The Korea Times

Jay Park to launch first solo world tour

By Park Jin-haiJay Park/ YonhapRapper Jay Park, a hip-hop icon who has been pursuing his career in Asia and the U.S., will kick off his first solo world tour 11 years after his music debut.Starting in Seoul with concerts on July 6 and 7, Park will launch the “Jay Park 2019 Sexy 4 Eva World Tour,” named after a song on his 2018 EP “Ask Bout Me.”The Korean American musician, 32, debuted as a member of boy band 2PM in 2008, under JYP Entertainment, after four years of training. But he left the band amid controversy and returned to his Seattle home in 2009 to seek his own musical styles.Park is the first Asian artist to sign a contract with American label Roc Nation, home to world-recognized artists including Rihanna, Mariah Carey and DJ Khaled.Park, founder and CEO of independent hip-hop label AOMG, first rose to stardom in Asia and has been experimenting with fresh ideas in the local music scene. Last year, marking his 10th anniversary as a singer, Park held two solo concerts titled “All of Me.” Each day he performed different music genres ― the firs

May 17, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Jay Park to launch first solo world tour

Films

Song Kang-ho wins 'Excellence' award in Switzerland

Song Kang-ho/ Courtesy of ShowboxBy Park Jin-haiVeteran actor Song Kang-ho became the first Asian actor to win the Excellence Award at the Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland. Referring to Song as an “eclectic, versatile, graceful actor, who has been able to conquer South Korean cinema and then access the world of international stardom,” the film festival announced Thursday that the 52-year-old Korean actor will receive the award during the annual film festival, which will be held from Aug.7 to 17.“The Locarno Film Festival's Excellence Award goes to actors who have followed significant, courageous paths. Thus far the recipients have all been American or European, but for me it was important to open up this prize to Asian cinema,” said Lili Hinstin, artistic director of the festival in a statement. The Excellence Award is given to personalities who, through their work and talent, have enriched cinema. Past winners include Ethan Hawke, Isabelle Huppert, Edward Norton and Juliette Binoche. “Song might not be a household name for audiences in

May 17, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Song Kang-ho wins 'Excellence' award in Switzerland

Films

Kim Ki-duk to unveil new film in Cannes

By Park Jin-haiKim Ki-duk. Courtesy of Kim Ki Duk FilmFilmmaker Kim Ki-duk, who has been in the hot seat for allegedly sexually harassing and assaulting actresses, will unveil his newest film at Cannes Film Festival. The film, whose title and details have yet to be disclosed, is known to be a 72-minute-long drama created by Kim Ki Duk Film. It will be screened to buyers, film critics and journalists at the Cannes Film Market sometime between May 15 and 16. It has been rumored that Kim's latest film was shot at a resort city in Kazakhstan. The award-winning director, who won a Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival for “Pieta” in 2012 and a Silver Lion for Best Director at the 61st Venice International Film Festival for “3-Iron” in 2004, fell from grace last year, after several actresses accused him of sexually assaulting them while filming. But the court in January dismissed the sexual assault charges over lack of evidence. Kim followed up seeking false accusation and defamation suits against the accusers including MBC's investigative TV show &l

May 15, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Shows & Dramas

'Voice 3,' 'Save Me 2' kick off with good starts

By Park Jin-haiOCN drama "Voice 3" / Courtesy of CJ ENMTwo popular TV thrillers “Voice” and “Save Me,” which returned with new seasons last week, both kicked off with good starts. They succeeded in garnering high ratings and attention from drama fans with their first two episodes. OCN's weekend crime thriller “Voice 3,” tells the story of a 112 emergency call center and its dispatch team, and the cable network's Wed-Thurs drama series “Save Me 2,” features a religious cult. The dramas were ranked sixth and seventh, respectively, in last week's Content Power Index rankings, released by CJ E&M and Nielsen Korea. The index reveals TV shows' overall popularity and influence based on searches and social media buzz.“Voice 3,” starring Lee Ha-na as a policewoman gifted with perfect hearing analysis skills, and Lee Jin-wook, as her team leader, came back to the small screen just eight months after its second season. The new season's first episode, where two young female tourists were lured to hotel run by a hammer wielding psych

May 15, 2019By Park Jin-hai

'Voice 3,' 'Save Me 2' kick off with good starts

Films

Korean films ready to strike back on Avengers

A scene from the film "“Inseparable Bros." Courtesy of NEWBy Park Jin-hai As the box-office smash “Avengers: Endgame” enters its third week, Korean films are set to strike back to reclaim their home turf. With the front-running comedy drama “Inseparable Bros,” premiering May 1, more Korean films, based on true stories, will be released in the coming days.“Inseparable Bros,” starring Shin Ha-kyun and Lee Kwang-soo, is a comedy telling the story of two men, one physically and the other mentally handicapped, becoming as inseparable as real brothers. Against the Hollywood blockbuster, the small-budget film ― based on a true story of two men who lived together for over a decade ― is having a meaningful box office achievement. The heartening comedy currently ranks second in the local box office, attracting 920,000 viewers as of Tuesday. On May 15, “Juror 8” and “The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil” will hit local theaters. The former film is inspired by the stories of jurors who participated in the first jury trial right after

May 8, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Korean films ready to strike back on Avengers

K-pop

Controversial trainee expelled from JYP, 'ProduceX101'

