BTS sends out message of encouragement as Korea struggles to fight coronavirus

K-pop boy band BTS sent out a message of encouragement for South Koreans Monday as the country struggles to stem the spread of COVID-19. The video message was uploaded on BTS' official YouTube account and its "Love Myself" campaign account on Twitter, in response to a request by a group of nurse officers at the Korea Armed Forces Nursing Academy. "Taking the stage of an empty auditorium, we are acutely feeling how meaningful it was to breathe with you in the same space," m

K-popMarch 23, 2020

Korean language education video series featuring BTS set for release this week

The management agency of K-pop boy band BTS will this week launch a series of short video clips designed to provide Korean language education to non-Korean fans, the agency said Monday. Big Hit Entertainment said the first three episodes of the series, "Learn Korean with BTS," will hit Weverse, the mobile app for the BTS fan community, Tuesday afternoon. Following the release of the first three episodes, one new episode will hit Weverse every Monday morning, with a total of 30 clip

K-popMarch 23, 2020

[Herald Interview] Ex-Boyfriend vocalist Jeongmin returns as singer-songwriter

Jeongmin, now an accomplished singer-songwriter, used to live in the glitz and glam, wear heavy makeup and dance in front of thousands of crowds. For eight years, he was a vocalist for the now-defunct K-pop act Boyfriend, signed under one of the major K-pop labels, Starship Entertainment. Since 2011, the youthful six-piece boy band had a promising start with numerous hits like “I’ll Be There” and “Janus,” especially flourishing in Japan. But just like many K-pop a

K-popMarch 23, 2020

Collaboration projects spice up global pop songs with Korean lyrics

In a remix of British pop star Dua Lipa's latest song, "Physical," released earlier this week, K-pop artist Hwasa opens up the sensual synth-pop number with her signature raspy voice singing in the Korean language. The remix featuring Hwasa gives more color and trendiness to the original version, which peaked at 60th on the Billboard Hot 100 chart last month. The collaboration between Dua Lipa and Hwasa, a member of K-pop girl band Mamamoo, marks the latest in a growing number of j

K-popMarch 20, 2020

Big Hit’s new headquarters nears completion

Big Hit Entertainment, home to global sensation BTS and super rookie TXT, is getting ready to relocate to a new fancy office building in central Seoul. According to industry sources on Thursday, the building construction has been almost completed, while the interior work is still underway. “Expectations are high among industry people about the new office building, as the firm’s chief brand officer Min Hee-jin is known to be overseeing the interior work,” a source close to t

K-popMarch 19, 2020

WINNER to drop 3rd full-length album next month

K-pop boy band WINNER will drop its third full-length album, "Remember," next month, in its return to the music scene, its agency said Wednesday. Ahead of the official album launch on April 9, the band will release lead single "Hold" on March 26, according to YG Entertainment. The album is WINNER's first full-length album since "Everyday," released in 2018. Including "Hold," the new album carries a total of 12 tracks. This is likely to be WINNER's las

K-popMarch 18, 2020

S. Korean bands push K-pop horizon on Billboard 200

Since K-pop band BTS' first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in 2018, other K-pop boy bands have entered the top five of the albums chart, pushing the horizon for South Korean pop in the global music market. This week, K-pop boy band NCT 127's new album, "NCT #127 Neo-Zone," debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 chart dated March 21, becoming the fourth K-pop band to score a top-five hit on the albums chart. Also this week, BTS' latest album, "Map of the Soul: 7,"

K-popMarch 18, 2020

BTS postpones ticketing for Europe leg of new world tour over coronavirus

K-pop boy band BTS has postponed ticket sales for the European leg of its new world tour, "Map of the Soul Tour," set for July, amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. "Due to recent events, BTS 'Map of the Soul Tour - Europe' ticket sale will be rescheduled," the British branch of Live Nation, which organizes the European leg, said in an SNS message Tuesday (local time). According to the message, ticket presales for the members of Army, the official BTS fandom, has been r

K-popMarch 18, 2020

Wonho says sorry to fans, explains why he left Monsta X

Wonho said he decided to leave Monsta X to save the group after past allegations of cannabis use emerged, despite having never touched drugs. The singer, who was recently cleared of all drug charges following a police investigation, got candid in a recent interview with local news site Dispatch. “I didn’t want to see Monsta X break apart because of me. I thought the group could be saved if I left the group as soon as possible.” He also apologized to fans, saying, “I pr

K-popMarch 16, 2020

BTS' N. American concerts at risk of cancellation amid virus spread in US

Having canceled the inaugural Seoul leg of its new world concert tour series, "Map of the Soul Tour," K-pop boy band BTS is at risk of having part of the following American leg rolled back amid the ongoing coronavirus spread in the United States. The septet was to kick off the new world tour series in mid-April in Seoul with four concerts at Olympic Stadium. But the band's management agency, Big Hit Entertainment, canceled the inaugural Seoul leg in late February when COVID-19 showed

K-popMarch 16, 2020

Will Naver’s Vibe introduce a system that works for artists?

