B.A.P to return as quartet after more than 6 years

K-pop boy group B.A.P, which debuted as a band of six in 2012, is returning to the K-pop scene as a quartet of Bang Yong-guk, Jung Dae-hyun, Yoo Young-jae and Moon Jong-up. Their comeback comes after six years. The quartet is due to release a new single in August under the new name Bang&Jung&Yoo&Moon, according to MA Entertainment, the group's agency. Bang&Jung&Yoo&Moon has been showing how the group is getting ready for the comeback through a documentary series call

K-popJuly 2, 2024

BTS suits to be exhibited at Jewelry Museum

The custom suits BTS members wore for their Grammy Awards performance in March 2021 will be on exhibit at the Jewelry Museum in Iksan, North Jeolla Province, from Sept. 7 to Dec. 15. The city-run museum will showcase the custom suits that E-Land Group, a local clothing retailer, acquired in an auction. The agreement on the exhibition was signed by the city and the retailer’s private museum. E-Land Group bought the customs at Julien’s Auctions in January 2022, a year after the seven K

K-popJuly 2, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] Zion.T leaves label after 8 years: report

Zion.T decided not to renew his contract with The Black Label, which expired recently, according to a local media report on Monday. The label confirmed the news following the report. The singer had signed with the YG Entertainment affiliate headed by producer Teddy in 2016 after he left Amoeba Culture. His future activities will be overseen by Standard Friends, a company he established two years ago, joining the likes of rappers Wonstein and Giriboy. Zion.T debuted in 2011 with single “C

K-popJuly 1, 2024

[Herald Review] aespa kicks off world tour with intense performance

Aespa held the second “Synk: Parallel Line" concert in Seoul over the weekend as it started a world tour. Over Saturday and Sunday, approximately 12,000 spectators attended the concert held at Jamsil Indoor Stadium. On Sunday, the quartet appeared on the stage in dazzling black attire, and kicked off the concert with intense tracks -- “Drama,” “Black Mamba,” and “Salty & Sweet.” Members changed into bright costumes with metallic fabric, and fill

PerformanceJuly 1, 2024

NCT Wish drops new single ‘Songbird’

SM Entertainment's Japan-based K-pop boy group NCT Wish dropped a new single, “Songbird,” on Monday. More than 630,000 copies were pre-sold in Korea and Japan, the highest number of pre-orders since MCT Wish's debut in February. “Songbird” is a pop-dance song over a catchy guitar riff. The song conveys a hopeful message of flying high to make a miracle -- a motif of the lyrics is a bird that brings luck. The music video for the Korean version of "Songbird&q

K-popJuly 1, 2024

K-pop stars take stern actions against malicious comments, false accusations

The time for lenience is over. An increasing number of K-pop artists are taking a stand against hateful comments and rumors by pursuing legal action and declaring they will not settle under any circumstances. Previously, K-pop musicians were eager to hush up rumors about them when they arose -- whether they were true or not -- hoping to avoid trouble as much as possible. Their agencies also believed that taking strong action would only create a "Streisand effect" -- making the rumors b

K-popJuly 1, 2024

Seventeen becomes first K-pop band on Glastonbury’s main stage

Seventeen became the first K-pop group to perform on the main stage at the Glastonbury Festival in Somerset, England, on Friday, setting a significant milestone for K-pop while showcasing the genre’s growing influence. The 13-member band captivated the audience for an hour on the Pyramid Stage with a powerful set that began with Woozi's keyboard solo before launching into hits like "Maestro," "Ready to Love," "SOS," "Clap," "God of Music&qu

K-popJune 30, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] Le Sserafim gearing up for August return: report

Le Sserafim is poised to return in late August with a new album, local media reported Friday. Agency Source Music confirmed that the group was preparing to return, but said the date and type of release had not been set. It will be about six months since its third EP “Easy,” the main track from which entered Billboard’s Hot 100, at No. 99, for the first time for the quintet. "Easy" debuted on Billboard 200 at No. 8 and became its third straight million-selling album.

K-popJune 28, 2024

Is 2NE1 returning with new song for 15th anniversary?

Legendary K-pop girl group 2NE1’s meeting with Yang Hyun-suk, founder and head producer of YG Entertainment, has raised speculation of a possible comeback with a new release in time for the group’s 15th debut anniversary. According to YG Entertainment, all four members of 2NE1 -- CL, Sandara Park, Park Bom and Minzy -- met Yang for talks at the agency’s headquarters in Seoul on Thursday. It was the first meeting of the quartet and Yang in eight years. “The meeting took ov

K-popJune 28, 2024

Ive drops new single ‘Summer Festa’

K-pop girl group Ive is releasing a new song in collaboration with Pepsi on Friday at 6 p.m. The song, “Summer Festa,” which is part of the “2024 Pepsi Campaign,” is a disco-pop song led by a funky guitar and groovy bass. The unique vocal tones of Ive members blend perfectly with the simple but rhythmic beat of the song that captures the vibrant atmosphere of summer. The lyrics contain messages of independence and confidence such as, “I make my own opportunity&rdquo

