Roy Kim returns to investigations, tarnished name

K-pop singer Roy Kim returned to Korea on Tuesday morning to be investigated on suspicions he distributed lewd photos.The Korean singer arrived at Incheon Airport at around 4:30 a.m., and was expected to be questioned by police. Kim’s agency told local media that he is currently seeking an attorney.The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency recently announced that Kim had uploaded lewd photos to a mobile messenger chat room that also included fellow musicians Seungri, formerly of Big Bang, Jung Joon-y

April 9, 2019

‘School of Rock’ musical to rock Korea in June

The hit musical “School of Rock” will be performed in Korea in its original language for the first time in June, as part of the first leg of the show’s international tour.Based on the 2003 comedy music film of the same name starring Jack Black, the musical features the original score from Andrew Lloyd Webber and follows out-of-work musician Dewey Finn on his quest to turn students of a prestigious school into rock musicians. It was first performed in 2015, with its original West End production w

April 8, 2019

IZ*ONE sets record as best-selling girl group, nudging TWICE

IZ*ONE, a project girl group formed through the idol competition show series "Produce," sold more than 130,000 copies of its latest album titled "HEART*IZ" in the first week of its sales, breaking a previous record set by TWICE."IZ*ONE's 'HEART*IZ' sold 132,109 copies during the April 1-7 period. ... It is a number higher than that set by TWICE, who had been the No. 1 girl group in album sales in the first week (of the album's release)," the management agency Off the Record Entertainment said, q

April 8, 2019

BTS releases teaser video of new album's main track featuring Halsey

K-pop superstars BTS released Monday a teaser video of "Boy with Luv," the main track of the band's upcoming album "Map of the Soul: Persona," featuring young American singer and songwriter Halsey. The 46-second video, uploaded on BTS' official homepage and SNS accounts at the start of Monday, begins with an image of Halsey in a ticket box. She hastily closes the box office and leaves the movie theater before briefly encountering BTS in front of the theater.  (Big Hit Entertainment)The scene is

April 8, 2019

BTS to wrap up world tour in Thailand

Global K-pop sensation BTS will wrap up its monthslong world tour in Thailand later Sunday, its management agency said, having drawn a combined 250,000 fans in four countries in Asia alone.Big Hit Entertainment said the boy band's fourth leg of the "Love Yourself" world tour will conclude at Rajamangala National Stadium in Bangkok on Sunday. BTS performed to a sellout crowd at the same venue Saturday.(Yonhap)BTS began its world tour in Seoul last August, in promotion of its "Love Yourself" album

April 7, 2019

Korean stars lend helping hand to fire victims

With the nation’s eastern region suffering from one of the worst blazes in recent years, Korean celebrities have stepped up to send relief funds to the people of Gangwon Province. “Gangnam Style” artist Psy has reportedly donated 100 million won ($87,873) to the Hope Bridge-Korea Disaster Relief Association, a private relief organization, which has been collecting relief funds for victims of the fire.  IU (Yonhap)Singer IU also reportedly donated 100 million won through ChildFund Korea, specific

April 7, 2019

Twice wraps up dome tour in Japan, amassing 220,000 fans

Twice on Saturday wrapped up its three-week tour of domed arenas in Japan, which had attracted 220,000 fans. It was the first K-pop girl group to hold such a tour in the country.The nine-piece girl group held a concert in Nagoya Dome, as part of the last leg of the “Twice Dome Tour 2019 #Dream Day” that spanned three cities and five concerts. It was packed with fans who sent messages of support to the singers.Fans had also received a treat as officials at the band’s agency JYP Entertainment had

April 7, 2019

NTC 127 teams up with Universal Music Group to enter US market

Boy band NTC 127 will expand into the US pop market in cooperation with a music label under the entertainment giant Universal Music Group, the band's local management agency said Friday.SM Entertainment said it signed an agreement with Capitol Music Group on Thursday (US time) on the promotion of NCT 127's music content. CMG's sub-label Caroline Distribution will be in charge of distributing NCT 127's music in the global market. (SM Entertainment)CMG is a prominent music label that has such high

April 5, 2019

BTS nominated for 2019 Billboard music award

K-pop superstars BTS was nominated in the Top Duo/Group category for the upcoming 2019 Billboard Music Awards set for May, as well as in the Top Social Artist category, which the septet has conquered for the last two years, according to Billboard on Friday.Billboard released the lineup for nominees in the 56 award categories for the event to be held at the MGM Garden Arena in Las Vegas on May 1, in a post uploaded Thursday (US time). 2019 Billboard music award : 2019 NomineesBTS will compete wit

April 5, 2019

Bolbbalgan4 to debut in Japan in June with 'Galaxy'

The K-pop female indie duo Bolbbalgan, also known as BOL4, will debut in Japan in June with a Japanese translated version of their 2016 hit song "Galaxy," their management agency Shofar Music said Thursday."Having signed with the famous Japanese music production firm King Records, Bolbbalgan4 will officially debut in Japan on June 5," according to the agency. (Yonhap)Their Japanese debut music will be a Japanese version of "Galaxy," a 2016 song that helped consolidate the music duo's solid prese

