[Herald Interview] KARD returns with Moombahton, paying homage to their debut

Mixed-gender quartet KARD has returned to the local music scene after a five-month hiatus, the longest break they’ve had been since debuting in 2016, with fourth mini-album “Red Moon.” This five-track album might be the group’s last mini album for a while, as J.Seph has to enlist in the Korean Army by the end of the year to fulfill his military duty of about 18 months. Unlike the group’s latest single “Dumb Litty,” a song described as “very agg

K-popFeb. 12, 2020

Cherry Bullet returns with charismatic ‘Hands Up’

Cherry Bullet has changed tack this year with its charismatic new single “Hands Up.” The rookie’s first release in nine months, “Hands Up” marks a dramatic shift from the act’s past bubbly image, featuring the girls as fierce dancers taking over the stage. The high-energy trap dance track was inspired by “Fur Elise” by Ludwig van Beethoven, with the classic’s iconic main tune running throughout the song.   The song puts forth a mess

K-popFeb. 12, 2020

BTS extends record-breaking dominance of Billboard Social 50 chart

BTS topped the Billboard Social 50 chart again this week, extending its record-breaking dominance of the chart. Coming atop the Social 50 chart for Feb. 15, BTS marked its 135th consecutive week on top of the chart and its 165th Social 50 No. 1.  A week earlier, BTS became the act with the most No. 1 rankings on the chart, beating pop icon Justin Bieber, who topped it 163 times. The Social 50 chart ranks the most popular artists on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Wikipedia,

K-popFeb. 12, 2020

Meet songwriting duo behind Red Velvet’s ‘Zimzalabim’

  Girls’ Generation, SHINee, Loona and TVXQ -- some of these biggest names in K-pop have one thing in common. They’ve released a song from Swedish songwriting duo Caesar & Loui, or Daniel Caesar and Ludwig Lindell. Since the two began working in music professionally in 2013, they have churned out a great number of hits. Their most memorable track yet? It’s Red Velvet’s 2017 mega-hit single “Red Flavor.” The song was a chart success, topp

K-popFeb. 10, 2020

[Herald Interview] Why you can’t stop listening to Red Velvet’s ‘Psycho’

Diving straight in with a grandiose operatic intro with dramatic pizzicato strings, Red Velvet’s latest hit bursts into the swooping chorus, “You got me feeling like a psycho, psycho.” For 3 1/2 minutes straight, the five singers showcase their skillful vocals as the story of a hot-and-cold relationship unfolds. Released in December as the lead single from the band’s latest album, “The ReVe Festival: Finale,” “Psycho” continues to please, after

K-popFeb. 10, 2020

[Herald Interview] Enoi talks about debut, hiatus, value of teamwork

Starting from scratch during a time of uncertainty definitely wasn’t easy for rookie act Enoi. The seven-piece act debuted under the newly established Kithewhale Company in April last year with the digital single “Bloom,” but then had to take an unexpected nine-month hiatus -- quite a long time for a rookie band in the fast-changing K-pop field. Now after putting out a new single, “Cheeky,” the bandmates talked about the twists and turns in their blooming career and

K-popFeb. 10, 2020

iKON returns as six-member group

K-pop boy band iKON dropped its third EP “i DECIDE” Thursday, returning to the music scene after a yearlong hiatus. The title of the five-track album shows the sextet’s determination to choose their own path, and has garnered fans’ attention as it sets the direction of iKON’s new identity as a six-piece group. It is their first album since former leader B.I left the team June last year amid drug purchase allegations. His abrupt departure forced the album’

K-popFeb. 6, 2020

Returning IZ*ONE's new album tops pre-order charts in S. Korea, Japan

"Bloom*Iz," an upcoming full-length album by K-pop girl band IZ*ONE, topped major album pre-order charts in South Korea and Japan this week in the run-up to the band's official return this month. The album, set for official release on Feb. 17, stood atop Japan's Tower Records chart for online album pre-orders as of Tuesday, according to the band's management agency, Off the Record. The album also came atop or stayed high on the album pre-order charts by major online record distribut

K-popFeb. 6, 2020

Key takeaways from Big Hit’s corporate briefing

K-pop label behemoth Big Hit Entertainment made a number of major announcements during its latest corporate briefing on Tuesday. CEO and producer Bang Si-hyuk took to the stage to kick off the company’s “Corporate Briefing with the Community” and said, “For those who are watching this video, please stay safe.” Tuesday’s event was meant for both the media and select fans but it ended up taking place in private amid concerns over the new coronavirus outbreak

K-popFeb. 5, 2020

Final leg of BTS CONNECT art project lands in New York

A massive network of shining aluminium hoops was set up by New York's East River against the backdrop of the city's famous skyline Tuesday (US time). The art installation, "New York Clearing," by British sculptor Antony Gormley, is the final edition of the K-pop superband's global art project involving five cities -- the others being London, Berlin, Seoul and Buenos Aires. The 4.5-meter-high installation made of aluminum tubes 18 kilometers in total length, is Gormley's interpretati

