BTS member Suga to begin military service on Friday

Suga, a member of the K-pop sensation BTS, will begin his mandatory military service this week, his agency announced Sunday. BigHit Music said Suga, 30, will fulfill his military duty by doing an alternative service beginning Friday. Suga will be the third member of the group to join the military. Jin enlisted in December 2022, and J-Hope followed suit in April this year. In early August, Suga, rapper and producer for the group, withdrew his request to delay the start of his mandatory service. U

K-popSept. 17, 2023

KCON to hit Saudi Arabia on Oct. 6-7

The world's biggest Korean culture festival KCON is set to take place in Saudi Arabia next month, CJ ENM said Friday. KCON will take place on Oct. 6-7 in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh, the second KCON to happen in the Middle Eastern country, organizer CJ ENM said in a statement. K-pop stars set to perform at the two-day concert are Everglow, Highlight, Hyolyn, Kard, Riize, Super Junior D&E (Donghae and Eunhyuk) and 8Turn on Oct. 6 and Dreamcatcher, El7z Up, Evnne, Oh My Girl, Supe

K-popSept. 15, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] Stray Kids tops Oricon chart with 1st Japan EP

Stray Kids landed atop Oricon’s weekly album ranking with its first EP in Japan, according to label JYP Entertainment on Friday. The EP “Social Path (feat. LiSA) / Super Bowl - Japanese ver.” has stayed atop the chart's daily album ranking for six days in a row. The mini album logged over 500,000 shipments on the day of its release after receiving 500,000 pre-orders, a first for a fourth-generation K-pop group in the country. Separately, the eight-piece band hit the 100-millio

K-popSept. 15, 2023

Enhypen wraps up dome tour with historic Tokyo Dome debut

Seven-piece boy Enhypen has made its mark in K-pop history with its Tokyo Dome concerts that ended Thursday. Marking the grand finale of the band's "Fate" world tour in Japan, Enhypen held concerts over Wednesday and Thursday at Tokyo Dome, located in the country's capital city. Enhypen's Jungwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo and Ni-Ki performed a total of 26 songs over the 200-minute run on both nights, according to their agency Belift Lab on Friday. Blasting ou

K-popSept. 15, 2023

V of BTS tops solo album sales in Korea

V's "Layover" is the bestselling solo album in South Korea. Hanteo Chart, one of the biggest music sales trackers here, on Friday announced the BTS member's solo record tallied sales of 2,101,974 copies as of Thursday, marking the highest first-week album sales by a K-pop solo album and the 10th highest among all Korean albums. This is the first time that any solo artist's album has racked up over 2 million in sales in its first week. The latest feat extends the singer&#

K-popSept. 15, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] Mamamoo’s Wheein to return next month: report

    Wheein of Mamamoo will return as a solo act, according to a local media report on Thursday. She is set to bring out a new album on Oct. 12, about 21 months since her second solo EP “Whee.” The six-track mini album topped iTunes top albums charts in 18 regions and she came in first place in a TV music chart show for the first time on her own with “Make Me Happy,” the main track from the EP. The songstress debuted as a member of Mamamoo in 2014 and has re

K-popSept. 14, 2023

The changing face of K-pop: foreign artists introduce their own K-pop music

K-pop groups composed entirely of non-Koreans created by Korean labels are expanding the K-pop spectrum. XG, a K-pop girl group consisting only of Japanese nationals formed by a Korean label XGALX, and Horizon, a K-pop boy group made up of Philippine members by MLD Entertainment, are successful examples of foreign artists garnering popularity in Korea and abroad through K-pop music. XG is a seven-member group that debuted in Korea in March last year with the single “Tippy Toes.” The

K-popSept. 14, 2023

Stray Kids to hit Gocheok Sky Dome in October

Boy band Stray Kids is headed to Gocheok Sky Dome, one of the nation's biggest and most coveted concert venues to perform in. The band's agency JYP Entertainment on Thursday announced Stray Kids will hold a two-day concert at Gocheok Sky Dome Oct. 21-22. It has taken Stray Kids five years to make it to performing at Gocheok Sky Dome, where many top singers from Korea and overseas have performed. The gig, titled "Stray Kids 5-Star Dome Tour 2023 Seoul Special Unveil 13," comes

K-popSept. 14, 2023

[Herald Interview] Lee Jin-ah sings of emotions of city life with 'Hearts of the City'

While big cities bustle with energy and ambition during the day, at night, behind all the glitz and buzz, a tinge of uncertainty lingers. The city is where the singer-songwriter Lee Jin-ah explored the depths of her imagination over the past five years, delving into the different feelings a city harbors as its inhabitants try to endure and live their lives. Lee's new album, "Hearts of the City," taps straight into the hearts of the people. Through her new album, an extensive packa

K-popSept. 13, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] BTS’ V sweeps Oricon chart with solo music

V of BTS placed his first solo album “Layover” atop the Oricon weekly digital album chart published Wednesday. The six-track EP was rolled out last week, with “Slow Dancing” from the album also topping Oricon's daily digital single ranking. The EP sold over 1.67 million copies on the day of release, breaking the first-week sales record for a K-pop release in a single day. This dethrones bandmate Jimin’s solo album “Face,” which shifted 1.45 million copi