April 4, 2019

Super Junior's subunit D&E to drop new album this month

Super Junior-D&E, a two-men subunit of K-pop boy band Super Junior, will drop their third EP later this month, the band's management agency Label SJ said Tuesday.The duo of two Super Junior members -- Donghae and Eunhyuk -- will release "DANGER" on April 15, returning to the K-pop scene following their previous EP "Bout You" in August last year, according to the agency affiliated with SM Entertainment. Super Junior-D&E (SJ)Black and white teaser images for the duo's upcoming album, released Tues

April 2, 2019

EXO Chen releases mellow ballads on 1st solo album

Chen, the main vocalist of popular K-pop boy band EXO, released his first solo EP on Monday, presenting six mellow ballads to the spring K-pop scene.The 26-year-old, whose real name is Kim Jong-dae, has recorded a number of solos, including on the original soundtracks for various TV series, such as “Everytime” for mega hit 2016 series “Descendants of the Sun,” but it’s the first time he is releasing a solo album.  (Yonhap)The new album, titled “April, and a Flower,” brings to the fore Chen’s exp

April 1, 2019

Spring arrives in Tongyeong with classical music

TONGYEONG, South Gyeongsang Province -- With cherry blossoms in full bloom, the Tongyeong International Music Festival 2019 began Friday.The annual 10-day festival, founded in 2002, takes place at the city of Tongyeong, a southern coastal city and UNESCO City of Music.This year’s edition pays respect to two historical figures of music. One is, as is typically the case, late composer Yun I-sang, as the festival has its roots in a music festival dedicated to Yun. Tongyeong was the famed composer’s

March 31, 2019

[Herald Review] ‘Where do I come from? Where am I going?’

TONGYEONG, South Gyeongsang Province -- Refugees were on composer Toshio Hosokawa’s mind when he wrote “The Maiden From the Sea” in 2017. At the time, images of refugees’ suffering and deaths had shocked and distressed the world. “The Maiden From the Sea” had its Asian premiere at the Tongyeong International Music Festival on Friday and Saturday.  Soprano Sarah Wegener (left) and Noh singer-dancer Ryoko Aoki (Tongyeong International Music Foundation)The Black Box theater of the Tongyeong Music H

March 31, 2019

ASAP Rocky to hit Seoul for concert Friday

ASAP Rocky is stopping by Seoul on Friday as part of his 2019 “Injured Generation” world tour.The American rapper kicked off the trek in January in promotion of his third studio album, “Testing,” which was released in May last year.  ASAP Rocky (ASAP Rocky`s official Facebook page)In his Friday show to be held at Jamsil Arena at 8 p.m., Rocky will showcase live performances of tracks from his latest album that debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and lists collaborations with Frank Ocean, Moby,

March 31, 2019

YG, major broadcasters burning bridges with scandal-ridden pop stars

The management agency of boy band BIGBANG ended sales of merchandise related to the disgraced former band member Seungri, while major broadcasters stopped servicing VOD contents featuring the singer and another scandal-ridden artist, Jung Joon-young, in the aftermath of the broadening sex and corruption scandal centering on the two K-pop stars.The accelerating efforts to remove any signs of the two troubled stars come as the police continue their investigation into allegations that Seungri procu

March 29, 2019

[Weekender] Fan translators break through K-pop’s language barrier

K-pop speaks Korean -- for the most part -- but not all its fans.In addition to K-pop’s nonverbal appeal, the language barrier is being broken down by a network of fans who translate Korean content into other languages in real-time. BTS performs at MBC Plus x Genie Music Awards 2018 (Park Hyun-koo, The Korea Herald)Jessica Cuadros Marquez, who manages the BTS fan organization of Peru, said Spanish-speaking fans depend on reliable fan accounts that have a track record of producing quality Spanish

March 28, 2019

National Gugak Center seeks to balance tradition, change

Though Korea’s traditional music, gugak, is often neglected as pop music and Western classical music draw more attention, the National Gugak Center hopes to turn things around this year with fresh, innovative performances.The center, designed to preserve, support and promote gugak, operates four separate units: the Court Music Orchestra, the Folk Music Group, the Dance Theater and the Contemporary Gugak Orchestra.  (National Gugak Center) National Gugak Center (National Gugak Center)“Last year’s

March 28, 2019

Korea National Opera to cast spell with ‘Magic Flute’

The Korea National Opera begins its 2019 season with performances of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” at the Seoul Arts Center from Thursday to Sunday.The German opera tells the love story of Prince Tamino and Princess Pamina, the daughter of the Queen of the Night. After Pamina is kidnapped by the high priest Sarastro, the Night Queen persuades Tamino to rescue his daughter and gifts him with the magic flute.  Singers perform during a rehearsal of “The Magic Flute” on Tuesday at the Seoul Arts Center

March 27, 2019

Francophone Theater Festival kicks off in Seoul

The five-day Francophone Festival, organized by the Korean International Theatre & Arts Company, kicked off its inaugural edition in Seoul on Wednesday. “The festival’s first edition in Seoul hopes to celebrate the cultural diversity that spans the French-speaking countries. It also hopes to promote the French language and also strengthen ties between the two nations, France and Korea,” said Patricia Vilfeu from KITAC during a press conference Tuesday in Seoul. A scene from Cueilleurs de Brume’s

March 27, 2019