BTS' V and Blackpink's Jennie break up: sources

BTS' V and Blackpink's Jennie, who were rumored to have been dating, recently broke up, music industry sources said Wednesday. The two K-pop stars have been caught up in rumors that they are in a romantic relationship after an online post claimed they spent time together on South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju last year. In May, a video posted online also showed what appeared to be V and Jennie seemingly on a date in Paris. Their respective agencies, BigHit Music and YG En

Dec. 6, 2023

Actors, musicians unite for Hakchon Theater's closing act

Actors and musicians have come together for a relay performance to bid a heartfelt farewell to the Hakchon Theater, an iconic venue for Korean performing arts in Seoul's Daehangno district. Established in March 1991, the Hakchon Theater will close its doors on March 15, its 33rd anniversary, due to chronic financial difficulties and CEO Kim Min-gi's health issues. Upon hearing the news, singer Park Hak-ki gathered fellow artists and created the "Hakchon Again'' project -

Dec. 6, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] Riize to return on Jan. 5: report

Rookie boy band Riize is set to release a new single on Jan. 5, according to a local media report on Wednesday. Label SM Entertainment confirmed the news following the report. The band’s latest release was the digital single “Talk Saxy” that was released in October and topped the iTunes top songs chart in seven regions. Riize debuted in September with the single album “Get A Guitar” that sold over a million copies in the first week, and topped Oricon’s daily

Dec. 6, 2023

Four Korean drama series nominated for Critics Choice Awards

Four South Korean dramas have been nominated at the 29th Annual Critics Choice Awards, which is slated to be held in Los Angeles on Jan. 14. Of the seven nominations for the best foreign language series, four are Korean dramas -- Korean streaming service Tving's original series “Bargain,” Netflix's original series "The Glory" and "Mask Girl" and Disney+'s original series "Moving" -- according to the Critics Choice Association on Tuesday.

Dec. 6, 2023

Berlin Philharmonic's 'Unsuk Chin Edition': Unthinkable becomes reality

“Something unthinkable has become a reality. It feels like a lifetime achievement to some degree,” said Korean composer Chin Un-suk of the Berlin Philharmonic album dedicated to her music. Titled “The Unsuk Chin Edition,” the album released last month contains six works Chin performed by the world’s top orchestra between 2005 and 2022. It is a rare album of a living composer and only the second time after the philharmonic released, in 2017, an album of John Adams, w

Dec. 6, 2023

Things look bright for ‘Past Lives’ Oscars prospects

Hopes are growing that Korean Canadian director and playwright Celine Song’s directorial debut “Past Lives” could repeat the success of Lee Isaac Chung's heartwarming family drama “Minari," nominated in six categories at the 2021 Academy Awards. The 2024 Academy Awards are slated to take place March 10, 2024. "Past Lives," which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival in January, quickly garnered international critical attention. The film opened i

Dec. 6, 2023

Solbi talks about dealing with malicious online comments in documentary

Appearing in a US documentary, singer and painter Solbi has impressed viewers with her courageous journey in overcoming malicious comments. Solbi appeared in a documentary entitled "Painting Through Pain" as part of the Voice of America's 52 Documentary series on YouTube, sharing the painful experience of malicious comments and cyberbullying and how she overcame them. Directed by Komeil Soheili, the documentary was part of the weekly documentary series released from the VOA. Accor

Dec. 6, 2023

Blackpink survives 7-year curse, renews exclusive contract with YG

Jennie, Lisa, Rose and Jisoo will remain as Blackpink, defying K-pop's infamous “seven-year curse.” The seven-year curse in K-pop refers to the disbanding of most K-pop groups seven years after their debut as the exclusive contracts with their agencies come to an end. “Based on our strong trust in one another, Blackpink renewed its exclusive contract with the agency for group activities,” YG Entertainment announced Wednesday. YG said it plans to actively support Blac

Dec. 6, 2023

5 cities in Japan splashed with Seventeen

K-pop boy group Seventeen is adorning five different cities in Japan through The City, a project which hosts diverse events across a specific region for its fans to enjoy. The project is being carried out at 70 different places across Tokyo, Saitama, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka along with 30 companies in time for the group’s visits to these cities as part of its dome tour in Japan, according to Hybe. “The project also took place last year in three different cities in Japan with 25 loca

Dec. 6, 2023

BTS to open new chapter after military service

RM, V, Jimin and Jungkook of BTS communicated with their fans through a livestream on Weverse on Tuesday night ahead of starting their mandatory military service next week. “We are looking forward to the day that we resume working as a full unit. We know that together we will generate significant synergy. With this in mind, we will spend the coming year and a half in the military,” said the members. RM and V are enlisting on Dec. 11, and Jimin and Jungkook on Dec. 12, according to in

Dec. 6, 2023

[Herald Interview] Zion.T aims to rebrand with new LP ‘Zip’

