[Herald Interview] NCT Wish aims to live up to group name

It would be a lie for the bandmates of SM Entertainment rookie K-pop boy band NCT Wish to say they did not feel the pressure of their debut as a subunit of NCT. Yet, NCT Wish hopes to continue to do its best to live up to the group’s name. “Our seniors from the group NCT are outstanding live performers, so we try our best to live up to their name by practicing hard for our performance and monitoring our rehearsals meticulously for improvement. We still have a long way to go,” S

April 4, 2024

25th JIFF to run special screenings to mark 10th anniversary of Sewol ferry disaster

This year’s Jeonju International Film Festival, running May 1 to May 10, will showcase several films on the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster to mark the 10th anniversary of the tragedy that claimed almost 300 lives, most of them high school students on a field trip on April 16, 2014. “The year 2024 marks the 10th year since the Sewol tragedy. Although 10 years have passed, the scars of this disaster have not yet healed. Rather, we had to go through a similar tragedy that happened in Itaewon

April 3, 2024

[Music in drama] Love blooms against all odds

Behind the phenomenal success of the TV drama series “Descendants of the Sun,” which recorded nearly 40 percent viewership ratings, was the soundtrack that enhanced the completeness of the drama. Aired in 2016 on KBS, "Descendants of the Sun" depicts the love story between Army Captin Yoo Si-jin (Song Joong-ki) and Kang Mo-yeon (Song Hye-kyo), a medical doctor, in the fictional land of Uruk. The second lead pair, First Lieutenant and Army Doctor Yoon Myung-joo (Kim Ji-won)

April 3, 2024

Who will get it right?

South Korean broadcasters will be leveraging advanced artificial intelligence technology, upgraded election outcome prediction systems and personalized services in their coverage of the general election on April 10. SBS will introduce an AI character as a commentator for its general election broadcasts, a first in Korean broadcasting history. Named "Toopyoro" and taking the form of a teddy bear, the AI character will provide real-time commentary on the general election using generative

April 3, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] Riize drops single before June comeback

Riize released performance single “Siren” on Wednesday raising expectations for its next album, which is due out in June. “Siren” was the background music for the rookie band’s minute-long pre-debut performance video that was unveiled in August. The new single harks back to the hip-hop sound of the 90’s, with an addictive rhythm and bass riff. The six-member act will drop prologue single “Impossible” on Apil 18 and three B-side tracks on April 29

April 3, 2024

Cube Entertainment’s new boy group Nowadays wants to be game changer

K-pop boy group Nowadays debuted Tuesday with its first single album, “Nowadays.” Consisting of five members -- Hyeon-bin, Yoon, Yeon-woo, Jin-hyuk and Si-yun -- Nowadays is Cube Entertainment's first new boy group in eight years. “We combined the words ‘Now’ and ‘Days’ for our name as we hope to make special memories with our fans now, at this present moment, and also in the days to come,” said Hyeon-bin during a press conference in Seoul on

April 3, 2024

aespa’s Karina, actor Lee Jae-wook go separate ways

Under heavy pressure from fans, Karina of aespa and actor Lee Jae-wook have parted ways, just five weeks after their relationship became public. “Actor Lee Jae-wook decided to break up with Karina to concentrate on work. The two of them will continue to support each other as colleagues working in the same industry," said Lee Jae-wook’s agency, CJes Studios, in a press release Tuesday. The breakup was confirmed by Karina's agency. “Karina and Lee Jae-wook have decided

April 2, 2024

[News Analysis] Behind the box office success of thriller ‘Exhuma’

For the first time in Korean cinema history, a mystery thriller film on the occult phenomenon has hit the milestone 10 million admissions mark. “Exhuma,” the most-watched film so far this year, surpassed that mark just 32 days after opening in February. As of Tuesday morning, “Exhuma” had recorded more than 11 million ticket sales in a country of fewer than 52 million people, with the film now poised to become the 22nd highest grossing film within the entire breadth of Ko

April 2, 2024

[Herald Interview] Countertenor Philippe Jaroussky to go on spiritual journey of 'St. Matthew Passion'

In the upcoming performances of “St. Matthew Passion,” BWV 244 by J.S. Bach, in South Korea, renowned countertenor Philippe Jaroussky will join forces with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra conducted by Francesco Corti. Jaroussky will sing “Erbarme dich” in the three-hour-long performance. “I’ve been working specifically on this aria for more than 6 months! I think the difficulty is to express the powerful expression of regret and the dramatic aspect of it, wit

April 2, 2024

[Herald Interview] 'Age is not a limit,' says young cast of changgeuk 'Lear'

Among Shakespeare's tragedies, "King Lear" stands out for its portrayal of one of the oldest protagonists. Betrayed by his daughters, losing his kingdom, his sanity, and ultimately his life, the stage is filled with the anguished cries of a monarch in his twilight years. In a groundbreaking departure from convention, young "changgeuk" performers took the lead roles in the sold-out production of "Lear" by the National Changgeuk Company, affiliated with the Natio

April 2, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] TXT’s 6th EP is instant million-seller

