Richest celebrities, in terms of stock Yang Hyun-sukThe nation’s richest entertainment executive is Yang Hyun-suk, head of YG Entertainment, whose stock holdings are estimated at 236.2 billion won ($198.3 million) in value, according to a Yonhap News Agency report.Yang, whose company has such artists as Psy, Big Bang and 2NE1, has seen the value of his stock rise by 24.1 percent or 45.9 billion won from earlier this year, the report said, citing findings from the corporate tracker Chaebul.com.Lee Soo-man, chairman of SM Entertainment took second place. The value of Lee’s stocks stood at 171.5 billion won, an increase of 10.5 percent or 16.2 billion won from earlier this year.Han Seong-ho of FNC Entertainment was stock-rich at 79.9 billion won, followed by Bae Yong-joon of Keyeast Entertainment whose stock was valued at 75 billion won.Ranked fifth was Ham Yeon-ji, a musical star and granddaughter of founder of the foodmaker Ottogi, with 36.6 billion won worth of stock.She was followed by Park Jin-young of JYP Entertainment, whose stock was valued at 23. 5 billion won.Sep 6, 2015
Girl band keeps on dancing after tumbling down /Screen captures from YouTube K-pop girl group, GFRIEND, gave a professional performance despite the fact that one of its members kept falling down on a wet floor, Saturday.Group member, Yuju, fell four times during their performance of “Me Gustas Tu” on the SBS radio show in Inje, Gangwon Province. Another member, SinB, also fell once while she was dancing.Due to rain, the floor of the stage became slippery. The band’s brave struggle against gravity was captured in video footage uploaded by a fan on YouTube, Sunday. /Courtesy of Source MusicThe audience broke into enthusiastic applause to cheer the group up after their hazardous performance.The six-member girl band debuted in 2015 with a mini-album titled “Season of Glass.”Sep 6, 2015By Bahk Eun-ji
Yoon Eun-hye faces plagiarism /Online community Actress Yoon Eun-hye is facing allegations that she copied work created by a Korean designer when producing clothes for a Chinese TV program, “The Goddesses’ New Outfit.”In the broadcast, aired on Aug.29 Yoon’s clothes bore a resemblance to a piece created by Korean designer Yoon Choon-ho, according to local media reports on Sunday.The winning dress that the actress designed was a white jacket with ruffles. Yoon said that her inspiration for the white jacket came from “The Chronicles of Narnia.” Judges praised the jacket, and she won the competition on the show.The designer Yoon uploaded his statement on his Facebook page Saturday and said he was disappointed and sure that the actress and the stylist had copied his design.“We provided our clothes to the stylist and the actress often wears them. I am pretty sure they copied my design,” the designer wrote on Facebook.The designer Yoon said he came to know the actress’s design when his Chinese buyer contacted him after watching the show.Yoon, a singer-turned-aSep 6, 2015By Bahk Eun-ji
'Infinite Challenge' continues to impress Haha, left, member of "Infinite Challenge" is seen crying while fellow member Yoo Jae-suk talks with Kang Kyung-nam, a first-generation Korean resident at Utoro, Japan. / YonhapThe entertainment program “Infinite Challenge” aired on Saturday, showed cast member Haha delivering traditional Korean food to residents in Utoro, Japan, a village that will soon be demolished despite efforts from residents to preserve the buildings and keep their community alive.Utoro, situated near Kyoto, is where some 1,300 Koreans were mobilized into forced labor for Japan’s military during World War II. They were brought over to build landing strips for the air force but the construction was not completed before the war ended.A total of 150 Koreans still live in Utoro where residents have been served with eviction orders. Only 91-year-old Kang Kyung-nam remains of the Koreans brought over during the war. The village is scheduled for demolition in two years time.Haha brought traditional dishes from the southeastern Gyeongsang and the southwestern Jeolla region. He also brought photoSep 6, 2015
