Yoon Hyun-min and Jeon So-min break up Yoon Hyun-min, Jeon So-min /Screen captures from InstagramActors Yoon Hyun-min and Jeon So-min have broken up, OSEN reported Tuesday.Yoon and Jeon admitted last April they were dating.The entertainment news outlet cited sources close to the couple as saying their busy schedules made it difficult for the two to maintain their relationship. They had decided to remain friends, it said.Jeon debuted in 2004, playing a supporting role in MBC TV drama “Miracle.” She became popular after starring in TV drama “Princess Aurora” in 2013.Yoon, who was a baseball player for the Hanwha Eagles in 2005 and Doosan Bears in 2006, started acting in 2007. He also starred in the musical “Spring Awakening” in 2011.Yoon is starring in MBC TV series “My Daughter, Geum Sa-wol.”Jan 5, 2016
Bangtan Boys record Billboard success BTS / Screen capture from FacebookK-pop band Bangtan Boys (BTS) has broken into Billboard’s Top 20 Best K-pop Songs and the 10 Best K-pop Albums of 2015.“RUN,” from its second single album, “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life Pt.2,” was the third-best K-pop song on the top 20 list. The album ranked fourth on the top 10 best K-pop album list.“BTS caught mainstream attention with ’I Need U,’ released in spring that found the perfect balance of their hardcore hip-hop style with sentimental leanings,” Billboard said. “Pt.2” has sold more than 250,000 copies at home and abroad since its November release, said Big Hit Entertainment. The band has seven members - Rap Monster, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook - and debuted in 2013. Jan 5, 2016By Bahk Eun-ji
Jung Joon-young contract with C9 entertainment /Courtesy of TwitterSinger Jung Joon-young has signed on with C9 entertainment, Yonhap reported. “Jung and his band mates in ‘Jung Joon Young Band’ have signed a contract with C9 entertainment’s label ‘REALIVE,’” C9 entertainment was quoted as saying Tuesday. The 27-year-old’s contract with CJ Entertainment ended last year. Popular singer Younha and rapper Cheetah are also working with other C9 entertainment labels. Jung became well known after his performance at the 2012 MNet audition program “Superstar K4.” Jung currently stars in the popular entertainment program, “2 Days & 1 Night.”Jan 5, 2016
Park Seo-joon, Park Hyung-sik and Go Ara to star in 'Hwarang' Park Seo-joon, left, Go Ara, center, and Park Hyung-sik/ Screen capture from TwitterActor Park Seo-joon, boy band ZE:A's Park Hyung-sik and actress Go Ara have been cast in the lead roles for the upcoming epic drama “Hwarang: the Beginning” which will be aired on KBS 2TV.The drama depicts a story about the “Hwarang” or young warriors of the Silla Kingdom (B.C. 57- A.D.935). Park Seo-joon will play the role of Sun Woo-rang, who is born into a lower class, but becomes a legendary warrior.Park Hyung-sik plays Sam Maek-jong, King Jinheung (540-576) ruled Silla from 540 to 576, while Go plays Ah-ro who is loved by the two male characters.The drama is expected to air between July and August. The drama has already been sold to the Chinese Media group LeTV. Jan 5, 2016
Jang Keun-suk to promote van Gogh exhibition Jang Keun-suk / Courtesy of Media N ArtActor Jang Keun-suk will be an official ambassador for “Van Gogh Inside: Festival of Light and Music,” an exhibition about Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh and other impressionist-inspired painters that opens in Seoul this week.“I have been interested in impressionism and van Gogh,” Jang, 29, was quoted by Media N Art as saying.“And the exhibition looked like attracting not just art lovers but the general public, so I decided to join the project.”The exhibition will show 400 paintings -- 247 by van Gogh and the rest by other painters including Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir and Edgar Degas.The exhibition -- at Culture Station Seoul 284 from Jan. 8 to April 17 -- will feature the works and life of van Gogh on a digital screen accompanied by music, according to Media N Art, the curator.Jang, who debuted in 1997 as an actor, has also been active as a singer in China and Japan.In October 2015, he held a “2015 Live in Shanghai” concert and played in six cities in Japan in March.In early 2015, he was Jan 4, 2016
