BTS' Jungkook to perform at 2022 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony Jungkook of the global K-pop sensation BTS / Courtesy of HYBEJungkook of the global K-pop sensation BTS will take the stage for the opening ceremony of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar on Nov. 20, his agency has said."Jungkook will be part of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Soundtrack and will perform at the World Cup opening ceremony. Please look forward to it," Big Hit Music said on social media Sunday.This photo shows people in Doha, Qatar, as the 2022 World Cup approaches / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukThe singer has proved his global popularity as a solo artist, not just as a BTS member, with "Left and Right," his collaborative single with American singer-songwriter Charlie Puth, making a long run on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. (Yonhap)Nov 14, 2022
BLACKPINK's 'Boombayah' video tops 1.5 bil. YouTube views The music video for K-pop girl group BLACKPINK's debut song "Boombayah" has surpassed 1.5 billion views on YouTube, the group's agency said Saturday. YG Entertainment said the video passed the milestone at about 3:50 a.m. the same day, six years after the K-pop quartet launched its debut EP album, "SQUARE ONE," in August 2016.Boombayah is one of the two songs on "SQUARE ONE," along with "Whistle." As of Saturday, three BLACKPINK videos have garnered more than 1.5 billion views, including "Ddu-du Ddu-du," "Kill This Love" and "Boombayah." (Yonhap)Nov 12, 2022
BTS' RM to debut solo album 'Indigo' on Dec. 2 RM, rapper and leader of the K-pop supergroup BTS, said Friday he will release his first official solo album, "Indigo," on Dec. 2. Korea Times fileRM, rapper and leader of the K-pop supergroup BTS, said Friday he will release his first official solo album, "Indigo," on Dec. 2. "Finally, my first album is coming thanks to you. I have been preparing for it for four years," RM wrote in entertainment agency Hybe's fan community platform Weverse. "The album is very different from my previous works, and interesting friends are included," he added. RM will be the third BTS member to release a solo album this year, following J-hope and Jin.In 2018, RM released a solo mixtape, titled "Mono," which ranked at 26th on Billboard 200 main albums chart. (Yonhap)Nov 11, 2022
BTS' Jin launches at No. 51 on Billboard Hot 100 A photo of BTS member Jin / Courtesy of Big Hit MusicJin, a vocalist of the K-pop giant BTS, has earned his first solo entry on the U.S. Billboard's main songs chart for his first individual release, "The Astronaut."The single debuted at No. 51 on the Hot 100 with 4.9 million U.S. streams and 44,000 downloads sold in the first week of its release, Billboard said Tuesday (U.S. time).The song also reached 10th on the Billboard Global 200 and sixth on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts, while debuting atop the Digital Song Sales and the World Digital Song Sales charts. It began at 58th on the Canadian Hot 100."The Astronaut" is a pop-rock genre song co-written by Coldplay, with the British band also playing on the recording. Jin participated in writing the lyrics, expressing his affection for Army, the global fandom of the K-pop septet. A concept photo of BTS member Jin for "The Astronaut" / Courtesy of Big Hit MusicJin's deeply sentimental voice accompanied by a calming sound of acoustic guitar and gradual build-up of synth sound creates the mysterious and dreamy mood of the song.ANov 9, 2022
2 members of TREASURE leave group Members of K-pop boy band TREASURE pose in this February photo. Two of them, Mashiho and Bang Ye-dam, have left the group, according to its agency, YG Entertainment, Tuesday. YG EntertainmentBy Kim RahnK-pop act TREASURE has been reborn as a 10-member act, with two members leaving the group. The boy group's agency, YG Entertainment, said Tuesday that TREASURE, which debuted in 2020 as a 12-member group, will continue its activities with just 10 members ― Choi Hyun-suk, Jihoon, Yoshi, Junkyu, Yoon Jae-hyuk, Asahi, Doyoung, Haruto, Park Jeong-woo and So Jung-hwan. It added it terminated the contract with the two others, Mashiho and Bang Ye-dam, after a long discussion.“We've made the decision because Mashiho requires sufficient time for recovery due to a health issue, and Bang needs an environment to grow as a producer of unique musical character,” the agency said in a statement.In May of this year, the company announced that the two members will stop group activities, saying Bang would focus on studying music as he wished to strengthen his producing abilities while JapanesNov 9, 2022By Kim Rahn