Singer-songwriter Zion.T contemplated how to reach new listeners when working on his third studio album, “Zip,” which is his first album release in five years. “I (wanted) to present a good album that rebrands my identity as a musician to attract new listeners. I want this album to open a new chapter of my career,” Zion.T said during an interview with a group of reporters on Monday. Zion.T has made his mark on the music industry over the last 12 years as a creative si

Dec. 6, 2023

Musical 'Yujin and Yujin' captivates Taiwanese audience

Taipei, TAIWAN -- On Nov. 25, about 160 seats of the Experimental Theater at the National Theater & Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan were full. In front of the audience were two Taiwanese actresses -- Da Tian and Lee Ling-Wei -- and a cello and piano duo. The actresses sitting facing the audience on two simple chairs turned into two characters, both named Yujin: "Big Yujin" and "Little Yujin." With their lines and dramatic songs, the two actresses led the audience into th

Dec. 5, 2023

[Herald Interview] Lee Eung-bok expresses 'Korean spirit' of monster horror in 'Sweet Home'

The star director of hit Korean TV dramas "Guardian: The Lonely and Great God" (2016) and "Mr. Sunshine" (2018), Lee Eung-bok is back with the much-awaited second season of Netflix's "Sweet Home." Lee's first season of "Sweet Home," a 10-part Netflix original series, gained a global following in 2020, making it to the Netflix US top 10 list as the first Korean TV drama to do so. "When I decided to direct 'Sweet Home', I didn't

Dec. 5, 2023

Lucy returns with 'Boogie Man'

Lucy is back with "Boogie Man." The K-pop rock band, which has continued its musical transformation since debuting in 2019, dropped the new single album Tuesday evening. The titular "Boogie Man" is an emo pop song with a mysterious atmosphere, straying from the refreshing energy Lucy has been known for. The funky yet intense rock sounds are a new attempt, but the sounds of Shin Ye-chan's violin revel in Lucy's unique quality. The boogie man of the song refers to ano

Dec. 5, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] BTS’ V to appear in IU’s music video: report

V of BTS will appear in a music video for IU’s upcoming single, according to a local media report Tuesday. Management firms for both artists confirmed the news following the report. They have already finished shooting the visuals, said Edam Entertainment, adding that IU’s new album will be released in the first half of 2024. The shooting schedule was moved up as V is set to enlist in the military next week along with bandmates RM, Jimin and Jungkook. His label, Big Hit Music, announ

Dec. 5, 2023

[Herald Review] ‘Our Season’: a relatable story for all moms and daughters

The plot of director Yuk Sang-hyo’s “Our Season” is quite simple. Bok-ja (Kim Hae-sook) visits her daughter Jin-joo (Shin Min-a) as part of her “vacation from heaven” after suddenly passing away. Despite Bok-ja’s excitement over the prospect of seeing her daughter again, she is startled to find out that Jin-joo has quit her job as a professor at UCLA and settled down in the countryside to open a restaurant. Together with Jin-joo's best friend, Mi-jin (H

Dec. 5, 2023

Can 'Singles Inferno' boost basketball's popularity?

With the third season of Netflix dating reality show "Singles Inferno" ready to release next week, one participant grabbing the eyes of local basketball fans is Lee Gwan-hee, a brash, outspoken and somewhat-controversial guard playing for the Changwon LG Sakers of the Korea Basketball League. Lee’s appearance will mark the first time an active professional athlete will appear in the wildly popular show, and fans of the mildly liked KBL are wondering if the publicity will help boo

Dec. 5, 2023

National Theater of Korea's 50th year to close with 'Song of King Sejong'

A grand-scale production featuring a blend of traditional Korean instrumental music, Western orchestra, "pansori" (Korean traditional narrative singing), choir and dance will celebrate the year's end at the National Theater of Korea (NTOK). Three state companies -- the National Changgeuk Company of Korea, the National Dance Company of Korea and the National Orchestra of Korea -- affiliated with the NTOK have joined forces to mark the 50th anniversary of the theater's relocati

Dec. 5, 2023

Munich Philharmonic sets milestones with Lim Yun-chan [Herald Review]

The Munich Philharmonic has set several milestones while in Korea. The orchestra made a rare Korea-exclusive tour of seven concerts around the country, including one at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, where the orchestra and pianist Lim Yun-chan took the stage. It was a record-breaking concert for the center -- the tickets for the 2,953-seat Grand Theater were sold out within a minute upon ticket sales opening in August, despite the fact that the Sejong Center is not considered the be

Dec. 4, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] Blackpink hits 1.9b views with ‘Kill This Love’ music video

    Blackpink’s music video for “Kill This Love” has generated 1.9 billion views on YouTube as of Monday, according to label YG Entertainment. This follows the video of “Ddu-du Ddu-du” and makes the foursome the first K-pop artist ever to have two hits to achieve the feat. The music video came out in April 2019 and was one of the top 10 most-viewed music videos in 2023 while the song hit Billboard’s Hot 100 at No. 41, setting a record for a K-po

Dec. 4, 2023