Melody Day to release second mini album

Korean girl group Melody Day will make a comeback with its second mini-album “Kiss on the Lips,” due to be released on Feb. 15 midnight. The Viewga Entertainment announced the group’s return on Wednesday with a photo shoot, featuring all four members -- Yeoeun, Chahee, Yein and Yoomin -- clad in pink dresses with flowers. Melody Day (Viewga Entertainment)The group was formed in 2012 and officially debuted with the single “Another Parting” in 2014, which was followed by the first mini album “Colo

PerformanceFeb. 8, 2017

Concert halls call on Japanese engineer to shape sound

TOKYO (AP) -- Behind some of the world’s most reputed concert halls is a Japanese engineer whose finesse in shaping sound is so perfectly unobtrusive that all listeners hear is the music -- in all its subtlety, texture and fullness. Yasuhisa Toyota’s talents are coveted as classical music venues are increasingly designed in “vineyard style,” where audiences surround the stage to hear the performers up close and enjoy an almost-interactive experience, feeling more like a part of the music and bei

PerformanceFeb. 8, 2017

CNN’s ‘History of Comedy’ is a laughing, learning matter

NEW YORK (AP) --- One of the great things about comedy is, it demands so little effort to enjoy. Grins and guffaws can seem to issue directly from a tickled funny bone. 　 On the other hand, prolonged analysis of humor can kill the joke.　 But not always, as CNN demonstrates with “The History of Comedy,” a docuseries that keeps the funny in the fundamentals of the comedy it probes.　 Including among its executive producers Sean Hayes (who boasts such comedy credits as the hit sitcom “Will & Grace”)

TelevisionFeb. 8, 2017

'Infinite Challenge' hiatus may cost MBC TV nearly 2 bln won in lost sales

The hiatus of popular weekend show "Infinite Challenge" is estimated to cost its network MBC TV around 2 billion won ($1.75 million) in lost sales, according to industry forecasts Wednesday.(Yonhap)First aired in 2005, the mission-oriented reality TV show is one of the most viewed non-drama programs in South Korea and a major breadwinner for the terrestrial broadcaster.The Saturday evening program entered a seven-week hiatus on Jan. 28 to "take time for reorganization." The "golden timeslot" is

TelevisionFeb. 8, 2017

Actress Moon Geun-young undergoes more surgery, cancels shows

Actress Moon Geun-young canceled additional shows of her play "Romeo and Juliet" after undergoing another operation to treat pain in her right arm, her agency said Wednesday. Moon, who played Juliet in the theater production that ran from December of last year to January in Seoul, had a third surgery on Tuesday for compartment syndrome in her right arm, according to Namoo Actors."Thankfully, Moon's operation was successful. However, there is still the possibility that she might have to undergo a

TelevisionFeb. 8, 2017

Bangtan Boys to unveil new songs at concert

South Korean boy group Bangtan Boys, also known by its abbreviated name BTS, is set to reveal new songs at its upcoming concert, its agency said Wednesday. K-pop group Bangtan Boys (Yonhap Photo)According to Big Hit Entertainment, the seven-member act will be showcasing new tracks, including "Not Today" and "Spring Days," at the "2017 BTS Live Trilogy Episode Ⅲ The Wings Tour" at the Gocheok Sky Dome in western Seoul on Feb. 18-19. The new album titled "You Never Walk Alone" is slated to come ou

PerformanceFeb. 8, 2017

UK newspaper to spotlight Korean poems in regular feature

Korean poems will become a regular feature in the Guardian newspaper this year.The poems -- selected in partnership with Asymptote, a website specializing in translations of literature -- will be featured on the “Translation Tuesdays” corner of the British daily. The works of seven Korean poets, including Kim Ki-taek, Moon Tae-jun, Yoo An-jin and Choi Seung-ja, will be introduced this year, according to the Literature Translation Institute of Korea which jointly manages the project with Asymptot

BooksFeb. 7, 2017

Looking back on the talents of disbanding girl group Spica: Video

K-pop quintet Spica has disbanded, its agency CJ E&M said Monday, after five years of on-and-off activities since their much-anticipated debut in 2012.“It is true that Spica’s members have agreed to go their own ways,” the entertainment company said in a statement. “Their contract period is not yet up, so we are in talks over how to wrap things up.”Promoted as “the younger sister group” to K-pop diva Lee Hyori, the group initially nabbed attention for its raw talents. All five members were power

PerformanceFeb. 7, 2017

Comedian Yoo Jae-suk threatens legal action against false rumors on Taipei event

Comedian and show host Yoo Jae-suk won't attend the meet-and-greet with Taiwanese fans for the popular South Korean TV reality show "Running Man" this week and could take legal action against false rumors involving him and the event, his management agency said Tuesday. (Herald DB)"Yoo Jae-suk confirmed that he had no choice but to skip the event due to his schedule," wrote FNC Entertainment Tuesday on its official Facebook page. "We have noticed that there was false, confusing information spread

TelevisionFeb. 7, 2017

S.M. Entertainment to grow 'Station' into comprehensive content program

S.M. Entertainment, one of the country's three largest K-pop agencies, said Tuesday it will continue "Station," its weekly digital music release program, into season two while expanding it and making it much more comprehensive. (SM Entertainment)Home to big Korean pop acts including Girls' Generation and EXO, S.M. Entertainment launched "Station" in February 2016 as the agency then marked its 20th anniversary.Under "Station," the company released a song each week in which its artists, often toge

PerformanceFeb. 7, 2017

Original Korean musical to open off-Broadway

“Interview: A New Musical” will open in New York City on Friday, becoming the first original Korean musical, written and composed by Korean artists, to be mounted off-Broadway at the Theatre at St. Clement’s. A preview took place Tuesday.　The show features original music by Huh Soo-hyun and lyrics by Choo Jung-hwa, translated by Bryan Michaels. It premiered at Soo Hyun Jae Theater in Seoul in September last year, later running sold-out shows in Kyoto and Tokyo, Japan.The work’s New York staging

PerformanceFeb. 7, 2017

HyunA to host free fan meeting in Seoul

K-pop singer HyunA will be hosting a free fan meeting in Seoul to celebrate 10 years in the business.Titled “Fantopia, HyunA Land,” the event will take place on Feb. 17 at Sogang University’s Mary Hall in Mapo-gu, Seoul.A total of 200 tickets, free of charge, are available at HyunA’s official fan cafe, cafe.daum.net/cube-hyuna.HyunA performs at Club Button on Saturday. (Official Facebook)HyunA debuted in 2007 with girl group 4Minute, which rose to fame through hit songs including “Hot Issue” and

PerformanceFeb. 7, 2017

BTS unveils track list of new album

BTS released the track list for its new album “Wings: You Never Walk Alone” on Tuesday. The news was revealed on their official website and other social media channels. Their new single has 18 songs with four new additions: “Spring days,” “Not today,” “Outro: Wings” and “A supplementary story: you never walk alone.”K-pop group Bangtan Boys (Yonhap Photo)Big Hit Entertainment said the new album is both a follow-up and extended version of BTS’s previous album “Wings,” which was released in October

PerformanceFeb. 7, 2017