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Pyo Kyung-min

Korea Times K-Culture Reporter

Stay tuned for Pyo Kyung-min's latest K-pop stories, where she digs into the backstories that matter. She’d love to hear from you — share your thoughts at pzzang@koreatimes.co.kr. After all, every article gets better with insights from those who love the scene, just like she does!

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K-pop

ENHYPEN's Heeseung announces departure from group

Heeseung of K-pop boy band ENHYPEN will leave the group, his agency Belift Lab announced Tuesday. In a statement posted on fan platform Weverse, the company said it had held extensive discussions with the members about the group’s future direction and goals. “Through deep conversations about each member’s vision for the future and the team’s direction, we confirmed that Heeseung has a clear musical path he wishes to pursue,” the agency said. “After careful consideration, we decided to respect his aspirations.” The HYBE Labels subsidiary said the 24-year-old singer will depart the group and ENHYPEN will continue activities as a six-member act during its upcoming promotional schedule. “Although it is difficult to explain every detail in a short statement, we want to emphasize that this decision was made after a long period of deliberation,” the company said. “We understand that this news may be difficult for fans to accept, but we hope you will understand that it was made with the future of both ENHYPEN and Heeseung in mind.” Belift Lab added that ENHYPEN would continu

Mar 10, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
ENHYPEN's Heeseung announces departure from group
  • What Heeseung's exit means for ENHYPEN, fans
K-pop

RIIZE ends 1st world tour with high-voltage Seoul finale

K-pop boy band RIIZE ended its first world tour the way every rising group dreams of — loud, confident and fully in command of the stage. At the finale concert of its "RIIZING LOUD" tour at KSPO Dome in Seoul's Songpa District Sunday, the six-member act delivered a two-and-a-half-hour performance that showcased a level of cohesion that felt striking for a group still early in its career. With relentless choreography, polished live vocals and production that rarely slowed for breath, RIIZE turned the final stop of the tour into a convincing case for why the group is worth following. The Sunday performance marked the third and final night of the Seoul concerts, wrapping up a global tour that drew roughly 420,000 fans across 21 cities. The group also performed at Tokyo Dome in February — a milestone venue for any K-pop act — just two years and five months after debut, setting a record for the fastest entry to the venue by a K-pop boy band. The Seoul finale reflected the group's rising momentum. All available seats sold out, filling the arena with roughly 32,000 fans across three nights

Mar 9, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
RIIZE ends 1st world tour with high-voltage Seoul finale
K-pop

BLACKPINK's Jennie celebrates 'Ruby' anniversary with Seoul pop-up

Jennie of K-pop girl group BLACKPINK is celebrating the first anniversary of her debut solo album, "Ruby," with a pop-up store in Seoul. According to her agency ODD ATELIER, Jennie opened the pop-up "A Year in Ruby" on Thursday at The Hyundai Seoul in Yeouido, one of the capital’s busiest retail complexes. The pop-up will run through Wednesday. The exhibition revisits the year since "Ruby" was released in March 2025, offering fans a chance to experience the album’s visual world in person. It features a range of official merchandise originally released alongside "Ruby," including items that had not previously been available in Korea. They include T-shirts, socks, beanies, crewnecks, hoodies and other apparel, as well as accessories such as key chains, cups and physical albums. Accoridng to visitors, anniversary content has also been displayed across the department store. A celebratory video marking the album’s one-year milestone is screened on the venue’s large digital display, while additional themed installations appear throughout the building. Several costumes worn by the singer

Mar 8, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
BLACKPINK's Jennie celebrates 'Ruby' anniversary with Seoul pop-up
K-pop

At 30, YG Entertainment looks ahead with BIGBANG return, new debuts

YG Entertainment is preparing a slate of major projects as it marks its 30th anniversary in 2026, signaling both a return to legacy acts and a push toward the next generation of K-pop. In a video titled “2026 YG PLAN | YG ANNOUNCEMENT” released through the company’s official social media channel Wednesday, executive producer Yang Hyun-suk outlined the label’s upcoming activities. The most notable reveal was the return of K-pop boy band BIGBANG. Marking its 20th debut anniversary this year, the group has agreed to hold concerts with YG, according to Yang. Although the three remaining members — G-Dragon, Taeyang and Daesung — are currently signed to different agencies, they plan to reunite under the BIGBANG name for the performances. YG also confirmed plans for intensified activities from its current roster. Rookie girl group BABYMONSTER is set to release two albums this year alongside a large-scale world tour, while boy band TREASURE will launch the next phase of its career with a mini album in June. Yang said the group would return with a sound rooted in what he described as

Mar 5, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
At 30, YG Entertainment looks ahead with BIGBANG return, new debuts
K-pop

Female producers redefine K-pop’s creative blueprint

International Women's Day arrives each March 8 with the usual flood of tributes. In K-pop, the more interesting story is what has been quietly changing the other 364 days of the year. The industry's power structure was, for a long time, easy to describe. While men and women equally shared the spotlight on stage as idols, the creative and managerial authority behind the scenes largely remained in the hands of men. For decades, the industry’s defining architects were figures such as SM Entertainment producer Lee Soo-man, JYP Entertainment founder Park Jin-young and YG Entertainment’s Yang Hyun-suk, later joined by HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk — producers whose creative direction and corporate leadership helped shape the modern K-pop system. In recent years, however, that balance has begun to shift. A growing number of women producers are stepping into roles that extend far beyond contributing songs or onstage choreography. Increasingly, they oversee narrative direction, overall aesthetics, branding and marketing strategy, shaping not only individual artists or groups but also the broad

Mar 5, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
Female producers redefine K-pop’s creative blueprint
Music

