Roy Kim unveils title of new single

Roy Kim has unveiled that the title of his new single will be “Let’s Stop,” or “Uri Geuman Haja” in Korean.The singer broke the news through a video dubbed “Message from Roy” late Sunday on his Instagram, which shows a photo album on a phone screen before a video of him talking plays and the title “Let’s Stop” appears in a text message.The date on the phone screen indicates 6 p.m. on Sept. 18, which is the day his new single is slated for release. (Stone Music Entertainment)The singer-songwriter

Sept. 10, 2018

Big Bang attracts 10m YouTube subscribers

K-pop boy band Big Bang now has over 10 million subscribers on YouTube, qualifying for the Diamond Play Button.The group had 10.006 million subscribers as of early Monday, joining the likes of BTS and Black Pink, who preceded the quintet in reaching the milestone.The group will be given the Diamond Play Button trophy as the video platform congratulates those reaching 10 million subscribers with a Diamond Creator Award.(YouTube)The Silver Play Button is given to YouTubers with over 100,000 subscr

Sept. 10, 2018

Ellie Goulding wows Seoul fans for 90 minutes

British singer Ellie Goulding wowed fans at her very first concert in Seoul on Thursday night, promising new music is on the way.The singer-songwriter powered through a hit-packed set of 17 songs, including “On My Mind,” “Lights” and “Burn,” filling Olympic Hall with her strong stage presence.During the 90-minute show, the singer also had some good news for her fans.Ellie Goulding during her first Seoul concert at Olympic Hall on Thursday night. (Live Nation)“I promise I’ll give you guys some ne

Sept. 7, 2018

BTS releases video for ‘Idol’ featuring Nicki Minaj

K-pop boy band BTS has unveiled a music video with US rap star Nicki Minaj.The video of “Idol” was released via the group’s official YouTube channel on Friday. The version featuring Nicki Minaj is not on the group’s album but is available as a special digital track released online. (Youtube)The video for the new version of the song shows Minaj rapping while her lyrics appear on the background in Hangeul, the Korean alphabet. BTS’ label Big Hit Entertainment said, “It was Nicki Minaj’s idea to wr

Sept. 7, 2018

Black Pink featured in Dua Lipa’s new album

South Korea’s girl group Black Pink is set to be featured on an upcoming album from English pop singer Dua Lipa.Lipa tweeted an image Tuesday of the track list for her new album, due for release Oct. 19. The track list includes a song titled “Kiss and Make Up (Dua Lipa & Blackpink),” implying that the two pop icons had collaborated on one of Lipa’s new songs. (Instagram)“So excited to release a super deluxe edition of my album on October 19th with 3 NEW SONGS!!” Lipa tweeted.The collaboration st

Sept. 5, 2018

BTS puts LA concerts before TV appearances

BTS appears to have decided to put TV promotions on the back burner and focus on its concerts while in Los Angeles.Before BTS landed Monday in the City of Angels, where it is scheduled to perform four shows this week, the group received an invite from comedian and host James Corden to come on his popular “The Late Late Show with James Corden.”“I want BTS to come on my show and perform serendipity so bad! Maybe we could even sing it in a #CarpoolKaraoke?” Corden wrote in a tweet on Aug. 29, which

Sept. 5, 2018

Sunmi tops charts with ‘Siren’

Sunmi has managed to fit another hit single into her discography after dominating online streaming charts with her brand new single, “Siren.”The former member of Wonder Girls topped the singles charts for several online streaming services including Melon, Bugs, Mnet and Soribada, just hours after releasing her song Tuesday night.(MAKEUS Entertainment)“Siren” is the lead track for Sunmi’s new EP, “Warning,” her third record since she parted ways with JYP Entertainment and inked a contract with Ma

Sept. 5, 2018

BTS commended by President Moon for Billboard success

BTS earned praise from South Korean president Moon Jae-in for the band’s Billboard success.Billboard officially confirmed that BTS’ latest release, “Love Yourself: Answer,” had reached No. 1 on its top 200 albums chart Monday -- a phenomenal achievement, yet one that many expected. The band had already come atop the albums chart in May with “Love Yourself: Tear.”  BTS earns praise from the Blue House. (Big Hit Entertainment)What was unexpected was the congratulatory tweet that came from the pres

Sept. 5, 2018

What international hit ‘Baby Shark’ endured at home so far

An upbeat version of “Baby Shark,” under the South Korean education brand Pinkfong, has attracted some 1.6 billion views on YouTube as of Tuesday, but the seemingly innocent children’s song faced its share of controversy.Though the variations of the song have enjoyed success on the video platform, its dance version is by far the most watched.The children’s song with a K-pop makeover became so popular it charted in the top 40 singles chart in the UK last week, joining the likes of Psy and BTS. (P

Sept. 4, 2018

Is BTS entitled to military duty exemption?

