S. Korean soprano Sumi Jo wins art award in Italy

Grammy Award-winning South Korean soprano Sumi Jo has won an award in Italy's global film and music festival, according to the singer on Sunday. Sumi Jo has received the art award in the music division of the 2020 Ischia Global Film and Music Festival for her contribution to the film industry and efforts to help cope with the new coronavirus outbreak, according to Jo. This month, Jo put out a new single album titled "Life is a Miracle" in Italy, paying tribute to the victims of COVI

July 19, 2020

Ssak 3 sweeps music charts, bring back ‘90s vibe

Ssak 3 released the group’s newest song, “Here at the Beach Again” at 6 p.m. on Saturday and rocketed to the top of various music charts, including Melon, Flo, Bugs and Genie Music, among others, Sunday. Entertainer Yoo Jae-seok, singers Lee Hyo-ri and Rain came together on MBC’s “Hangout With Yoo” as a trio -- Ssak 3 -- in early June, forming a new powerhouse in the online music charts scene. The trio announced that it would release dance music for the summ

July 19, 2020

Actor Shin Hyun-joon temporarily leaves ‘The Return of Superman’ amid controversy raised by ex-manager

After just one episode, actor Shin Hyun-joon’s agency, HJ Film, announced that Shin will be temporarily stepping down from KBS’ “The Return of Superman” on Wednesday as trouble with his former manager Kim Kwang-seob continues. Shin and his family appeared on the program for the first time Sunday as scheduled, despite a complaint filed against Shin on July 9 by his former manager of 13 years, alleging unfair treatment. The program, “The Return of Superman,” s

July 18, 2020

TWICE to hold online concert next month via Beyond Live platform

K-pop act TWICE will hold an online concert for its global fans next month using the Beyond Live platform owned by SM Entertainment and Naver, the group's agency said Friday. The virtual concert, "Beyond Live - TWICE: World In A Day," will be held Aug. 9 on Beyond Live, a streaming concert platform created in partnership between SM Entertainment and Naver, South Korea's No. 1 web portal, according to JYP Entertainment. The nine-piece girl group will be the first non-SM act to hold a

July 17, 2020

Combined sales of BTS' album 'Journey' top 500,000 units in Japan

The combined sales of "Map of the Soul: 7 - The Journey," K-pop band BTS' latest Japanese album, surpassed 500,000 copies as of the second day of its release, claiming the top spot on Japan's main music sales chart for two days in a row, the band's agency said Friday. "Journey," BTS' fourth Japanese-language studio album released Wednesday, sold 54,975 units on the next day, according to Big Hit Entertainment. The album stayed at No. 1 on the daily album chart of Oricon, J

July 17, 2020

BIFAN features digital, physical events amid COVID-19

The Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival announced the winners of its 24th edition during a closing ceremony Thursday evening, bringing down the curtains on its eight-day journey amid the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic. Around 80 people attended the ceremony at CGV’s Sopung branch in the city just west of Seoul. The winners in the feature-length film category were announced that day. In the Bucheon Choice section, devoted to international features, the coveted Best of Buche

July 17, 2020

JTBC takes lead in TV drama viewership battle in H1

On the South Korean small screen, cable channel JTBC had a large lead over other big names on the back of well-made, eye-catching drama series in the first half of 2020. The romance thriller "The World of the Married," the South Korean adaptation of BBC's "Doctor Foster," was the biggest hit TV series during the period, with its viewership reaching as high as 28.4 percent. It is the highest-ever rating by a drama on a non-terrestrial TV channel. The 16-episode drama, whi

July 17, 2020

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Vivarium (Ireland, Denmark, Belgium) Opened July 16 Drama, SF Directed by Lorcan Finnegan Tom (Jesse Eisenberg) and Gemma (Imogen Poots) are looking for the perfect home. When a real estate agent takes them to Yonder, a mysterious suburban neighborhood of identical houses, the couple can’t leave quickly enough. But when they try to exit the labyrinthesque housing development, they find themselves trapped as each road keeps on taking them back to where they started. Soon, they realize the

July 17, 2020

[Eye Interview] ‘I want to show authenticity’

The sound of rousing protest songs, impassioned speeches and slogans chanted in unison flooded my apartment complex, disturbing the tranquility of a warm, lazy morning on a Saturday morning in August. I strained to hear what was being said, but the words bounced off the building walls, becoming incomprehensible echoes by the time they reached my ears through the open window. When the shrill noise reverberated through the apartment buildings again the next Saturday, I left the book I was try

July 17, 2020

‘Peninsula’ scores biggest opening of the year, shakes up COVID-19-hit film scene

“Peninsula” on Wednesday opened the doors of the summer movie season with record-high ticket sales for this year’s box office. The sequel of to smash-hit zombie thriller “Train to Busan” attracted over 350,000 moviegoers to theaters on its release day, the film’s distributor Next Entertainment World said through a statement on Thursday. The Korean Film Council’s tally stood at 277,964 due to a computational error, the state-run agency explained. The

