Snowballing bullying scandal deals blow to TV series projects

The recent school bullying scandal that continues to roil the South Korean entertainment scene is now snowballing to affect several TV series projects starring some of the actors embroiled in the scandal. The scheduled airing of the college romance series "Dear. M" was postponed indefinitely after the emergence of accusations that its lead actress Park Hye-soo was allegedly involved in violence during her school days. The show was originally set to premiere on Feb. 26 on KBS, a public

March 4, 2021

K-pop songstress IU to release new album on March 25

IU, one of the K-pop scene's most prominent female solo acts, is set to drop her fifth full album later this month, her agency confirmed Thursday. Titled "Lilac," the singer-songwriter's studio album will be released March 25, according to EDAM Entertainment. It did not elaborate on the details of the upcoming album. A teaser image uploaded on IU's official social media channel shows the singer gazing into the camera in a simple shirt with lilac flowers falling in the background. Th

March 4, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] iKON returns to sing of broken heart

IKON was ready to come out with new music for the first time in 13 months Wednesday.   　 The band is releasing a digital single titled “Why Why Why” that sings about love that blooms beautifully before withering away. The song blends poetic guitar riffs and heavy bass sounds with the lyrics, including the rap by Bobby, and portrays being unable to accept a breakup, asking both himself and her before slowly coming to acknowledge it.   　 In addition to promoting the new si

March 3, 2021

Quixotic knight sings ‘The Impossible Dream’

Musical “Man of La Mancha” sings of the need to dream in the COVID-19 pandemic-hit era. The Korean-language version, licensed from the Broadway musical production, recently ran at the Charlotte Theater in eastern Seoul after the government relaxed social distancing rules for performing arts theaters with a middle-seat vacancy rule. Prior to the opening, it had been postponed three times. The plot is an adaptation of Miguel de Cervantes’ “Don Quixote.” Taking t

March 3, 2021

‘Seobok’ to be released simultaneously on Tving, in theaters in April

A film about the first human clone “Seobok,” starring actors Gong Yoo and Park Bo-gum, will be released simultaneously on Korean streaming platform Tving and in theaters on April 15. The upcoming film was initially set to be released in theaters last December but the film’s distributor CJ Entertainment had to delay the release due to COVID-19. “Seobok” depicts the story of Ki-hun (Gong Yoo), an ex-intelligence agent, who receives a mission from the director of t

March 3, 2021

BTS to appear on Korean TV shows this month

For fans who are looking forward to seeing more of BTS, March is expected to be an exciting month, with the global superstars scheduled to appear on two local TV programs. A 100-minute episode of the popular tvN show "You Quiz on the Block" featuring the seven-piece act is first set to air at 8:40 p.m. on March 24. The show, hosted by the comedian duo Yoo Jae-suk and Jo Se-ho, usually invites a number of guests, but the BTS episode will be solely dedicated to the band. BTS and Yoo ha

March 3, 2021

BTS again tops Billboard's Artist 100 chart, sets record as group act

Global superstar BTS has set another record, this time by claiming No. 1 on the Billboard's Artist 100 chart for a 16th week, the most for a group act. The seven-piece act ranked No. 1, up four notches from the previous week, on the metric that measures artists' popularity across album and track sales, radio airplay and streaming as well as social media performance. It marks a record for a duo or group act. Overall, BTS has now topped the chart the most after Taylor Swift, Drake and The Weeknd

March 3, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] BTS’ J-hope drops solo single

J-hope of BTS surprised fans with a new solo song called “Blue Side” on Tuesday.  The artist worked on what was originally an outro track from his 2018 solo mixtape “Hope World” into a full song adding lyrics and elongating the melody with the help of songwriters Hiss Noise and Adora.  “It’s been three years since ‘Hope World’ came out today,” he said in a posting on the blog.  “There are times when I miss those inno

March 2, 2021

Top movie stars choose small screen amid COVID-19

More and more top Korean movie stars are opting for TV dramas mainly due to the prolonged difficult situation the local film industry has been going through since COVID-19 broke out early last year. Not only movie stars that occasionally have been making the switch to TV shows, but also those who had been appearing only on the big screen for years are making the switch. In December last year, veteran actor Hwang Jung-min, star of multiple megahit films like “Ode to My Father” and

March 2, 2021

TIMF to take place, reflecting on ‘Changing Reality’

The 2021 Tongyeong International Music Festival will take place from March 26 to April 4, presenting 23 performances under the title of “Changing Reality.” The annual music festival held in Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province commemorates the iconic Korean composer Yun I-sang. It features classical music to contemporary music, inviting performances from domestic and overseas artists and orchestras. For the opening concert on March 26, Venezuelan conductor Christian Vasquez will

March 2, 2021

Regulator to appeal court decision against biz suspension of cable channel operator

