Korean songs claim No. 2 spot among Billboard Hot 100 non-English top 10 hits BTS perform onstage during the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, April 3, 2022. AFP-YonhapKorean has been the second most dominant language among the non-English songs that have reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, according to a recent report by the company.The U.S. music magazine said in an online article published Wednesday (U.S. local time) that only 35 songs recorded either entirely or mostly in a non-English language have been in the top 10 since the chart was introduced in 1958. Of those, 19 are in Spanish, the most of any language, followed by Korean with eight songs. German has three songs, French and Italian have two songs each, and Japanese has one song.Six of the eight Korean-language top 10 hits are from the K-pop supergroup BTS. They are "Fake Love," "Boy With Luv (Feat. Halsey)," "On," "Life Goes On," "My Universe," which is a collaboration single with British rock band Coldplay, and member Jimin's solo song "Like Crazy."The remaining two songs are Psy's global hits "Gangnam Style" and "Gentleman.""Twenty three of tAug 19, 2023
Jungkook ranks 24th in 5th week on British chart with 'Seven' Jungkook of K-pop boy group BTS/ Courtesy of BigHit MusicBTS member Jungkook's debut solo song, "Seven," remained a strong presence on the British Official Singles Chart Top 100 for the fifth consecutive week. According to the latest chart unveiled Friday (local time), the track secured 24th place this week, rising a place from the previous week.Released July 14, the summery pop song, featuring American female rapper Latto, debuted at No. 3 on the chart later that month. It had dropped to 13th and 29th before climbing back to No. 25 and 24 this time.K-pop girl group NewJeans' latest hit "Super Shy" ranked 77th in its sixth consecutive week, slipping 14 spots from the previous week.Another K-pop girl group Fifty Fifty extended its stay on the chart with "Cupid" to 21 consecutive weeks, ranking 95th this week. Meanwhile, "Seven" topped global music streaming giant Spotify's Weekly Top Songs Global chart for the fifth week in a row. (Yonhap)Aug 19, 2023
TWICE member Jihyo's solo debut album 'shows who she is' Jihyo of K-pop girl group TWICE poses during a press conference in Seoul on Aug. 18, for her debut solo album "Zone." Courtesy of JYP EntertainmentTWICE leader Jihyo made a debut as a solo artist Friday, eight years after she debuted as a member of the popular K-pop girl group.She dropped her first individual album, "Zone," at 1 p.m. to become the second TWICE member to go solo following Nayeon."I was excited when I heard the idea of releasing a solo album at first. I also had a lot of concerns about how people would accept me not as a member of TWICE, but as a solo artist," the vocalist said during a press conference held at a Seoul hotel a few hours before the album's release.Jihyo entered JYP Entertainment, the group's agency, as a trainee in 2005, and debuted as a TWICE member 10 years later.She said she wanted to show the public who she is as an artist through the album, without any pretense. "I see myself as someone who is straightforward, cheerful and full of vitality," she said of her self-image. "That was evident on the stage. I believe it's me who performs powerful choreogrAug 18, 2023
Fifty Fifty breaks silence on public dispute with agency K-pop girl group Fifty Fifty / Courtesy of AttraktBy Kwak Yeon-sooFifty Fifty members Keena, Saena, Sio and Aran have finally broken their silence about their ongoing dispute with their agency Attrakt. In June, the members filed a lawsuit against Attrakt seeking to suspend an exclusive contract. The group cited a lack of financial transparency and disregard for their health conditions as reasons for the legal action. The court ordered mediation, but Fifty Fifty did not agree to settle the dispute out of court.In a handwritten letter to fans on Thursday, the K-pop girl group explained why they have remained silent on the recent controversy. “Misunderstandings and accusations have been snowballing. We were deeply shocked by this and have been going through a tough time. Nevertheless, we believe there is a truth that needs to be uncovered despite these difficulties,” the group wrote in a letter.Fifty Fifty members claimed they filed the lawsuit against their agency because they believed that taking this issue to court was the right way to solve the situation. “We firstAug 18, 2023By Kwak Yeon-soo
INTERVIEW Progressive rock band Dongyang Gozupa blends East and West Progressive rock band Dongyang Gozupa / Courtesy of Dongyang GozupaBy Kwak Yeon-sooThrough a blend of the “yanggeum,” a Korean metal-stringed zither, and modern Western sounds, progressive rock band Dongyang Gozupa, which translates to “eastern high frequency,” has created a trailblazing sound.Consisting of bass guitar, percussion and the yanggeum, the trio fuses “gugak,” or traditional Korean music, with progressive rock, experimental music and heavy metal. What sets them apart from other fusion bands that reinterpret gugak is that they don't have vocals. Instead, they try to create a percussion-driven sound with the yanggeum at its center. “We wanted to focus more on the rhythms than the vocals. Vocalists are often the main focus of a band, but music without vocals can be beautiful. I think instrumental compositions are enough to communicate with our fans,” percussionist Jang Do-hyuk said during a recent interview with The Korea Times.After their debut in 2018, the trio gained a lot of attention quickly through global tours. They wereAug 10, 2023By Kwak Yeon-soo