July 16, 2020

Jeonju film fest to kick off screening tour

The 21st edition of Jeonju International Film Festival will set off on a two-month domestic screening event to showcase selected films from this year’s festival. The organizers of the festival on Wednesday announced the event will kick off next Tuesday at the Jeonju Digital Independent Cinema -- also known as JIFF Theque -- located in Jeonju Cine Complex, at which the event will run for two months until Sept. 20. Films will also be screened in Seoul at CGV Cinelibrary in Myeong-dong and

July 16, 2020

BTS' album 'Journey' sells nearly 450,000 copies in Japan on release day

"Map of the Soul: 7 - The Journey," the new Japanese album by K-pop band BTS, sold nearly 450,000 copies on its release day, becoming the fastest-moving record in Japan in terms of day-one sales, according to the group's agency Thursday. According to Big Hit Entertainment, "Journey," BTS' fourth Japanese-language studio album released on Wednesday, shipped 447,869 copies within 24 hours in the neighboring country. The album debuted at No. 1 on the daily album chart of Orico

July 16, 2020

Sumi Jo releases single, mourning COVID-19 victims

Celebrated soprano Sumi Jo has released her new single “Life is a Miracle,” singing for the victims of the COVID-19 pandemic. The new single “Life is a Miracle,” released on YouTube on Friday, mourns the deaths of COVID-19 victims. “I wanted to console the people who are going through difficulties and feeling empty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sharing the sadness and longing for the loved ones lost,” Jo said through a press release Wednesday. The single

July 15, 2020

‘Peninsula’ invited to Spain’s Sitges film fest

Director Yeon Sang-ho’s zombie thriller “Peninsula” has been invited to the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia in Spain. According to the 2020 lineup announcement released by the festival organizers Tuesday, the film will compete at the 53rd edition of the festival slated to take place Oct. 8-18. Sitges is considered one of the top three fantasy genre film festival in the world, along with Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival of Belgium and

July 15, 2020

[Herald Interview] ‘Peninsula’ director says another sequel might follow

While director Yeon Sang-ho’s zombie universe expands over two films and one animation flick, the director says he never imagined he would do a series about zombies. “When we were location hunting for ‘Train to Busan,’ we saw really shabby spots and jokingly talked about what a sequel might look like if we shot it there. I thought then that it would be fun if a little girl drove a huge dump truck and swept a zombie horde -- and that actually became the start to ‘

July 15, 2020

2 iKON members involved in drunk driving accident

YG Entertainment released an official statement on Tuesday apologizing for two members of K-pop group iKON being involved in a drunk driving accident. The accident occurred before dawn Monday when a car with the drunk driver and two iKON members -- Kim Jin-hwan and Koo Jun-hoe -- drove into a highway wall in South Gyeongsang Province. The driver, who is the manager of iKON, had a blood alcohol level of 0.08 percent according to police reports, which leads to termination of the driver’s l

July 14, 2020

Monsta X announces new dates for North American tour

Monsta X on Tuesday announced the rescheduled dates of their North American tour, becoming one of the first K-pop acts to resume their postponed tour this year. According to the group’s label Starship Entertainment, the band will embark on their tour on April 20 next year beginning in the US capital of Washington, and wrap up on May 21 in Los Angeles. Minor changes have been made to the initial schedule. Three cities -- Minneapolis, Seattle and Vancouver, British Columbia -- were drop

July 14, 2020

Kakao M to pursue new content model for mobile age

Kakao M, the entertainment arm of Korea’s internet portal giant Kakao, on Tuesday said it will lead the paradigm shift to mobile content and the online platform within the entertainment industry. “We will create content most fit to the mobile environment. It will be well-made ‘mobile-fit’ content never witnessed before,” Kakao M CEO Kim Sung-soo said during a press conference held in Seoul on Tuesday. Tuesday’s event was the first media gathering conducted

July 14, 2020

Classical music fests to bring live music back

Though the COVID-19 pandemic is yet to be contained, summer music festivals in Korea are continuing their run under changed lineups and schedules. The 17th Music in PyeongChang, a biannual classical music festival held across Gangwon Province by the Gangwon Arts & Culture Foundation, will run from July 22 to Aug. 8. Nine main concerts will be held at Alpensia Resort, presenting Beethoven’s symphonies, chamber music and solo piano works, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the mae

July 14, 2020

EXO members prove worth with solo, subunit gigs amid group hiatus

Despite nearly half of its full lineup currently absent, the presence of K-pop boy band EXO, a third-generation K-pop stalwart, still resonates loud and deep, as remaining members pursue solo and subunit projects during the group's hiatus due to the military duty requirements of its members. Currently three members -- Suho, Xiumin and D.O. -- of the highly popular nine-piece act are serving out their two-year military duties. Chinese member Lay has also been absent from the group's latest acti

July 14, 2020