Girls' Generation is back with studio album marking 15th year Girls' Generation poses for the camera during a press conference in Seoul to promote its seventh studio album "Forever 1," Friday. YonhapGirls' Generation, one of the longest-running K-pop girl groups, made a highly anticipated comeback Friday, the anniversary of the day of its debut in 2007, with "Forever 1.""Forever 1," the group's seventh full-length album, marks its first group project since its previous LP "Holiday Night" five years ago."Today is the birthday of Girls' Generation," member Sooyoung said during a press conference at a hotel in southern Seoul to promote the upcoming album. "Actually, we had been discussing the comeback since we celebrated the 14th anniversary. But we felt we would like to roll out the album properly on the 15th anniversary."The bandmates then asked the group's agency SM Entertainment to give them more time to work on the new release, which the company agreed to, she recalled.The resulting studio album, which is set for digital release at 6 p.m. Friday, has a total of 10 tracks, including the title single "Forever 1." Among other tracks are "SeventeAug 5, 2022
Rookie girl group NewJeans makes impressive debut on charts K-pop girl group NewJeans / Courtesy of ADORNewJeans, the first girl group from an independent label under K-pop powerhouse Hybe, has made an impact on music charts at home and abroad upon its debut."Attention," a lead track of the group's debut EP, "New Jeans," topped Spotify's daily top songs chart in Korea on Monday, when it dropped, the global music streaming service said Wednesday.The album's three other tracks, "Hype Boy," "Cookie" and "Hurt," also placed second, fifth and 11th, respectively, on the same chart. The five-piece multinational group debuted Monday under the label ADOR with members ― Minji, Danielle, Hanni, Haerin and Hyein ― whose average age is 17.The K-pop rookie also entered daily top songs' charts in seven other countries or regions, including Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.In Vietnam, the home country of member Hanni, "Hype Boy," "Attention" and "Cookie" ranked 53rd, 55th and 67th, respectively, on the daily chart, while "Hurt" was at 104th. "Attention" reached 55th in Singapore.The song is also ranking high on other domestic charts.As of 7 a.m. ThuAug 4, 2022
BTS to resume 'Run BTS' variety show after 10-month break A teaser image for K-pop boy group BTS' own variety show titled "Run BTS," set to reopen on Aug. 16 after a 10-month break. Courtesy of Bighit MusicK-pop boy group BTS has announced the return of its own variety show, titled "Run BTS," after 10 months."'Run BTS' will finally make a return after a 10-month break," the band said in a teaser video it shared on social media Monday. "Please look forward to the release, because the show would be more fun after being recharged.""Run BTS" is a Korean web-based series starring the septet, which first began in August 2015 and has since released 156 episodes. The show announced a break after airing the last episode in October 2021.The weekly show will become available on Weverse, a K-pop fan community platform, Naver's V Live and YouTube, starting Aug. 16. (Yonhap)Aug 2, 2022
Girls' Generation, IVE, TWICE: iconic K-pop stars set for August releases Big-name K-pop acts to return to stage this month By Dong Sun-hwaAugust is going to be one of the biggest months for music fans this year, with a plethora of K-pop bigwigs putting out their new music offerings amid sweltering temperatures. Some of the most celebrated girl groups like Girls' Generation, IVE and TWICE are set to return to stage, while boy bands like The Boyz and CIX are also preparing for their fresh releases. The teaser featuring Taeyeon of Girls' Generation / Courtesy of SM EntertainmentThe first in the starting lineup is Girls' Generation, which is celebrating the 15th anniversary of its debut this year. The SM Entertainment act will drop its seventh full-length album, “FOREVER 1,” on Aug. 5. It will be fronted by the namesake lead single, a pop dance track with an energetic melody that will allow listeners to get in a festive mood. “Through its lyrics, the members will talk about their love for those who always support them,” SM explained in a statement. “KENZIE ― who gave birth to the group's numerous hits like 'Into The New World' (2Aug 1, 2022By Dong Sun-hwa
BLACKPINK to formally release new album in Sept., begin world tour in Oct. K-pop girl group BLACKPINK / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentBLACKPINK, a top K-pop girl group, will officially drop its highly-anticipated second studio album in September, the group's agency said Monday.It has been earlier announced that the quartet will return to the music scene this month with the new album. But YG Entertainment said in a video posted on its official blog for announcing broad schedules for the band's upcoming comeback that the group will prerelease some of the upcoming album's tracks this month and officially drop the album in September. In October, the group will begin its largest-ever world tour to meet its international fans, the agency added without giving exact dates or hours."The name for this comeback project is 'Born Pink,' which implies the identity of BLACKPINK, which is never ordinary and will exude a fatal aura," the agency said in a press release.The upcoming album will mark the band's first project with all four members in one year and 10 months. The last whole-group release was in October 2020 with the band's first full-length album "The Album," includAug 1, 2022