South Korea's telecommunications regulator said Tuesday it will appeal a recent court decision to temporarily lift a suspension order against local cable TV channel MBN over accounting fraud. Last month, the Seoul Administrative Court granted an injunction sought by MBN against the six-month suspension order from the Korea Communications Commission (KCC), citing possible "irreversible" damage against the company. The KCC issued the suspension last October after it found that MBN mani

March 2, 2021

Local comedy 'Mission: Possible' thrives at Feb. box office

The homegrown action comedy "Mission: Possible" thrived at the South Korean box office last month amid a monthlong drought of new releases, data showed Tuesday. Released on Feb. 17, the comedy film starring Lee Sun-bin and Kim Young-kwang garnered a total of 331,000 attendees in February alone, according to the data by the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). It ranked third at the monthly box office, following the Disney-Pixar drama "Soul" with more than 1.8 million attendees and

March 2, 2021

BLACKPINK's Rose to drop solo album next week

BLACKPINK member Rose, known as the main vocalist of the four-piece K-pop girl group, will be releasing her debut solo album next week, her agency said Tuesday. YG Entertainment shared two teaser images for her upcoming album, showing the date "March 12, 2021." It did not elaborate on the title and tracks of the album. The album release comes more than one month after the BLACKPINK member first performed one of the songs for the album, "Gone," in the act's first online conc

March 2, 2021

‘Minari’ wins best foreign film at Golden Globes

Following the epic win of “Parasite” last year, “Minari,” a film by a Korean American director, won for best foreign-language film at the Golden Globe Awards on Monday. A semi-autobiographical story by auteur Lee Isaac Chung, the film tells the story of a Korean American family seeking the American dream in rural Arkansas in the 1980s, featuring actors Steven Yeun, Han Ye-ri, Youn Yuh-Jung and more. In a virtual ceremony held in Los Angeles and New York on Sunday even

March 1, 2021

Spotify suspends music streaming service of K-pop provided by Kakao M

Global streaming giant Spotify Technology SA on Monday suspended the streaming service of K-pop tracks licensed by Kakao M on its global platform as their license deal has expired, officials said. The move has prevented global K-pop fans from listening to songs of major South Korean artists, including IU and Apink, through Spotify. The Swedish company said it has failed to reach an agreement on a new license deal with Kakao M, South Korea's top music distributor, despite efforts to clinch a co

March 1, 2021

BTS ranks 7th on Billboard albums chart with release of 'BE' new edition

Global superstar BTS' EP album "BE" has reentered the top 10 of the Billboard 200 chart, boosted by the release of the album's new edition last month, the magazine has said. On Sunday (US local time), it said in an article on the preview of the upcoming chart that "BE" jumped to seventh on the Billboard main albums chart for this week from last week's 74th. The surge follows the recent release of the album's new edition called the "Essential Edition." The "B

March 1, 2021

BTS, Leenalchi, Jeongmilla sweep prizes at Korean Music Awards

Global sensation BTS, alternative pop band Leenalchi and folk singer-songwriter Jeongmilla scooped up multiple awards, including top prizes, at the Korean Music Awards held late Sunday. The Korean Music Awards, now in its 18th year, is an annual music award ceremony that awards musicians on the basis of artistic achievement rather than popularity or commercial success. The ceremony was held without an audience for the second straight year due to the pandemic. BTS received two trophies -- Best

Feb. 28, 2021

Kang Eun-kyung ends her term as CEO of SPO

Kang Eun-kyung stepped down from her role as president of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra on Sunday, after a three-year tenure. After the Seoul mayoral by-election, which will take place on April 7, a seven-member committee tasked with appointing a new head will be formed. The committee consists of two recommended by the Seoul city government, two by SPO’s board of directors and three by the Seoul Metropolitan Council. The new CEO of the orchestra is expected to be appointed before the

Feb. 28, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] BTS’ V drops hint for mixtape

V of BTS gave out hints for his mixtape in a video clip uploaded on the band’s YouTube channel on Thursday.  In the teaser clip for the makings of the band’s “BE” album, the artist said that about 13 tracks will be included in his solo mixtape to the delight of his fans who have been awaiting the release.  At the global media conference held for the “BE” album in November last year, he said that he is interested in classic and Jazz music and altho

Feb. 26, 2021

LG Arts Center announces program for its last season in Gangnam

Set to move to Magok, western Seoul, in 2022, the LG Arts Center released the program for its last season in Gangnam, southern Seoul, Friday. The center’s annual program CoMPAS21 will feature more domestic acts, as visits by international artists and art troupes are limited by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. Performances by foreign productions are to be available through screenings. Theater director Yang Jung-ung, who staged the opening ceremony for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic

Feb. 26, 2021