Ministry scraps age limit on Psy’s hit song, others

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on Wednesday withdrew an age restriction on 250 songs including Korean rapper-singer Psy’s previous hit “Right Now.”In 2010, the ministry imposed an R-rating for the song saying it is “inappropriate and harmful for teenagers” for its lyrics describing drinking and containing vulgar language.A review committee under the ministry on Wednesday decided to lift the age limit on the song because the lyrics do not directly suggest for the listener to drink or

Oct. 10, 2012

TVXQ returning to stage with new album

It has been nearly two years since K-pop duo TVXQ released their last album, and now they are set to make a comeback performance with the release of their sixth record “Catch Me.”The boys will be performing their title track “Catch Me” and “I Don’t Know” on KBS’ “Music Bank” on Friday, MBC’s “Music Core” on Saturday, and SBS’ “Inkigayo” on Sunday, according to their agency. The Transformers-like dance moves of their latest music video caught the attention of fans, with nicknames such as the “hul

Oct. 4, 2012

‘Gangnam Style’ continues global sweep with U.K. No. 1

The most watched YouTube video of the year, a new Guinness world record holder for the most “liked” video and now the first Korean in history to ever top the British music singles chart; Psy’s quest for world music domination shows no signs of slowing down. As of Sunday, “Gangnam Style” is officially the number one song on the U.K. Singles Top 100 chart, becoming the first Korean song to achieve the feat. According to an article on the chart’s website, Psy revealed his appreciation to his U.K. f

Oct. 2, 2012

'Gangnam Style' conquers British music chart

South Korean rapper Psy performs his massive K-pop hit "Gangnam Style" live on NBC's "Today" show, Friday, Sept. 14, 2012, in New York. (AP-Yonhap News)K-pop viral phenomenon Psy’s hit “Gangnam Style” jumped to No.1 in the formal British music chart on Sunday (local time).It is the first time that a Korean singer conquers the Official Singles Chart.“He’s done it! Gangnam Style fever has swept the

Oct. 1, 2012

Riding the ‘Korean Wave’

Korea needs strategies for sustaining and expanding cultural phenomenonOver the past few years, Korean popular culture, often abbreviated as “K-pop,” has gained immense popularity in many countries. Following the initial surge of interest in Korean television dramas and popular music, nowadays all things Korean ― from food, movies and dances to fashion and language ― are quite the rage. The cultural wave, or hallyu, is establishing itself as a global phenomenon that has already washed over East

Sept. 24, 2012

Psy heads toward number one on U.S. Billboard

Singer Psy’s “Gangnam Style” is predicted to soon top the U.S. Billboard Single Chart “HOT 100,” after the song jumped from 64th place last week to 11th on Wednesday. The 34-year-old singer became the second South Korean artist and the first South Korean male artist to make the “HOT 100” chart after Wonder Girls’ “Nobody” ranked 76th in 2009. He is also the first singer to reach the chart with a song in the Korean language. Billboard said 188,000 people downloaded “Gangnam Style” from its websit

Sept. 21, 2012

SM C&C to merge with Jang Dong-gun’s agency

SM C&C, an affiliate of S.M. Entertainment, said Thurday that it had finalized its merger with AM Entertainment, a management agency for top-class celebrities including Jang Dong-gun, Kim Ha-neul and Han Ji-min.“SM C&C will begin expanding its business not only in Korea, but throughout Asia after the merger with AM Entertainment,” said Kim Young-min CEO of SM C&C.The company recently began business by producing the drama “To the Beautiful You,” now airing on SBS.It also signed contracts with oth

Sept. 20, 2012

Psy fever in U.S.

Korean rapper-singer Psy is enjoying great popularity in the U.S., taking the No. 1 spot on the U.S. iTunes Chart with “Gangnam Style” on Saturday and making appearances at NBC’s “Today Show” and “Saturday Night Live.” “It’s surprising to see a Korean artist reach No. 1 on the iTunes chart, which accounts for about 80 percent of the U.S. online music charts,” his agency YG Entertainment said. “Gangnam Style” entered at No. 52 on iTunes on Aug. 27, and then broke the top 10 on Thursday. Psy debut

Sept. 16, 2012

Psy’s ‘Gangnam Style’ breaks into U.S. iTunes top 10

Psy’s viral hit “Gangnam Style” made it into the U.S. iTunes top 10 chart, just about a week after the singer announced his contract deal with major American record label Island Def Jam Recordings.“It really is a big triumph that a Korean song has broken into the iTunes top 10 chart, which controls 80 percent of the online music market share in the U.S.,” said Psy’s local agency YG Entertainment.“It’s going to be difficult for any Korean artist to break Psy’s record (on iTunes’ chart).”The 34-ye

