[Today’s K-pop] Ex-NCT Lucas to tour Asia for fan concerts

Lucas, formerly of NCT, will host a fan concert tour in Asia from April, according to label SM Entertainment on Wednesday. He will kick off tour Fiat Lux: 熙 in Hong Kong on April 13 and visit Jakarta, Taipei and Manila until mid-June. More cities will be added to the tour soon, said the firm. The performer is set to release first solo single “Renegade” on April 1, returning to the spotlight after a two-year hiatus. He confirmed the news of his solo debut last week, ending speculati

March 13, 2024

Netflix original 'Chicken Nugget' brings creativity of Korean storytellers to life

Netflix mystery comedy original "Chicken Nugget," set to premiere Friday, will bring to life the creativity and ingenuity of Korean storytellers via its surprising plot. "Chicken Nugget" narrates the story of Go Baek-joong (played by Ahn Jae-hong) and Choi Seon-man (played by Ryu Seung-ryong), who endeavor to turn Choi Min-ah (played by Kim You-jung) back into a human. In the story, Min-ah, the daughter of Seon-man, is accidentally turned into a chicken nugget by a mysterious

March 13, 2024

K-pop song revitalizes sales of traditional jelly

"Bam Yang Gang (chestnut jelly)" by K-pop singer Bibi has become a sensation in South Korea, not just topping music charts but also dramatically boosting sales of the traditional jelly, yanggaeng. According to industry data, from the song’s release on Feb. 13 till March 6, major convenience store chains in South Korea, including CU, GS25, Seven Eleven, and Emart24, reported an increase of up to 100 percent in sales of Haitai Confectionery's “Yeon Yanggaeng." Craft

March 13, 2024

K-pop artists win big at Japan Gold Disc Awards

Seventeen won six awards at the 38th Japan Gold Disc Awards, according to the Record Industry Association of Japan on Tuesday. Established in 1987, the Japan Gold Disc Awards are presented by the Recording Industry Association of Japan to reward Japanese and foreign artists based on net sales of CDs, music videos, singles, downloads and streaming. This year, Seventeen won Best Asian Artist for the first time since its debut, Album of the Year for its 10th EP, “FML,” and three of this

March 13, 2024

Jungkook becomes longest-charting K-pop soloist on Billboard Hot 100 after Psy

Jungkook of K-pop juggernaut BTS has become the longest-charting K-pop solo artist on US Billboard's Hot 100 main singles chart after Psy. According to the latest chart unveiled Tuesday, Jungkook's "Standing Next to You" stayed on the chart for 18 consecutive weeks, the second-longest run for any K-pop soloist in history, following Psy's record of 31 consecutive weeks with "Gangnam Style" in 2012. This week, the BTS vocalist ascended two spots to reach No. 85.

March 13, 2024

Disney+ unveils lineup, strategy for Korean market

Emphasizing the importance of the Korean market, Disney+ said Tuesday that it will focus on quality over quantity going forward. "Disney Korea is evolving from playing the role of a distributor of global stories and content to producing content here and bringing it outside of Korea. The quality and the storytelling of Korean content is so attractive to audiences not only in APAC, but beyond," said Carol Choi, executive vice president of original content strategy at The Walt Disney Comp

March 13, 2024

'The Best Sopranos' concert highlights Maria Callas' life through familiar tunes

A tribute to American and Greek soprano Maria Callas took place Monday at Lotte Concert Hall. The concert, titled “The Best Sopranos” brought together five sopranos, whom the artistic director Ha Man-taek of the concert and CEO of Korea ARTS Group, said “are the best sopranos to me, even though they are so far less-well known to the world.” The sopranos -- Park Mi-ja, Kim Ra-hee, Shin Eun-hye, Lee Yun-jeong and Veronica Yoo -- were joined by two tenors Ha and Son Ji-hoon

March 12, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] BTS’ Jungkook hits 5 billion Spotify streams

Jungkook of BTS reached 5 billion hits on Spotify, a first for a K-pop solo artist. He achieved the feat in 748 days since he opened his own account on the platform, setting a record for a K-pop act. The record is led by his first solo single, “Seven (feat. Latto),” that amassed 1.4 billion streams. The single garnered 1 billion plays in 108 days, the shortest time in Spotify history. Meanwhile, the music video for “Standing Next to You,” which fronted his solo album &l

March 12, 2024

[New on the scene] ‘Dolphin’ director Bae Du-ri’s work has roots in her own experiences

Director Bae Du-ri came up with the original idea for her feature debut film “Dolphin” back in 2018. The movie centers on Na-young (Kwon Yu-ri), a 35-year-old woman in a seaside town whose only joy is caring for her mother and younger brother. After a troubled childhood, she is now settled into a calmer life, working as a journalist at a local newspaper. When her mother decides to sell the house and her brother insists on moving to Seoul, Na-young, struggling to accept these changes,

