10-member boy band Pentagon debuts Members of Pentagon, Cube Entertainment’s new boy band, pose during their debut showcase at Sebitseom in Seocho, southern Seoul, Monday. / Courtesy of Cube EntertainmentFormer S.M., YG trainees debut in Cube’s new boy band By Kim Jae-heun Cube Entertainment revealed its latest boy band Pentagon on Monday, four years since the agency introduced its last all-male idol group BTOB in 2012.The 10-member group includes former S.M Entertainment trainee Jinho and YG Entertainment trainee Hongseok.“I was an S.M. trainee for six years, but I decided to leave because their plan for my future was different from what I thought,” said Jinho during a press conference at Sebitseom in Seocho, southern Seoul. “Then I was approached by the manager at Cube and auditioned for this company.”Hongseok appeared on YG’s survival TV show “MIX&MATCH” in 2014 as a candidate member of then newly debuting boy band iKON, but failed to make the cut.“I stayed behind in YG, but I was afraid I would never debut as I was getting old for an idOct 11, 2016
Super Junior's Ryeowook joins Army Ryeowook of Super Junior / Courtesy of SM EntertainmentRyeowook, a member of the popular boy group Super Junior, joined the Army on Tuesday, becoming the 10th member of the idol group to begin the mandatory military service.Around 2 p.m., he started five weeks of basic training at a base in Jeungpyeong County, North Chungcheong Province. All able-bodied South Korean men are required to complete about two years of military service.Shortly before entering the boot camp, he talked with some 200 fans for around 20 minutes.With closely cropped hair, the singer, in a black jacket and jeans, greeted and thanked his fans who came from as far as China and Japan."Thank you for coming all the way here. ... I will fulfill my duty and return," he said. Fans replied, "We will wait for you" and "Please stay safe." Some shed tears. Lee Teuk, Super Junior's leader, kept him company. Among the 11 members, four have already finished their duty, while five are in the middle of the military service.Aside from the group activities, Ryeowook released a solo album in January and has been actively Oct 11, 2016
Hallyu copyrights violations increasing A still from “Remember: Son’s War” / Courtesy of SBSCopyrighted materials from Korean broadcasts are increasingly being violated in China and Southeast Asian countries, according to a recent report.In a report released Sunday by Saenuri Party lawmaker Kwak Sang-do, a member of the Education, Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee of the National Assembly, copyright violation cases of Korean broadcasters between 2013 and August this year amounted to 503.Annual reported cases showed a rising trend over the past two years, with 92 cases in 2013, 61 in 2014, 153 in 2015 and 197 as of August this year.By country, China accounted for 41.2 percent of the violations with 207 cases, Thailand with 30.2 percent with 152 cases, the Philippines 15.5 percent with 78 cases and Vietnam 13.1 percent with 66 cases.The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism sent warnings to 56 of the alleged infringers for violations such as of SBS' "Remember: Son's War" and KBS' "Impertinently Go Go." It also sent 44 warnings to Vietnam for alleged violations of copyright including of SBS' "YukrOct 10, 2016
K-pop diva Lee Eun-ha bankrupt K-pop diva Lee Eun-ha has gone into bankruptcy. / Korea Times fileBy Park Si-sooK-pop diva Lee Eun-ha, who enjoyed her heyday in the 1970-80s, has gone into bankruptcy, a court said Monday.Seoul Central District Court said the musician, 55, filed for bankruptcy in June.The court recently concluded that she was unable to pay her personal debt of 1 billion won ($899,600) caused by business failures and guarantees of unpaid loans.“The court’s decision (to push Lee into bankruptcy) was based on its projection of her expected income over the next 10 years,” said a court official familiar with the matter.“Our projection is that her current debt is bigger than her incomes combined over the next 10 years.”Under the decision, Lee’s debt will be adjusted to a level she is able to repay over 10 years under the court-administered repayment program.Oct 10, 2016
Comedian Yoo donates 50 mil. won for Typhoon Chaba victims Yoo Jae-suk By Kim Jae-heun Popular comedian Yoo Jae-suk has donated 50 million won ($45,000) for victims of Typhoon Chaba, which ripped through the southern parts of the country. As of Sunday, seven people have died and three others were missing.Yoo handed over the money to the Korea Disaster Relief Association, Hope Bridge, which said Saturday that it will be used to help the victims return to their ordinary lives.According to the group, this is Yoo’s fifth donation for disaster victims.“As one of the nation’s top television show emcees, Yoo took the lead in donation and his good work has touched many officials working with the fundraising organization,” the association said according to a local news agency.Meanwhile, the Army dispatched 7,000 soldiers and 24 heavy machinery vehicles to help clean up the damage in Busan and Ulsan, which were hit hard by the typhoon.Typhoon Chaba hit the southern resort island of Jeju, Wednesday, and moved northeast to strike the southern cities, ruining crops in 7,500 hectares of farmland, inundating 508 houses andOct 9, 2016