K-popSept. 13, 2023

Rookie boy band Pow counts down to debut with single 'Favorite'

Pow, a new multinational boy band, is setting forth on its journey with "Favorite." The quintet dropped the single, which comes ahead of the band's upcoming official debut set for Oct. 11. Set to debut under novice local label Grid, the quintet on Wednesday marked the start of its start with pre-debut single "Favorite." Members Jungbin, Yorch, Hong, Dongyeon and Hyunbin held a press conference in Seoul, introducing themselves to the world. "We're excited and ne

K-popSept. 13, 2023

Stray Kids win for best K-pop, TXT wins for best 'Push' performance at VMAs

Stray Kids took home the award for best K-pop at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards for its latest single “S-Class," on Tuesday. “We’ve been making music ever since the start of our career, but to receive this award just really means a lot to us,” said Bang Chan of Stray Kids on the stage to receive the award at the event in Newark, New Jersey. “We want to thank our fans for being so supportive. We have so much to show you guys so please look forward to us in the

K-popSept. 13, 2023

V unveils melancholic black-and-white 'Blue' music video

V of BTS on Wednesday released the music video for "Blue," a track from his first solo album “Layover.” This marks the fourth music video of a song on the new album. The music video was filmed in black-and-white to portray a profound melancholic mood throughout the clip, according to Big Hit Music. At the beginning of the music video, V appears talking on the phone with a worried face while driving. He then wanders around desperately looking for someone. “Blue”

K-popSept. 13, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] Seventeen adds 3 cities to Asia tour

    Seventeen expanded its Asia tour, adding three more cities to the itinerary, announced agency Pledis Entertainment Tuesday. It will visit Bangkok, Thailand on Dec. 23, Bulacan, the Philippines on Jan. 13, 2024 and Macao Jan. 20-21, expanding the tour -- “‘Follow’ to Asia” -- to nine cities and 18 concerts. The 13 members kicked off the tour in Seoul on July 21 and went live at Tokyo Dome last week drawing about 100,000 audience members in two days. Seun

K-popSept. 12, 2023

Kara's Hur Young-ji cheers 'Toi Toi Toi' on her new solo journey

Hur Young-ji of Kara launched her solo career on Tuesday with single "Toi Toi Toi." Hur's solo debut comes nine years after she started her singing career as a member of popular girl group Kara in 2014. "Toi Toi Toi," a German expression wishing luck to performing artists, was suggested by her sister, Hur said. "It's like 'fighting!' (in Korean). My sister recommended it after hearing all three songs and it sounded like a perfect match. With the singl

K-popSept. 12, 2023

Tomorrow X Together to perform with Brazilian pop artist Anitta at 2023 MTV VMAs

K-pop boy group Tomorrow X Together will perform its new single, “Back for More,” with the Brazilian pop artist Anitta at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards this Wednesday. “Back for More” is one of the singles in the group’s upcoming third LP, “The Name Chapter: Freefall,” which is scheduled to drop on Oct. 13. The single will be performed for the first time on stage at the award ceremony. “We think performing at an award ceremony in which many music

K-popSept. 12, 2023

Twice embarks on first Europe tour

K-pop girl group Twice has set off on a tour in Europe for the first time since its debut. Their first stop in Europe was London for a two-day concert last week, which was part of its fifth world tour, “Ready to Be.” The next concert was held in Paris on Monday. The set list for this year’s world tour includes mega-hit singles such as “Set Me Free,” which landed at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, “Alcohol-Free,” “Talk that Talk,” and English song

K-popSept. 12, 2023

[Herald Review] 'It's 2PM' a throwback to boy band's golden era

Ear-splitting screams burst out the instant the iconic opening beats of "Again and Again" raised the curtains on boy band 2PM's concert in Seoul on Sunday. Blue laser beams flashed to the beat of the song that turned into a heart-pounding medley of the band's greatest hits. Even those who are not fervent fans of 2PM would recognize every part of the medley, as it thread through songs that had reigned the local music charts in the late 2000s to early 2010s. Sunday's gig a

K-popSept. 11, 2023

[Today’s K-pop] NCT127 to host showcase for 5th LP

  NCT127 will hold a showcase on Oct. 6 to introduce its fifth studio album “Fact Check,” announced label SM Entertainment on Monday. The showcase, dubbed “A Night of Festival,” will be held in Seoul on the day of release and will be broadcast live across the world through its YouTube channel. The band will perform the lead single of the same title for the first time and share episodes from putting together the album as well as its plans to promote the album. The nin

K-popSept. 11, 2023

Treasure to release Japanese versions of ‘Bona Bona’ and ‘Move’

YG’s boy group Treasure is set to release Japanese versions of “Bona Bona,” the title track of its latest LP, and “Move,” the single of the group’s first unit, T5. The group announced the release during its fan meeting held in Kobe, Japan, from Friday to Sunday. Treasure performed the Japanese versions of these tracks at the fan meeting. The group is currently on its Japan fan meet tour, “Hello Again,” which began on Sep. 1 in Fukuoka to meet with

K-popSept. 11, 2023