[Album Review] Momoland’s new album attempts to replicate past glory

Momoland“Fun to The World”(Loen Entertainment) Maybe its previous banger “Bboom Bboom” was too powerful, or our expectations were too high. While Momoland’s attempt to build on its newfound popularity with a song that echoes its past hit seems pretty reasonable, considering the rookie’s need to solidify its musical concept, the act’s new single “Baam” is an outright replication of “Bboom Bboom.” Specifically, the lead track off its “Fun to The World” EP feels like an immature version of “Bboom B

June 27, 2018

BTS stays on main Billboard charts for fifth consecutive week

K-pop boy band BTS stayed on Billboard's main albums and singles charts for the fifth straight week, according to the charts updated by the US music magazine on Tuesday."Love Yourself: Tear," the third full-length album by BTS, charted 27th on the Billboard 200 albums chart for the week of June 30, down seven notches from 20th the previous week. K-pop boy group BTS (AFP-Yonhap)The album's main track, "Fake Love," ranked 65th on the Hot 100 singles chart, up six spots from a week ago.BTS received

June 27, 2018

Suzy’s first Asian fan meeting tour to wrap up in July

Actress-singer Suzy’s first fan meeting tour in Asia will come to an end in Seoul next month.The last leg of her very first fan meeting event, dubbed “WITH,” will take place at 7 p.m. on July 7 after stops in cities including Taipei, Hong Kong and Bangkok, her agency JYP Entertainment said Tuesday.In Bangkok, the former member of now disbanded girl group Miss A performed solo numbers including “Holiday” and “Sober.” She wowed Thai fans with a rendition of the Thai song “Tur Mai Koey Roo,” delive

June 26, 2018

Momoland ‘thankful’ to have its name cleared on chart-rigging scandal

The past five months have been a roller coaster ride for Momoland and its fans, between the massive success of its hit “Bboom Bboom” and the wrongful accusation that the act rigged album sales. (Yonhap)What did the nine-piece group feel after the government probe cleared its name?“Thankfully we’ve been able to break free from such accusations,” said Yeonwoo, during the showcase for its new EP “Fun to the World” in Seoul on Tuesday. “Rather than it (the scandal) hurting us, we felt that what we c

June 26, 2018

[Trending] G-Dragon fans slam media outlet over ‘special treatment’ coverage

G-Dragon’s fans on Tuesday mounted an online attack on a local media outlet for its report on the K-pop star’s alleged special treatment at a military hospital. G-Dragon, the leader of the K-pop boy band Big Bang, was at the center of a deepening dispute following an online petition filed against the local media outlet over its article about the singer receiving allegedly preferential treatment while serving in the military. Over 34,000 tweets with the hashtag “#Dispatch_Apologize” was posted al

June 26, 2018

Black Pink sets record in topping 100m views

Black Pink set another record as a K-pop girl group, topping 100 million views for a music video 10 days after its release.The music video for “Ddu-du Ddu-du,” the lead track on the group’s latest EP, set the record at around 11:45 p.m. Monday. The EP, “Square Up,” was released on June 15, 6 p.m.No other South Korean girl group has garnered 100 million views within 10 days of a release. (YG Entertainment)With this new record, every music video released by Black Pink now has more than 100 million

June 26, 2018

Black Pink becomes highest charting K-pop girl act on Billboard’s Hot 100

Black Pink rewrote history as the highest charting K-pop girl group ever on Billboard 100 chart, as its latest single “DDU-DU DDU-DU” peaked at No. 55 on the competitive ranking dated June 30. According to Billboard, the act’s successive single from its “Square Up“ EP arrives with 12.4 million US streams and 7,000 downloads sold in the tracking week ending June 21, according to Nielsen Music, also prompting its No. 39 entrance on the Streaming Songs tally, where Black Pink becomes the first K-po

June 26, 2018

Mamamoo confirms July release of new EP

Mamamoo announced the newest segment of its ongoing “Four Season Four Color Project” by confirming on Tuesday the release of its seventh EP next month.According to its agency RBW, the new EP based on the theme of summer will be released at 8 p.m. on July 16. It marks the first release for the act since “Yellow Flower” in March.  Mamamoo (RBW)The two albums are part of the team’s project to commemorate four seasons of the year by depicting them in its own way. Accordingly, the upcoming EP will ca

June 26, 2018

Award-winning musical 'Matilda' to premier first non-English production in Seoul

Based on a 1988 children's novel by the widely-loved British author Roald Dahl, the musical "Matilda" has toured the United Kingdom, the United States, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand since its West End premier in 2011.For its British producer, the Royal Shakespeare Company, "Matilda" is the second major musical production of works by contemporary writers, going beyond their usual repertoire of productions based on works by the literary legend of the Middle Ages. And for the first time ever,

June 25, 2018

Korean hip hop act Epik High teams up with Japanese band for new single

South Korean hip hop act Epik High has teamed up with Japanese rock band Sekai no Owari to release a new single later this week, a music label said Monday. Epik High (YG Entertainment)The collaboration single, "Sleeping Beauty," is the result of the two acts' friendship dating back to the Japanese band's Korean trip in 2016. In 2017, Epik High again met with the Japanese band during the latter's concert in South Korea, according to Sony Music.The joint single is scheduled for release on Friday,