March 12, 2024

K-pop reality show ‘K-pop Dreams’ to launch in US

A K-pop reality show will be launched in the US through a partnership between Titan Content, a US-based K-pop label launched by former SM Entertainment CEO Han Se-min, and The Gurin Company, a Los Angeles-based entertainment studio. The show, titled "K-pop Dreams" is a 10-episode reality show that delves into Korean fashion, Korean beauty and Korean dance as well as look for the next K-pop stars who want to realize their “American K-pop dream,” Titan Content said. The show

March 12, 2024

Seventeen's ‘Seventeenth Heaven’ tops Oricon chart

K-pop boy group Seventeen topped Oricon’s weekly album chart dated March 18 with its 11th EP, “Seventeenth Heaven.” This marks the third time the album has landed at No. 1 on the Japanese music industry standard album popularity chart. Seventeen is only the second artist to top Oricon’s weekly album chart three times with the same album following BTS. The EP “Seventeenth Heaven” was released on Oct. 23. Soon after its release, Seventeen made history by becomin

March 12, 2024

[What to watch] Three movies to celebrate International Women’s Day

Friday marked International Women's Day, a day to appreciate the accomplishments of women and promote gender equality. Why not celebrate the day by watching films that highlight the spirit of womanhood? A cinematic experience of women’s strengths, diversity, achievements and their incredible stories is a good way to mark the day. "Dolphin" Directed by Korean female filmmaker Bae Du-ri, “Dolphin” marks the feature directorial debut of Bae, who wrote and directed

March 12, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] TXT to kick off world tour in May

Tomorrow X Together will host its third international tour starting May, announced label Big Hit Music on Monday. The five-piece act will begin the tour, “Act : Promise,” with a three-day concert in Seoul from May 3 to May 5. All live shows will be broadcast online as well. The rest of the tour itinerary will be announced soon, added the firm. Meanwhile, the band will unveil its sixth EP “minisode 3: Tomorrow” on April 1 and will have a showcase in Seoul on the same day.

March 11, 2024

Fourth installment of ‘The Roundup’ returns with familiar ally, riveting new villains

South Korea’s mega-hit crime action franchise “The Roundup” will return next month with its fourth installment, “The Roundup: Punishment,” just 11 months after the third one. The movie, this time, will see the reappearance of an old character as well as the addition of two new, stronger villains. “I’m just full of gratitude to be able to create the fourth in this action crime franchise, which I came up with the idea for while brainstorming 11 years ago i

March 11, 2024

Super Junior-D&E to release new album

Super Junior-D&E, a subunit of Super Junior, will return with its fifth mini-album. The upcoming album, “606,” will be released on March 26. Before the subunit's comeback, three concept photos, a tracklist, a pre-release song and music video teasers will be released one by one. The release marks the duo's first new album in two years and four months. Its first full-length album, "Countdown" was released in 2021. It is also the first album to be released by the

March 11, 2024

Rock band Sanullim's music to regain life in Europe

Legendary Korean rock trio Sanullim's songs, which marked a big milestone in the Korean music scene, will be officially released in Europe as four separate LPs. The rerelease project started when Guerssen Records, a record label group based in Spain, requested licenses for a rerelease. The four Sanullim LPs are rereleases of the first album, "Already Now," second album "Spread Silk on My Heart," third album "My Heart (My Soul Is a Wasteland)" and the compilatio

March 11, 2024

[Herald Review] IU sets off on first world tour, 'H.E.R'

IU’s voice rippled through the KSPO Dome on Sunday as the lights dimmed to open the singer-songwriter’s final Seoul concert of her first world tour, "H.E.R.," which took place in the capital on March 2-3 and March 9-10. Reminiscent of dandelion spores, IU appeared from the ceiling wearing a glittering headset and slowly descended toward the stage, silently surrounded by her audience. When she landed on the stage to perform “Holssi,” meaning spore in Korean, the

March 11, 2024

[Herald Interview] Pianist Lang Lang celebrates French music, female composers in latest album

In bringing to life a long-envisioned French project, celebrated pianist Lang Lang stumbled upon a wealth of intriguing discoveries, spanning from the works of five female French composers to even the world of Taekwondo, a Korean martial art. He said he wanted to do a French project for a long time, but it wasn't until he encountered Saint-Saens' Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 22, “which is underrated despite its excellence,” that he decided to mak

March 11, 2024

'Oppenheimer' crowned best picture at an Academy Awards shadowed by war

LOS ANGELES (AP) — “Oppenheimer,” a solemn three-hour biopic that became an unlikely billion-dollar box-office sensation, was crowned best picture at a 96th Academy Awards that doubled as a coronation for Christopher Nolan. After passing over arguably Hollywood’s foremost big-screen auteur for years, the Oscars made up for lost time by heaping seven awards on Nolan’s blockbuster biopic, including best actor for Cillian Murphy, best supporting actor for Robert Down

March 11, 2024

TikTok-Universal Music Group dispute: an opportunity for rookies?

Universal Music Group, one of the largest global music publishing companies, has pulled music created by its artists and songwriters from TikTok beginning February, as their licensing agreement had expired. This move comes in an effort by UMG to help its artists and songwriters attain fair compensation from TikTok. “TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay. Today, as an indication of how l

March 10, 2024