Lisa shows who she is through ‘Lalisa’

After rumors about Lisa’s first-ever solo album circulated months ago, she finally answered questions to the anticipation by stretching her solo legs. Lisa of Blackpink sent fans abuzz with excitement by releasing her first EP, “Lalisa,” which dropped Friday evening. The two-track package aims to talk about who Lisa is, as both the name for the album and its title track go by the singer’s real name, which is why her debut album gives her butterflies, she said during an

Sept. 10, 2021

DMZ Docs brings message of peace, coexistence

The 13th DMZ International Documentary Film Festival kicked off Thursday at Megabox Paju Bookcity in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, with a tearful story from director Yang Yong-hi. “Aiming to promote peace, coexistence and life as a key message, DMZ Docs has slowly become the largest festival of its kind in Asia, promoting promising projects and documentaries to a wider audience,” festival director Jung Sang-jin said during the opening ceremony. The festival returned to in-person scre

Sept. 10, 2021

Metallica’s latest release includes YB cover of ‘Sad but True’

Legendary heavy metal band Metallica released a new album on music streaming platforms Friday, featuring a cover song by South Korean rock band YB. Celebrating the 30th anniversary of the band’s 1991 megahit “The Black Album,” 53 acts from around the world covered their favorite songs from the album for a new one titled “The Metallica Blacklist.” YB, led by singer Yoon Do-hyun, covered Metallica’s “Sad but True.” The recording took place in Feb

Sept. 10, 2021

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (US) Opened Sept. 1 Action Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung) has been ruling the world of darkness for centuries with the power of Ten Rings, which grants immortality and great power to the user. Wenwu’s son Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) was trained as an assassin as a kid under him, but he later chooses to live a normal life. One day, Sang-Chi is attacked and realizes there is a fate that he has to accept. CODA (US) Opened Aug. 31

Sept. 10, 2021

K-pop girl group LOONA set for official debut in Japan next week

K-pop girl group LOONA will make its official debut in Japan with its first Japanese language songs next week, its management agency said Thursday. 　 　The 12-member group will pre-release four songs Wednesday, including double main tracks of its upcoming Japanese album -- “Hula Hoop” and “Starseed: Kakusei” -- according to Blockberry Creative. The group‘s first Japanese album will hit shelves on Oct. 20. 　 　K-pop producer Ryan Jhun co-composed “Hula Hoop,&rdq

Sept. 9, 2021

HyunA and Dawn say love is a riddle with ‘Ping Pong’

Soloist HyunA and singer-songwriter Dawn of P Nation released their first-ever duo album, “[1+1=1],” on Thursday, dazzling fans with their sizzling chemistry. The four-track album is packed with stories about love and talks about turning big dreams into reality, conveying their honest feelings, the two musicians said during an online press conference Thursday. Title track “Ping Pong” interweaves Moombahton, a rhythm originated from Dutch house and house music, with 8

Sept. 9, 2021

First esports championship pitting Korea, Japan and China to take place in Seoul

Teams from South Korea, Japan and China are set to clash at Esports Championships East Asia 2021. The three-day event organized by the e-Sports Association and Korea Creative Content Agency will kick off Friday with live online matches for five games -- League of Legends, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Clash Royale, PES 2021 Season Update and Dungeon Fighter. ECEA 2021 will be accompanied by the Game Culture Festival, which is to offer various programs for esports fans.  There wil

Sept. 9, 2021

Yeon Sang-ho’s ‘Hellbound’ to be screened at BFI London Film Festival

Director Yeon Sang-ho’s Netflix original series “Hellbound” will be screened at the 65th BFI London Film Festival, which will be held from Oct. 6 to 17, according to Netflix on Thursday. The festival in London will screen the first three episodes. “Hellbound,” which is based on the popular webtoon of the same title, features the story of supernatural events in which random people suddenly receive a text saying they will be sent to hell. Amid the chaos, the New Tru

Sept. 9, 2021

Impact of China’s crackdown on K-pop fandom limited as agencies diversify markets, business models

On Saturday, photos of a Jeju Air airplane featuring BTS’ Jimin on its exterior circulated on Weibo as part of a BTS fan club’s campaign to celebrate the K-pop star’s 26th birthday. K-pop fan clubs often celebrate the birthdays of their stars by buying advertisements in newspapers, on public transport or on subway billboards. But the photos sparked serious backlash in China, and Weibo banned the fan club-run social media account with over 1.1 million followers from posting f

Sept. 8, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] BTS gets 400m-plus views for another video

BTS now has as many as 14 music videos with more than 400 million views on YouTube. 　 The kinetic manifesto film for “ON” from its fourth full-length album, “Map of the Soul: 7,” logged 400 million views as of Wednesday. The video features over 30 dancers and a 12-piece marching band, manifesting the band’s energy and determination to accept fate and march forward without hesitation. 　 The septet’s fourth LP landed atop the Billboard 200 when it was released

