Aug 9, 2020

BLACKPINK's 'How You Like That' tops 400 mln YouTube views

The music video for BLACKPINK's hit song "How You Like That" topped the milestone of 400 million YouTube views Sunday. The music video surpassed the threshold only 43 days after its release on June 26. The feat makes it the fastest to reach the mark among all K-pop music videos on YouTube. The previous record was by "Kill This Love," another hit by the four-member act, which took 63 days to garner the view total. "How You Like That" is the first of two pre-rele

Aug 6, 2020

[Herald Interview] Rocket Punch celebrates first anniversary with ‘Juicy’

Rookie girl group Rocket Punch had a very busy year. Since debuting August last year, the band already released three mini-albums.  The latest one titled “Blue Punch” was released Tuesday, three days before their first anniversary. Following “Pink Punch” and “Red Punch,” this album centers on the theme of summer and consists of six tracks with “Juicy” as the lead track.  “Our debut song ‘Bim Bam Bum’ was also an energe

Aug 4, 2020

BTS song lyrics featured on iconic billboard in downtown Seoul

Words from the song "Run" by K-pop group BTS have been featured on an iconic signboard in downtown Seoul. The new billboard on the exterior of the Kyobo Building in the Gwanghwamun square, central Seoul, reads, "Run, run, run again. It's OK if you fall. Run, run, run again. It's OK to get hurt" -- lifted from the lead song of the 2015 BTS album "The Most Beautiful Moment in Life pt. 2." The banner, 20 meters by 8 meters in dimension, has been up on the Gwanghwamu

Aug 3, 2020

K-pop act (G)I-dle sings of summer, youthfulness in new single

In an about-face from its usually contemplative and edgy sound and imagery, K-pop girl group (G)I-dle said Monday its new single "Dumdi Dumdi" was intended to be a bright dance song inspired by the spirit of youthfulness and the sizzling summer heat. "While writing the new song, I asked myself what summer reminds me of. I thought it was similar to the spirit of youthfulness," (G)I-dle singer Soyeon said during a press conference held online ahead of the single's 6 p.m. relea

Aug 3, 2020

S.M. Entertainment secures W100b funding from Naver

S.M. Entertainment said Monday that it has secured 100 billion won (US$83.8 million) in funding from Naver. The new funding will be injected into two S.M. affiliates – SMEJ Plus and Mystic Story – and a separate fund solely dedicated to creating new video contents. As part of the renewed partnership, S.M. plans to unify its global fanclub service into “Fanship” on Naver’s K-pop platform V Live. Launched last year, Fanship is a membership-based paid service for b

Jul 31, 2020

BTS nominated in three categories for 2020 MTV Video Music Awards

K-pop giant BTS won three nominations for the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards in the United States, according to the American television network Thursday (local time). The South Korean septet's "ON," the lead song on the band's album "Map of the Soul 7," was nominated in the categories of Best Pop, Best Choreography and Best K-pop, according to MTV's website. "ON" peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 upon release its release in March, the strongest showing ever f

Jul 31, 2020

No joke: Reality TV K-pop act rocks music scene while raising questions of fairness

From its inception, SSAK3, a one-off K-pop team created for MBC TV's weekend variety show "Hang Out With Yoo," was intended to be a silly tongue-in-cheek project, riding on the coattails of the retro boom in today's pop culture landscape. At best, the co-ed trio, formed of two late '90s-2000s singers -- Lee Hyo-ri of girl group FIN.K.L and male soloist Rain -- and top-billed comedian-emcee Yoo Jae-suk, was expected to offer a dose of wholesome feel-good '90s nostalgia to viewers and

Jul 30, 2020

[Herald Interview] Newkidd teams up with global artists for song to combat COVID-19

Rising boy group Newkidd joined a global music project to combat the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The seven-piece boy band under J-Flo Entertainment teamed up with a batch of global musicians to release “Me Me We,” a song that offers a message of comfort in the fight against COVID-19. This time, four members -- Jinkwon, Yunmin, Woochul and Hwi -- lent their voices for the hopeful-sounding song. “It’s a difficult time for all of us, so we wanted hope to resonate all o

Jul 30, 2020

[Herald Interview] Yukika’s journey from Japanese actress to K-pop artist

“Meant to be” is a fitting phrase to describe Yukika’s journey as a K-pop artist. A Japanese singer who released her debut album, “Soul Lady,” in South Korea last week, Yukika took her first step into the entertainment industry in middle school as a model and actress in Japan. Upon entering university, she took a hiatus to focus on her studies. Three years later, she appeared on TV again, but this time in the Korean show “The Idolmaster KR,” and late

Jul 30, 2020

Ateez opens new chapter with ‘Inception’

Having reached a new career high, Ateez on Wednesday returned with the new single “Inception” to open a new chapter in its discography. “We had the longest hiatus since our debut, but we tried to fill in the gap with better preparation and a good new song,” said Seonghwa in a written statement released by the group’s agency, KQ Entertainment.  Leading off the group’s new “Zero: Fever Part.1” album, the electronic dance music cut marks a sh

Jul 29, 2020

K-pop stocks bounce back strong from pandemic blow

K-pop stocks are rapidly bouncing back from pandemic lows as investors are increasingly buying the stocks on the rosy outlook for further expansion of K-pop fandoms and new business models. The nation’s top three labels -- S.M. Entertainment, YG Entertainment and JYP Entertainment -- are leading the upbeat mood, while excitement is also building up for Big Hit Entertainment’s planned stock debut possibly later this year. Their stocks suffered their worst fall in March when concert

Jul 28, 2020

BLACKPINK to drop first full-length album on Oct. 2

K-pop quartet BLACKPINK will drop its first full studio album in October, the group's management agency said Tuesday. On its official blog, YG Entertainment posted an album teaser poster titled "The Album," with a pink tiara in the middle and the date "2020.10.02" at the bottom. It is expected to be the first full-length album produced by the foursome, which debuted in 2016. "In 2020, BLACKPINK will target the global music market on the back of systemic and thorough

Jul 28, 2020

Bimonthly magazine on K-pop band BTS launched in Italy

ROME -- A bimonthly magazine dedicated to all things related to K-pop giant BTS has been launched in Italy, in a reflection of the band's growing popularity, according to the publisher Monday. Italian publishing house Sprea S.p.A launched the magazine, BTS, last month, with the full-color launch edition consisting of some 80 pages featuring photos and articles on their past activities. Found in 1993, Sprea publishes some 50 magazines on a wide range of topics from music, science, animals and

Jul 24, 2020

Former ILUV member Minah hospitalized as dispute with agency, band spirals out of control

The mother of Minah, formerly of K-pop group ILUV, posted to Minah’s Instagram in the early hours of Friday that the singer had collapsed and was sent to the emergency room. It was the latest development in an ongoing exchange of accusations online between Minah and her former ILUV bandmates, as well as with ILUV agency WKS ENE. “Mina collapsed today and was sent to the emergency room. She will be hospitalized soon and I hope negative comments and predictions about Mina’s s