[Today’s K-pop] BTS collab hits Billboard’s Hot 100 at No. 10

BTS’ collaboration with Snoop Dogg and Benny Blanco debuted at No. 10 on Billboard’s Hot 100, according to the tally dated Aug. 20. 　 The single “Bad Decisions” featuring Jin, Jimin, V and Jungkook of BTS will be the first track from the Brazilian producer’s upcoming third album, due out later this year. 　 Last month, the septet shared a teaser clip of Blanco calling and asking for a spot via a video call. 　 “Look, I know we haven’t known each other

K-popAug. 16, 2022

Blackpink to perform ‘Pink Venom’ at 2022 MTV VMAs

Blackpink is set to make its US award show debut at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards this month. The K-pop quartet has been named among the lineup of performers of the VMAs this year, the band’s agency YG Entertainment said Tuesday. “Blackpink is preparing for a special stage to light up the ceremony,” YG said in a statement. “All the members and the staff of the company are doing their best to present a meaningful moment for the global fans.” The MTV VMAs -- one

K-popAug. 16, 2022

[Herald Review] Lee Jun-ho presents romantic summer night at ‘Before Midnight’

From when the blue sky turned rosy pink then into an inky black, singer and actor Lee Jun-ho, who is also from the K-pop boy group 2PM, presented a romantic summer night to the audience at his fan concert titled, “Before Midnight.” The Sunday concert, which was the last day of the singer-actor’s three-day show held at the SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium at Seoul’s Olympic Park, attracted nearly 5,000 fans to the venue. Since it was a concert and fan meeting combined, Lee p

K-popAug. 15, 2022

K-pop invasion: From a local trend to a global phenomenon, and beyond

In 2012, K-pop took a leap forward in the global music industry. In the summer, Psy set several unprecedented records on music charts and gained international stardom with his megahit “Gangnam Style.” Later on, the word “K-pop” was listed on the Oxford English Dictionary’s vocabulary list as “Korean pop music.” A decade has passed, and K-pop is no longer considered just a regional music genre that temporarily caught the eyes of a global audience. It ha

K-popAug. 14, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Astro’s Cha Eunwoo to host 1st solo fan meet event in Seoul

    Cha Eunwoo of Astro will greet fans on his own for the first time in Seoul on Sept. 3, according to agency Fantagio on Friday. 　 It will be the finale of his solo fan meet tour “Starry Caravan” that started in Indonesia last month. The meet and greet event also were held in Thailand and Philippines. 　 Cha debuted in 2016 as a member of Astro and branched into acting in 2017 with drama “Hit The Top.” His first acting gig was a role in 2014 drama “

K-popAug. 12, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Blackpink unveils teaser for upcoming pre-release

Blackpink floated two sets of teaser photographs for “Pink Venom,” a pre-release single from its second studio album, on Thursday. 　 The four members each struck a pose for the camera in the second batch of photographs, a darker version of the chic first set. 　 “Pink Venom” will drop on Aug. 19 in advance to the full release of LP “Born Pink” slated for Sept. 16. 　 From October, the quartet will tour the world starting from Seoul hopping over to North Americ

K-popAug. 11, 2022

[Herald Interview] Babylon sings eternal beauty of classics, originals in ‘Ego 90’s’

The value of classics lies in its everlastingness, and such a trait shines even brighter at a time when the world seems to evolve too fast while our heart still lingers on the past. But the past is where our present lies, and South Korean musician Babylon, whose real name is Lee Jong-min, takes listeners on a ride back to the 1990s and 2000s Korean pop music with his latest album “Ego 90’s.” “Making music, I held onto the one immutable law, that no matter how fast trend

K-popAug. 11, 2022

Former Le Ssserafim member Kim Ga-ram breaks silence, denies bullying

Kim Ga-ram, a former member of rookie girl group Le Ssserafim, spoke out about the bullying rumors against her that eventually led to her departure from the band. Kim on Wednesday posted a letter on her friend’s Instagram account, explaining her side of the unsolved bullying controversy. The statement begins with an apology for coming forward so late. Kim continued, claiming that she has “never” used violence or bullying against others. She broke her silence 21 days after her

K-popAug. 11, 2022

[Video] From K-pop to Boys’ Love drama: meet this idol changing the K-drama scene

DKZ’s Jaechan dropped out of high school to become a K-pop idol, but not everything went as he imagined. Then “Semantic Error,” Korean streaming platform Watcha’s first original “BL” (Boys’ Love) series, changed his life. Playing the lead role, he won the popularity award at the very first Blue Dragon Series Award. Learn more about the sensational series that topped the platform for 8 weeks straight and how this K-pop idol made a big step forward for LG

K-popAug. 11, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] NCT Dream reschedules concert for September

NCT Dream will host a standalone concert in Seoul on Sept. 8-9, announced label SM Entertainment on Wednesday. 　 The seven-piece act was slated to perform in Seoul for three days last month, but the concerts were canceled at the last minute as two members – Mark and Renjun – tested positive for COVID-19. 　 Some fans were not happy that the band’s second concert was canceled, not postponed, but the fact that the new venue is Olympic Stadium, the largest concert venue in Seoul