June 25, 2018

Government probe clears Momoland of chart rigging

Momoland has been cleared of accusations that it bought thousands of its own records to rig the official sales chart after a government investigation found it to be not true. The girl group’s agency MLD Entertainment announced Monday that a probe by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has cleared the act of any wrongdoing. “We are glad that the misunderstanding is no more. We thank everyone who trusted and supported us,” MLD said. “We vow to try our best for the development of K-pop.” Mo

June 25, 2018

Ever-growing global K-pop festival KCON captivates US fans

KCON, a global K-pop festival that brings music stars to overseas fans, took place over the weekend in Newark, New Jersey.The two-day event at the Prudential Center, attended by some 53,000 fans, was divided into two parts -- K-pop concerts and outdoor convention programs.The event brought to the US popular K-pop stars, including Heize, Pentagon, Red Velvet, Super Junior, EXID, Wanna One and NCT 127, who took the stage in front of loyal fans that jam-packed the 12,000-seat venue. The convention,

June 25, 2018

G-Dragon accused of receiving preferential treatment in military hospital

G-Dragon has been accused of receiving preferential treatment while in the military.  On Monday, a local media outlet reported that the Big Bang front man, who is currently serving in the army, has been hospitalized in an Army Hospital in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, since June 19 suffering from ankle pain. The problem is, according to the report, that the room he is using is a private first-class one specifically for colonels, inaccessible even to majors and lieutenants. His room is also equipped

June 25, 2018

Yuju of GFriend to release first EP

GFriend vocalist Yuju is set to release her first solo EP on June 29, her agency said.The news was first announced Monday at midnight on GFriend’s official website via a teaser image of rain falling on a flower with Yuju’s name at the top. The song’s title and the collaboration artist have not yet been revealed.   A teaser image for Yuju‘s upcoming solo EP (Source Music)Having debuted as a member of GFriend in January 2015 with a single “Glass Bead,” Yuju is well known for her outstanding vocal

June 25, 2018

Singer Rain eyes November comeback

Singer and actor Rain is planning to drop a new album in November, his agency said Monday.If the release goes as planned, the album will be his first in three years and 10 months since his sixth full-length album titled "Rain Effect" came out in January 2014. Singer and actor Rain (Rain Company)Rain Company said the star will focus solely on recording after finishing up shooting "Uhm Bok-dong," an upcoming South Korean film based on a true life story of cyclist Uhm Bok-dong, at the end of this m

June 25, 2018

EXO selected as face of Korea

The Korea Tourism Organization is creating a promotional video and K-pop act EXO is to appear on it.According to the KTO, officials are created series of videos on the theme “Korea Asks You, Have you ever?” referring to the unique experience in Korea from a foreigner’s perspective. (Korea Tourism Organization)“EXO, a top K-pop act has performed in front of the people from all around the world at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games, has a large fan base across the world, and is an influential figur

June 24, 2018

Lotte Duty Free apologizes for cutting off Black Pink mid-song

Lotte Duty Free, South Korea’s top duty-free operator, apologized via its official Instagram account Saturday for sending girl group Black Pink off stage mid-performance at its Lotte Duty Free Family Festival. The organizer of the two-day festival, held at the Seoul Olympic Stadium Friday and Saturday, said in its post that the “performance was interrupted during BLACKPINK’s third song, ‘Forever Young’” due to safety issues. Black Pink performed at the opening of the festival on Friday.  Black P

June 24, 2018

Han Seo-hee explains her ‘encounter’ with BTS’ V at club

Han Seo-hee on Saturday explained in a social media post how she allegedly came to meet BTS’ V at a club. Han had come under heavy fire after she let slip that she met V at a club when she was partying at the age of 19. Both Han and V were born in 1995. Her remark which suggested that V got into a club underage enraged the BTS fan club ARMY. “I didn’t know him. I had a table with my friend, and he just came. Kim Ki-bum brought him. I didn’t even know who he was. ARMY, please don’t yap at me. I d

June 24, 2018

Jo Jung-suk, Gummy to tie the knot this fall

Celebrity couple Jo Jung-suk and Gummy will be tying the knot this fall.  Jo announced the happy news on his fan site, writing, “Maybe I’m standing at a new starting line of my life or at a crossroads where I can grow up as an actor, and I feel excited and somehow nervous, as I’ll be walking that road with someone else.” (Culture Depot, C-Jes Entertainment)“While the exact date hasn’t been set yet, the reason I couldn’t tell you earlier, I’m going to get married this year. I decided to marry her

June 22, 2018

Twice to drop first Japanese full-length album in September

Twice is set to drop its first Japanese full-length album in September, its agency said.According to JYP Entertainment on Friday, the nine-piece K-pop girl group will release “BDZ” on Sept. 12. With “BDZ” standing for bulldozer, the album produced by the agency’s head producer Park Jin-young embodies the band’s determination to move forward. Twice (JYP Entertainment)　It will include five new songs and five of Twice’s previous Japanese singles such as “One More Time,” “Candy Pop,” “Wake Me Up,”

June 22, 2018