Two actors find love Chae Gook-hee (in circle) and Oh Dal-su from movie "Veteran" (2015)Seasoned actors Oh Dal-su and Kim Ha-gyun opened the New Year with reports of romance.Oh, 47, whose nickname is“10 million fairy” because his past seven movies each had sold more than 10 million tickets, is reportedly dating actress Chae Gook-hee, 46, actress Chae Shi-ra’s younger sister.Sports Seoul newspaper said the romance between Oh and Chae had long been known in the film sector. The two met in 2008 starring together in a play. They also appeared together in the 2012 action movie “The Thieves.”Quoting an insider, the report said the two frequently joined friends at casual meetings, and they had a lot in common because of their occupation.Oh’s management company, Star Village Entertainment, hasn’t confirmed the romance yet. Debuting in 1990 as a stage actor, Oh is one of the most popular supporting stars.Chae made her debut in 1994 in a musical and broadened her career to TV and movies.Kim Ha-gyun from TV dramas Kim, 57, another popular supporting actor on Jan 4, 2016
New 'Youth Over Flowers' goes to Iceland Cast members of “Youth Over Flowers: Iceland” pose during a press conference at a hotel in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Dec. 29, 2015. From left are actors Jung Woo, Kang Ha-neul, Jung Sang-hoon and Jo Jung-suk. / Courtesy of CJ E&MBy Kim Jae-heunThe third season of “Youth Over Flowers” on CJ E&M’s cable channel tvN recorded a viewership rate of 9.1 percent on its New Year’s Day premiere. It’s the highest record for the debut of any cable TV entertainment show.The latest season of the show chose Iceland as the ultimate travel destination, where four celebrities in their 30s search for “god’s gift,” the Northern Lights.Produced and directed by star TV variety-show veteran Na Young-seok, it casts top actors Jo Jung-suk, Jung Woo, Jung Sang-hoon and Kang Ha-neul. The four shared a long life of anonymity together until a recent rise to stardom.“I did not intend to cast the current four members,” said Na during a press conference at Imperial Palace Hotel in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on Dec. 29, 2015. “I happened to Jan 4, 2016
Apink readies for North America tour Apink / Screen capture from Facebook K-pop band Apink will begin its North American tour this month, A-Cube Entertainment said Monday.Beginning in Vancouver, Canada, on Tuesday, the band will play in Dallas on Jan. 6, San Francisco on Jan.9, and Los Angeles on Jan. 9.Apink is a K-pop girl band with six members _ Park Cho-rong, Yoon Bo-mi, Jung Eun-ji, Kim Nam-joo, Son Na-eun and Oh Ha-young.The band made its debut with “You Don’t Know,” in 2011, and rose to stardom with a hit song “NoNoNo” in 2013. Jan 4, 2016By Bahk Eun-ji
Comebacks, webtoons complete 2016 drama line-up Lee Young-ae will star as Shin Saimdang, artist, poet and mother of Confucian scholar Yulgok, in “Saimdang, the Herstory” later this year. / Korea TimesBy Kwon Ji-younActresses Kim Hye-soo, Lee Young-ae and Song Hye-kyo are set to make long-awaited comebacks, broadcasters are turning more webtoons into television series and JTBC is looking to turn crisis into opportunity with Han Ye-seul’s newest romantic comedy in this year’s drama lineup.Kim, 45, will be a detective in tvN’s “Signal,” her first dramatic appearance in three years. “Signal” is scheduled for Friday and Saturday evenings starting Jan. 22, after the curtain falls on “Reply 1988.”In her cable debut, she will star alongside actor Lee Je-hoon, best known for his role in the 2012 film “Architecture 101,” and Cho Jin-woong, named Best Actor in film at last year’s Baeksang Arts Awards. Kim and Cho who are investigators and Lee, a profiler, work together on a case that trenscends time. Han Ye-seul will also be returning to the small screenJan 4, 2016
IU, Lee Joon-gi to star in new TV drama IU, Lee Joon-gi /Korea Times fileSinger IU will star in a new drama “Moon Lovers” with top male actor Lee Joon-gi.“Moon Lovers” is a remake version of the Chinese drama “Bu Bu Jing Xin,” which aired in 2011 in China.The fantasy-romantic drama is about the fourth son of Emperor Wang Geon in the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392), and a girl who is accidentally sent from the 21st century.Lee will play the fourth son, who becomes Goryeo’s fourth Emperor Gwangjong (949-975), and IU will play Hae-soo, the girl who time-travels to the kingdom.The drama will air in the second half of the year. Jan 4, 2016By Bahk Eun-ji