K-popAug. 10, 2022

Blackpink to drop 2nd LP ‘Born Pink’ next month, begin world tour

Global K-pop sensation Blackpink is returning with its 2nd LP titled “Born Pink” on Sept. 16, marking its return to the music scene after nearly two years away. On Wednesday, the band’s agency YG Entertainment dropped a teaser image with the date “2022.09.16,” the date of its second album release. “As the title suggests, ‘Born Pink’ shows the confidence and splendor Blackpink is known for. The album will be brimming with Blackpink’s uniq

K-popAug. 10, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] SHINee’s Key to return with 2nd solo LP

Key of SHINee will release his second solo studio album on Aug. 30, his label SM Entertainment announced on Tuesday. 　 It has been about 11 months since his first solo EP “Bad Love” topped iTunes top albums charts in 32 regions. The song “Hate That...” from the EP topped the iTunes top songs charts in 11 regions.  　 The new album “Gasoline” will consist of 11 tracks. 　 The veteran idol put out his first full solo album “Face” in November 2

K-popAug. 9, 2022

Blackpink to embark on world tour with ‘Born Pink’ in Seoul in Oct.

K-pop girl group Blackpink is embarking on a massive world tour starting in October. The group’s label YG Entertainment released the first teaser poster for Blackpink’s world tour entitled “Born Pink” via its official social media on Tuesday. The image shows partial dates of the quartet’s upcoming concerts in 26 major cities around the world. Blackpink will kick off its tour in Seoul with a two-day concert on Oct. 15 and 16. The act will head to North America, v

K-popAug. 9, 2022

Golden Child challenges itself with 6th EP ‘Aura’

K-pop boy band Golden Child dropped its sixth EP “Aura” on Monday, marking a return to the music scene after a 10-month hiatus. Members Y, Jangjun, Tag, Seungmin, Jaehyun, Jibeom, Donghyun, Joochan, Bomin and Daeyeol make up the group, though Daeyeol has temporarily halted group activities as he is serving his mandatory military service. Ahead of the album’s 6 p.m. online release, Golden Child held a showcase event at Yes24 Live Hall in Gwangjin-gu, eastern Seoul, to discuss

K-popAug. 8, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] NCT127 to return next month: report

   　 NCT127 will make a comeback in September, according to local media reports on Monday. 　 Label SM Entertainment confirmed the news following the report. 　 The nine-member subunit is shooting a music video for the upcoming album that comes about 11 months after “Favorite,” the reissue of the group’s third studio album “Sticker.” 　 The third LP sold over 2.15 million copies in the first week of sales and the repack 1.17 million units. The third LP

K-popAug. 8, 2022

[Herald Review] With tears of joy, The Boyz wraps up first world tour ‘The B-Zone’ in Seoul

K-pop group The Boyz wrapped up its “The Boyz World Tour: The B-Zone” with a flourish in Seoul. Marking the end of the act’s first-ever international tour, the members cried out of joy on the final day of its three-day encore concerts on Sunday. Boisterous noise and chants from nearly 8,000 fans filled the KSPO Dome, one of the country‘s largest indoor concert venues. The 11-piece act performed 31 songs during a jam-packed four-hour concert. As the clock struck 5 p.m.

K-popAug. 8, 2022

Blackpink to return with ‘Pink Venom’ on Aug. 19

Blackpink will make its long-awaited return with the new single “Pink Venom” later this month. The act’s label YG Entertainment said Monday the band will be embarking on a new project with a prerelease single “Pink Venom” on Aug. 19. “Celebrating Blackpink‘s debut anniversary today (Aug. 8), we’re happy to announce the opening date of the pre-release single, which will mark the start of the ‘Born Pink’ project,” YG said through

K-popAug. 8, 2022

[Herald Review] Noisy crowds, fan chants and sing-alongs: Itzy makes up for lost time through first world tour ‘Checkmate’

Boisterous crowds, fan chants, sing-alongs and clapping are back – and so were the concertgoers who filled the SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium Sunday night as girl group Itzy took the stage to make up for the lost time through its first world tour “Checkmate” in Seoul. Sunday’s concert was a jam-packed two-hour event. The five members performed 20 songs and prepared five encore performances to bring joy to their fans. The set list was composed of the K-pop act’s bi

K-popAug. 8, 2022

15-year longevity possible because ‘Girls’ Generation is Girls’ Generation’s fan’

On Aug. 5, 2007, K-pop group Girls Generation debuted with its first single album “Into the New World.” Just like the title of the band’s first single, “Into the New World,” Girls’ Generation opened up a new era in the K-pop scene with their debut on Aug. 5, 2007. The nine-piece instantly took the nation by storm, reigning on the top of the charts and popularity for years. Fifteen years have passed since, but their presence is still irreplaceable. Now, as th

K-popAug. 5, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Kep1er adds date to Japan showcase

Girl group Kep1er has decided to perform one more time in Japan, agency WakeOne Entertainment said Thursday. 　 The nine-member act is making an official debut in the country with a showcase that was originally planned for Sept. 10-11. When the tickets for the two events sold out as soon as they became available, the agency added another concert to the second day. 　 The rookie band dropped “Wing Wing,” the main track from its Japan debut single “Fly-Up,” in advance on W

K-popAug. 4, 2022