Composer Chin Un-suk wins Sibelius Prize

Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra’s composer-in-residence Chin Un-suk has won the prestigious Wihuri Sibelius International Prize, the orchestra said Tuesday.Established in 1953 by the Finland-based Wihuri Foundation for International Prizes, the Sibelius Prize, one of the highest recognitions in classical music composition, is awarded when a suitable recipient has been found. Chin, the first Asian winner of the prize, is the 20th winner. The prize carries a cash award of 150,000 euros ($177,130).The

Oct. 11, 2017

BTS remains on Billboard main charts for third-straight week

BTS keeps on with its chart-slaying streak as it has stayed on Billboard magazine’s Hot 100 chart and Billboard 200 chart for three consecutive weeks.On the week of Oct. 21, the band’s latest album “Love Yourself Seung Her” secured the No. 35 spot on the “Billboard 200” chart while its lead track “DNA” remained on the No. 87 spot on “The Hot 100” chart. It is the first time a Korean artist has stayed on the American music publication’s two main charts for three weeks. (Big Hit Entertainment)“It

Oct. 11, 2017

SHINee’s Taemin to drop 2nd solo album next week

Taemin of the boy band SHINee on Tuesday dropped the first teaser video for “Move,” the title track for his upcoming solo album of the same name.According to S.M. Entertainment, the vocalist is slated to release the songs at 6 p.m. Monday via local music streaming and downloading websites including Melon, Genie and Naver Music.  A promotional image for “Move” (S.M. Entertainment)It will mark the singer’s second album as a solo artist, after releasing his first solo album “Press It” in January 20

Oct. 10, 2017

Girls' Generation in crisis

Having reached the 10-year mark, which is very rare for any K-pop act, Girls’ Generation is considered a textbook example of how to succeed in the K-pop industry. The iconic group’s influence is enormous, notching countless awards and numerous hits. The revelation Monday night that three members of Girls‘ Generation are leaving their agency raises questions about the group‘s future: Will the group weather the storm intact or will it be the final straw for this legendary brand? On Monday evening,

Oct. 10, 2017

Girls' Generation's Tiffany, Sooyoung and Seohyun to leave S.M. Entertainment: sources

Tiffany, Sooyoung and Seohyun of Girls' Generation will quit their management agency S.M. Entertainment, sources in the local music scene said Monday.With the possible departure of the three members, it is unclear whether they will continue working with the idol group."The three members decided to terminate their contracts with the agency," an industry official familiar with the matter said. "Although Girls' Generation will stay afloat, it would be difficult in practical terms for those members

Oct. 10, 2017

Super Junior’s comeback chronicled in reality show

Celebrating the group’s 12th anniversary with a new album, Super Junior will reveal how it prepared for its much-anticipated comeback in a special reality show. The show “SJ Returns -- Super Junior Real Comeback Story,” which started its six-week run Monday on the Naver TV Cast channel and V Live channel, captures how the members prepared for the new album over 120 days, according to the group’s agency Label SJ on Monday. A poster for Super Junior’s comeback reality show “SJ Returns - Super Juni

Oct. 9, 2017

BTS to air own music show ‘BTS Countdown’

BTS will wrap up the promotion of its latest album “Love Yourself Seung Her” with a special music show, “BTS Countdown.”Following the format of Mnet’s weekly live music show “M Countdown,” the boy band will introduce the rankings of the 40 tracks it has released so far, which were decided by fan voting. The septet will be divided into two groups to decide on fans’ favorite track, with the competition coming down to “Dope” from the band’s 2015 album “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Part 1” and

Oct. 8, 2017

'The Fortress' becomes fastest Chuseok movie to surpass 1m in attendance

"The Fortress," a South Korean film depicting King Injo of the Joseon Dynasty taking refuge from a Chinese invasion, has become the fastest movie released during the Chuseok holiday to surpass 1 million in attendance, its distributor said Thursday.CJ Entertainment said "The Fortress" got over the 1 million mark with 552,747 viewers Wednesday. The film premiered Tuesday, with 444,527 watching it on the opening day. (CJ Entertainment)It puts "The Fortress" one day ahead of the pace set by "The Fac

Oct. 5, 2017

Fly to the Sky to return next month

K-pop stars Hwanhee and Brian Joo will reunite as Fly to the Sky once again as the duo is set to release a new album in November, its agency said Monday. The new album will be the duo’s first work together since releasing EP “Love & Hate” in September of 2015.  (H2media)According to H2media, the group will follow up with a concert at the end of the year. The two members have focused on their solo careers during the past two years, with Hwanhee recently holding his concert “The Original” in Seoul

Oct. 2, 2017

[Next Wave] Without gimmicks, ‘Show Me The Money’ finalist Nucksal pursues warm, encouraging hip-hop