Naver’s music-streaming service Vibe has recently announced a payment system that it believes is more transparent and profitable for artists. Currently, streaming platforms such as South Korea’s Melon and Sweden’s Spotify use a “pro-rata” model that shares streaming revenue with artists by collecting all fees from users and dividing that pool of money according to the percentage of streams each artist receives. That means even if you never listen to the most fre

K-popMarch 16, 2020

K-pop boy band NCT 127's new album debuts at 5th on Billboard 200

The new album by K-pop boy band NCT 127 debuted at fifth on the Billboard 200 albums chart this week, the band's strongest feat on the chart, the music magazine said Monday.  "Korean pop group NCT 127 lands its first top 10 effort, as 'NCT #127 Neo-Zone,' the 2nd (full-length) album debuts at No. 5," the Billboard website showed Monday (Korean time). "The act's previous high was claimed with its last release, 2019's 'NCT #127 We Are Superhuman,' which debuted and peaked a

K-popMarch 16, 2020

US stadium, set for BTS concerts in April, closes operations over virus woes

A stadium in California where K-pop superband BTS planned to hold concerts next month said Thursday (local time) it will suspend operations for the time being due to concerns about the new coronavirus. Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, tweeted, "In light of guidelines issued yesterday by the federal government to stop the spread of COVID-19, the SAP Performance Center and Levi's Stadium will close operations beginning March 13 until further notice." BTS was scheduled to lau

K-popMarch 13, 2020

Despite record high album sales, BTS faces barrier of US radio airplay

Despite K-pop band BTS' record high sales of "Map of the Soul: 7," the relatively tepid performance of the album's title track, "ON," on the Billboard singles chart indicates that American radio airplay remains a formidable barrier for the septet. This week, "ON," the lead single from the latest BTS album, slipped sharply to 68th on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart dated March 14 after debuting at fourth on the weekly chart the previous week. The No. 4 spot w

K-popMarch 13, 2020

K-pop soloist Chungha takes big leap into US showbiz

K-pop singer Chungha is taking a big leap by teaming up with ICM Partners, one of the biggest talent agencies in the US, which has represented big name stars such as Beyonce and Megan Fox. “I hope to show more various sides of me while working with ICM. ‘Breaking into the US market’ still sounds like a huge title for me, but I’m excited for what’s to come in the future,” Chungha told The Korea Herald on Wednesday. “As much as it’s a hard-won oppo

K-popMarch 13, 2020

New BTS album sells record high volume in K-pop history

"Map of the Soul: 7," the new album by boy band BTS, sold more than 4.11 million copies in the first nine days of its release last month, becoming the most sold album in the Korean pop history, its management agency said Thursday. It took nine days for the new album to shatter the previous highest album sales record of nearly 3.4 million set by BTS' own album, "Map of the Soul: Persona," released in April last year. The total sales of "7" in the first nine days

K-popMarch 12, 2020

Korea's market for pop culture expands nearly 20% in 2018

The South Korean market for popular culture content including K-pop and K-drama expanded nearly 20 percent in 2018 from two years earlier on a surge in overseas sales, a government report showed Wednesday. According to the biennial tally of the popular culture market, compiled by the Korea Creative Content Agency and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the combined revenue of the industry came to 6.42 trillion won (US$5.4 billion) in 2018, up 19.5 percent from about 5.37 trillion won

K-popMarch 11, 2020

More K-pop artists team up with US labels to expand careers

Adding to the phenomenal global ascent of K-pop, led by boy band BTS, another Korean band, SuperM, hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart last October, furthering the global influence of Korean pop music. It was a major feat accomplished in SuperM's widely publicized collaboration with Capitol Music Group, a major American music label under Universal Music Group, and a culmination of an increasing number of similar collaboration deals between K-pop artists and American music labels and t

K-popMarch 11, 2020

BIGBANG renews contract with YG ahead of new music release

K-pop boy band BIGBANG has renewed its contract with the current agency, YG Entertainment, ahead of the band's new music release planned for this year, YG said Wednesday.  "The BIGBANG members, G-Dragon, Taeyang, T.O.P and Daesung, signed an exclusive contract with YG," the management said in a press release. This will mark BIGBANG' next term with YG after the band's debut under the music label in 2006. BIGBANG later renewed its contract with YG twice, in 2011 and 2015. Y

K-popMarch 11, 2020

BTS' 'ON' slips to 68th on Billboard Hot 100 in second week

"ON," the lead single from K-pop boy band BTS' latest album, dropped to 68th on this week's Billboard Hot 100 singles chart after debuting at fourth a week earlier, the latest chart updates showed Wednesday. The sudden skid of "ON" on the Hot 100 chart dated March 14, came mainly amid the dearth of radio airplay for the song in the United States as a non-English single.  Last week, the song, the lead track of "Map of the Soul: 7," debuted at No. 4 on the H

K-popMarch 11, 2020