(Yonhap)Girl group Sistar, nicknamed "summer queen" for its strength in the season, will release a new album in early June, music sources said Tuesday.The group is now working on the new album with the producing team Black Eyed Pilseung, they said. This is the group's first album since its last EP "Insane Love" out about a year ago. Sistar last collaborated with Black Eyed Philseung for its hit numbers "Touch My Body" and "I Like That."Debuting in June 2010, Sistar has enjoyed popularity for its

May 2, 2017

Actor and rapper So Ji-sub finished his pan-Asia tour to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his debut, his management agency said Tuesday. (Yonhap)The actor met 20,000 fans in eight cities in six Asian countries through the "TWENTY:The Moment" tour that started in Kobe, Japan, on March 25. The tour ended in Seoul on April 29-30, the first such event in the city in three years. At the Seoul event, he shared a series of photos he took with his fans by using a selfie stick."I turned 20 years old in

May 2, 2017

Season two of "Produce 101," Mnet's idol survival show, topped a benchmark TV popularity index for the third straight week, while most big dramas performed sluggishly, data showed Tuesday.The second season of "Produce 101" scored 268 points on the Content Power Index (CPI), becoming the most popular TV program from April 17-23. (Mnet)CPI, developed by entertainment company CJ E&M and Nielsen Korea, measures the popularity of TV shows based on the number of views of related news stories, online s

May 2, 2017

Yoo Ah-in, star actor of tvN's "Chicago Typewriter," will undergo his fifth physical checkup to determine whether he's fit to serve in the military, after the most recent one drew inconclusive results, according to his agency Monday. (Yonhap)UAA, which represents the 30-year-old actor, said that Yoo will receive the additional physical screening on May 22, after being ordered by the Military Manpower Administration to undergo re-examination.Yoo ruptured his shoulder muscle during the filming of

Television May 1, 2017

Actress Park Shin-hye is set to embark on a tour of Asian countries in June, according to her agency on Monday.“Park Shin-hye is preparing for the upcoming tour. She has been going on annual overseas tours since 2013, but since she was so busy with filming an upcoming movie, Park could not make time to hold the event last year,” S.A.L.T. Entertainment said. Actress Park Shin-hye (S.A.L.T. Entertainment)Park will visit Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore in June with other Asian countries to follow,

Television May 1, 2017

Actor Park Bo-gum ranked No. 1 in spokesmodel brand reputation in April, according to research.The Korea Reputation Center collected and analyzed more than 41 million pieces of data on 47 advertisement models between March 27 and Friday. Actor Park Bo-gum (Blossom Entertainment)The result showed that Park, who recently appeared on the MBC variety show “Infinite Challenge” as a guest for an episode titled “2018 PyeongChang Olympics,” received the highest brand reputation rate, rising from No. 4 i

Television April 30, 2017

YG Entertainment, a leading K-pop agency, said on Thursday it has established a drama production company named "YG Studio Plex.""It recently opened its office in Seoul's Shinsa-dong, and director Park Hong-gyun of MBC TV dramas 'The Great Queen Seondeok' and 'The Greatest Love,' will join next month," an official with the YG Entertainment said. (YG Plus)It has not yet been decided whether the studio will scout other famous TV producers or writers, the official added.YG has shown much interest in

Life&Culture April 27, 2017

Song Hye-kyo was named best actress at the fifth DramaFever Awards on Wednesday.She starred in KBS 2TV’s hit drama “Descendants of the Sun” (2016) as doctor Kang Mo-yeon, along with Song Joong-ki, who played Capt.Yoo Shi-jin.  Actress Song Hye-kyo (left) and actor Gong Yoo (United Artists Agency/Management Soop)Actor Gong Yoo took home the best actor award for his role of Kim Shin, an immortal goblin, in the tvN megahit drama “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God,” which aired from December 2016 t

Television April 27, 2017

South Korean actor Yoo Ji-tae will appear in Danish auteur Lars von Trier's upcoming film "The House That Jack Built" as a cameo, the film's Korean distributor said Wednesday. At9 Film said that Yoo finished shooting in late March in Sweden, without specifying the actor's role.  (Yonhap)He is best known to the international audience for his lead role in Park Chan-wook's "Old Boy." Yoo's directorial debut "Mai Ratima" clinched the Jury Prize, the second top honor, at the 2013 Deauville Asian Film

April 27, 2017

South Korean rock musician Jeon In-kwon became engulfed in a plagiarism controversy on Wednesday amid allegations part of his hit song, "Don't Worry, My Dear" is similar to a 70s German rock number.A post raising questions about the originality of Jeon's song surfaced on a South Korean internet community.(Yonhap)The post alleged that the chorus of "Don't Worry, My Dear"sounded especially similar to that of Black Fooss' "Drink doch eine met." The title means "let's have a drink" in English.The 62

April 26, 2017

YG Entertainment, one of South Korea's leading music labels, has signed a trainee deal with an 11-year-old former contestant on SBS TV's audition show "K-pop Star," the company said Wednesday.(SBS)"We signed with Han Byul, who's shown talent in 'K-pop Star 6.' The trainee is young so she will receive systemic training three to four times week while continuing with school," YG said.Han, who appeared in the final season of the popular SBS TV show earlier this year, is half Korean and half Swedish.

April 26, 2017

South Korean actor Lee Byung-hun will appear in a new Psy music video, according to informed sources Wednesday.Psy, whose real name is Park Jae-sang, became a global sensation with his 2012 mega hit "Gangnam Style."  (Yonhap)Lee has finished filming for the video accompanying a song in Psy's eighth full-length album that will come out next month, according to K-pop industry insiders, who asked not to be named.The video is reportedly different from another yet-released Psy video featuring Son Nae

Television April 26, 2017

 MBC TV's "Rebel: Thief Who Stole the People" took the lead in the Monday-Tuesday late night drama race, outstripping its hard-hitting rival "Whisper," data showed Wednesday. (MBC)Tuesday night's 26th episode of "Rebel" recorded 12.4 percent nationwide viewership, up 0.3 percentage point from the previous broadcast, according to Nielsen Korea. SBS TV's legal thriller "Whisper," which maintained the lead for several weeks, clocked in at 11.9 percent, dropping 4.1 percentage points from Monday. KB

Television April 26, 2017

Prosecutors said Tuesday they have summarily indicted singer-actor Kim Hyun-joong for allegedly driving while under the influence of alcohol last month. (Yonhap)The Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office said it sought a fine of 2 million won (US$1,700) against him. A summary indictment does not require a formal trial. The member of K-pop boy band SS501 was caught on March 26 as he fell asleep for about 15 minutes in his car while waiting for a traffic light to change in southern Seoul, acco

April 25, 2017