanceApril 10, 2018

Truth committee: More than 9,000 politically active artists blacklisted under ex-President Park

The former Park Geun-hye government maintained a list of more than 9,000 artists deemed critical of the government and used it to disadvantage them from various state support programs, a civilian-government truth committee said Tuesday.During a press conference in Seoul, the committee for finding the truth behind the "artist blacklist" unveiled a government document that includes a total of 9,473 names allegedly excluded from various programs to support artists. (Yonhap)They were disadvantaged s

CultureApril 10, 2018

Seoul city embarks on project to expand Gwanghwamun Square

The Seoul city government and the national heritage agency announced a joint initiative Tuesday to redesign the pedestrian plaza at the heart of the capital as part of urban planning aimed at bolstering public convenience and restoring history.Gwanghwamun Square, located in the middle of the 10-lane Sejongro main street in central Seoul, will be turned into a new space that nearly quadruples the current area, according to the plan unveiled by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Cultural He

CultureApril 10, 2018

[Video] Diversity of Korean seaweed rice roll ‘gimbap’

The season of outdoor picnics has dawned. If Western countries have the sandwich, Korea has gimbap as item of choice for dining alfresco in the park.A roll of gimbap -- rice, vegetables and other ingredients wrapped tightly in a seaweed laver sheet -- is considered both the classic picnic lunch and takeout food for Koreans.The typical gimbap consists of white rice, carrots, spinach, fried egg, ham, cucumber and yellow pickled radish. A timeless item on the lunch menu for Koreans, gimbap has also

FoodApril 10, 2018

BTS' latest Japanese album tops Oricon's weekly chart

K-pop group BTS on Tuesday clinched the top spot on the weekly album chart for Oricon, Japan's main music sales tracker, with its latest Japanese release."Face Yourself," BTS' third Japanese studio album released last Wednesday, reached the top of the Oricon's album chart for the week of April 2-8, according to Oricon's website.First week record sales reached 282,000 copies, according to Oricon. "Face Yourself" was also seen at No. 1 on Oricon's daily album chart for the sixth consecutive day. A

PerformanceApril 10, 2018

Twice asks ‘What Is Love?’

After talking about the feeling of love with “Heart Shaker” last winter, Twice is back with a question about love this time: “What is Love?”On Monday, the chart-topping girl group returned with its fifth EP “What is Love?” fronted by a lead track of the same name. In the lead track, which is upbeat and bubbly with the group’s signature pop effusiveness, the members transform into naive young women who have learned about love through books, movies and dramas, but haven’t actually experienced it.

PerformanceApril 9, 2018

‘Secret Mother’ looks at Korea's intense education scene

Upcoming SBS drama series “Secret Mother” will focus on the overheated education system in Korea, starring Kim So-yeon and Song Yoon-ah as the main leads. From left, Kim So-yeon (J,Wide-Company) and Song Yoon-ah (Snowball Entertainment)Kim is to take the role of a Kim Lisa, a mysterious person overseeing student’s academic endeavors. She takes care of students’ schedules, goals and scores, like a mother would. The production team referred to her as an “academic surrogate mother.” Song will play

TelevisionApril 9, 2018

Hong Sang-soo‘s ‘Claire’s Camera’ with Kim Min-hee to open April 25

Director Hong Sang-soo’s latest film starring his muse and lover Kim Min-hee will hit the local theaters on April 25.Distributors for the drama, which has a highly-decorated actress Isabelle Huppert as the titular main character, has released the main trailer and the poster for the film.It features a conversation between the leading ladies, Huppert and Kim -- playing Claire and Man-hee, respectively -- about why Claire takes pictures. The poster for “Claire‘s Camera: (Jeonwonsa Film Co.)“Claire’

FilmApril 9, 2018

Hangeul exhibition explores Korean script‘s beauty in art form

The latest art exhibition in Seoul will showcase how the writing system of Korea is not only an efficient means of communication, but also admirable for its artistic value.“SoundXHangeul: Variation Of The Korean Alphabet” opened Monday at the Special Exhibition Hall at the National Hangeul Museum where it will run until June 3. It was planned by the state-run NHM as part two of a three-part project demonstrating the excellence of Hangeul. Visitors view “SoundXHangeul: Variation Of The Korean Alp

CultureApril 9, 2018

Tate Modern to hold Paik Nam-june exhibition next year

Tate Modern is planning an exhibition featuring Korea‘s internationally acclaimed video artist Paik Nam-June next year.Tate Modern will kick off its Paik Nam-June exhibition during the second half of next year, a local media report said Sunday, citing Tate director Maria Balshaw. The exhibition will later tour several cities in East Asia. The exhibition will be curated by Lee Sook-kyung, Senior Research Curator at Tate Research Center and Curator of Tate‘s Asia Pacific Acquisitions Committee --

Arts & DesignApril 9, 2018

Noir debuts with black-tinged ‘Twenty’s Noir’

The K-pop newcomers of Noir are all about black -- the color of power and charisma.On Monday, nine-member act Noir debuted with the group’s first EP, “Twenty’s Noir.” Featuring six songs, the album is led by explosive electronic dance music track “Gangsta,” which leans heavily on the band’s rappers. Overflowing with propulsive beats, flamboyant synths and EDM breaks, “Gangsta” captures the blazing hearts of nine wishing to capture a woman’s heart. Noir, represented by Luk Factory, consists of Ye

PerformanceApril 9, 2018