Tomorrow X Together’s sixth EP “minisode 3: Tomorrow” sold over 1 million copies on its day of release, repeating the early success of its two previous albums, label Big Hit Music said Tuesday. The last two albums are fifth EP “The Name Chapter: Temptation” and third studio album “The Name Chapter: Freefall.” The former claimed the top spot on Billboard 200 and the latter No. 3. The mini album logged 1.18 million in sales and topped iTunes top albums cha

April 2, 2024

Super Junior-D&E to perform in Japan

K-pop boy group Super Junior’s duo, Donghae and Eunhyuk, also known as Super Junior-D&E, is set to tour Japan, according to Ode Entertainment. The duo's “Departure” tour kicks off with a concert in Osaka on April 12 followed by concerts in Tokyo, Shizuoka, Aichi, Saitama, Kanagawa, Fukuoka, Hiroshima and Hyogo for a total of 17 shows. The initial plan was to perform 13 shows but four more concerts were added as tickets sold out quickly. The duo is set to perform a setl

April 2, 2024

TXT sums up its five-year story with ‘minisode 3: TOMORROW’

Tomorrow X Together returned with its sixth mini album, "minisode 3: TOMORROW," which encompasses the stories of the albums they have released over the past five years. The quintet held a press conference at Korea University’s Hwajung Gymnasium on Monday. The new album is the first after the group’s 3rd full-length album, “The Name Chapter: Freefall,” released last October. "It's an album with outstanding completeness, and I believe listeners will be a

April 1, 2024

[Herald Interview] Babymonster sets out to target global listeners with YG ‘DNA’

Dropping the group's first EP, “Babymos7er,” Monday, YG Entertainment’s latest girl group, Babymonster, made its official debut. “We are announcing our new beginning as a group of seven with Ahyeon joining us for the promotion of this album,” said Rora of Babymonster during a group interview with local reporters on Monday. Babymonster previously debuted with a digital single, “Batter Up,” on Nov. 27, 2023 as a group of six -- Ruka, Pharita, Asa, Ram

April 1, 2024

K-content streaming service Kocowa to launch services in Europe, Oceania

Kocowa, a streaming platform operated by Wavve Americas, which distributes Korean content to overseas audiences, said it has started offering its services in 39 countries in Europe and Oceania on Monday. Previously, Kocowa was available in some 30 countries in North and South America, including the US, Canada and Brazil. England, Ireland, Spain and Portugal, as well as Australia and New Zealand, are some of the countries where Kocowa became available Monday. In Europe and Oceania, Kocowa is only

April 1, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] BTS’ Jungkook hits Spotify milestone in record time

Jungkook of BTS has reached 1.5 billion streams on Spotify with solo single “Seven (feat. Latto)” as of March 29. He is the first K-pop solo act to achieve the feat and did so in the shortest time for an Asian artist in the history of the platform, at 259 days. It is only bested by Harry Styles’ “As It Was” and Justin Bieber and The Kid Laroi’s collaboration, “Stay.” He has earned three Guinness World Records so far with the single: hitting 1 billi

April 1, 2024

[Herald Interview] Director Ahn Gooc-jin brings his mistrust of the internet to big screen

It took director Ahn Gooc-jin nine years to return to the big screen after his award-winning “Alice In Earnestland.” Just like the previous film, Ahn's latest work, “Troll Factory,” criticizes aspects of modern-day Korea through satire. “Troll Factory,” a film adaptation of the eponymous 2015 novel by Chang Kang-myoung, reorganizes the story into a completely new structure. Unlike in the novel, the movie focuses on the character of Yim Sang-jin (Son Suk-k

April 1, 2024

[Herald Review] Lucy kicks off 1st world tour with dynamic performance

South Korean group Lucy delivered a thrilling and powerful performance to fans Sunday, successfully kicking off its first world tour. The Seoul performance of the group's first world tour, “Written by Flower,” took place at the SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium in the Olympic Park in Seoul, on Saturday and Sunday. Audiences of over 10,000 people gathered at the concert hall over the two days. The four members appeared on the stage in white outfits -- which was the pre-set dress cod

April 1, 2024

[Herald Review] Seventeen announces 2 album releases this year during concert

Surrounded by some 28,000 people that had gathered at the Incheon Asiad Main Stadium on Sunday, all 13 members of Seventeen slowly descended towards the stage in lifts shaped like rectangular cuboids. Sporting glittering silver jackets, the K-pop sensations kicked off the last day of its two-day concert with “Super.” The group added a dance break to the song, during which fireworks exploded, ramping up the energy throughout the stadium. Fans were excited finally to see all 13 members

April 1, 2024

[Herald Interview] Minseo returns with dark charisma in ‘Dead Love’

Although she is often thought of as a ballad singer with a soft, emotion-laden voice, Minseo is full of bright energy and has so much more she wants to express. "Everyone is surprised when they meet me in person. I became famous for the lyrical, emotional ballad 'Yes,' so everyone assumes I would be a sentimental, quiet person," the singer said during a group interview on March 21. Minseo came to attention when she made it to the top eight on “Superstar K7” in 201

March 31, 2024