K-popJune 28, 2024

Jimin of BTS unveils song from 2nd solo album ahead of official release

Jimin of BTS unveiled a new song “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band (feat. Loco)” on Friday. This song is one of the tracks in his second solo album, “Muse,” to be released on July 19. Jimin decided to collaborate with rapper Loco for this track as he thought his detailed rapping style would go well with the song, according to Big Hit Music. The title of the song was the name that Jimin had come up with for fun, for the team of producers consisting of Pdogg, Ghstloop and Evan

K-popJune 28, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] Stray Kids turn chic in album teaser

Stray Kids uploaded group photographs for their ninth EP “Ate” on Thursday. Donned in black and denim, the eight members gazed at the camera exuding charisma further raising expectations for the upcoming mini album. The group shots follow a teaser trailer and individual photographs which hinted that they are going for hip and chic. The album will consist of eight tracks including the main track “Chk Chk Boom” and will be rolled out July 19. Before the album's relea

K-popJune 27, 2024

[Herald Interview] Meet Lionesses: K-pop's first LGBTQ+ boy band on showing their true selves

Despite K-pop's global expansion, the K-pop industry and Korean society in general remain conservative in several aspects, particularly on LGBTQ+ issues. Amid this backdrop, Lionesses, K-pop's first-ever LGBTQ+ group, has shattered barriers and is sharing courage with fans and listeners. Debuting in 2021 with "Show Me Your Pride," Lionesses is a pioneering LGBTQ+ K-pop trio. Leader Damjun identifies as bisexual, Lee Marlang is gay and Kanghan is a questioning, who continues t

K-popJune 27, 2024

Band Surl drops Thai version song through dubbing technology

The Korean band Surl released a Thai version of their song through a collaboration with a dubbing company. According to their agency MPMG Music, Surl released the Thai version of "Dry Flower" at 6 p.m. Thursday. "Dry Flower" is the title track from Surl's 2nd mini album "I Know," released in 2019. The music video has been played 5.6 million times on the global music streaming platform Spotify, consistently receiving positive responses from listeners both domest

K-popJune 27, 2024

B.D.U debuts after winning Mnet competition 'Build Up’

B.D.U, the winning team of Mnet’s vocals-centric TV competition “Build Up: Vocal Boy Group Survival," made an impressive debut with the mini album “Wishpool.” The four bandmates -- Bitsaeon, Seunghun, Jay Chang and Minseo -- showcased their powerful and emotional voices throughout the program, earning the opportunity to take to the stage as a project group for two years. “Our group name B.D.U is an abbreviation of ‘Boys Define Universe,’ implying th

K-popJune 27, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] BTS RM’s 2nd solo album chosen best in H124

The second solo album from BTS' leader RM made multiple semiannual best albums charts listed by international music magazines. Billboard magazine touted the album “Right Place, Wrong Person” as “one of the richest albums released in 2024.” The artist “simply refuses to acknowledge the existence of any (boundaries of K-pop]) ... while all still sounding like a coherent and natural artistic extension of one man’s creative vision,” it added. Rolling

K-popJune 26, 2024

Jay Park creates a buzz with post on adult site

Singer Jay Park revealed that he has joined OnlyFans, a content subscription service popular among adult content creators, shocking many of his fans. “Follow your boy on OnlyFans. ‘McNasty’ out June 30,” wrote Park in his Instagram post on Tuesday, sharing his OnlyFans account. His post created a buzz on social media, leaving his followers wondering whether it was part of a marketing strategy to promote his upcoming digital single, “McNasty.” “It was par

K-popJune 26, 2024

Police investigate knife attack threats against NewJeans

A recent online post threatening knife attacks against popular K-pop girl group NewJeans is being investigated by police, Ador, the group's agency, confirmed Wednesday. "We are preparing to enhance security measures (for NewJeans) in cooperation with the Japanese concert planning company. Police are investigating the matter domestically, and we are actively cooperating with them," Ador said. The threat was made on a local online community site Monday. "I bought this to use at

CultureJune 26, 2024

Peruvian K-pop girl group BlingOne to debut with ‘Kiss & Call’

BlingOne, the first-ever Peruvian K-pop girl group, debuts Thursday at noon with its digital single, “Kiss & Call.” The group consists of three finalists of the Peruvian leg of the global K-pop audition, “Click the Star,” hosted by the World K-pop Center, a K-pop education and concert organization institute established in 2020. “Click the Star” began in the second half of last year with the aim to create 32 K-pop girl groups from 32 different countries. Ar

K-popJune 26, 2024

FT Island to return with 'Serious'

FT Island is returning with a full-length album after eight years. The promotion schedule for FT Island's 7th full-length album “Serious” was posted on the group's social media channels announcing the pre-release of "Burn it," one of the double title tracks, and its music video out on June 27. Leading up to the official release of their new album on July 10, the group will sequentially unveil content such as the track list, mood poster, album jacket poster and a h

K-popJune 26, 2024