YG ends contract with BIGBANG's Seungri in wake of scandal

The management agency of K-pop band BIGBANG on Wednesday ended its contract with Seungri, a scandal-ridden star who is under probe for allegedly arranging sexual services for potential investors. The company, YG Entertainment, also apologized to the public for failing to properly manage the 29-year-old singer, who announced Monday he will retire from show business. (Yonhap)"We deeply apologize to fans and many people for causing concerns," YG said. "Following Seungri's announcement that he will

March 13, 2019

Cellist Mun Tae-guk pays homage to Pablo Casals with new album

Cellist Mun Tae-guk has recently released new album, paying his respect to legendary Spanish cellist Pablo Casals. The album, released under Warner Classics, is titled, “Songs of the Cello: Homage to Pablo Casals.” According to the label, it is the first time in 23 years for a Korean cellist to release an internationally distributed album under a major label.“I thank Casals so much. Through him, I met a greater world,” Mun said at a press event held Tuesday at an art hall in central Seoul.  Cell

March 12, 2019

Suran to release second EP on March 22

Singer-songwriter Suran will unveil her second EP on March 22, marking her first release in over 21 months.Her agency, Million Market, on Tuesday confirmed earlier reports of the imminent release featuring her single “Hide and Seek,” which came out earlier this month.The single, written and produced by Suran, also features vocals by singer Heize and has topped the local charts of online music stores including Bugs. Suran (Million Market)Suran’s last release, in June 2017, was the EP “Walkin’.”Ha

March 12, 2019

BTS to drop new album on April 12

K-pop supergroup BTS will return to the music scene next month with a new album, the group's management agency said Tuesday.The boy band will put out the new EP "Map of the Soul: Persona" on April 12, the first release since it completed its "Love Yourself" album trilogy last August, Big Hit Entertainment said. (Yonhap)The group topped the Billboard 200 main albums chart twice for the album trilogy last year. Its song "Fake Love," the main track off "Love Yourself: Tear," landed at No. 10 on the

March 12, 2019

[Herald Review] Style, great acting not enough to salvage pretentious and gratuitous ‘Idol’

Lee Su-jin’s second feature film “Idol” had talent, potential and many of the ingredients for a masterpiece, yet comes up woefully short of being a quality movie. The thriller starring the brilliant acting trio of Han Suk-kyu, Sol Kyung-gu and Chun Woo-hee winds tortuously to a predictable conclusion, a major letdown from a director whose directorial debut a few years ago showed much promise.It starts with a hit-and-run accident caused by the son of a leading gubernatorial candidate in which Yu

March 11, 2019

CJ ENM teams up with BTS' label to launch new band

South Korean entertainment giant CJ ENM has teamed up with Big Hit Entertainment, the management agency of the sensational K-pop boy band BTS, to launch an idol band on the global music scene, according to CJ on Monday.The two firms established a joint venture named Belif Lab, aiming to unveil a new K-pop band in 2020, CJ said.(CJ E&M, Yonhap)Some 7 billion won ($6.16 million) has been invested in the joint venture. Big Hit CEO Bang Si-hyuk, who produced BTS, will be in charge of creating the ba

March 11, 2019

Korean dramas turn to black magic for success

In recent years, the South Korean entertainment scene has been seeing a new trend of domestic supernatural thrillers stepping into the limelight like never before, ranging from dramas to films.For instance, Korea had been mostly impregnable for local zombie stories, although foreign zombie productions, including the famed “Walking Dead” series, were popular here. But after the success of hit film “Train to Busan” in 2016, a zombie action thriller which sold more than 11 million tickets to become

March 10, 2019

BLACKPINK's 'Ddu-Du Ddu-Du' tops 700 million YouTube views

K-pop girl group BLACKPINK's "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" surpassed 700 million YouTube views Saturday, becoming the first Korean music group to set such a milestone.The video for "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" set the milestone in nearly nine months after being released last June, YG Entertainment said. (Yonhap)The music video also set a record among K-pop groups of adding 100 million views at the fastest pace after hitting 200 million views.BLACKPINK holds the most music videos topping 500 million YouTube views for a K-p

March 9, 2019

[Newsmaker] Big Bang’s Seungri to enlist in Army on March 25

Big Bang’s Seungri will enlist in the Army as an active duty soldier at the end of this month, according to YG Entertainment on Friday.He will start his basic training at the Nonsan Army Training Center on March 25. The K-pop star had reportedly applied for a conscripted policeman service in January.  (Yonhap)“After checking with Seungri, (we found that) Seungri on Jan. 7 applied for a conscripted policeman position. However, he has decided to enlist as an active duty soldier, regardless of the

March 8, 2019

[Herald Review] ‘Money’ a suspenseful story with good character, but formulaic

Some may call their acting cliche, others may say it is a formula that works. I’d say actors like Ryu Jun-yeol, Jo Woo-jin operate best when they just run amok with their own unique style.And run amok they have, in the upcoming crime drama “Money” by Park Nu-ri that deals with a small-time stock broker hooked into a life of wealth that has strings attached to it, ones that could drag him right to the bottom.In Park Nu-ri’s directorial debut, Ryu plays Cho Hyeon-il, a young stock broker on the ve