On Monday morning, many Koreans woke up to the news that K-pop boy band BTS clinched a second victory on the Billboard's main albums chart.It's been only three months since the group dominated the same Billboard 200 albums chart with the second of its "Love Yourself" trilogy, becoming the first K-pop act to be victorious on the American main music chart. BTS is not just a K-pop sensation now, it has become an important player in the global music industry. The Korean septet rewrote pop history by

Sept. 4, 2018

[Photo News] BTS fans take over airport as group leaves for LA

BTS was spotted at Incheon Airport on Wednesday evening as it embarked on its world tour. The seven members showed up in casual outfits, along with sunglasses, masks and caps to cover their faces.(Yonhap)(Yonhap)Fans had gathered at the airport since afternoon to get a glimpse of BTS, which was scheduled to depart in the evening. As BTS entered the airport, crowds of fans followed.  (Yonhap)The world tour will see the boy band perform across North America, Europe and Japan, covering 16 cities wi

Sept. 3, 2018

Pianist Cho Seong-jin, conductor Chung Myung-whun to mark German record label’s 120th anniversary

Rising pianist Cho Seong-jin and conductor Chung Myung-whun will mark the 120th anniversary of Deutsche Grammophon with a concert on Dec. 6 at Seoul Arts Center.“Since when I was a child, I liked listening to CDs, and about 40 percent were by Deutsche Grammophon. I believe it is because the label has worked with many great artists over many years. I am really grateful to work with the label that I have grown up with,” pianist Cho said during a press conference Monday at the Plaza hotel in Seoul.

Sept. 3, 2018

K-pop boy bands defy traditional idea of masculinity

From bright hair dye, heavy eye makeup to flashy stage costumes, some of the key elements of a K-pop boy band defy conventional beauty standards for men.K-pop groups have long drawn a stark contrast with Western boy bands, but are increasingly challenging what many brand as “traditional masculinity” by fully embracing makeup and fashion forward styles to best deliver their music.Perhaps ironically, BTS, the group that has enjoyed most success in the West, is also among the groups that least conf

Sept. 3, 2018

BTS tops Billboard 200 again with ‘Love Yourself: Answer’

Breaking record after record, K-pop phenomenon BTS has topped the Billboard 200 for the second time with its latest album, “Love Yourself: Answer.” The repackaged album, the final part of the band’s multiyear “Love Yourself” trilogy, took the top spot for the week ending Aug. 30 with the equivalent of 185,000 albums sold, according to Billboard. Of that number, 141,000 consisted of traditional album sales. (Big Hit Entertainment)The band’s previous album, “Love Yourself: Tear,” made history by r

Sept. 3, 2018

Humming Urban Stereo to return with new album on Sept. 13

Popular one-man band Humming Urban Stereo is making a much-anticipated comeback after a six-year hiatus with fifth album “V” on Sept. 13, according to the band’s agency Waltz Sofa. (Waltz Sofa)Electro-pop band Humming Urban Stereo made its debut in 2004 with the album “Short Cake.” In addition to its four prior albums, the group’s music has also appeared on various soundtracks and TV commercials. Humming Urban Stereo has been labeled among Korea’s “original” indie bands, coming years before more

Aug. 31, 2018

BTS wins grand prize at 2018 Soribada Best K-Music Awards

Continuing its winning streak, K-pop king BTS scooped up the grand prize at the 2018 Soribada Best K-Music Awards. At the annual event, held Thursday at the Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Jamsil, Seoul, the pop idols received the grand prize along with the main prize and the world social artist award. Actor Han Seok-jun and singer Son Dam-bi hosted the awards, now in their second year, for the popular music-streaming company.  (SBS)Winners were chosen on the basis of sales volume, both for albums a

Aug. 31, 2018

Infinite’s Woohyun releasing another solo album

At midnight Friday, Woohyun of Infinite posted a video on his official social media channels providing a preview of his second EP, “Second Write..” The video featured highlights of all seven tracks from the short album, including the title track, “If It’s Okay With You.” Fans were also excited to see various photos of Woohyun in the video, including a few new ones. (Woollim Entertainment)The EP consists entirely of tracks composed by Woohyun, showcasing his skills as a singer-songwriter. All the

Aug. 31, 2018

BTS' new album sells over 860,000 copies in first week

K-pop boy band BTS' new album "Love Yourself: Answer" sold more than 860,000 copies in the first week since its release, data showed Friday.Sales of the album, released on Aug. 24, came to 868,052 copies for the first week, according to the album sales tracker Hanteo Chart.It was less than the sales performance recorded by BTS' preceding album "Love Yourself: Tear," which sold more than 1 million copies in the first week. (Big Hit Entertainment)Still, it marks solid sales for the album, which co

Aug. 31, 2018

Success of TWICE, abolition of one-man control, propel JYP’s ascent to No.1 entertainment firm

JYP Entertainment, the home for top-rung girl band TWICE, beat its long-time rival SM Entertainment to emerge as the biggest entertainment firm by market capitalization for the first time in nearly two decades this week.　Following steady growth since early this year, shares of JYP finished at 31,300 won (US$28.20) on the tech-intensive KOSDAQ bourse on Thursday, up 2.29 percent from a day earlier.　The hike pushed up JYP’s market capitalization to 1.09 trillion won, surpassing SM‘s market capital

Aug. 30, 2018

BTS fastest in K-pop to 100m views with ‘Idol’

K-pop sensation BTS now holds yet another record after its “Idol” video hit 100 million views in less than five days.The video for the lead track off the new album “Love Yourself: Answer” had been watched more than 100 million times as of 5:20 p.m. Wednesday, the septet’s agency Big Hit Entertainment said.The record comes on the heels of the video’s “most watched in first 24 hours” title, which saw the group unseat American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift last week.(BTS' YouTube channel)“Idol” su

Aug. 30, 2018