Girls' Generation's HRS unit silences critics with 'Skibidi' successA three-member unit featuring Hyoyeon, Yuri and Sooyoung is expanding its presence beyond a comedic rivalry against another Girls' Generation unit, brushing off claims that its appeal is limited to longtime fans and proving its viral traction. Yuri revealed a critical comment sent by an online user on Aug. 30 while interacting with fans. The critic claimed the unit's reach was limited to older fans and demanded the members get a reality check. Instead of responding directly, Yuri shrugged off the criticism by posting a deadpan meme of television personality Choo Sa-rang picking her nose. The unit originated in "Fake Kim Hyo-yeon," a mockumentary on Hyoyeon's YouTube channel "Hyo's Level Up." Hyoyeon, Yuri and Sooyoung drew attention by comically portraying a competition for main vocalist and center — the group's focal point — to rival Girls' Generation-TTS, a vocal subunit featuring Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun. As an eight-member group, Girls' Generation historically faced uneven vocal distribution, and members known primarily for dance received less attention for their vocals. TheSep 11, 2026By Hankookilbo
LE SSERAFIM drops new single 'Made My Night'K-pop girl group LE SSERAFIM released its second single album, "Made My Night," on Friday. The two-track single came out at 1 p.m., following the release of the music video for the album's title track, "Made My Night," at midnight. According to the group's agency, Source Music, the song captures the joyous moment of spending time overnight with someone special. The music video marks the group's second collaboration with the global video game "Overwatch," created by U.S. gaming company Blizzard Entertainment. The visual blends live-action footage of the group's five members with 3D animation tied to hero characters in the game. The second track, "Aeiou," is billed as a bold declaration of love, expressing fearlessness in pursuing romance. In a statement, the group credited its fan base, known as Fearnot, for enabling a quick return following the release of its latest full-length album in May. "Especially being able to share new songs during our world tour makes this comeback feel like a gift to us, too," it said in a Q&A press release distributed by its agency.Sep 11, 2026By Yonhap
Who is Seungri?Born in 1990, Seungri debuted in 2006 as the youngest member of BIGBANG, the YG Entertainment boy band behind hits including "Lies" (2007), "Haru Haru" (2012) and "Bang Bang Bang" (2016). He began solo activities in 2008 with "Strong Baby," produced by bandmate G-Dragon, and released his first full-length solo album, "The Great Seungri," in July 2018, holding his first solo concerts in Seoul the following month. His image as a young entrepreneur unraveled in early 2019, when reports of an assault at Burning Sun, a nightclub in Gangnam District where he served as a director, snowballed into allegations of drug use and police collusion, followed by media reports suggesting he had tried to arrange sexual services for foreign investors. Police booked him on charges of brokering prostitution on March 10, 2019. He announced his retirement from show business the next day, and YG terminated his exclusive contract on March 13. Indicted in January 2020, he enlisted in the military about a month later and stood trial in a military court, which sentenced him to three years in prison in August 2021.Sep 11, 2026By Pyo Kyung-min
1VERSE turns claw-machine frustration into new track 'LOOP'K-pop boy group 1VERSE is back with "LOOP," turning that universally relatable sting of a missed claw-machine prize into an infectious, high-octane electronic pop anthem. Marking its first release since January, the group takes an everyday moment of playful annoyance and spins it into a sleek, fast-paced rhythm that hits home for listeners anywhere in the world. 1VERSE released “LOOP” at noon on Friday in Korea, with members Kenny, Nathan and Aito contributing to the song’s lyrics and composition. Inspired by the cycle of reaching for a prize, missing it and deciding to try “just one more time,” “LOOP” uses arcade-style electronic sounds and a tense, game-like progression to capture the pull of repeated failure. Michelle Cho, CEO of Singing Beetle, said the song explores how a small expectation can become difficult to abandon as repeated attempts turn into a cycle that is increasingly hard to escape. Nathan said “LOOP” brings to mind playing a claw machine in an arcade, where failure only makes another attempt feel more necessary. Kenny said his own difficulty with claw mSep 11, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Former BIGBANG members face police probe, concert cancellationAmid news that former BIGBANG member Seungri faces a criminal complaint for aggravated assault, the cancellation of T.O.P's concert is also drawing attention to the contrasting fortunes of the former bandmates. The Seoul Gangnam Police Station said Thursday it received a criminal complaint on Aug. 26 seeking charges against Seungri for aggravated assault. The complaint alleges Seungri assaulted a man in his 30s at a restaurant in Gangnam District, southern Seoul. Police plan to question the accuser to investigate the allegations. "It is true that I picked up a liquor bottle while refusing to share a table, but I did not brandish it or make threats," Seungri said in an interview with Ilgan Sports. He expressed bewilderment over the accuser's sudden change in attitude, noting they subsequently shared a table, conversed amicably and exchanged texts after parting ways. "I will fully cooperate with the investigation to reveal the truth," he said. Separately that same day, T.O.P announced his concert scheduled for Sept. 19 in Jakarta, Indonesia, was canceled due to local conditions. RepresentativeSep 11, 2026By Xportsnews
