Girl group KARA is to release a new album in September. DSP media, KARA’s agency, provided a glimpse of the styling for the upcoming album in a teaser image released on Monday. The black-and-white album cover shows the five members dressed in black suits, sporting dishevelled, pulled-back hairstyles. The group has deviated from their usual sexy and cute look, moving toward a more androgynous, e...

The 31-year-old actress gained popularity from the drama “Boys Over Flowers” and the film “Wonderful Radio.” She recently acted as a politician in the romantic comedy drama “All About My Romance.” The newlyweds set off for their honeymoon in the Maldives on Monday and set up home in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province. By Park Han-na ( hnpark@heraldcorp.com )

Popular actress, filmmaker, singer and artist Ku Hye-sun is to hold a solo art exhibition in Shanghai, according to her local agency YG Entertainment. The upcoming exhibition, scheduled to be held at the Korean Cultural Service Shanghai from Aug. 17 to 31, will feature some 20 artworks by Ku. The 28-year-old’s works are said to explore the themes of nostalgia and memories. On the opening day of...

K-pop group Super Junior members are becoming tour guides with their new travel book, “Super Junior’s Experience Korea NEWS+Seoul.” The two-volume guide, which will include four separate sections titled “Tasting,” “Feeling,” “Making” and “Enjoying,” is set to hit the shelves Aug. 16. For the making of the book, 10 of the group’s members traveled in pairs around Korea during different seasons. S...

Mnet, a cable music channel owned by CJ E&M, will be bringing its popular weekly music program “M Countdown” to Los Angeles later this month. Titled “M Countdown What’s Up LA,” the program will be part of the Korean culture festival “KCON 2013” that will run for two days starting on Aug. 24. The lineup for the event includes K-pop artists G-dragon, 2AM, Dynamic Duo, f(x), EXO, You Seung-woo and...

The King Sejong Center in Washington, D.C., has kicked off its annual Hallyu Camp once again this week, giving young American children the opportunity to immerse themselves in workshops and activities all revolving around traditional and pop culture. The camp is designed to give fans of Korean pop culture a more in-depth understanding of the country and its people. During the five-day program, ...

Despite debuting nearly two years ago, the members of rock trio PaperTree are still trying to make their mark on the Korean indie scene. After a recent member change, the band is now back to its original founding members ― Song Young-keun on vocals and bass, Kim Tae-hyun on guitar and Lee Ye-chan on drums. “Our name means a tree made with paper. And paper is made from trees, it is like an infini...

KOCCA program fosters alternatives to K-pop offerings

Popular actor Cha Seung-won’s son is to be investigated by police for sexual assault, Seoul Prosecutors’ Office announced on Monday. According to Seoul Prosecutors’ Office, an 18-year-old high-school girl recently filed a complaint against Noah Cha, claiming she was sexually assaulted by the 24-year-old multiple times while held captive in a property owned by his grandfather. The elder Cha offe...

Sunmi, a former member of the K-pop group Wonder Girls, has announced she will be making a comeback as a solo artist. More than three years have passed since Sunmi left the girl group in 2010 to pursue academic studies. She is still affiliated with her original agency, JYP Entertainment, which stated on Monday, “Sunmi is preparing a comeback as a solo artist. Final dates are still being worked ...

The five-member K-pop group MBLAQ is to hold an exclusive concert in Mexico City on Aug. 8. The concert titled MBLAQ Mexico 2013 will start at 8 p.m. at Mexico City’s Pepsi Center, allowing the country’s fans to see the singers in person for the first time. Arirang TV and Mexico’s biggest broadcasting company Televisa are both covering the concert. During their five-day stay in Mexico, MBLAQ w...

Yang, 24, debuted in 2009 with the group BEAST and quickly gained recognition for his vocal skills. BEAST recently released their sophomore album “Hard to Love, How to Love” with hit title track “Shadow,” stirring fans around the world. After rumors of a solo album from Yang last year, he finally released his first solo album, “The First Collage” in November 2012, selling more than 50,000 albums ...

JYJ member Kim Junsu is planning to hold an exclusive concert in Sydney, Australia on Sept. 28. The singer’s agency, C-Jes Entertainment, announced that Kim would be performing in Big Top Sydney, a multi-purpose venue capable of holding more than 3,000 people. This will be the star’s first time performing Down Under. Kim, 26, released his sophomore solo album on July 15, receiving rave reviews...

Psy has announced plans to release a new album in September. The release date has yet to be specified. Psy is currently in Los Angeles working on new tracks with songwriter Yoo Kun-hyung, who worked with the singer on megahits “Gangnam Style” and “Gentleman.” “Psy really likes some of the new songs,” his agency YG Entertainment stated, adding, “This time he will not be releasing a single but an...

Some 110,000 people attended Super Junior’s “Super Junior World Tour ― Super Show 5” in Japan’s Tokyo Dome on July 27 and 28, S.M. Entertainment said. This was the boy band’s fifth “Super Show” since their first exclusive concert in February 2008. The Tokyo Dome concert marked the 80th show for the group. Including Super Junior’s audience in Singapore for the “Super Show” on July 6, more than 1 ...