Hanwha Classic 2017 invites baroque master William Christie

Having hosted French conductor Marc Minkowski and the Musicians of the Louvre orchestra last year, this year’s Hanwha Classic 2017 annual concert series will once again highlight the French baroque era. According to Hanwha Group on Wednesday, the upcoming classical music concert series will feature American-born French conductor and harpsichordist William Christie and his Les Arts Florissants orchestral ensemble.  France’s Les Arts Florissants orchestral ensemble (Courtesy of Hanwha Group)The tw

April 27, 2017

Minzy ranks No. 2 on Billboard world chart

Minzy’s first EP took the second spot on Billboard’s world albums chart as of Wednesday, marking the former 2NE1 member’s successful transition into a solo artist.Released April 17, “Minzy Work 01 Uno” made an immediate impact on local and international charts. It took the top spot on the iTunes K-pop top album charts upon its release in several countries, including the US, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.Minzy (Music Works)Minzy, 23, participated in writing the lyrics for all six songs in the

April 26, 2017

Zico, BewhY to perform at ‘Seoul Sessions Live Music Event’

Korean rappers Zico and BewhY will headline the “Seoul Sessions Live Music Event 2017,” along with American rapper Wiz Khalifa.The upcoming music event will mark American rapper Wiz Khalifa’s first music performance in Korea. He has enjoyed high international fame with hit songs such as “Black and Yellow,” “Work Hard, Play Hard” and “Young, Wild & Free.”The “Seoul Sessions Live Music Event 2017” poster showing Zico (left) and BewhY as headliners. (Mixmag Korea)Mixmag Korea, which represents the

April 26, 2017

G-Dragon confirms global tour

 G-Dragon is set to kick off a world tour of 19 cities across the globe in June, his agency YG Entertainment said Tuesday. A promotional image for G-Dragon’s upcoming world tour. (YG Entertainment)The K-pop icon will hold “G-Dragon 2017 Concert: Act III, M.O.T.T.E” in World Cup Stadium in Sangam-dong, Seoul on June 10, which will herald the beginning of the tour named “Act III, M.O.T.T.E.” He will perform across four continents in places that will include New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Toronto,

April 25, 2017

‘Art circus’ La Verita to be performed in Seoul this weekend

The circus is in town. But instead of lions jumping through flames and brightly-dressed clowns, “La Verita” will seek to portray the spirit and life of surreal artist Salvador Dali through a mixture of music, skits and acrobatics.Daniele Finzi Pasca, who wrote and directed La Verita, said the “art circus” seeks to portray a surreal depiction of Dali’s life through circus.La Verita was inspired by “Tristan Fou (Mad Tristan),” painted by Dali in 1944 and depicting the legend of Tristan and Isolde.

April 25, 2017

MBLAQ’s Seungho steps into acting career

Seungho of MBLAQ sealed a deal with Will Entertainment to start his acting career. Seungho of MBLAQ (Herald DB)The agency said Tuesday that it would fully support Seungho’s plan to build his career as an actor, sending an encouraging message about his new step. “Seungho has always wanted to become an actor. Please extend your support to his passion and commitment toward acting,” said an agency official. The singer-turned-actor debuted as MBLAQ in 2009. Aside from group activities, he starred in

April 25, 2017

[Next Wave] Punchnello seeks to shape image as artist

The Korea Herald is introducing Korean singers, musicians and actors poised to join the next wave of top stars in a twice monthly series. - Ed.Punchnello spent a busy year in 2016 after first making headlines in March with his decision to join HIGHGRND, the independent label run by Tablo of Epik High, and releasing his debut deluxe single “Lime” in September.This year, Punchnello hopes to show a different side of himself with the recent announcement of his participation in Mnet&rsquo

April 24, 2017

VIXX to embark on Southeast Asian tour

VIXX is set to embark on a tour of Southeast Asian countries in July, according to the group’s agency Jellyfish Entertainment.  VIXX (Jellyfish Entertainment)The agency said Monday “VIXX Fan Meeting Tour in Se-Asia” will take place in Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta and Bangkok, among other cities. The tour kicks off July 27. “MyMusicTaste,” a Seoul-based crowdsourcing platform for music and live events, organized the event, making it meaningful, the agency added. The six-member group is also planning for

April 24, 2017

BTS wins 9th Shorty Awards

BTS has been recognized as the most influential musician on social media by the ninth Shorty Awards.  BTS delivers an award acceptance speech in a YouTube video posted Sunday after winning the ninth Shorty Awards. (Screen capture from BangtanTV)The seven-member group received an award in the music category. A ceremony was held in New York on Sunday. The award recognizes an individual or a group for their real-time presence on social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, YouTube an

April 24, 2017

Yeeun, Jung Jin-wun reportedly end their 3-year relationship

Yeeun from the K-pop girl group Wonder Girls and Jeong Jin-woon from boy group 2AM are said to have ended their relationship, industry sources said Monday. (Yonhap)They have been together since early 2014 but decided to go their separate ways. The reason for the breakup is not known, except that a source told Yonhap News Agency that they naturally drifted apart. The two naturally became close because they used to belong to the same entertainment firm JYP. Their relationship was first reported in