Rapper Changmo to bring hip-hop to Sejong Center stage with orchestral concert

Rapper Changmo will bring hip-hop to one of Seoul's most prominent classical stages this spring, marking an unusual crossover between genres long associated with different cultural spaces. The artist is set to perform "CHANGMO: The Emperor," part of the 2026 Sejong Concert Series, at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts' Grand Theater on May 9 and 10. The roughly 3,000-seat venue, traditionally home to classical performances, will host a large-scale concert combining rap with a live orchestra. Speaking at a press conference held Wednesday at the Sejong Center in central Seoul's Jongno District, Changmo said performing at the venue carried personal significance. "I never imagined the name 'Sejong Center for the Performing Arts' would appear in my career," he said. "When I was young, I played piano and once dreamed about performing in a place like this. After that dream fell apart, I moved on and focused on hip-hop. To return here feels like a great honor." The concert will unfold in four narrative chapters designed to merge classical and hip-hop elements. The opening section, "The Dre

Mar 4, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
Rapper Changmo to bring hip-hop to Sejong Center stage with orchestral concert
K-pop

World's 1st deaf K-pop act Big Ocean turns prejudice into power in 'The Greatest Battle'

The world’s first deaf idol group, Big Ocean, returned Tuesday with its third mini album, “THE GREATEST BATTLE,” a release that channels the group’s experience of perseverance into its most intense statement yet. While earlier Big Ocean releases leaned into brightness and hope, “THE GREATEST BATTLE” sharpens its tone. The group embraces a more restrained, powerful atmosphere that reflects the realities they have faced as a K-pop group with hearing impairments. At a media showcase at the Showking K-pop Center in Seoul's Mapo District Tuesday, members PJ, Chanyeon and Jiseok unveiled the new performances and shared the meaning behind the new project. “The theme of this album is a great battle won after a difficult fight,” Jiseok said. “We have lived fiercely while fighting prejudice against our disability. But it’s not just us. Everyone is fighting their own battles. We wanted to send support to all of them.” The album features a total of eight tracks, including double title songs “One Man Army” and “Cold Moon,” B-sides “Alive” and “Back,” and instrume

Mar 3, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
World's 1st deaf K-pop act Big Ocean turns prejudice into power in 'The Greatest Battle'
K-pop

K-pop Report Card What landed, what didn't and what to skip from Jan.-Feb.

K-pop wasted little time setting the tone for 2026. January and February arrived packed with heavyweight comebacks from the genre's biggest names alongside ambitious debuts from new acts eager to claim their place. LNGSHOT — "Moonwalkin'" from "SHOT CALLERS," released Jan. 13 Verdict: Surprisingly good While the rookie boy band's predebut release, "Saucin'," made it easy to assume that LNGSHOT would fall neatly into a hip-hop rivalry narrative with HYBE Labels' CORTIS, “Moonwalkin’,” the official title track of the four-member band's debut album "SHOT CALLERS," arrived and quietly refused that storyline. Where CORTIS leans playful, LNGSHOT chooses a more grounded, groove-heavy lane, almost like rookies deciding they would rather age well than trend fast. Handling accessible R&B and hip-hop without sounding like an industry plant is harder than it looks, and the group clears that bar with ease. There are also obvious nods to pop icons Michael Jackson, Destiny’s Child and even early Justin Bieber, especially in one member’s vocal tone that feels tailor-made for global pop ears.

Feb 28, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
[K-pop Report Card] What landed, what didn't and what to skip from Jan.-Feb.
People & Events

The Korea Times appoints students from 34 countries as global supporters

The Korea Times officially launched the fourth cohort of its Global Supporters program Friday, welcoming 50 students from 34 countries to serve as ambassadors for the English-language daily over the next six months. More than 150 applicants competed for spots in this year's program, reflecting growing interest in the initiative. The final group represents a wide geographic spectrum, including Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, India, Korea, Russia, the Philippines, Kazakhstan, China, Myanmar, Germany, Australia, Finland, Tanzania, Kyrgyzstan, Colombia, Canada, Cambodia, Cameroon, Japan, Iran, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, El Salvador, Argentina, Armenia, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Belarus, Bangladesh, the United States, Mongolia, Romania and Nepal. The participants bring diverse levels of experience in Korea. Some have lived in the country for just two months as newly arrived international students, while others have resided here for more than a decade. Korean nationals are also part of the cohort. Running until August, the six-month initiative aims to strengthen the paper's global engagement by le

Feb 27, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
The Korea Times appoints students from 34 countries as global supporters
K-pop

BLACKPINK turns Korea’s flagship museum pink for ‘DEADLINE’ comeback

The National Museum of Korea (NMK) is designed to protect and showcase centuries of the nation's history. For nearly two weeks, its monumental “Path of History” is doing something else entirely: pulsing to the beats of K-pop icon BLACKPINK's new release. Ahead of the girl group's third mini-album "DEADLINE," which drops Friday at 2 p.m., BLACKPINK partnered with the country's flagship museum for a special project running through March 8. The collaboration opened with a prerelease listening event held inside the museum's main ground floor atrium, Thursday, marking the first time the institution has allowed its symbolic central space to be used for a K-pop partnership. Beneath an eight-meter digital rendering of the Gwanggaeto Stele, a towering monument commemorating the Goruryeo era's (37 BCE-668 CE) King Gwanggaeto the Great, guests formed a loose but eager circle as the album's five new tracks filled the vast hall. From the viral prerelease single "JUMP" to its widely-anticipated title track "GO," the music reverberated against stone and glass surfaces more accustomed to the quiet

Feb 27, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
BLACKPINK turns Korea’s flagship museum pink for ‘DEADLINE’ comeback
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