Fans feel closer to stars at K-pop emporiumsBy Rachel Lee As the K-pop craze heats up across Asia, Europe and Latin America, themed cafes are sprouting amid the hustle and bustle of Myeong-dong, or in the trendy streets of Gangnam in southern Seoul. These cafes offer a plethora of items related to K-pop stars. Imagine the Hershey’s or M&M store in Times Square New York, but a K-pop version. The cafes have already spread outside the capital, and will soon go international to open in cities such as Bangkok. KSTORY, opened in December last year, is on the second floor opposite the Uniqlo store in Myeong-dong. Unlike businesses run by gigantic entertainment companies, KSTORY is operated by an individual. “In the midst of K-pop fever, I decided to open this cafe to further promote our music to everyone visiting Korea,” said Youn Jong-youn, president of KSTORY. The place features an exhibit of about 150 K-pop items once belonging to stars including Rain’s teddy bear, costumes that were worn by boy band Choshinsung and autographs of members of Girls’ Generation and Bigbang. Youn, a former film director, said he colJul 8, 2012
K-pop singers to hold joint performance in SeoulA dozen of Korean pop singers from the same entertainment agency will hold a joint performance in Seoul next month as part of a world concert tour organized by their agency to capitalize on the rising popularity of K-pop music, the company said Thursday. The Seoul performance of the S.M. Town Live World Tour III will be held at Jamsil Olympic Stadium in southern Seoul on Aug. 18, according to the agency. "This time, all of our singers, including Kangta, BoA, TVXQ, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, SHINee, f(x) and EXO, will present a varied show," it said in a statement. The S.M. Entertainment artists performed in the United States in May and Taiwan last month, enrapturing audiences with their powerful dancing and songs. Before the Seoul show, they are scheduled to perform in Tokyo on Aug. 4-5. The agency said it is selling a special tour program for the artists' overseas fans coming to see the show. The tour package consists of tickets to the show and an exhibition on the K-pop artists organized by the agency, and attendance to a fan meeting and a welcoming party. TheJul 5, 2012
After School back with 'Flashback'For After School, a rising K-pop girl group, the past year has been full of new challenges. The group, which debuted in 2009, took its act to the overseas market in Japan last July and later ranked in the top 10 on Japan's Oricon daily and weekly charts with "Bang!," its first single album released in the Japanese market in August. This April, the group had its first solo performances in Japan, touring large cities including Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka. Tickets for the concerts sold out before the tour began, heralding a new addition to the stable of South Korean pop artists popular in other Asian countries. After School recently returned to the local market with a maxi-length single album, "Flashback," named for the title song, an electronic dance piece that is reminiscent of the group's early years. The eight members of After School said they greatly missed their home stages after a year in Japan. "'Flashback' revived the strong energy from our early years. Sexiness was added to that. We paid much attention to choreography so we can show our own synchronized group danceJul 5, 2012
Super Junior eyes becoming beloved idol groupKorea's pop group Super Junior said during a comeback news conference on Tuesday that they want to become a nationally beloved idol group that is even supported by elderly citizens. Once nicknamed the "president of hallyu" for its popularity both among local and overseas fans, the boy band has made a comeback with their first album in about a year. Hallyu, meaning the Korean wave, refers to the boom of Korean pop culture in other Asian and Western countries. Their sixth album "Sexy, Free & Single" is set to be released to the local market on Wednesday. "We have received plenty of love and help since debuting in 2005," group leader Leetaeuk said during the news conference in southern Seoul. "Therefore, I think what we ought to do in the future is to explore a new path or write a new history. We want to grow into an idol group that wins the hearts of all age groups ranging from teens to those in their 60s and 70s," he said. Since the band's fifth album "Mr. Simple" gained worldwide popularity, selling more than 500,000 copies in South Korea alone, the news conference hadJul 3, 2012
Maroon 5, Eminem to fire up summerBy Rachel Lee Among the most anticipated concerts in coming months are those by two big American names — Maroon 5 and Eminem — stopping off in Korea as part of their global tours. Eminem will perform for the first time in Korea at Jamsil Sports Complex in Seoul on Aug. 19 at 8 p.m. Organized by Hyundai Card, the world-famous rapper from Detroit will visit Korea to the delight of many fans. Japan is the only other Asian concert on his “Recovery Tour.” His debut album “Infinite” released in 1996 earned harsh criticism for the 39-year-old artist but he soon found fame with his first major label album “The Slim Shady LP” in 1999. Since then, he has received numerous awards including the American Music Awards’ Artist of the Year in 2009 and Grammy Awards for Best Rap Album in 2000 and 2011 and Best Rap Solo Performance in 2011. The rapper was among the best-selling artists during the 2000s. Started in 2007, Hyundai Card’s Super Concert series has boasted a line-up of top musicians including Lady Gaga, Beyonce and Sumi Jo. Maroon 5, a five-member rock band, wilJul 3, 2012