April 24, 2017

BoA to drop new single next week

Pop singer BoA will release her new song "Spring Rain" next week, her management agency said Monday. (Yonhap)S.M. Entertainment said that "Spring Rain" will be out on Friday, next week, as the fifth runner of the season 2 of the agency's weekly digital music release project "Station."Composed by Kenzie, who have collaborated with the singer on such songs as "My Name," "Garden in the Air" and "Moto," the R&B number features sensual lyrics about extreme emotions of love and hatred.BoA is scheduled

April 24, 2017

Jaden Smith looks to debut as K-pop artist

American actor and rapper Jaden Smith, son of Will Smith, is looking to a fresh career as a K-pop singer. “I will be dropping a K pop single in the next 4 months,” Jaden tweeted to his 6.28 million followers on April 21. Jaden Smith (Jaden Smith‘s Twitter)The Hollywood star’s son showed his eagerness to be a K-pop star, posting a series of tweets in December which said, “I’m serious I actually wanna be a K pop star” and “I just wanna be a K pop star.” In 2013, the Smiths visited Korea to promote

April 24, 2017

Sechskies to drop 20th anniversary album

K-pop group Sechskies will be releasing an album marking the 20th anniversary of its debut Friday, the group’s agency YG Entertainment announced Saturday. “Sad Song,” one of the two main tracks of the album, was produced by rapper Tablo and YG’s producing team Future Bounce. Contrary to its name, “Sad Song” is an upbeat, rhythmical tune about not wanting to listen to any more sad songs, YG said.  A promotional image for Sechskies’ upcoming release “Sad Song” (YG Entertainment)Sechskies is curren

April 23, 2017

Psy to return in May

Global K-pop star Psy will release a new full-length album in May, according to his agency on Friday. K-pop singer Psy (YG Entertainment)“Psy has been preparing for the new album for a year. The exact date of release has not yet been confirmed but he is slated to drop the album sometime in May,” YG Entertainment said. The artist also finished filming two music videos for the songs, which will be featured in the upcoming album, according to the agency. This will mark his return to the spotlight a

April 21, 2017

CNBLUE to embark on Asia tour in July

K-pop boy band CNBLUE will start its Asia tour concert “2017 CNBLUE Live Between Us” with an event in Singapore on July 1, its agency said on Friday.“CNBLUE has decided to launch the tour to commemorate the group’s latest EP titled ‘7℃N,’ which was released in March,” FNC Entertainment said. K-pop boy band CNBLUE’s ‘2017 CNBLUE Live Between Us‘ tour poster (FNC Entertainment)After the first concert, the group will visit Manila on July 8. CNBLUE will then hold concerts in Jakarta on July 15, Bang

April 21, 2017

Lovelyz to release album on May 2

Lovelyz on May 2 will drop a repackaged version of its second studio album on May 2, according to the group's agency.Woolim Entertainment on Friday uploaded a 30-second “prologue film” promoting the upcoming repackaged album on its official YouTube channel. The repackaged album will be a follow-up to “R U Ready?” and will include a few new songs added to the original track list.Blurry images of the band were shown in the brief clip.It would mark an unconventionally quick return for Lovelyz, as t

April 21, 2017

Mamamoo to return in June

Mamamoo is set to return in June, according to the group’s agency RBW Entertainment. Mamamoo (Yonhap)The agency said Thursday the group is currently working on a new album, while the exact date for the comeback is yet to be revealed. The four-member group will celebrate its third anniversary in June. The group debuted on June 19, 2014, with the mini album “Hello.”It released its fourth mini album “Memory” with the lead track “Decalcomanie” last November, which went on to sweep several local musi

April 20, 2017

IU teases fans with new ‘Palette’ clip

A day before the release of her anticipated album “Palette,” IU on Thursday revealed a new teaser music video clip for the single of the same name from the album.The 24-second video of “Palette” was posted via social media and the YouTube channel of IU’s agency Fave Entertainment. A screenshot from the teaser image for IU’s upcoming single “Palette” (Fave Entertainment)The video features the singer posing with various clothing and hairstyles to words like “I’m 25,” showing off her charms as one

April 20, 2017

EXID’s ‘Eclipse’ ranks fourth on Billboard chart

K-pop girl group EXID has secured the No. 4 spot on Billboard’s World Albums chart with its third EP “Eclipse” for the week of April 29.On Thursday, the group broke its own record, setting its highest ranking and making its first top five entry. K-pop group EXID (Banana Culture Entertainment)“EXID is the only Korean artist to be listed in the upper ranks of the Billboard’s chart,” Banana Culture Entertainment said. The five-member group first featured on the chart in 2015 with its second EP “Ah

April 20, 2017

A week of Beethoven

Paris-based Korean pianist Paik Kun-woo is back performing all 32 Beethoven piano sonatas.This is not the first time Paik is playing the complete Beethoven piano sonata cycle -- he played the 32 pieces in December 2007 at Seoul Arts Center in eight concerts over a period of seven days. The concerts marked the completion of the three-year project to record the complete Beethoven piano sonatas under the Decca label.Ten years later, Paik is taking Beethoven sonatas on a nationwide tour, planning to

April 19, 2017