What does Psy’s new album title mean?

Psy’s new album is to be titled “New Face,” YG Entertainment announced Thursday. Track list of Psy’s new album (YG Entertainment)The lyrics of the title song present a public yearning for a “new face,” raising speculation it is suggestive of a “new face” leading the country, in light of the looming presidential elections. The album will release Wednesday, the day after the May 9 Election Day. (doo@heraldcorp.com)

PerformanceMay 4, 2017

[Herald Review]Wiz Khalifa goes wild and free in Seoul

The smoke-loving rapper, to quote one of his many hits, was indeed young, wild and free. “Korea, make some noise!” he screamed, opening his set at the Seoul Sessions Live Music Event 2017 on Wednesday at Seoul Sports Complex with “Bake Sale,” from his self-titled album “Khalifa” released last year.  After chugging some water, the rapper wildly spat the liquid into the air. It was his way of greeting the crowd of nearly 20,000 people, who obliged by chanting the rapper’s name and his label “Taylo

PerformanceMay 4, 2017

Dark red poster, video clip tease G-Dragon’s upcoming world tour

G-Dragon’s agency YG Entertainment revealed a promotional poster and video clip of the singer-rapper’s upcoming world tour Wednesday on its official website.　The poster sports G-Dragon’s face up close, heavily textured and tinted in red. Written at the top are the words “Act III: Motte 3,” a reference to the Korean word “mo-tae” meaning “matrix.” On the poster, the word is printed in different languages on G-Dragon’s face. “G-Dragon 2017 World Tour ‘Moment of Truth The End’” is written at the bo

PerformanceMay 4, 2017

[Herald Interview] First rock band to play Pyongyang lights up Jeonju film fest

JEONJU, North Jeolla Province -- The Jeonju International Film Festival invited a few guests with an interesting perspective this year -- the first foreign rock band to perform in North Korea and the team that documented the occasion.　“We had the feeling that they were pretty tense about having us here,” Morten Traavik, director of documentary musical “Liberation Day,” says of the festival organizers to The Korea Herald. “We really have the clear feeling that they are a little bit on edge.”　Traa

FilmMay 4, 2017

Brazilian ‘Rifle,’ Korean ‘Seeds of Violence’ take top prizes at Jeonju

Films that grapple with the issue of violence took top prizes at this year’s Jeonju International Film Festival.Brazilian director David Pretto’s “Rifle” and Korean director Im Tae-gyu’s “The Seeds of Violence” were announced the grand prize winners in the international competition category and the Korean competition category, respectively, at a ceremony held Wednesday evening at the Jeonju Cine Complex.“Rifle,” which made its Asian premiere at the Jeonju festival, is a mystery crime film set in

FilmMay 4, 2017

‘Guardian,’ ‘The Handmaiden’ win big at Baeksang Awards

Screenwriter Kim Eun-sook and director Park Chan-wook were awarded the grand prizes at the 2017 Baeksang Arts Awards held Wednesday at Coex Convention & Exhibition Center in Seoul. Kim wrote tvN’s megahit drama “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God” and Park directed award-winning film “The Handmaiden” (2016).(tvN/ CJ E&M)“Since I am getting this award for ‘The Handmaiden,’ I think I can say something like this. Someone who can make society one in which people are not discriminated by gender, gend

TelevisionMay 4, 2017

IU scores first No. 1 on Billboard world chart

IU’s latest album “Palette” is making a splash on the international stage, earning the Korean singer her first top spot on Billboard’s world albums chart. “Palette,” released April 21, has become one of most talked about albums in K-pop. A star-studded list of artists are featured in the album -- including G-Dragon for the single “Palette” -- and it is considered a coming-of-age piece for the 23-year-old singer. The album cover for IU’s “Palette” (Fave Entertainment)“‘Palette’ showcases IU’s ide

PerformanceMay 4, 2017

[Photo] Twice drops hints at new concept for ‘Signal’

