Most Popular
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Ador CEO denies allegations, accuses Hybe of mistreating NewJeans
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Korea’s homegrown nanosatellite successfully launches into space
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[Herald Interview] 'Amid aging population, Korea to invite more young professionals from overseas'
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Nicaragua shuts down Seoul embassy
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Medical reform committee kicks off despite boycott from doctors
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Hybe's multilabel system tested amid conflict with Ador
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SNU profs to suspend treatment for one day
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Rocket engine expert, ex-NASA exec to lead Korea's new space agency
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Over-50s, men, single-person households take up majority of those filing for bankruptcy
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SK hynix pledges W20tr to ramp up DRAM production at home
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BTS Army accuse Hybe of exploiting fandom in business expansion
K-pop has grown into a mega-sized industry with local acts becoming household names worldwide that are supported by fans from all over the globe. While the local agencies behind the artists have all expanded their businesses, Hybe, the K-pop powerhouse behind boy band BTS, is at the fore. But BTS Army, the global fan base of the K-pop sensation, has recently expressed its anger with the entertainment firm for its aggressive expansion. Many fans are complaining that the agency is bent on making
K-popJan. 4, 2022
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Winter album sets new sales record for S.M. seasonal releases
S.M. Entertainment’s special winter album has made a successful return after a 10 year break, racking up highest sales among all seasonal project releases from the K-pop powerhouse. According to S.M., the album, “2021 Winter SMTown: SMCU Express,” has notched up over 416,000 units since its release on Dec. 27. The star-studded album from SMTOWN -- which refers to the collective of artists affiliated to S.M. -- was the first special winter release since the release of “2
K-popJan. 4, 2022
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More BTS members released from COVID-19 isolation
Two more members of the K-pop supergroup BTS -- RM and Jin -- were confirmed to have fully recovered from the new coronavirus and released from isolation Tuesday after Suga, their agency said. "Members RM and Jin were released from isolation at noon as they were confirmed to have been fully recovered from COVID-19," Big Hit Music said. "The two showed no serious symptoms of the virus during the isolation period," it added. "Jin had mild symptoms, such as a mild fever a
K-popJan. 4, 2022
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‘Girls Planet 999’ project group Kep1er makes big ‘First Impression’
Multinational girl group Kepler, stylized as Kep1er, made a splash debut with EP “First Impression” on Monday. Comprising nine members from Korea, China and Japan, the group consists of the final winners of Mnet’s idol competition program “Girls Planet 999.” The show was aired between August-October 2021. A project group launched under Swing Entertainment, Kep1er is set to stay active for 2 1/2 years before disbanding. The group conducted an online media showcase
K-popJan. 3, 2022
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P1Harmony ready to make 2022 their year with ‘Do It Like This’
Boy band P1Harmony opened the door to a January music craze with their 3rd LP, “Disharmony: Find Out,” released Monday evening, returning in nearly eight months since their previous release. In a press conference on Monday, the band said “Find Out” is a follow-up to their previous album – “Disharmony: Stand Out” and “Disharmony: Break Out,” released in 2020 and last April, respectively, and is the last series of its “Disharmony”
K-popJan. 3, 2022
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[Today’s K-pop] Kep1er debuts with 1m followers on TikTok
Girl group Kep1er hosted an online showcase to signal its debut Monday. The nine members of the band were chosen through a competition that started with 99 candidates from China, Japan and Korea. The program wrapped up in October and the band was originally set to debut last month, but that was postponed as two members tested positive for COVID-19 while preparing. “I’m so excited and happy that I am making a debut that I’ve been only dreaming about,” gu
K-popJan. 3, 2022
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BTS' Suga fully recovers from COVID-19, released from isolation
Suga of K-pop supergroup BTS has fully recovered from the new coronavirus and been released from isolation, his agency said Monday. "Suga was released from isolation at noon as he was confirmed to have fully recovered from COVID-19," Big Hit Music said on the agency's fan community platform Weverse. The rapper tested positive for the virus on Dec. 24 after returning home the previous day from Los Angeles, where the group had large-scale live concerts between late November and early D
K-popJan. 3, 2022
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S.M. Entertainment launches digital passport membership for fans
K-pop powerhouse S.M. Entertainment has launched the Music Nation SMTown Meta-passport, a digital passport membership for fans, the company said Monday. The digital passport membership is a new version of identification issued by the entertainment firm to the “citizens” of SMTown Virtual Nation in August 2012. The new digital passport membership can be used to identify as a virtual Music Nation citizen. Music Nation SMTown was established nearly a decade ago to integrate the agenc
K-popJan. 3, 2022
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[Herald Review] From Seventeen to Justin Bieber, Hybe artists open new year with ‘2022 Weverse Con’
Global music powerhouse Hybe honored Korean pop legend Seo Taiji while looking ahead to the future at its year-end “2022 Weverse Con (New Era)” concert. Taking place Friday night at the Korea International Exhibition Center in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, the concert was held in front of a live audience and livestreamed through the agency’s fan community platform Weverse. The lineup included artists from the multi-label music giant, including groups Seventeen, Tomorrow X Togeth