SF9 fails to make big first impression FNC Entertainment’s first male dance group SF9 performs at its debut showcase, Wednesday, at the YES24 LIVE Hall in Gwangjin, eastern Seoul. / Courtesy of FNC EntertainmentFNC's ambitious boy band falls short of expectations By Kim Jae-heun FNC Entertainment (FNC), one of Korea’s top talent agencies, launched its first K-pop boy band Sensational Feeling 9 (SF9), Wednesday. The band members said they want to blow a fanfare in the K-pop scene like the title of its new lead single and win the rookie of the year award. However, that seems unlikely to come true in the near future as none of the tracks on their new mini-album have made it into the top 100 of the local major music charts online.The nine members of the boy band are the first graduates of FNC’s NEOZ SCHOOL, appearing in Mnet’s TV survival show d.o.b (Dance or Band) before the group officially made its debut.In a month long competition series aired on the music cable channel from May to June, FNC contracted with Mnet to make a program showing the process for the debut of an all-boy dance groupOct 7, 2016
Park Bo-gum releases drama soundtrack Park Bo-gumBy Park Jin-haiPark Bo-gum, star of KBS hit drama “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds,” has recorded the show’s soundtrack, his agency Blossom Entertainment said on Friday.In the 11th soundtrack for the drama, jointly composed by drama’s music director Gaemi and Kim Se-jin, Park sang a sweet and sad ballad song.It will be released at midnight, on Oct. 11.Big name singers including Sung Si-kyung, Gummy, K.Will, and Baek Ji -young have participated in the drama’s soundtrack album.The 23-year old star reportedly wanted to become a singer-songwriter before he started acting.The 18-part periodic romance drama “Moonlight,” where Park plays prince Lee Young, has captivated local viewers since its premiere on August 22. It has topped the viewers’ ratings among prime-time Monday-Tuesday series since Aug. 30. Oct 7, 2016
Reunited 'Sechs Kies' tops charts Sechs Kies / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentBy Park Jin-haiReunited K-pop band Sechs Kies, which has released its first single in 16 years, is dominating the local music charts.The new ballad, “Three Words,” written by Epik High’s Tablo and Future Bounce, was released at midnight Oct. 7 and landed at No. 1 on eight major music charts including Melon, Olleh Music, Bugs and Mnet Music.The six member boy band debuted in 1997, but disbanded unexpectedly in 2000. After the band reunited in April this year for a concert on the popular TV show “Infinite Challenge,” it made a successful comeback to the local music scene in September.The members are Eun Ji-won, Lee Jae-jin, Kim Jae-duc, Kang Sung-hoon, Jang Su-won and Ko Ji-yong.Oct 7, 2016
Ailee ups emotions, sentiment on latest EP Ailee performs to her song “Home” at YES24 MUV Hall in Mapo, western Seoul, Tuesday. / YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunKorean-American singer Ailee released her fourth mini-album “A New Empire,” Tuesday, adding extra emotion to her voice over her signature powerful vocals. It has been a year since she released her only full-length album “VIVID” in September 2015.“My previous music focused on my powerful vocals and strong lyrics,” said Ailee during a press conference at Yes24 Muv Hall in the Hongik University district in western Seoul. “This time, my new album has more sentimental songs.”The singer said that she challenged urban hip-hop music, which she said is a comparatively new genre. She has long been wishing to try recording urban hip-hop, but took a long time as no Korean female artist has tried the genre yet.Ailee’s new album consists of six tracks, including the lead single “If You” and the first track “Home” featuring veteran rapper Yoon Mi-rae.The singer’s digital lead single “If You,&Oct 5, 2016
K-pop band GOT7's new album sweeps charts GOT7 has ranked first on the weekly and monthly Hanteo charts with its new album. / Courtesy of JYP Entertainment By Lee Jin-a K-pop boy band GOT7 has topped domestic music charts with its new album.According to Hanteo Information System on Wednesday, “FLIGHT LOG: TURBULENCE” topped its monthly album chart in September, just four days after the album’s release. It also conquered Hanteo’s weekly album chart in the fourth week of September.The album’s lead track, “Hard Carry,” garnered more than 9.1 million views on YouTube, as of 2 p.m. Tuesday. It also swept the iTunes album charts in other countries, including Finland, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. The seven-member band made its debut in 2014 with a mini album, “Got it?.” The group won New Artist of the Year at the Golden Disk Awards in 2015. Oct 5, 2016