Rocking tectonic shiftSuper!Sonic challenges Pentaport-Jisan duopoly By Kwaak Je-yup Where there is something hot, Koreans flock to it. This year, the hottest item seems to be festivals, with electronic dance music-focused Sensation and Ultra Music Festival joining the already-crowded summer of beats and sounds. The most interesting to watch is the potentially tectonic change in the rock world, where the inaugural Super!Sonic Festival is challenging the pre-established Coke-and-Pepsi-like order of Pentaport and Jisan Valley. With tickets costing hundreds of thousands of won (hundreds of dollars), most music fans are facing a problem where they have to pick just one of the three. For Mike Shanee Min, a 27-year-old white-collar worker in Seoul, the latest addition is welcome. But the die-hard music fan is ditching all three to attend Tokyo’s famous Summer Sonic Festival, which has booked some of world’s most popular artists such as Rihanna and Green Day for its two-day line-up on Aug. 18-19. “If I weren’t going to Tokyo, I’d go to Super!Sonic. 100 percent,” said Min. “I am contempJun 28, 2012
Japan fans pay tribute to late Park Yong-haBy Kwaak Je-yup Thousands of Japanese fans of the late entertainer Park Yong-ha marked the two-year anniversary of his death with memorials in Tokyo and Seoul. According to press reports, the temporary seven-day memorial set up until Tuesday drew nearly 8,000 visitors to its location at the Space Shower TV in the popular Shibuya neighborhood in the Japanese capital. Yona Entertainment, the late star’s management agency said more than 1,200 fans from the country are expected to arrive in Korea to attend a memorial service on Saturday, exactly two years after his death. Born in 1977, Park made his acting debut on MBC’s drama “Theme Theater” in 1994 and soon gained fame with his good looks and natural acting style. The 2001 TV series “Winter Sonata,” one of the first cross-border hits, catapulted him to massive fame in Japan alongside co-stars Bae Yong-joon and Choi Ji-woo. He then shifted his career towards music and released several chart-toppers in the country while continuing to act in different television series. Then on June 30, 2010, he was found dead in his NonhyJun 27, 2012
See MBLAQ in actionBy Kwaak Je-yup It is easy to be cynical about K-pop’s influence unless you have seen it in action. The story of five-member boy band MBLAQ is testament to this phenomenon. Thanks to the power of YouTube, curious music fans in countries such as Brazil and Italy can hear the music and see the performances. Soon they make their own online bulletin boards to discuss what they have seen. They may even try to learn Korean to understand the lyrics and even put up subtitles for others. They can quickly master the choreography and participate in so-called cover dance competitions. When MBLAQ visited Sao Paulo last year to preside over such an event, thousands of fans turned up at the airport in the wee hours, just for an opportunity to see their idols up close. Their hotel had to be barricaded by police for crowd control. The five 20-somethings ― Cheon Dung, G.O., Joon, Mir and Seungho ― all admitted to The Korea Times that they and their agency J. Tune Camp were astounded by this happening, which repeated itself in other regions around the world. (In a sparsely-populated area Jun 26, 2012
Who are MBLAQ?By Rachel Lee MBLAQ stands for Music Boys Live in Absolute Quality and are known for hits such as “Oh Yeah,” “Y” and “Mona Lisa.” The five-member K-pop boy band was formed by internationally acclaimed entertainer Rain under J. Tune Entertainment in 2009. Its members are leader/vocalist Seungho, 24, main vocalist G.O., 24, rapper and vocalist Cheon Dung, 21, vocalist Joon, 24, and rapper Mir, 21. They made a successful debut in June 2009 with the single “Just MBLAQ,” which topped various online and offline music charts in Korea. Since their first release, they have tried different genres ranging from dance/pop to R&B. And in particular, their second single “Y” in 2010 and the first studio album “BLAQ Style” in 2011 both gained considerable amount of attention from fans and media. Their mentor Rain has produced, written and choreographed a few tracks for the group including “Oh Yeah,” “G.O.O.D Luv,” and “Y.” However, each member has also exhibited great talent in music production, proven by a number of songs including “You” composed and written by Mir and “Sad Memories” by Jun 26, 2012
Together or separate, MBLAQ pack oomphFive-member boy band’s sound reaches as far as Latin America By Kwaak Je-yup Watching MBLAQ, it is difficult to believe that they have only been performing together for a little over two years. They do not miss a single step or note and are excellent dancers and singers. They have the power and the charisma that drive audiences wild. Everything about the five men — Cheon Dung, G.O., Joon, Mir and Seungho — belies the brevity of the group’s history. Maybe it is thanks to their relative maturity — three of them are now aged 24 and the other two a year or two younger — and the long years spent training as hard as any other K-pop stars in the making, but their natural talent is undeniable. They have what it takes to be a star. And that X factor first manifested itself overseas. Pitted against many other boy band competitors since their debut, they initially found success, but they were nowhere near the most popular in the domestic market. Though handpicked and trained by one of Korea’s pop superstars Rain (stage name of singer-actor Jung Ji-Jun 26, 2012