Sept. 8, 2021

Crime thriller drama returns as webtoon after five years

Cable channel tvN’s 2016 hit drama series “Signal” will be adapted into a webtoon, media content company BY4M announced through its public relations agency Wednesday, unveiling drawings of characters and well-known scenes from the drama. “Signal” is a time slip mystery-thriller centered around investigators from the past and future who communicate via a special walkie-talkie to solve crimes. The walkie-talkie transports its users to past crime scenes and offers in

Sept. 8, 2021

[Herald Interview] Park Jung-min says ‘Miracle: Letters to the President’ is like gift

For Park Jung-min, 34, performing in “Miracle: Letters to the President,” directed by Lee Jang-hoon, was a huge gift as he learned so much from it. “I became a different person after shooting the movie,” Park said during an interview with a group of reporters Tuesday. “Before, I used to think that I have to do everything on my own. I thought that if someone helps me then the result is not entirely mine. I was not used to getting help.” Park added that he al

Sept. 8, 2021

Beethoven specialist Buchbinder to perform old, new repertoires

Influential Beethoven expert Rudolf Buchbinder will share his take on Beethoven with the Korean audience, holding recitals in Korea for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out early last year. The upcoming recital marks the concert pianist’s first visit to Korea since 2019. He was to come to Korea with his Beethoven Sonata program last year but the engagement was canceled due to the prolonged pandemic crisis. Buchbinder, 74, will go onstage at the Seoul Arts Center on Oct

Sept. 8, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] TXT to collaborate with Enhyphen

Tomorrow X Together turned out to be the the featured artist in Enhyphen’s soon-to-be-released album.  Taehyun and Huening Kai of TXT appeared in a late-night Japanese radio show hosted by Jay and Niki of Enhyphen on Monday and at the end of the program thanked the two for inviting them.  “It was fun doing this together with Enhyphen. Please have us again,” said Taehyun and Huening Kai. They also told listeners that their first Japanese EP “Chaotic Wonderland&

Sept. 7, 2021

Star TV director Kim Tae-ho to leave MBC after 20-year career

Television director Kim Tae-ho will leave terrestrial broadcasting station MBC later this year after 20 years with the company. The director joined MBC in 2001 and became widely recognized for producing one of South Korea’s longest-running and most successful variety shows, “Infinite Challenge.” After the show wrapped up in 2018, Kim continued his success with “Hang Out With Yoo,” a variety show launched in 2019. “Though I am leaving the company, I would l

Sept. 7, 2021

[Herald Interview] Creators of ‘Navillera’ reflect on their journey

The story may be heartwarming and sweet, but its creators were driven by ferocious determination, according to Hun, co-author of the webtoon series “Navillera.” “I know it sounds weird, but I think Jimmy and I have been possessed by something to finish our webtoon ‘Navillera.’ I don’t think we can create a work with such an effort ever again,” Hun said. Written by Hun and illustrated by Jimmy, “Navillera” is a South Korean webtoon about a

Sept. 7, 2021

Seoul International Music Festival hopes to be ‘Amusement Park’ of classical music

The 13th Seoul International Music Festival, one of the major annual classical music festivals held every autumn in Korea, will take place in October under the title “Amusement Park.” The festival will take place across Seoul, including the Seoul Arts Center and the Lotte Concert Hall, Oct. 23-30, hoping to offer joy and comfort to classical music audiences hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Though the global music scene continues to struggle amid the virus crisis, this year’s S

Sept. 7, 2021

[Herald Interview] DPR Live on striving for perfection

It’s often said that one’s life follows one’s name -- how we label ourselves can shape the attitude we take in life, affecting our decision-making, and in end, determining our destiny. And since forming in 2015, Dream Perfect Regime, an independent multi-genre music and video production label, has tried to do just that. “Our spirit was to set the goal as high as possible and just try our best to get the closest we could to it. The dream felt far-off at first, yet we ha

Sept. 7, 2021

StayC hopes to break cliches through ‘Stereotype’

StayC returned in nearly five months since they rose to fame with their second single album, “Staydom.” The up-and-coming K-pop rookie act dropped their first EP, “Stereotype,” on Monday evening, in a bid to launch their new songs onto the September music charts. Perky yet mature, the sextet aimed to take another fresh approach to the “teen fresh” genre, a coined term of “teenager” and “fresh,” which represents their unique identity i

Sept. 6, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] TXT to put out 1st EP in Japanese

Tomorrow X Together will launch its first Japanese EP on Nov. 10, label Big Hit Music announced Monday. 　 The EP, titled “Chaotic Wonderland,” will consist of four tracks including the Japanese version of “0X1=LOVE SONG (I Know I Love You)” and “MOA Diary (Dubaddu Wari Wari)” from the repackaged second LP “The Chaos Chapter: Fight or Escape,” as well as new songs. 　 The same-titled lead track will feature a yet-to-be-named artist. 　 The boy band

Sept. 6, 2021