GOT7’s new album lands atop iTunes charts in 25 countries

Living up to its image as a global act, GOT7 landed its new album atop iTunes charts all over the globe. Representing the band, JYP Entertainment said Tuesday that GOT7’s “Present: You” had topped the charts in 25 countries including Brazil, Finland, Hong Kong, Mexico and New Zealand. The album debuted at No. 5 in the US and No. 3 in Canada, Greece, Norway and Slovakia, the agency added. The album’s lead track, “Lullaby,” a rhythmical urban deep house track about the sweet feeling of love, has a

Sept. 18, 2018

GOT7 presents biggest gift for fans with ‘You’

It’s been a dream-like year for GOT7. On top of the enormous success of its “Eyes on You” album, the group performed in 17 cities across the world and became the first K-pop act to perform at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. But that’s not all the group has lined up for the year. Its third full-length album “Present: You,” released at 6 p.m. Monday, is not only an ode to the group’s millions of fans around the world, but also a culmination of nearly five years of work and a reflection of the act

Sept. 17, 2018

BTS cancels collaboration with Yasushi Akimoto

Kpop sensation BTS confirmed that it has canceled the release of a new single, made in collaboration with Japanese producer Yasushi Akimoto.On Sunday, BTS’ agency, Big Hit Entertainment, said on its official fan page, “The track list for the new Japanese (album) planned for November will be changed due to production problems. Instead of the new track, ‘Bird,’ a remixed version of ‘Idol’ will be included. Sorry for the inconvenience.”BTS. Big Hit Entertainment)“Bird” was set to feature lyrics wri

Sept. 17, 2018

K-pop stars Zico, Ailee to visit Pyongyang

K-pop stars Zico and Ailee will head north, intent to wow the northern neighbors with their music, as it was announced Sunday the two will be part of the South Korean entourage that will visit Pyongyang for the upcoming inter-Korea summit.The artists -- along with songwriter Kim Hyung-suk -- have been included in the 52-member team that will accompany President Moon Jae-in, which consists of government officials, politicians, business leaders, civic groups and figures from other fields.Ailee (YM

Sept. 16, 2018

Goo Ha-ra faces image crisis over assault allegations

Singer Goo Ha-ra, who shot to stardom as a member of the K-pop group KARA, now faces a public image crisis amid a dating violence scandal after her boyfriend alleged she assaulted him for wanting to break up.Her image suffered severe damage over the weekend after her boyfriend spoke with the Chosun Ilbo and shared a picture of his face, which seemed to bear deep scratches around his eyebrows and on his forehead. He said they were the result of a scuffle he had with the singer Wednesday night.The

Sept. 16, 2018

Tyra Banks, BTS ‘smize’ for cameras backstage at ‘America’s Got Talent’

American supermodel Tyra Banks unleashed her “inner Army” as she shared Thursday a photo with the K-pop megastar group BTS on social media following the group’s appearance on “America’s Got Talent.” Along with the photo, the host of the show did not hesitate to express her love for the group. She described BTS as being “already legends, smizing masters, fierce and fine fellas, wig snatchers, enormously talented, genuinely kind, sexy and the biggest boy band on the planet.”  Tyra Banks and BTS on

Sept. 14, 2018

Cube Entertainment withdraws decision to expel HyunA after public backlash

Cube Entertainment, which represents HyunA and boy band Pentagon’s member E’Dawn, announced the expulsion of the two artists from the agency on Thursday morning, only to retract the decision later in the day. “After much deliberation, we’ve concluded that the trust between the company and the artists had been damaged to a degree that it cannot be restored, leading us to believe expulsion is necessary,” read its official statement in the morning.Although the statement cited the “loss of trust” as

Sept. 14, 2018

BTS' management agency plans global auditions to recruit new talents

The agency for K-pop superstars BTS said Friday it will conduct international auditions to recruit new talents in six major cities.The auditions will be held in Los Angeles and Vancouver on Oct. 6, in Atlanta and Toronto on Oct. 13, in New York on Oct. 20 and Hong Kong on Nov. 4, according to Big Hit Entertainment. This poster for Big Hit Entertainment`s global audition program is provided by the company. (Yonhap)The audition will be in five categories -- vocals, rap, dance, acting and modeling

Sept. 14, 2018

Mixed reactions over HyunA and E’dawn’s dismissal by agency

Fans were dumbfounded on Thursday to hear the shocking news that Cube Entertainment had dropped HyunA and E’dawn, saying the two singers had irreparably broken the agency’s trust. Social media erupted in response to the announcement. HyunA and E’dawn, members of the K-pop trio Triple H, went public about their romantic relationship in August without their agency’s permission and have been keeping a low profile ever since. “We decided the trust is broken and cannot be saved, so we are kicking the

Sept. 13, 2018

BTS talks about success in pop stronghold of US

After making headlines with its recent show at Staple Center in Los Angeles, BTS sit down with the Grammy Museum to discuss its music, love for fans, achievements and more. The highly anticipated event titled “A Conversation with BTS” took part at the museum in Los Angeles on Tuesday. It was the first time a Korean act had participated in an event held by the organization. Hosted by the museum’s artistic director Scott Goldman and attended by about 200 fans, the event saw the seven K-pop stars’