K-popJan. 2, 2022
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[Today’s K-pop] The Boyz’ New shares 1st self-written song
New of The Boyz put out his first self-written song “0329 from.24,” said agency IST Entertainment Friday. Through the song the idol singer expressed his gratitude for the love he has received from fans and wrote a letter before the release of the song to elaborate. “There have been many times I was lonely and sad but thanks to you I could be a happy 24-year-old. I made this song hoping that The B could get what little consolation whenever you are overwhelmed b
K-popDec. 31, 2021
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S.M. Entertainment launches streaming platform Beyond Live
K-pop powerhouse S.M. Entertainment has launched Beyond Live, an online-only streaming platform for concerts, the company said Friday. The announcement came ahead of the entertainment firm’s “SMTOWN LIVE 2022 : SMCU EXPRESS@KWANGYA,” a free online concert slated for Saturday. The online streaming platform, operated under Beyond Live Corp., was jointly created last year by South Korea’s largest web portal operator, Naver, and S.M. Entertainment. It is currently a subsidi
K-popDec. 31, 2021
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BoA, Girls’ Generation, Red Velvet and aespa team up for ‘GOT the beat’
On Monday, K-pop powerhouse S.M. Entertainment unveiled its plans to augment its musical portfolio by launching a new seven-member female unit called “GOT the beat.” GOT the beat is the first subunit that marks the beginning of the label’s “Girls On Top” project aimed at bringing together the different voices of female artists. The new project group is a rotational unit, so fans can expect a different lineup of singers for the group’s other songs. The co
K-popDec. 31, 2021
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BTS' J-hope donates W100m for children in need amid pandemic
J-hope, a member of K-pop superband BTS, donated 100 million won ($84,000) Friday for children suffering economic hardships amid the protracted COVID-19 pandemic, a charity group said. According to ChildFund Korea, J-hope expressed hope that his donation will be used to help children in need have a warm winter. "I was concerned for children who would be spending a cold and lonely holiday season due to economic hardships from the COVID-19 pandemic," J-hope said. The donation will be
K-popDec. 31, 2021
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[Today’s K-pop] Blackpink’s Lisa sets record on Spotify with solo song
Lisa of Blackpink generated 300 million streams on Spotify with her solo song, “Money,” in 112 days, the shortest time for a K-pop solo musician, according to label YG Entertainment. The song, which ranked No. 93 on Billboard’s Hot 100 when it came out, is from her solo debut album, “Lalisa.” It also topped iTunes’ top songs chart in 72 regions. Last month, the performance video for “Money” surpassed 300 million views on YouTube
K-popDec. 30, 2021
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[Herald Interview] Jo Gwangil blazes fast raps to express emotions in his heart
When hip-hop music made its way into the limelight in Korea, little did listeners know that the blossoming genre would become a musical staple. The east-meets-street style beats and rapping styles are leading trendsetters here and have built their own culture. And now, rapper Jo Gwangil is a new face in the hip-hop roster among a strong batch of talents. ‘Show Me The Money 10’ as road to Damascus First launched in 2012, “Show Me The Money” is an audition program
K-popDec. 30, 2021
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[Today’s K-pop] SM’s project unit teaser features Hyoyeon, Wendy, Karina
SM Entertainment floated teaser photographs for its supergroup project Girls on Top, Wednesday. The first unit -- GOT the beat -- focuses on dance and performance, and the photographs that came out on the day featured three from the seven leading female artists: Girls’ Generation’s Hyoyeon, Wendy of Red Velvet and Karina of aespa. Also on board are BoA, Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon, Seulgi of Red Velvet and Winter of aespa. On Tuesday, BoA shared photos
K-popDec. 29, 2021
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[Herald Interview] Boy band B.I.G aims to deliver message of hope through ‘Flashback’
K-Pop boy band B.I.G has returned after a two-year hiatus with its single “Mr. Big: Flashback” in November. Unlike the band’s previous hits “Hello,” “Are You Ready?” “Taola” and “Aphrodite” feature rhythmical sounds, the title track “Flashback” focuses on hopeful lyrics. “‘Flashback’ is a trendy upbeat EDM-based house genre song. The lyrics are not only filled with our story but also contain a messa
K-popDec. 29, 2021
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[Today’s K-pop] BTS’ Suga reassures fans
Suga of BTS assured fans that he is OK. He wrote “I am very much all right! Don’t worry too much” on Weverse, a platform for artist-to-fan communications for Hybe musicians, Monday. The artist returned to Korea from the US on Thursday and started a 10-day self-quarantine. The test result for COVID-19 came back positive the following day. Separately, RM and Jin were also found to have contracted the virus, Saturday. All three bandmates came back to K
K-popDec. 28, 2021
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[Herald Review] Twice ends 2021 with first in-person concert in two years
K-pop girl group Twice greeted fans in person for the first time in 2 1/2 years through their concert “Twice 4th World Tour ‘Ⅲ’” last week. The two-day event took place on Saturday and Sunday at KSPO Dome at Olympic Park in southern Seoul. This was the group’s first offline concert since May 2019, and their first since the pandemic hit the entertainment industry. One member, Jeongyeon, was absent during the shows due to health issues. This was her third time
K-popDec. 27, 2021
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[Video] We tracked down BTS Super Tuna with tuna experts and this is what happened
We embarked on our journey to look for Super Tuna and guess what we found? Join us! By Team Konnect Kim Min-jung (minjung.kim@heraldcorp.com) Jung Ji-eun (jungje@heraldcorp.com) Choi Jeong-yoon (jychoi@heraldcorp.com) Kim Jeong-ryul (ryul@heraldcorp.com)
K-popDec. 27, 2021