Only a decade ago Nucksal, the runner-up of the sixth season of Mnet’s hip-hop audition program “Show Me The Money,” was just an ordinary young man spending most of his time in his ever-changing part-time jobs. But the rapper said there’s always been a flash of light that brightened up his insipid life: Scribbling down hip-hop lyrics and practicing rapping whenever and wherever he was.   Rapper Nucksal poses during a recent interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul. (Park Hyun-koo / The Korea Her

Oct. 2, 2017

Wanna One member will not miss event despite injury: agency

Despite the minor injury that spooked K-pop fans on Saturday, it will be business as usual for Wanna One’s teenage heartthrob Lee Dae-hwi.The K-pop boyband’s agency released a statement on Sunday saying that Lee’s year injury at the 2017 Fever Festival in Seoul the day before was nothing major, and that he will not miss any Wanna One-related events because of it. Lee Dae-hwi (right) poses at the 2017 Soribada Best K-Music Awards in Seoul on Sept.20 with his bandmates Ong Seong-wo (left) and Park

Oct. 1, 2017

Budokahn concert marks finale for FT Island’s Japan tour

K-pop band FT Island wrapped up its Japan tour Friday with a concert at the famed Budokan arena in Tokyo. As part of the last stage of its “FT Island Autumn Tour 2017 - Here is Paradise” tour, the five-piece band performed its hits from the past and present. The set list included its single “Paradise” released in Japan as well as songs like “Champagne,” “I Want” and “Night” from “Over 10 Years,” an album released in Korea to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the band’s debut. Lee Hong-ki, voca

Oct. 1, 2017

Twitter to live-stream KBS’ ‘Music Bank’ worldwide

K-pop fans all over the globe will be able to enjoy KBS’ music program “Music Bank,” featuring onstage performances by Korea’s pop stars, live through Twitter’s live-streaming service starting mid-October, according to Twitter. A poster shows Twitter‘s upcoming livestream service for K-pop World Festival 2017 that will be held on Friday at Changwon Sports Complex Stadium. (Twitter)Twitter said Thursday that it will provide live-streaming services both on KBS.twitter.com and its Twitter account @

Sept. 29, 2017

[Album review] IU’s classics cover album lacks raw emotion

IU“A Flower Bookmark #2”Loen Entertainment Attempting to recreate the magic of classics, this 24-year-old songstress seems to be bent on proving that she isn‘t just an idolized K-pop singer. With her latest offering “A Flower Bookmark #2,” IU aims to present herself as a thoughtful musician whose heart belongs to the bygone decades.Maybe it’s her signature breathy and light vocals, but the cover album doesn’t quite bear the weight and complicated emotions of the originals.IU flaunts her crystal

Sept. 28, 2017

Wanna One's agency to take legal action over online bullying

K-pop entertainment agency C9 said Thursday it will take legal action over vicious and sexual online comments made towards underage pop star Bae Jin-young, a member of popular idol group Wanna One."We've confirmed that malicious rumors, comments attacking his personal character and posts amounting to sexual harassment were made in several online communities towards Bae Jin-young," C9 said in a statement.The company said it sought legal counsel on the matter and decided to press charges against t

Sept. 28, 2017

BTS moved by Billboard Hot 100 entry, thanks fans for support

Members of K-pop band BTS said Wednesday they were deeply moved by their first-ever entry into the Billboard Hot 100 chart, tipping their hats off to fans for support, according to its agency Wednesday.On Tuesday, BTS' latest song "DNA" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100, the American music publication's main music chart, at 85th, backed by 5.3 million first-week US streams and 14,000 downloads."Love Yourself: Her," the EP record that holds "DNA," debuted on the Billboard 200, which tracks US albu

Sept. 27, 2017

Highlight to ‘Celebrate’ 8th anniversary

Five-piece boy band Highlight will release a mini album to celebrate its eighth anniversary.The group’s agency Around Us Entertainment announced Wednesday the release of the new EP “Celebrate” on the band’s official website. A teaser image features the hand-written title “Celebrate” alongside the members wearing black suits. According to the agency, the title reflected Highlight’s hopes to ease the regret that the group could not be with fans on its anniversary last year. A teaser image for High

Sept. 27, 2017

Super Junior to mark 12th year with album

Celebrating its 12th anniversary, global K-pop act Super Junior is set to return to the spotlight on Nov. 6, according to its agency Label SJ.The agency said Wednesday that Super Junior would release a new album that marks the first from the group since its albums “Devil” and “Magic” in 2015. A D-day logo shared on Super Junior’s website teasing the group’s return on Nov. 6 (Label SJl)Super Junior also set a D-day countdown clock on its official website that shows the logo “SJ returns” with the

Sept. 27, 2017

G-Dragon kicks off Europe tour with UK concert

G-Dragon excited fans gathered in Birmingham and London this weekend, kicking off his first European tour.The K-pop superstar held concerts at Genting Arena and The SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, according to YG Entertainment. The Wembley Arena concert was like a blast from the past for the artist who had performed at the iconic venue with Big Bang in 2012. Sunday’s concert also marked the first time for G-Dragon to perform in London as a solo artist.G-Dragon performs a

Sept. 26, 2017