Boy group Astro to drop 3rd studio album next month

K-pop boy group Astro will return with its third full-length album next month, the group's management agency said Tuesday. The six-member group will drop the album titled "Drive to the Starry Road" on May 16, Fantagio said. It will be the band's first studio album since "All Yours" was released about a year ago. The band, which consists of members MJ, JinJin, Moonbin, Rocky, Sanha and Cha Eun-woo, debuted in 2016 with the EP "Spring Up." It has since released hit so

April 26, 2022

Lovelyz’s Baby Soul returns as Lee Su-jeong with first solo EP ‘My Name’

Almost 11 years since setting foot into the music scene, singer Lee Su-jeong, formerly of Lovelyz, says she is finally debuting solo with her first EP, “My Name.” Ahead of releasing the album Tuesday, the artist conducted a joint interview with local press in Seoul to share a closer look into the album through which she hopes to tell her true story for the first time. “The album in one word is my ‘first start,’” Su-jeong said during the interview conducted W

April 26, 2022

Lee Kwang-soo stars in comedy 'The Killer's Shopping List'

  South Korean star actor and entertainer Lee Kwang-soo is back to the small screen as a cashier at a neighborhood supermarket in the upcoming mystery comedy "The Killer's Shopping List." Motivated by the novel "The Killer's Shopping Mall" by Kang Ji-young, tvN's Wednesday-Thursday primetime series follows people who hunt for the killer in a mysterious murder case that occurs near a humble neighborhood supermarket named MS Mart. Lee stars as Dae-sung, the son of the

April 25, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Stray Kids adds dates to US tour

Stray Kids will perform two more times in the US during its upcoming tour, announced label JYP Entertainment on Monday. 　 The band was originally set to take to the stage once at all seven venues during its upcoming US tour but tickets sold out fast and the management firm decided to add shows in Newark and Los Angeles. 　 The eight-piece act will kick off its second international tour, named after its recent hit “Maniac,” in Seoul on April 29. The US leg will start in June 28 and

April 25, 2022

Verivery delves into the inner darkness through ‘Series O (Round 3: Whole)’

As an LP stores long-playing records of a musician, boy band Verivery took a chance to broaden the group’s musical horizons by dropping “Series O (Round 3: Whole),” released Monday evening. It’s the first full-length album since the seven-piece act debuted in 2019. This marks a quick return, just about a month since the group dropped the digital single “Series O (Round 0: Who)” on March 23. When asked how it feels to now have put out an LP, Yong-seung sai

April 25, 2022

Report finds increase in use of inappropriate language in Korean TV shows

Improper use of English subtitles and slang continues to increase in TV broadcasts, according to a Korea Communications Standards Commission report released Sunday. While the words and expressions are widely used by streamers on video-sharing platforms such as YouTube, Twitch and Afreeca TV, TV programs have also adopted such usage in recent years, though they deviate from the standard Korean language deemed proper for broadcast. KCSC and Special Advisory Committee on Broadcasting Language, a

April 25, 2022

With its third revival, ‘City of Light’ eyes global stage

The “City of Light,” known as “Gwangju” in Korean, is back for the third time since it first took the stage in 2020. This time, the musical aims to reach a global audience to deliver a story of resistance and the democratic movement when it gives a preview on Broadway later this year, the musical’s production team said last week. “‘City of Light’ was created as part of an initiative to popularize the iconic protest song ‘March for the Be

April 25, 2022

[Herald Interview] Sol Kyung-gu learns importance of parenting from ‘I Want to See Your Parent’s Face’

After actor Sol Kyung-gu watched his film, “I Want to See Your Parent’s Face,” he realized the importance of parenting. “In the movie, there is a line that says ‘parents took away the last chance for the kids to be forgiven.’ Watching this film, I thought that parents’ actions are as important as the kids’ in this kind of situation. That is something new I have learned from it,” said Sol, who is a father himself, during an interview with a

April 25, 2022

[Herald Interview] Orchestre National de Metz hopes to share pure joy, inspiration through French classical music

Orchestre National de Metz, one of the 12 French national orchestras, will embark on a five-city tour of Korea this week in Daegu, becoming the first foreign orchestra to perform in the country this year and signaling a return to normalcy in international concert tours. “It took a long process of nearly three years for (Metz) orchestra to tour Korea because of the COVID-19 crisis. It is really an honor and joy to see this tour coming to conclusion,” Orchestre National de Metz&rsquo

April 25, 2022

K-pop rookie aespa makes historic live stage debut at Coachella

Rookie K-pop girl group aespa made their grand debut at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, one of the world’s biggest music events, where they gave a live performance of an unreleased new song. The quartet -- Karina, Giselle, Winter and Ningning -- took to the stage Saturday at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California. They opened their segment of the night with subtitle track “aenergy” and kept the crowd roaring with their biggest hits, “Black Mamba,”