Korean conductor Yoon Han-kyeol wins 2023 Karajan Prize Korean conductor Yoon Han-kyeol, center, the winner of the 2023 Herbert von Karajan Young Conductors Award, conducts during a final-round concert at the main auditorium of the Mozarteum Foundation in Salzburg, Austria, in this photo captured from the Salzburg Festival. YonhapKorean conductor Yoon Han-kyeol won the Herbert von Karajan Young Conductors Award, one of the most prestigious prizes for young conductors, in Salzburg, Austria, on Sunday.The jury named the 29-year-old the winner of the Karajan Young Conductors Award during a ceremony at the main auditorium of the Mozarteum Foundation. In the final round, Yoon conducted an hourlong program, which included Gioachino Rossini's "Overture from Il barbiere di Siviglia"; Mozart's "Ah se in ciel, benigne stelle" aria for soprano and orchestra, K. 538; Shin Dong-hoon's "Of Rats and Men"; and Mendelssohn's "Symphony No. 3 A minor op. 56."The Herbert von Karajan Young Conductors Awards is open to conductors who are older than 21 and younger than 35 and takes place every two years. It is an initiative of the Salzburg Festival in cooperatiAug 7, 2023
Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival opens amid sweltering weather Participants watch a performance by the Korean rock band Crying Nut during the 2022 Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival at Songdo Moonlight Festival Park in Incheon, in this file photo. YonhapThe annual Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival, one of the biggest summer music festivals in Korea, kicked off Friday for a three-day run amid the scorching heat.Hosted by the Incheon metropolitan government, the festival has been held every year in Songdo, Incheon, about 30 kilometers west of Seoul, since 2006.This year's edition will feature about 50 teams of rock musicians from home and abroad, including The Strokes, an American rock band considered one of the leading groups of the early-2000s indie rock revival, the British rock band Ride and the Japanese band Ellegarden.The lineup will be divided into three stages on each day.Among the established Korean musicians in the lineup are the Kim Chang-wan band, Kim Yuna of Jaurim, Chang Kiha of Kiha The Faces, Cherry Filter and No Brain.There will also be performances by up-and-coming young bands in the rock music scene, such as Se So Neon, Silica Gel, TAug 4, 2023
KNSO International Academy's musicians receive The Korea Times Scholarship International musicians who took part in this year's Korean National Symphony Orchestra (KNSO) International Academy program pose during a ceremony at Seoul Arts Center in Seocho District, southern Seoul, Wednesday. The program, aimed at nurturing young musicians from around the world, involved 52 participants from 19 countries this year. Among them, Dutch violinist Shin Sihan and Taiwanese oboe player Chia-yen Fan each received $2,000 scholarships from The Korea Times. Courtesy of KNSO Dutch violinist Shin Sihan, right, a participant of this year's Korean National Symphony Orchestra (KNSO) International Academy program, receives a $2,000 scholarship from The Korea Times President-Publisher Oh Young-jin during a ceremony at Seoul Arts Center in Seocho District, southern Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of KNSO Jul 19, 2023By Dong Sun-hwa
Orchestra-conducting robot wows audience in Seoul A robot, EveR 6, is seen as it takes the conductor's podium to lead a performance by the National Orchestra of Korea, in Seoul, June 30, in this handout picture. Reuters-YonhapA Korean-made robot made its debut as an orchestra conductor before a sell-out crowd in Seoul, Friday, wowing the audience with a flawless performance in place of a human maestro.Named "EveR 6", the five-foot-ten-inch-tall (1.8m) robot guided more than 60 musicians of the National Orchestra of Korea who were playing traditional Korean instruments.The robot successfully guided the compositions, both independently and in collaboration with a human maestro who was standing next to it for about half an hour, entertaining the more than 950 audience members who had packed the National Theater of Korea.The robot was showered with applause when it first appeared from below the stage on a lift and turned to face the audience, bowing in greeting.Throughout the performance, the robot's blue eyes stared unblinkingly at the musicians, only nodding its head in time to the music.The rookie performed well on its stage debut, aJul 1, 2023
Three Koreans win Tchaikovsky Competition in violin, cello, voice Son Ji-hoon, left, Lee Young-eun, center, and Kim Gye-hee, Korean winners of the 2023 International Tchaikovsky Competition in the categories of voice, cello and violin, respectively, are seen in these photos captured from the competition's homepage. Yonhap Three Koreans have won first prizes in the International Tchaikovsky Competition in the categories of violin, cello and voice, its website showed Friday.Kim Gye-hee and Lee Young-eun clinched the gold medals in violin and cello, respectively, becoming the first Korean laureates in the competition's instrumental music categories. Tenor Son Ji-hoon was named the winner of the voice category.Kim, 29, studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in the United States, Seoul National University in Korea and the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich in Germany, having won the George Enescu, Andrea Postacchini, Munetsugu and Gnessin Junior International Music competitions.She played Tchaikovsky's "Violin Concerto inJun 30, 2023