Rapper's prison album runs hot and cold E-SENS from "Back In Time" music video / Courtesy of Naver blogCover of “The Anecdote” by E-SENSPublic reaction to the album “The Anecdote” by rapper E-SENS, who is in jail, has been mixed.The album was released on Aug. 27, 10 months after he was jailed in November 2014 for smoking marijuana.Hip-hop artists and critics have praised quality of the album, which sold 16,000 copies in a week, a high number for a hip-hop artist.The album’s title song also performed well on online music charts.But other people have criticized the rapper, saying it simply does not make sense that a criminal serving a prison term can release a music album.Some also said he would encourage musicians to think that using the drug would help their music.E-SENS’s management company Beasts and Natives was quoted as saying it decided to release the album because management believed the public would provide the most honest feedback in this way.Sep 4, 2015
Chorus singer on way to stardom Cheon Dan-bi from “Super Star K: Season 7” on Mnet / Screen capture from MnetTV talent quest “Super Star K: Season 7” is on the way to making a star of a former back-up chorus singer.On Thursday all four judges voted for Cheon Dan-bi, 30, to go through to the next round.“I started singing in a chorus when I was 19,” Cheon said during the program. “I used to doubt that I could be as good as all the singers I have worked with. That’s why I have never released my own recordings.”The judges, all singers, knew who Cheon was when she appeared on stage.“There is probably no singer in Korea who hasn’t worked with her,” said Baek Z-young.Sep 4, 2015
Wrong singer accused of military evasion Two singers, both named Kim Woo-joo, were embroiled in a mistake by TV entertainment news program “One Night of TV Entertainment” on SBS. Singer on the left was wrongly reported by the program to have been charged with military service evasion, when one on the right actually did. / Courtesy of Naver blogA TV entertainment news program has apologized after wrongly accusing the wrong singer of evading mandatory military service.SBS’s “One Night of TV Entertainment” on Wednesday accused Kim Woo-joo from management company Space Sound, and showed his photo.Footage from “One Night of TV Entertainment” showing the wrong photo of the singer.But the program released an official apology on its webpage the next day, stating that the wrong photo was shown.The picture should have been that of a singer with the same name, managed by Old Time Entertainment.The singer received a one-year jail term on Aug. 27 when the Supreme Court confirmed a lower court’s decision.The singer has been postponing his enlistment since 2004. One of his excuses Sep 4, 2015
Pop star Jung Yong-wha has fun with the naked truth /Screen captures from InstagramJung Yong-wha, a member of Korean pop rock band CNBLUE, has shown his sense of humor by posting fan-manipulated photo of himself.Early on Thursday, Jung posted a photo of himself and CNBLUE members on his Instagram page.In the photo, Jung is naked from the waist up, and his fans have responded enthusiastically, with some using Photoshop to put a jumper on him.Jung then posted a photo of himself in a jumper, and commented, “It’s so warm.” Sep 3, 2015By Bahk Eun-ji
H.O.T. may reunite /Korea Times fileFirst-generation boy band H.O.T. is considering reuniting 14 years after it disbanded.The former five members _ Moon Hee-joon, Tony An, Lee Jae-won, Jang Woo-hyuk and Kang Ta _ led the trend of K-Pop and hallyu in the 1990s.The band is likely to give a concert to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its debut, news reports said Thursday.The members had often discussed reuniting, but no decision has been made yet, the reports said.The five belong to different management companies and have been building individual careers as producers, musical actors and entertainers.H.O.T had several hits _ “Warrior’s Descendant,” “Candy,” “Happiness” and “We Are the Future.” Sep 3, 2015By Bahk Eun-ji
JYP boy band DAY6 to make debut New boy band DAY6 from JYP Entertainment / Courtesy of JYP EntertainmentBoy band DAY6 will make its debut on Sept. 7, JYP Entertainment said Thursday.The agency has also posted on YouTube teaser images for the music video of the debut song “Congratulations.”Actor Choi Woo-sik, who is also with JYP Entertainment, makes a guest appearance.DAY6 comprises Dowun, Wonpil, Junhyeok, Jae, main vocalist Seongjin and Young K. They compose their own lyrics and songs.“The Day” will be released through local music at midnight on Sept. 7. Sep 3, 2015