BTS' J-Hope makes history on Lollapalooza festival stage J-Hope of BTS performs on Day 4 of the Lollapalooza Music Festival at Grant Park in Chicago, July 31. AP-YonhapK-pop superstar J-Hope of BTS made history on Sunday as the closer at Chicago's annual Lollapalooza weekend, becoming the first Korean act to headline a major U.S. music festival.The star appeared to dramatically pop out of a box as he took the stage in Chicago's Grant Park, and was greeted by a sea of screaming fans.The crowd rapped and sang along to songs from J-Hope's new solo album and to BTS classics such as "Dynamite.""Do you want some more?" he asked the mass of people, offering a special shout-out to the "BTS Army," as the group's super-fans are known. J-Hope, who also presented a special message to viewers in Korean, was joined at the end of his set by singer Becky G for a rendition of their collaboration "Chicken Noodle Soup."This year's edition of Lollapalooza, which was streamed live on the Hulu platform, also featured the U.S. festival debut of Tomorrow X Together, another Korean boy band that is under the same label as BTS."These artists have been given great gAug 1, 2022
New girl group under Hybe's label to digitally release debut album A new K-pop girl group NewJeans / Courtesy of ADORNewJeans, a new girl group under one of Hybe's sub-labels, will unveil all tracks of its debut album Monday, one week ahead of the album's official release, the group's agency said.ADOR said the five-member group will digitally release the EP, titled "New Jeans," and the music video for the EP's third lead track, "Cookie," at 6 p.m.NewJeans is the second girl group from the K-pop powerhouse Hybe, which is home to acts like BTS, Seventeen, Tomorrow X Together, Enhypen and more, after Le Sserafim.The EP, whose the official release is set for next Monday, has a total of four tracks ― "Attention," "Hype Boy," "Cookie" and "Hurt" ― of which three except for "Hurt" are lead singles.The agency has previously released music videos for "Attention," "Hype Boy" and "Hurt."The multinational group consists of members ― Minji, Danielle, Hanni, Haerin and Hyein ― whose average age is 17. It gained attention from K-pop fans well before its debut for being the first girl group to debut under the label led by Min Hee-jin, a hitmaker in the K-pop industAug 1, 2022
Stray Kids releases new digital single K-pop group Stray Kids / Courtesy of JYP EntertainmentK-pop group Stray Kids put out its new digital single, titled "Mixtape: Time Out," on Monday, the group's agency said."Aug. 1 is a meaningful day, when the name of the band's fandom 'Stay' was made, so the band prepared a surprise present to celebrate the fandom's birthday," JYP Entertainment said."Mixtape: Time Out," released at midnight, is a rock genre song written by the members based on their experience from their latest trip to Gangwon Province on the east coast. The digital single is the fourth release from the group's "Mixtape Project" series, which began in 2019.Under the project, Stray Kids has dropped "Mixtape: Gone Days," "Mixtape: On Track" and "Mixtape: Oh."Debuting in 2018, Stray Kids has been known for its intense stage performance and unique music style. In March, the band debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 main albums chart with its sixth Korean EP, "Oddinary," becoming the third K-pop act ever to top the chart. (Yonhap)Aug 1, 2022
Seventeen lands at No. 4 on Billboard main albums chart K-pop boy group Seventeen / Courtesy of Pledis EntertainmentThe latest repackage album from Seventeen has come in fourth on the U.S. Billboard's main albums chart, becoming the band's highest-charting album."Sector 17" was fourth on the Billboard 200, selling 34,000 equivalent album units, Billboard said Sunday (U.S. time) in a preview of the upcoming chart.The Billboard 200 ranks the most popular albums of the week in the United States, measured by equivalent album units, comprising physical album sales and other digital sales records. "Sector 17" is now Seventeen's highest-charting album and second ever to hit the top 10 of the chart. Its fourth studio album, "Face the Sun," reached seventh on the Billboard 200 in June.A repackage version of "Face the Sun," "Sector 17" sold 1.12 million copies in its first week of sales, becoming the band's seventh million-selling album. Its lead track, "_World," was No. 1 on iTunes top song charts in 28 countries around the world. (Yonhap)Aug 1, 2022
ATEEZ reaches career high with new album 'THE WORLD EP. 1 : MOVEMENT' The teaser for K-pop act ATEEZ's fresh album, “The WORLD EP. 1 : MOVEMENT” / Courtesy of KQ EntertainmentATEEZ returns with new album 'THE WORLD EP.1 : MOVEMENT'By Dong Sun-hwaK-pop boy group ATEEZ has hit its career high, with its latest release, “The WORLD EP. 1 : MOVEMENT,” selling about 270,000 copies on the first day of its release ― July 29. According to the octet's management company, KQ Entertainment, the number has increased by nearly 100,000, compared to the first day sales of ATEEZ's December release, “ZERO : FEVER EPILOGUE” (180,000). ATEEZ has also racked up 1 million pre-orders for the first time since its debut in 2018, becoming one of the few K-pop acts to reach the milestone. “We were so surprised and grateful to hear the news,” frontman Hongjoong said during a press conference at Daeyang Hall in Sejong University, eastern Seoul, Thursday. “But instead of paying too much attention to these figures, we will work harder on our music and performance to repay the adoration we've received.” According to ATEEZ, &lJul 31, 2022By Dong Sun-hwa