By Park Jin-haiYun Seo-binYun Byung-hui, a JYP trainee who performed under the stage name Yun Seo-bin as a top contestant of Mnet's idol survival show “ProduceX101,” has been expelled from his agency and the show, days after he was accused of having bullied his classmates during high school. In a statement released on Wednesday, JYP said “We concluded that keeping him doesn't comply with our policy, so decided to nullify the contract with trainee Yun Seo-bin, who is appearing in the music show ProduceX101… Yun is exiting the TV show.”The 20-year-old, JYP's sole participant on the show, gained attention from viewers after he finished first in the initial audition which aired on Friday. But he has fallen quickly into disgrace, following allegations that he was a high school bully. Past photos of Yun smoking and drinking in school uniform have surfaced on social media and multiple accusations of bullying and assault have been made by those who claim to have attended school with him. Some fans of the popular TV show called for him to be removed from the sho

May 8, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Controversial trainee expelled from JYP, 'ProduceX101'

Shows & Dramas

Spy thriller tells story of independence fighters

Scenes from MBC drama “Different Dreams” / Courtesy of MBCBy Park Jin-haiMBC's new blockbuster period spy thriller “Different Dreams,” focused on the life of legendary independence fighter Kim Won-bong, kicked off on Saturday. The 20 billion won-budget spy action series is designed to commemorate the centennial of the March 1 Independence Movement and establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai. The drama revolves around Kim, who organized a group of Korean independence fighters, called Uiyeoldan, at the age of 22 and led an armed resistance against the Japanese imperialists. The drama, starring Yoo Ji-tae as Kim Won-bong and Lee Yo-won as Lee Young-jin, debuted receiving fairly good ratings of over 7 percent. The first four episodes, each 30-minutes long, aired Saturday and the drama's fast-paced plot successfully encompassed various walks of life in the history of independence movement under Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945). The young, militant, patriotic members of Uiyeoldan, led by Kim Won-bong, in a secret meeting re

May 7, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Spy thriller tells story of independence fighters

K-pop

Hallyu export earned $9.5 billion in 2018

By Park Jin-haiHallyu, headed by global K-pop sensation BTS boosted the Korean economy last year by creating $9.48 billion in exports. In research titled “Report on the effect of Hallyu 2018,” issued by the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange, the total amount of exports arising from hallyu was shown to have risen 9.1 percent from 2017. Out of the total, hallyu related exports and cultural content accounted for the largest at $4.42 billion, a 2.8 percent jump from 2017. The cultural content industry included games ($3 billion), music ($430 million) and broadcasting ($410 million).However, the sales from hallyu related consumer goods and tourism was slightly down at $5 billion, a 0.5 percent decrease. Tourism products earned $1.5 billion, followed by cosmetics export with $1 billion and food export with $770 million.The organization under the wing of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism polled some 7,500 hallyu content consumers in 16 different countries and used export data. Based on the information, it provides various data including the “ha

May 3, 2019By Park Jin-hai

K-pop

TWICE 'Like OOH-AHH' MV hits 300 mil. views

A scene captured from TWICE's music video for their song “Like OOH-AHH” / Courtesy of JYP EntertainmentBy Park Jin-haiThe music video for K-pop girl group TWICE's song “Like OOH-AHH” surpassed 300 million views on YouTube, Thursday. The nine-member girl group's debut song, included on its first EP “The Story Begins,” released in October 2015, became the band's fourth music video to hit 300 million viewers. Songs “TT,” “Likey,” and “Cheer Up” previously hit the milestone on YouTube.With the song “Like OOH-AHH,” TWICE became the first K-pop girl group to have all 10 music videos from its debut garner over 100 million views each. The band's new title, “Fancy,” included in its seventh mini album, released on April 22, is getting a lot of attention from global music fans. The song, in the three days following release, recorded 50 million views. The number surpassed 74 million viewers on Friday. The band is considered one of the best-selling artists in Korea, having sold over 3.75 mill

May 3, 2019By Park Jin-hai

TWICE 'Like OOH-AHH' MV hits 300 mil. views

Shows & Dramas

'Little Drummer Girl' wins award for photography in UK

By Park Jin-haiKim Woo-hyungKim Woo-hyung, the cinematographer for the BBC television miniseries “The Little Drummer Girl,” won an award at the BAFTA TV Craft Awards 2019 for his camera work, according to movie streaming service Watch Play, Tuesday. Kim, best known for his work on the films “Assassination” (2015) and “The Front Line” (2011), received the photography and lighting award in the fiction category for the spy thriller, directed by one of Korea's most celebrated directors, Park Chan-wook.“Each time I looked through the viewfinder I was only grateful, thanks to the great director and talented actors and beautiful artwork. I was so happy when I was shooting the series,” Kim said in a statement. The adaptation of John le Carre's 1983 best-selling novel of the same name, set in the late 1970s, is a spy thriller revolving around a young, idealistic actress Charlie, played by Florence Pugh. She is recruited by the mysterious Gadi Becker, an Israeli intelligence officer, whom she is drawn to, and takes on a dangerous mission devised

May 1, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Park Jin-hai

Read more

Jay Park to launch first solo world tour

Song Kang-ho wins 'Excellence' award in Switzerland

Kim Ki-duk to unveil new film in Cannes

'Voice 3,' 'Save Me 2' kick off with good starts

Korean films ready to strike back on Avengers

Controversial trainee expelled from JYP, 'ProduceX101'

Spy thriller tells story of independence fighters

Hallyu export earned $9.5 billion in 2018

TWICE 'Like OOH-AHH' MV hits 300 mil. views

'Little Drummer Girl' wins award for photography in UK

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