Sept. 13, 2018

BTS nominated for American Music Awards

BTS has been nominated for the 2018 American Music Awards, becoming the first K-pop act to get a nod for the AMAs. On Wednesday, the AMAs announced that the K-pop superstar was nominated for the award show’s Favorite Social Artist category, alongside big name pop stars like Cardi B, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, and Shawn Mendes.BTS has already taken home a bag-full of Stateside trophies, winning the top social artist award at the Billboard Music Awards for the last two years. Last November, BTS a

Sept. 13, 2018

Achim Freyer’s new ‘Das Rheingold’ unveiled

German producer Achim Freyer’s latest production of “Das Rheingold,” part of Wagner’s “Ring Cycle,” was unveiled to the media in Seoul, offering yet another interpretation of the epic music drama. ”The “Ring Cycle” is a “Gesamtkunstwerk,” in which music, drama, language, light, stage design, costumes and drawings all come into play, Freyer said Wednesday at a press conference held after a showcase performance at the Namsan Creative Center.  German opera director Achim Freyer (right) and Esther L

Sept. 12, 2018

[Album review] Oh My Girl’s new album is something to remember

Oh My Girls“Remember Me”Loen Entertainment Congratulations, Oh My Girl, on leaving the hilarious banana monkey land and landing back on your shiny magical world. After shocking fans with comical monkey costumes in “Banana Allergy,” the K-pop darlings declared their return with a shimmering five-track EP “Remember Me.”And it indeed is something to remember -- a pleasant mix of new experiments and the act’s old legacy, transitioning between a charismatic chameleon and a “Secret Garden” kind of fai

Sept. 12, 2018

BTS' 'Idol' ranks 81st on Billboard Hot 100

K-pop phenomenon BTS' new song "Idol" placed 81st on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart this week, slipping 70 spots from a week earlier.It is the second straight week that the song's digital version featuring Nicki Minaj has appeared on the main chart since the song debuted in the 11th spot last week, according to the chart for the week of Sept. 15.The song's umbrella album, "Love Yourself: Answer," ranked eighth on the main Billboard 200 chart for the week, also coming down from a week earlie

Sept. 12, 2018

Berry Good to perform without Sehyung after foot injury

Berry Good has decided to continue promotions for its new album as a five-piece act after bandmate Sehyung injured her foot last week. Sehyung injured herself while getting out of a vehicle during the DMC Festival. On Saturday, she took to social media to promise fans she would return soon. The originally six-piece group was quick to reorganize itself as it is in the midst of TV promotions for its album “Free Travel.” An official image of Berry Good. (JTG Entertainment)JTG Entertainment said the

Sept. 11, 2018

Sunmi edges out Girls’ Generation in chart battles

After swapping positions back and forth, Sunmi came out on top at last in the latest weekly charts, fending off competition from Girls’ Generation.Sunmi’s new single “Siren” secured the top spot on last week’s singles chart on multiple streaming services like Bugs, Melon and Mnet during the week ending Sunday.Last week saw one of the hardest fought chart battles in K-pop history, with Sunmi, formerly of girl group Wonder Girls, releasing her new single “Siren” on Tuesday and Girls’ Generation’s

Sept. 11, 2018

S.M. poised to launch Vietnamese unit

S.M. Entertainment plans to make inroads into Vietnam by widening the scope of its global business.CEO Han Se-min announced Tuesday that the company is preparing to establish a corporate branch in Vietnam, at a Korea-Vietnam business seminar in Hanoi, Vietnam.  (Yonhap)Founder and executive producer Lee Soo-man also attended the event as a keynote speaker.“We have previously announced our plans to search for talented youths in Vietnam and create NCT-V, a subunit of NCT,” Lee said in his keynote

Sept. 11, 2018

Mentor and mentee reunite for duo recital

Violinist Chung Kyung-wha and pianist Cho Seong-jin will hold a duo concert at the Seoul Arts Center on Wednesday, part of a nationwide tour that started Sept. 1.The tour marks the first time in six years that the two classical music virtuosos have performed together. The last time, in 2012, Cho was a high school senior. Violinist Chung Kyung-wha and pianist Cho Seong-jin speak during a press conference at Seoul Arts Center on Monday. (Yonhap)“I remember it was in Jinju around six years ago, whe

Sept. 10, 2018

G-Dragon’s ‘Who You?’ tops 100m views

G-Dragon hit another milestone with the music video for “Who You?” as it topped 100 million views on YouTube on Monday. (YG Entertainment)The leader of Big Bang released his second solo EP’s title track in September 2013. The music video was considered special, as more than 1,000 fans participated in its filming by recording G-Dragon performing inside a large glass box and themselves watching the performance from outside. The video showed G-Dragon and the fans from different angles, as multiple

Sept. 10, 2018

Red Velvet kicks off ‘Red Mare’ world tour in Thailand

Red Velvet successfully kicked off its “Red Mare” world tour series in Thailand, drawing about 5,000 concertgoers. The sold-out concert titled “Red Velvet 2nd Concert [REDMARE] in BANGKOK,” which marked the act’s first performance in Thailand, was held on Saturday at Thunder Dome in Bangkok.  (S.M. Entertainment)In 2 1/2 hours, the group performed a total of 22 songs including “Happiness,” “Ice Cream Cake,” “Dumb Dumb,” “Russian Roulette,” “Rookie,” “Red Flavor,” “Bad Boy,” as well as its recent

Sept. 10, 2018