Actors rise to the challenge of performing onstage during pandemic

At 8:50 a.m. on Thursday, Chairman Bang Si-hyuk of Big Hit Entertainment, home to K-pop phenom BTS, rang the bells marking the company’s initial public offering at the Korea Exchange headquarters in Seoul. A huge step forward for the 15-year-old company, and also one of the most anticipated IPOs of the year, the listing ceremony was livestreamed -- a first in the bourse operator’s history. “We began as a small entertainment company that set out to bring healing through our m

MBC’s drama series “Phoenix” from 2004 that featured actor Lee Seo-jin, Mun Jung-hyuk and the late Lee Eun-ju returns as an SBS daily morning soap opera starting from Monday at 8:35 a.m. The script for the 2020 “Phoenix” remake is once again written by Lee Yoo-jin, who wrote the original series. “Pheonix” revolves around Jang Se-hoon, who is poor, and Lee Ji-eun, from a rich family, as they get married, get divorced and meet again after their financi

In the last few years, K-pop has become more than just a music genre. Its influence has not only been proven on the Billboard charts and on US TV shows, but has also spilled over into the realm of diplomacy. Recently, global sensation BTS faced an uproar after the group received an award from the Korea Society, which celebrates South Korea-US ties. In an acceptance speech, leader RM mentioned the “pain of history” in a reference to the 1950-1953 Korean War. His seemingly innocuou

Mnet announced Tuesday that rapper Owen of MKIT Rain Records is stepping down from the rap competition program “Show Me the Money,” following a local media report that he and four other rappers were found to have used marijuana last year. The local Channel A News reported Monday that the police investigated MKIT Rain Records and found all five rappers of the label had used marijuana sometime in August and September last year at the company’s office. The five rappers were Nafl

K-pop megastar BTS has ranked fifth on the Billboard's main singles chart with its latest hit "Dynamite" that had topped the list for three weeks, Billboard reported. "BTS' 'Dynamite' drops 2-5 on the Hot 100, after three nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1, as it posts an eighth week atop Digital Song Sales," the US music publisher said Monday (US time). The seven-member act made history with the English-lyric pop song by becoming the first South Korean band to top the Hot 100 c

Seventeen released its new album, “Semicolon,” Monday, with a message of encouragement for young people to take some time off in their busy lives. “Just like the album’s title symbolizes a pause in a sentence, we wanted to convey a message that it’s OK to take a break from the everyday struggles and that it’s going to be a preparation for a journey called life,” said Vernon during an online press conference in Seoul on Monday. Marking the group&rsquo

The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra is gearing up for a new start, after months of lull due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Like most other orchestras and music acts around the world, the SPO has had a rather underwhelming 2020. This year, the SPO took to the stage stage in February -- when its music director Osmo Vanska led two inaugural concerts in Seoul -- and in June and July, before performances were halted again as the number of COVID-19 cases spiked in August. But as Korea has eased

K-pop girl group BLACKPINK's latest album ranked No. 6 on Billboard's main album chart this week, coming in the top 10 on the chart for the second consecutive week, according to Billboard. "The Album," the first full-length album of the quartet, ranked No. 6 with 35,000 equivalent album units earned in the second week of its release, Billboard reported Sunday (US time). The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart last week, setting a new record for a South Korean girl gro

As the popularity of YouTubers and social media influencers rise, so too do controversies surrounding them. With the online stars appearing on popular television shows and in advertisements, verification of their background has become a rising issue. Controversy arose last week when Rhee Keun, popularly known as “Lt. Lee,” faced allegations that he was convicted for a 2017 sexual assault. Lee had already gone through a debt scandal at the beginning of the month when he was accused

Original musical by Koh Sun-woong pays tribute to Gwangju Democratic Uprising

Chen, a member of K-pop boy band EXO, will join the military later this month to fulfill his mandatory military service, his agency said Friday. The 28-year-old, whose legal name is Kim Jong-dae, is set to enlist on Oct. 26, according to SM Entertainment. The agency did not elaborate further on the venue and schedule of the enlistment. "I will fulfill my duty with a fit mind and body so that I can come back and say hello as a more mature person," he said in a handwritten note posted