K-pop singer BoA to return with 3rd mini-album The teaser image of BoA's new mini-album, “Forgive Me” / Courtesy of SM Entertainment By Kim RahnSinger BoA will release a new mini-album later this month, according to the K-pop star's agency, SM Entertainment, Tuesday. Through the singer's official social network channels, the agency announced she would drop her third mini-album, titled “Forgive Me,” at 6 p.m. on Nov. 22. Reservations for the album at online and offline shops started Tuesday.A teaser image of BoA lying on a sofa of a studio was also disclosed.The new EP, with six tracks, will be the first release since her 10th full-length album, “BETTER,” in December 2020 which marked the 20 anniversary of her debut. Since then, BoA has been engaged in activities other than her solo career, such as being a part of “GOT the beat,” a unit of SM's female artist project Girls On Top (GOT), and participating as a judge in Mnet's dance competition show, “Street Man Fighter.”BoA, who debuted at the age of 14 in 2000, haNov 8, 2022By Kim Rahn
INTERVIEW K-pop group NATURE presents another unique performance with new album K-pop girl group NATURE released its mini album, “NATURE WORLD: CODE W,” on Nov. 6. Courtesy of n.CH Entertainment By Lee Gyu-leeK-pop girl group NATURE has made a comeback after about 10 months with its third mini-album, “NATURE WORLD: CODE W,” Nov. 6, showing off another dynamic performance with its title song, “LIMBO!” The nine-piece girl group ― comprised of Sohee, Saebom, Aurora, Lu, Chaebin, Haru, Loha, Uchae and Sunshine ― has caught people's eyes earlier this year with its song, “RICA RICA,” a trot-infused pop song with its choreography based on the African traditional dance, Zaouli.The group expressed their hope of garnering bigger popularity with yet another unique performance of their new song. Members Lu and Sunshine have not participated in the group's activities for this album due to health issues. “We have gotten a lot of responses (from fans) that they want to see a different concept from 'RICA RICA.' So we've spent 10 months preparing for this albumNov 8, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
Girl group ITZY to drop new EP this month K-pop girl group ITZY / Courtesy of JYP EntertainmentK-pop girl group ITZY will put out a new EP, titled "Cheshire," this month, the group's management agency said Tuesday.The EP will hit music services on Nov. 30 at 6 p.m., JYP Entertainment said in a press release.This image provided by JYP Entertainment shows a teaser poster for its girl group ITZY's upcoming EP, titled "Cheshire." YonhapThe band's latest release is its fifth EP, "Checkmate," which reached eighth on the Billboard 200 songs chart upon its release in July.ITZY is currently in the United States for its first-ever world tour since its debut. The tour will take the quintet to four Asian countries after the U.S. shows, according to the agency. (Yonhap)Nov 8, 2022
NewJeans' 'Hype Boy' reaches 100 mil. Spotify streams K-pop girl group New Jeans / Courtesy of Ador"Hype Boy," one of the debut singles by newbie girl group NewJeans, has garnered 100 million streams on Spotify, the world's largest music streaming platform, the group's agency said Tuesday.The song hit 100,704,055 streams as of Sunday, less than 100 days after its release in August, ADOR said.This image provided by ADOR celebrates its girl group NewJeans surpassing 100 million streams on Spotify with "Hype Boy." YonhapThe single is staying high on Spotify Korea's weekly top songs chart for the 14th consecutive week. It topped the chart for three consecutive weeks last month.Another NewJeans debut single "Attention" is also expected to hit the 100 million mark soon as it has accumulated about 92.5 million streams. (Yonhap)Nov 8, 2022
INTERVIEW Why Singaporean CEO chose to debut as K-pop star David Yong, the CEO of Evergreen Group Holdings / Courtesy of David Yong David Yong hopes to inspire young generation in Southeast AsiaBy Dong Sun-hwaOn July 5, David Yong from Singapore burst onto the K-pop scene with his hip-hop-flavored debut track, “In My Pocket,” which features high-profile Korean rapper Kid Milli. Although there are plenty of non-Korean singers in the K-pop universe, Yong is unlike any other in terms of background. The 35-year-old is the CEO of Singapore-based Evergreen Group Holdings and runs more than 15 businesses ranging from timber to finance.Born into a family that owned a timber trading company, Yong worked as a trainee lawyer until he joined the family business in 2014. Considering that he is an active businessman, the news about his debut took many people by surprise, who did not expect that he would branch out into a totally new field. However, according to Yong, it was his longtime dream to bridge K-pop and Southeast Asia by promotiNov 8, 2022By Dong Sun-hwa
