'Every performance becomes shared journey of musical exploration': Ray Chen

Ray Chen, a Taiwanese Australian violinist, wears many hats. In addition to performing with top orchestras around the world and bringing life to classical music, Chen, the winner of the 2009 Queen Elisabeth Competition, is also a music educator and music director for video games. Driving the 34-year-old violinist in all these activities is his desire to share the magic of music with others. “Whether it's on stage, in a practice app, or a video online, each platform allows me to reach

July 26, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] Stray Kids to gift song to fans

Stray Kids will release a summer song on Aug. 1 to mark the fifth anniversary of its official fan club, according to label JYP Entertainment on Wednesday. The band will celebrate the occasion for a week from Wednesday with a series of events, including a livestream and an exhibit that will showcase photographs and videos from behind the scenes of the group's fan meet held in Seoul earlier this month. The song dedicated to their fans will be the highlight of the weeklong celebration. The boy ban

July 26, 2023

NewJeans climbs to No. 64 on Billboard’s Hot 100

NewJeans’ latest single, “Super Shy,” one of the three title tracks from the group's second EP “Get Up,” rose to a new peak on the global Billboard music chart. The song climbed to No. 64 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart dated July 29, marking the group’s highest ranking on the chart so far, according to Billboard on Wednesday. This comes a week after “Super Shy” debuted at No. 66 on the same chart. NewJeans’ former hit songs “OM

July 26, 2023

Everglow to return next month after long hiatus

K-pop girl group Everglow is returning to the music scene in August, ending its 20-month hiatus. Everglow is currently working on its new album set for release on Aug. 18, according to Yue Hua Entertainment on Wednesday. The group dropped its comeback teaser poster on its official social media account, in which each member is individually silhouetted striking a pose behind a transparent veil. This new album puts an end to Everglow's lengthy break since the release of its third mini album &l

July 26, 2023

Korean viewers grow indifferent to stars’ troubles

Reality and talk shows featuring the personal stories of Korean celebrities may have enjoyed huge popularity several years ago, but that is no longer the case. In recent years, many Korean TV personalities have revealed their homes and starred on reality shows with friends and family members, allowing viewers to observe almost every moment of their lives. Actors Choo Ja-hyun and Yu Xiaoguang are among many celebrities who starred in SBS’ reality show “Same Bed, Different Dreams 2:

July 26, 2023

Shownu X Hyungwon debut as Monsta X's first subunit with 'The Unseen'

K-pop boy band Monsta X's Shownu and Hyungwon are set to make their subunit debut Tuesday with the EP "The Unseen." Under the name Shownu X Hyungwon, the duo is emerging as the six-piece's first subunit group. The new album, "The Unseen," looks into the minds of the two singers as they face the various shapes of "self" seen through the eyes of others. Just like other Monsta X music, the duet touches on various ideas of love and plays them out through the E

July 25, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] The Boyz to roll out 2nd LP as trilogy

    The Boyz is set to release its second studio album as a three-part series in the latter half of this year, according to agency IST Entertainment on Tuesday. The LP “Phantasy” will be a trilogy, and the first installment “Christmas in August” will be rolled out on Aug. 7. The band uploaded a preview poster on the day with clues in three different settings – a beach, drive-in theater and snow field. The album comes about six months since its eighth

July 25, 2023

[Herald Interview] Zo In-sung says getting older has set him free to pick coveted projects, roles

In director Ryoo Seung-wan’s new crime action flick, “Smugglers,” Zo In-sung stars as a veteran smuggler known nationwide, Kwon Pil-sam. Contrary to newbie Jangdori (Park Jung-min) who is timid and anxious all the time, Kwon is a calm and coldhearted character who wants to get things done with his own hands. It is undeniable that the energy and vibe that a character exudes at least partly come from the actor who plays the role. In that context, many have said that Kwon Pil-sam

July 25, 2023

Le Sserafim, Japanese singer-songwriter imase collaborate for new single

Le Sserafim released a new single with the Japanese singer-songwriter imase on Tuesday. The single “Jewelry (Prod. imase)” is one of the tracks from its upcoming second Japanese single “Unforgiven,” released prior to the official album drop on Aug. 23. Imase, known for his hit track “Night Dancer” which hit 1.2 million views on TikTok and became the first J-pop track to land on Korea’s Melon Chart Top 100, produced the song. The single is of the city pop

July 25, 2023

Oh My Girl to make this summer its golden time

Oh My Girl returned as a full unit for the first time in a year and four months with its ninth mini album “Golden Hourglass” on Monday. “The title of this album is a combination of ‘golden time’ and ‘hourglass.’ Once the sand goes down the hourglass, it does not go back up on its own. But we wanted to convey the meaning that we will make our own golden time by flipping the hourglass because our golden time is now,” said Hyojung, the band's lea