March 7, 2019

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

A Resistance(Korea)Opened Feb. 27Drama, HistoryDirected by Jo Min-hoAfter the iconic March 1 Independence Movement of 1919, one of its leading figures, Yu Gwan-sun (Go Ah-sung), is sentenced to three years in prison and sent to the infamous Keijo Prison, now known as Seodaemun Prison. But being confined to a tiny cell with dozens of inmates does not hold back Yu, her unconquerable spirit seeping out from behind the locked doors.Savaha: The Sixth Finger(Korea)Opened Feb. 20Mystery, Horror Christi

March 7, 2019

Jun Hyun-moo, Han Hye-jin break up, walk away from ‘I Live Alone’

TV personality Jun Hyun-moo and fashion model Han Hye-jin have broken up, announcing they will temporarily leave reality show “I Live Alone.”Jun and Han met each other through the MBC reality TV show. They confirmed their relationship in February last year, following a report from a local media outlet. On Wednesday the two stars announced the breakup through their respective agencies.  Jun Hyun-moo (left) and Han Hye-jin (MBC)According to the announcements, the two will be leaving “I Live Alone”

March 7, 2019

[Herald Review] ‘Captain Marvel’ is both significant and fun, but there’s room for improvement

Hearing all the talk about “Captain Marvel” prior to its release, I was concerned about one thing: Would this film, which depicts the power of women, be so hung up on being a politically correct “feminist film” that it would forget to be an actual film?My concern was unwarranted, as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s latest movie not only delivered a relevant message, but was also fun to watch. While it did have some shortcomings, the film lived up to the standards the audience has come to expect f

March 6, 2019

Monsta X to perform in US music festival

South Korean boy group Monsta X will perform at this year's iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas on Sept. 21, the group's management agency said Wednesday.The music festival is an annual event hosted by iHeartMedia, which owns iHeartRadio, the largest online radio platform in the United States. Big-name stars such as Mariah Carey, Justin Timberlake, Imagine Dragons and Dua Lipa took part in last year's event. In 2012, South Korean rapper Psy performed his mega-hit "Gangnam Style" in the festi

March 6, 2019

Will ‘Shazam!’ be DC’s counterpunch against Marvel?

The bitter irony of the film franchise unofficially called DC Extended Universe is that most of its star players have been throwing up bricks while those initially thought of as backups have been slamming it home. It is now up to “Shazam!” a superhero film based on a character of the same name, to pump life into DC in what has been a losing battle against the far more successful Marvel Cinematic Universe.Warner Bros. Korea on Tuesday announced the new comic book-based film will be released here

March 5, 2019

‘Conversation between Chopin’s nocturnes and I has begun’

Following recitals of Beethoven’s piano sonatas in 2017, pianist Paik Kun-woo has taken up a new challenge this year -- studying the world of Chopin through his nocturnes. On Tuesday, Paik released a complete recording of Chopin’s 21 nocturnes, under the Deutsche Grammophon label.“The nocturnes all suddenly seemed so new to me,” Paik said during a press conference at Mapo Art Center in western Seoul on Tuesday.  Pianist Paik Kun-woo speaks during a press conference at Mapo Art Center on Tuesday.

March 5, 2019

Red Velvet's Yeri to drop solo debut song next week

Yeri of popular girl group Red Velvet will release her first solo single, "Dear Diary," next week, her management agency said Tuesday."Dear Diary" will hit various music sites at 6 p.m. on March 14, SM Entertainment said. It is the eighth song to be released as part of the third season of SM's digital music project "Station." (SM Entertainment)Yeri unveiled part of the self-composed song in a reality show on JTBC4 last year. The 20-year-old singer joined the five-member group in March 2015 durin

March 5, 2019

Actor Hyun Bin to meet fans in 3 Asian cities

South Korean heartthrob Hyun Bin will hold fan meetings in three Asian cities next month, his star agency said Tuesday.The actor will begin the tour in Seoul on April 13 and visit Taipei and Hong Kong later in the month, VAST Entertainment said, adding it will be his first Asian tour in six years.(Yonhap)Detailed schedules of the fan meeting tour will become available on the talent agency's website and SNS accounts.Hyun Bin most recently appeared in the cable channel tvN's weekly drama series "M

March 5, 2019

[Herald Review] Phantasmagoric staging of Haydn’s ‘Creation’ pleases eyes, ears

Spanish theater troupe La Fura dels Baus’ innovative production of Haydn’s oratorio “The Creation,” which ran at Art Center Incheon on Friday and Saturday, was a feast for the eyes and ears.The iconic oratorio work from 1798 depicts the biblical story of creation. While the original composition, intended for a religious presentation, does not include interactions between characters, the experimental theater troupe adapted the work by adding visual art installations. Friday’s production highlight

March 4, 2019

Netflix shares still photos of 'Kingdom' Season 2

Netflix on Monday unveiled still photos of the second season of its first original Korean drama series, "Kingdom," ahead of its expected release later this year.The photos show a herd of zombies who never fall asleep although the sky is getting brighter with sunshine and the drama's hero, Prince Lee Chang (played by Ju Ji-hoon), drawing his sword in the darkness. (Netflix)Premiered in January, the television series has drawn big attention at home and in other Asian countries for being Netflix's

March 4, 2019