Teaser images of Twice members released Thursday hinted at the concept of their upcoming EP “Signal.”Following up on teaser images for members Nayeon, Dahyun and Sana released the day before, JYP Entertainment unveiled images for Jeongyeon, Jihyo and Chaeyoung. Like the previous photos, the three members had both hands hoisted up on their heads like antennas. The new photos of Sana, Dahyun and Nayeon also show what could be fragments of the concept, according to JYP. A teaser image of Sana for T

PerformanceMay 4, 2017

Migrant workers hold May Day protest

Migrant workers gathered to mark the annual May Day labor demonstrations in front of the Bosingak Bell in central Seoul. But they did so a day early, as most of the workers did not get May 1 off.“Unfortunately because we are migrant workers, we are not able to participate on May 1 and we have to come out a day earlier,” said Shekh Al Mamun of the Seoul-Gyeonggi-Incheon Migrants’ Trade Union“Here in Korea, we migrant workers are at the very bottom of the ladder. We are contributing to the economy

Expat LivingMay 3, 2017

Kiwi Chamber to host New Zealand Wine Festival

The New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Korea will begin its annual New Zealand Wine Festival later this month, with events planned for Seoul and Busan.New Zealand is now the 10th-largest wine exporter to Korea, due in part to the free trade agreement between the two countries that eliminated a 15 percent tariff on wine in December 2015.Guests attend last year’s New Zealand Wine Festival in Seoul. (Kiwi Chamber)“New Zealand wine exports increased 31 percent during the first full year of the Korea

Expat LivingMay 3, 2017

A well-timed ‘Winter’s Tale’

Bad things happen when the powerful allow swift passion to rule over considered advice — innocents die and friends turn to foes across kingdoms. Amid real-world presidential problematics in Korea and beyond, Seoul Shakespeare Company’s portrayal of the disastrous effects of a king’s rash action in spite of the facts seems cuttingly apt in this year’s production of “The Winter’s Tale.”Jamie Horan plays Leontes’ emotional journey from envy to guilt in Seoul Shakespeare Company’s “The Winter’s Tale

Expat LivingMay 3, 2017

Philippines gets surprise visit from ‘K-pop Star’ runner-up Kriesha Tiu

Cebu got a pleasant surprise last weekend when Filipino-American K-pop star Kriesha Tiu visited her birthplace in the Philippines, and met her fans there. According to her agency Urban Works Ent, Tiu visited the city on Sunday where she attended a fan meeting and appeared on local TV. “Tiu’s visit was originally supposed to have been a vacation with her family. But the news got out and the local fans prepared various events for her,” the company said. After meeting some 500 fans in the tropical

PerformanceMay 3, 2017

‘Ms. Perfect’ comes to end

KBS series “Ms. Perfect” came to an end Tuesday evening after a 20-episode run.　The drama series starred Ko So-young as its lead, Shim Jae-bok, a divorced woman striving to recover her womanhood and find new love.　Cho Yeo-jeong grabbed much of the focus for her chilling portrayal of two-faced villainess Lee Eun-hee. The show ended with a bang as Cho’s character set fire to a wedding.　 Cho Yeo-jeong (KBS)“It’s a show that has made me think about myself a lot and allowed me to learn a lot,” Cho sa

TelevisionMay 3, 2017

‘The Merciless’ is a bromance with style

Style was what director Byun Sung-hyun wanted to focus on when filming “The Merciless,” which has been invited to the midnight category at the 70th Cannes Film Festival, taking place from May 17-28.“The reason I paid so much attention to mise-en-scene is because in Korean cinema in recent years, there have been, and there will continue to be, so many crime movies led by two male characters,” said Byun at a press preview of the film in Wangsimni, Seoul, Tuesday. 　“I wanted to differentiate my fil

FilmMay 3, 2017

‘The Soup’ wins Arizona film fest award

Korean film “The Soup,” starring actor Yoon Park, has won an award at the 26th Arizona International Film Festival.Yoon’s agency JYP Entertainment said Wednesday that the movie recently received the best foreign feature award at the annual international film festival that ran from April 19-30 in Tucson, Arizona. In the movie based on a true story, Yoon plays a man with a rough personality named Jaegu, who enters the home of a mentally disabled couple with a 7-year-old daughter, and ends up livin

FilmMay 3, 2017