July 25, 2023

BTS' Jungkook lands No.1 spot on Billboard Hot 100

BTS' member Jungkook has taken the top spot on Billboard's Hot 100 chart with the single "Seven (feat. Latto)." The US music publication on Monday released its latest weekly chart data, which showed Jungkook's solo single "Seven (feat. Latto)" led the main singles chart Hot 100. This is the second time a South Korean solo singer has topped the singles chart, following his bandmate Jimin's song "Like Crazy" topped the list in April. "Seven&qu

July 25, 2023

First Filipino K-pop group HORI7ON sets sail

K-pop's first all-Filipino boy band, HORI7ON, arrived in Seoul on Monday, officially embarking on their journey as a global pop group. Debuting under the local agency MLD Entertainment, HORI7ON's seven members -- Vinci, Kim, Kyler, Reyster, Winston, Jeromy and Marcus -- were brought together through Filipino TV audition program "Dream Maker," which was jointly launched by MLD and Filipino TV broadcaster ABS-CBN. They then went through around 100 days of so-called "K-trai

July 24, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] NCT Dream sells 3.65m copies of LP No. 3

   NCT Dream’s third full-length album “ISTJ” sold more than 3.65 million copies in the first week of sales, according to label SM Entertainment on Monday. It is a record for the band and the third-highest in K-pop history, only after Stray Kids’ third LP “5-Star” at 4.61 million and Seventeen’s tenth EP “FML” at 4.59 million. The LP received 4.2 million units in pre-orders. In the meantime, Haechan resumed activities on Monday. He

July 24, 2023

Jung Woo-sung seeks ‘newness in familiarity’ with directorial debut ‘A Man of Reason’

Renowned South Korean actor Jung Woo-sung is making his directoral debut with the action drama film “A Man of Reason,” in which he challenged himself to put a twist on a familiar storyline to express “newness in familiarity.” “At first, people suggested that I just act in the film as the protagonist Soo-hyuk. But after hearing the plot, which has a simple structure and a familiar story ... I thought it could be a good challenge for me to add my own color through dir

July 24, 2023

[Herald Review] Seventeen's extravaganza reembarks with dome tour 'Follow'

For Seventeen, a concert is what completes every chapter of their musical journey. The performance-driven 13-piece K-pop juggernaut don't just bring their music and spirit live to the stage, but enchant the whole space with their phenomenal energy and synchronization on stage. On the shoulders of such a reputation, the band did not disappoint with their latest concert series, "'Follow' to Seoul," held on Friday and Saturday at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul. The

July 24, 2023

NewJeans likely to see 3 songs from 2nd EP on Billboard Hot 100

K-pop girl group NewJeans is making strides in the US, the world's largest music market. According to Ador, the agency which houses NewJeans, all six tracks of the group's second EP, “Get Up,” landed on Spotify US’ Daily Top Song Chart -- “Super Shy” at No. 10, “Cool With You” at No. 16, “New Jeans” at No. 20, “ETA” at No. 22,” “ASAP at No. 25 and “Get Up” at No. 32. This is the first time for a K

July 24, 2023

StayC to drop 3rd EP ‘Teenfresh’ next month

K-pop girl group StayC is releasing its third mini album “Teenfresh” on Aug. 16, according to agency High-Up Entertainment. StayC unveiled a teaser poster of its upcoming album on its official social media account on Monday. The orange-colored poster shows the title of the new album with a message saying “coming soon.” The new album comes six months after the group dropped its fourth single album “Teddy Bear” in February. The single “Teddy Bear” wa

July 24, 2023

National Theater of Korea to present 60 works, including 24 new pieces, next season

The National Theater of Korea is in full-swing preparations to showcase captivating works that blend novelty with tradition for the upcoming season, including a grand-scale musical cantata featuring 300 artists and a traditional concert accompanied by liquor. The artistic directors of three national troupes affiliated with the theater -- the National Changgeuk Company, National Dance Company and National Orchestra -- unveiled the lineup for the 2023-24 program scheduled for Sept. 1 to June 30, 2

July 23, 2023

Webtoon creator, screenwriter Kang Full takes on epic K-superhero project

Making his debut as a screenwriter in upcoming Disney+ action drama series “Moving,” webtoon creator Kang Full exudes confidence in delighting both his devoted webtoon readers and those new to his fictional world with Korean-style superheroes. In 2015, “Moving” started out as an action webtoon series on Daum Webtoon, garnering Kang more than 200 million accumulated reads in Korea. The story revolves around high school students endowed with supernatural powers and their pa

July 23, 2023

BTS’ Jungkook debuts on UK's Official Singles Chart at No. 3

Jungkook of BTS made his successful debut on the UK's Official Singles Chart “Top 100” at No. 3 on Saturday with his solo debut single “Seven.” The Official Singles Chart is compiled by the Official Charts Company, based on sales of downloads, CDs, vinyl, audio streams, and video streams. The Official Singles Chart is one of the two most recognized music charts in the world along with the Billboard chart. Jungkook is the K-pop soloist with the second-highest record o

July 23, 2023