K-pop girl group aespa to drop digital single featuring new solo pieces from each memberGirl group aespa will officially release four solo tracks next week, one from each of its members, following the songs' premieres during its Seoul concerts last month, its agency said Friday. The special digital single, titled "SYNK: COMPLaeXITY," that comes out Monday will feature Karina's "16 Bit," Winter's "Saddle Up," Giselle's "ByeB4Hello" and Ningning's "I Love You But I Gotta Let You Go," according to SM Entertainment. The tracks were first unveiled during the group's latest concerts at Gocheok Sky Dome on Aug. 7-8. The K-pop quartet is set to hold a concert in Mexico City on Friday (local time) as part of its fourth world tour, which will take it to 25 regions around the world.Sep 11, 2026By Yonhap
BTS brings 'ARIRANG' tour to cinemas worldwideBTS will bring two South American concerts from its "ARIRANG" world tour to movie theaters worldwide, giving fans a chance to watch performances on large screens across more than 80 countries and regions. The live viewing events will feature BTS' Oct. 24 concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and its Oct. 30 concert in São Paulo, Brazil, according to BigHit Music. Tickets for the screenings will go on sale Thursday, with sales in Korea opening sequentially from 10 a.m. and global sales beginning at 10 p.m. that day. The screenings will be presented live or on a delayed basis depending on local time zones, with audiences in Korea, other parts of Asia and Australia expected to watch the concerts one to two days after the performances. The screenings will use large screens and enhanced sound systems to recreate the concert experience for audiences gathered in cinemas. BTS has previously held live viewing events in Goyang and Busan in Korea and in Tokyo, drawing strong interest from music fans. The South American screenings are expected to take place at about 3,800 theaters across more than 80 cSep 11, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Korean musicians counter short-form trend with long-form films"Of the songs I've made, the only one that reached No. 1 on the Melon chart is 'Bam Yang Gang.' The funny thing is, everyone knows the line, 'On the way out you said to me,' and everyone knows 'So sweet and sweet, so sweet and sweet.' But there are a lot of people who don't know the part, 'The table legs break' (a Korean idiom for a lavish feast)." Singer-songwriter Chang Kiha, who released his first solo studio album "Sansanjogak" on Wednesday, shared this observation during a post-screening question and answer session on Aug. 26 at CGV Wangsimni in eastern Seoul. He said music is increasingly consumed in bite-sized pieces, much like short-form videos and countless songs become widely known only as the background music for short videos. In those circumstances, does a full-length album still hold meaning? "Sansanjogak" is Chang's answer. Ahead of the album's release, he premiered a 33-minute short film containing every track. "I wanted to make an album that has a reason why you have to listen to it from beginning to end," he said. The film starts from a different premise than a traditionSep 10, 2026By Hankookilbo
BTS' 'ARIRANG' tour tops ticket scalping reports over past yearKorea's most-reported concerts for illegal ticket sales over the past year were for K-pop supergroup BTS' "ARIRANG" world tour, data showed Thursday. The tour drew 102 reports to the Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) online board for reporting ticket scalping between September 2025 and Aug. 27, 2026, the highest of any event, according to the data submitted by the agency to Rep. Jeong Jun-ho of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea. Standalone concerts of Psy came in second with 88 reports, followed by those of BIGBANG with 69, Lim Young-woong with 64, Day6 with 51, British band Oasis with 48 and The Weeknd with 44. "These figures reflect only reports to KOCCA's online board," Jeong said, adding that the actual damage from ticket scalping is likely much wider. For example, he said, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism found 1,868 online posts suspected of illegal ticket sales for the BTS shows, which is more than 18 times higher than the reported cases. The lawmaker also said KOCCA logged 7,639 scalping reports from January 2023 through last month, with music concerts accountSep 10, 2026By Yonhap
Former NCT member Mark Lee starts solo era with independent label Upper RoomMark Lee — the artist and rapper best known as a core member of the global supergroup NCT — released his new single “My Friend” Thursday, marking a pivotal departure from the glossy mechanics of mainstream pop and laying the cornerstone for a new independent chapter. The track serves as his inaugural release under Upper Room, a creative company founded by Lee. Rather than leaning on maximalist production, “My Friend” leans comfortably into restraint. Built over a nostalgic, lingering guitar loop, the mid-tempo pop track wrestles with a timeless late-summer question: What does the highest form of love actually look like? Mark took the reins across every stage of the track's creation, contributing to the songwriting, composition and arrangement. The result is less of a commercial product and more of a personal diary entry — a gentle reflection on closing one chapter of life to step quietly into the next. That ethos carries directly into the song's accompanying music video. Steering entirely clear of computer graphics or artificial staging, director Gus Black — known for hisSep 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