April 24, 2022

Moon Jae-in to talk about 5 years of presidency on TV show

President Moon Jae-in will share his thoughts and feelings about his five years of presidency on a two-part special for cable channel JTBC’s “Five Years of Moon Jae-in” airing on Monday and Tuesday. Hosted by JTBC journalist Sohn Suk-hee, the one-on-one interview reviews Moon’s achievements, regrets and opinion of the incoming administration as he looks back on the past five years. “The interview was conducted without any political bias. Moon sometimes responded

April 24, 2022

Koo Kyo-hwan, Shin Hyun-bin thrilled to take next journey into the ‘Yeoniverse’

Star director Yeon Sang-ho, who was behind global apocalyptic thriller “Train to Busan” (2016) and Netflix’s “Hellbound” (2021), is expanding his dystopian fantasy world, widely known as “Yeoniverse,” with Tving’s upcoming occult series “Monstrous.” “It may sound unreal, but I was thinking of director Yeon the other day. And I received a message about his new project. I was screaming in my room with excitement and decided to sta

April 24, 2022

YouTube’s top five 'K-tour' channels

Virtual walking tours have emerged as an alternative to quench a thirst for travel during the COVID-19 pandemic, letting people explore far-flung destinations from the comfort of their own homes. YouTube channels centering on such virtual tours produce videos intended at giving viewers the vivid feeling of walking through an ordinary neighborhood in Seoul and other areas in the country. To diversify their content and attract more viewers, these creators are adding new features like time-lapse

April 24, 2022

‘Next Sohee’ to close Critics’ Week

“Next Sohee,” starring Bae Doo-na, will close Critics’ Week, a sidebar event dedicated to showing directors’ first and second films alongside the Cannes Film Festival, from May 18 to 26. The 75th Cannes Film Festival runs from May 17-28. “I am grateful to screen the film, in which all the staff and actors worked together last winter, on a splendid spring day. We are proud to introduce our precious actors to audiences around the world,” the film’s dir

April 23, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Ateez amasses 1b streams on Spotify

Ateez surpassed 1 billion streams combined on Spotify, according to agency KQ Entertainment on Friday.   　 The group has almost 2.25 million followers on the global platform and over 3 million monthly subscribers.   　 In the meantime, the eight bandmates left for Paris on Wednesday for the European leg of their international tour. Starting from Madrid on Saturday, they will visit London, Paris, Berlin and Amsterdam, performing eight times.   　 The Fellowship: Beginning of the E

April 22, 2022

Seventeen hops on May music craze with “Face the Sun” LP

A week after boy band Seventeen surprised fans with a new song, the band’s agency Pledis Entertainment said Friday that the K-pop sensation is currently gearing up to make a return on May 27. The K-pop act signaled its return by posting a teaser image on social media, sending fans into a frenzy about the much-anticipated comeback. Fans are also excited to see the group perform again as a 13-piece ensemble as Seventeen’s two Chinese members, Jun and The8, did not participate in the

April 22, 2022

'Boy With Luv' becomes first BTS video to surpass 1.5b YouTube views

The music video for K-pop superstars BTS' 2019 hit song "Boy With Luv" has become the group's first video to exceed 1.5 billion views on YouTube. The song hit the milestone at about 5 p.m. Thursday, five months after surpassing 1.4 billion views in November, according to the group's agency Big Hit Music. It became the first BTS music video to garner more than 1.5 billion views. The upbeat track, featuring American singer-songwriter Halsey, was released in April 2019 as part of the band

April 22, 2022

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Anchor (Korea) Opened April 20 Thriller Directed by Jeong Ji-yeon Se-ra (Chun Woo-hee) is a famous news presenter with a mother, So-jung (Lee Hye-young), who micromanages her life. One day, Se-ra receives a phone call from a woman named Mi-so, five minutes before her news program goes on air. Mi-so claims she is about to be killed by a stranger and asks Se-ra to report her story, adding that Se-ra is her idol. Se-ra tries to ignore the phone call, but later visits Mi-so’s home and dis

April 22, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Le Sserafim’s debut album sells 270,000 copies in preorders

The debut EP of Le Sserafim, the first girl group to be launched under Hybe, sold over 270,000 copies in preorders, according to agency Source Music on Thursday. 　 It has only been a week since the prepurchase began, and the numbers will easily surpass 300,000, predicted the company. 　 The six-member act will officially debut on May 2 with the EP “Fearless” and will host an in-person showcase for fans later on the day. The event will be broadcast live as well. 　 The teaser clip fo

April 21, 2022

BTS’ ‘The City’ in Las Vegas connects concert-city

Hybe’s two-week project to turn Las Vegas into a theme park for K-pop band BTS fans ended Sunday, and now the company is looking to continue the project in other locations with more of its artists. “BTS Permission to Dance the City - Las Vegas,” in short, “The City,” had turned Las Vegas into an expansive and immersive field of festival for fans visiting the city for BTS’ concerts. Between April 5-17, when the act held four live concerts in Allegiant Stadium,

April 21, 2022