K-popFeb. 5, 2020

GFriend takes leap with ‘Crossroads’ under Big Hit Entertainment

GFriend has returned with “Crossroads,” the group’s first single under its new agency Big Hit Entertainment. The lead track off the six-piece act’s eighth EP “Labyrinth,” “Crossroads” was highly anticipated, as it marked GFriend’s first release since its agency Source Music was acquired by Big Hit last year. At a media showcase in Seoul on Monday, the group talked about working with new staff and producers, including Bang Si-hyuk, from B

K-popFeb. 4, 2020

BTS overtakes Justin Bieber's longest dominance record on Billboard's Social 50 chart

K-pop superstars BTS defeated Justin Bieber this week to become the longest-running artists atop Billboard's Social 50 chart, the American pop magazine said Tuesday. "A long-standing record on Billboard's Social 50 chart has been broken, as BTS spends its 164th week atop the list dated Feb. 8," besting Justin Bieber's 163, Billboard said on its website Tuesday (Korean Time). According to Billboard, the Social 50 is powered by data tracked by music analytics company Next Big Sound an

K-popFeb. 4, 2020

Coronavirus concerns loom over K-pop

A series of K-pop events are being canceled amid concerns over the deadly coronavirus outbreak, as organizers opt out to be on the safe side. Big Hit Entertainment, home to BTS, announced last week that it would hold its corporate briefing privately on Tuesday, despite having originally planned to open the event to the media and fans. The agency said the event would go ahead without a live audience, and a video would be uploaded the following day. According to YG Entertainment, Blackpink&rsqu

K-popFeb. 3, 2020

IZ*ONE set to return with new album this month

Resuming its high-profile music career, girl band IZ*ONE will release a new album, "Bloom*Iz," this month, its management agency said Monday. The new album, set for release on Feb. 17, is the 12-member girl group's first full-length album, marking the resumption of the band's activities after a three-month hiatus. The band temporarily suspended its activities in November as producers of cable music channel Mnet's "Produce" audition show came under a police investigation o

K-popFeb. 3, 2020

BTS drops 2nd trailer for upcoming album, 'Map of the Soul: 7'

K-pop band BTS on Monday dropped the second trailer for its upcoming album, "Map of the Soul: 7," set for official release on Feb. 21. "Outro: Ego," member J-Hope's solo song and the outro track of the band's fourth full album, was released on BTS' social media accounts and to the band's mobile app-based fan community early Monday. The first trailer, "Interlude: Shadow," starring member Suga, was released last month. The video for "Ego" briefly walk

K-popFeb. 3, 2020

BTS agency wins trademark suit against cosmetics firm

DAEJEON -- South Korea's intellectual property tribunal has recently ordered the cancellation of a cosmetics trademark that is similar to that of the K-pop group BTS. The Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board said Sunday it has ruled in favor of the band's agency, Big Hit Entertainment, in a suit against a company that has registered the trademark "BTS," along with its phonetic spelling in Korean, and used the name "BTS" on its beauty products. "This is a case

K-popFeb. 2, 2020

Eventful February of high-profile album releases awaits K-pop fans

Next month will see an unusually feverish K-pop scene with a new album release by superstars BTS. But the music world here will be further abuzz as a number of other high-profile music acts will unveil new albums in February. On the calendar for February is an unprecedentedly eventful lineup of returning K-pop stars, spearheaded by popular girl group GFriend. The six-member female group will be the first to rock the music scene next month, dropping "回:LABYRINTH" on Monday. It is

K-popJan. 31, 2020

BTS wins album of the year at Seoul Music Awards

K-pop superstar BTS has won the grand prize at this year's Seoul Music Awards for the third year in a row. At the award-presenting ceremony at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Thursday night, the septet received the highest honor for "Map of the Soul: Persona," released in April last year. But the band did not attend the event. The group topped the Billboard 200 main albums chart for the first edition of the "Map of the Soul" series, last year, with its album sales reaching a

K-popJan. 31, 2020

iKON to release 1st album since leader B.I's departure last year

K-pop boy band iKON will return to the music scene with a new album, "i DECIDE," next week. The new album, set for official release on Feb. 6, is iKON's third EP and its first release since band leader B.I left in June last year over drug-related allegations, according to the band's management agency, YG Entertainment. B.I's departure reconfigured iKON as a six-member boy band. The new album contains tracks created by the former leader, including "Dive." YG said it ch

K-popJan. 30, 2020

Girl group (G)I-dle to go on first world tour in April

Popular K-pop girl group, (G)I-dle will kick off its first world-trotting concert tour in April, according to its management agency Thursday. "I-LAND: WHO AM I" will kick off in Bangkok on April 4 and move to major cities in the United States, Europe and Asia before wrapping up in Seoul about three months later, according to Cube Entertainment. Under the world tour, the group will land in 32 cities across the globe, including Seattle, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Toronto, Moscow,

K-popJan. 30, 2020