Sept. 13, 2012

‘Gangnam Style’ tops 90 million views on YouTube

YG Entertainment’s Psy set another record with his hit-single “Gangnam Style,” becoming the first Korean singer to break the 90-million mark in YouTube views on Monday.The viral song’s online music video had attracted 92.5 million views as of 11 a.m. on Monday. It became the most-viewed music video in the history of Korea’s music industry surpassing Girls’ Generation’s “Gee,” which currently has a viewer count of 83 million. However, that figure includes all views in the three years since its re

Sept. 3, 2012

G-Dragon turns producer for YG’s new girl group

G-Dragon, the leader, singer, rapper and singer-songwriter of boy band Big Bang, is the official producer for YG Entertainment’s new girl group, according to local reports. “G-Dragon was chosen as the producer for his management agency’s new girl group. It is his first time for him to produce songs other than for himself or his team,” said a media industry insider in an interview with a local daily. As a leader of a group and a solo artist, the 24-year-old singer has been producing songs in genr

Sept. 3, 2012

Girl’s Generation to attend Manila K-pop concert

One of the most popular girl groups in Asia, Girls’ Generation, will perform at the “2013 K-Pop Fantasy Concert” in the Philippines’ capital of Manila. “Girl’s Generations’ attendance at the concert scheduled for Jan. 19, 2013, has been finalized and confirmed,” DM school, a co-organizer of the concert, said on Monday. Several famous K-pop singers, including ones from S.M. Entertainment, are expected to perform at the concert jointly organized by KMH and dance academy DM School. (lhj137@heraldco

Aug. 29, 2012

K-pop boom makes entertainment magnates stock millionaires

The stock values of two major entertainment agency owners in Korea have exceeded 200 billion won ($176 million) on the back of growing popularity of K-pop around the world. According to chaebul.com, a website following South Korea’s conglomerates, stakes held by S.M. Entertainment’s Lee Soo-man came in at 242 billion won; YG Entertainment’s Yang Hyun-seok’s shares stood at 223.1 billion won at closing on Aug. 24.According to the website, foreign shares in S.M. Entertainment rose from 8.18 percen

Aug. 27, 2012

Lee Min-ho to get wax figure in Shanghai

Actor Lee Min-ho’s wax figure will be exhibited at Madame Tussauds museum in Shanghai, China, his management agency said on Friday. Staff of Madame Tassauds from England and China visited Korea and measured Lee’s body size and discussed his figure’s outfit design as well as its pose. Lee’s wax figure will be displayed at Madame Tussauds Shanghai in April 2013. Lee is currently playing the role of Choi Young in SBS drama “Faith.”Madame Tussauds is the world’s largest and oldest wax figure museum

Aug. 26, 2012

Psy to visit U.S. again in September

Singer Psy, who returned to Seoul on Saturday from his trip to the U.S. where he met American pop star Justin Beiber’s manager Scooter Braun, is to make another visit to the foreign country next month. “Nothing has been set in stone,” the singer said about his career opportunities in the U.S., upon his arrival at Incheon International Airport on Saturday. “I think there will be a lot of fun events in future.”Psy, whose title track of his latest album “Gangnam Style” has received sensational revi

Aug. 26, 2012

Paris Hilton to star in singer Kim’s music video

Paris Hilton will appear in Korean singer Kim Jang-hoon’s upcoming music video. Kim’s agency announced that the infamous Hollywood socialite will appear on the music video of the title song of Kim’s 10th album, which will be released on Oct. 4. “Kim was considering other Hollywood stars such as Jessica Alba and Scarlett Johansson along with Hilton, but decided to cast Hilton when the polls in Korea showed that Hilton was the most widely recognized Hollywood celebrity among Koreans,” said the age

Aug. 22, 2012

Psy’s music video tops U.S. iTunes chart

The free online music video for “Gangnam Style,” a new hit song by South Korean rapper Psy, topped the United States’ iTunes music video chart on Tuesday.It marks the first time that a South Korean singer has earned the top spot on the chart.According to the rankings, Psy ranked first for the day, beating out Justin Bieber and Katy Perry. Last week, the Korean artist peaked at second place.Psy, whose real name is Park Jae-sang, is not well known outside his country but rose to stardom for the “G

Aug. 22, 2012