Hopes are growing that Korean Canadian director and playwright Celine Song’s directorial debut “Past Lives” could repeat the success of Lee Isaac Chung's heartwarming family drama “Minari," nominated in six categories at the 2021 Academy Awards. The 2024 Academy Awards are slated to take place March 10, 2024. "Past Lives," which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival in January, quickly garnered international critical attention. The film opened i

Appearing in a US documentary, singer and painter Solbi has impressed viewers with her courageous journey in overcoming malicious comments. Solbi appeared in a documentary entitled "Painting Through Pain" as part of the Voice of America's 52 Documentary series on YouTube, sharing the painful experience of malicious comments and cyberbullying and how she overcame them. Directed by Komeil Soheili, the documentary was part of the weekly documentary series released from the VOA. Accor

Jennie, Lisa, Rose and Jisoo will remain as Blackpink, defying K-pop's infamous “seven-year curse.” The seven-year curse in K-pop refers to the disbanding of most K-pop groups seven years after their debut as the exclusive contracts with their agencies come to an end. “Based on our strong trust in one another, Blackpink renewed its exclusive contract with the agency for group activities,” YG Entertainment announced Wednesday. YG said it plans to actively support Blac

K-pop boy group Seventeen is adorning five different cities in Japan through The City, a project which hosts diverse events across a specific region for its fans to enjoy. The project is being carried out at 70 different places across Tokyo, Saitama, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka along with 30 companies in time for the group’s visits to these cities as part of its dome tour in Japan, according to Hybe. “The project also took place last year in three different cities in Japan with 25 loca

RM, V, Jimin and Jungkook of BTS communicated with their fans through a livestream on Weverse on Tuesday night ahead of starting their mandatory military service next week. “We are looking forward to the day that we resume working as a full unit. We know that together we will generate significant synergy. With this in mind, we will spend the coming year and a half in the military,” said the members. RM and V are enlisting on Dec. 11, and Jimin and Jungkook on Dec. 12, according to in

Singer-songwriter Zion.T contemplated how to reach new listeners when working on his third studio album, “Zip,” which is his first album release in five years. “I (wanted) to present a good album that rebrands my identity as a musician to attract new listeners. I want this album to open a new chapter of my career,” Zion.T said during an interview with a group of reporters on Monday. Zion.T has made his mark on the music industry over the last 12 years as a creative si

Taipei, TAIWAN -- On Nov. 25, about 160 seats of the Experimental Theater at the National Theater & Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan were full. In front of the audience were two Taiwanese actresses -- Da Tian and Lee Ling-Wei -- and a cello and piano duo. The actresses sitting facing the audience on two simple chairs turned into two characters, both named Yujin: "Big Yujin" and "Little Yujin." With their lines and dramatic songs, the two actresses led the audience into th

The star director of hit Korean TV dramas "Guardian: The Lonely and Great God" (2016) and "Mr. Sunshine" (2018), Lee Eung-bok is back with the much-awaited second season of Netflix's "Sweet Home." Lee's first season of "Sweet Home," a 10-part Netflix original series, gained a global following in 2020, making it to the Netflix US top 10 list as the first Korean TV drama to do so. "When I decided to direct 'Sweet Home', I didn't

Lucy is back with "Boogie Man." The K-pop rock band, which has continued its musical transformation since debuting in 2019, dropped the new single album Tuesday evening. The titular "Boogie Man" is an emo pop song with a mysterious atmosphere, straying from the refreshing energy Lucy has been known for. The funky yet intense rock sounds are a new attempt, but the sounds of Shin Ye-chan's violin revel in Lucy's unique quality. The boogie man of the song refers to ano

V of BTS will appear in a music video for IU’s upcoming single, according to a local media report Tuesday. Management firms for both artists confirmed the news following the report. They have already finished shooting the visuals, said Edam Entertainment, adding that IU’s new album will be released in the first half of 2024. The shooting schedule was moved up as V is set to enlist in the military next week along with bandmates RM, Jimin and Jungkook. His label, Big Hit Music, announ

The plot of director Yuk Sang-hyo’s “Our Season” is quite simple. Bok-ja (Kim Hae-sook) visits her daughter Jin-joo (Shin Min-a) as part of her “vacation from heaven” after suddenly passing away. Despite Bok-ja’s excitement over the prospect of seeing her daughter again, she is startled to find out that Jin-joo has quit her job as a professor at UCLA and settled down in the countryside to open a restaurant. Together with Jin-joo's best friend, Mi-jin (H

With the third season of Netflix dating reality show "Singles Inferno" ready to release next week, one participant grabbing the eyes of local basketball fans is Lee Gwan-hee, a brash, outspoken and somewhat-controversial guard playing for the Changwon LG Sakers of the Korea Basketball League. Lee’s appearance will mark the first time an active professional athlete will appear in the wildly popular show, and fans of the mildly liked KBL are wondering if the publicity will help boo

A grand-scale production featuring a blend of traditional Korean instrumental music, Western orchestra, "pansori" (Korean traditional narrative singing), choir and dance will celebrate the year's end at the National Theater of Korea (NTOK). Three state companies -- the National Changgeuk Company of Korea, the National Dance Company of Korea and the National Orchestra of Korea -- affiliated with the NTOK have joined forces to mark the 50th anniversary of the theater's relocati

The Munich Philharmonic has set several milestones while in Korea. The orchestra made a rare Korea-exclusive tour of seven concerts around the country, including one at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, where the orchestra and pianist Lim Yun-chan took the stage. It was a record-breaking concert for the center -- the tickets for the 2,953-seat Grand Theater were sold out within a minute upon ticket sales opening in August, despite the fact that the Sejong Center is not considered the be

    Blackpink’s music video for “Kill This Love” has generated 1.9 billion views on YouTube as of Monday, according to label YG Entertainment. This follows the video of “Ddu-du Ddu-du” and makes the foursome the first K-pop artist ever to have two hits to achieve the feat. The music video came out in April 2019 and was one of the top 10 most-viewed music videos in 2023 while the song hit Billboard’s Hot 100 at No. 41, setting a record for a K-po

Netflix Korea's popular dating reality show "Single's Inferno" has returned with its third season, with a brand new group of young, attractive singles and a plot that moves faster than ever. “Single’s Inferno,” the first season of which debuted in December 2021, has garnered worldwide attention, with the series becoming the first Korean reality show to be listed on Netflix's global top 10 chart. Building on this success, Netflix extended the series wi

The Seoul Arts Center’s Inchoon Art Hall will host the last installment of a special series that highlights the rising classic musicians this month. Launched in May, the "Seoul Arts Center Inchoon Art Hall Special – The Next" series showcases talented young musicians. Throughout this year, a total of seven young musicians have been featured. The last part of the series will present pianist Park Jin-hyung, violist Yun So-hui and pianist Chon Sae-yoon, all of whom won sever

P1Harmony has expanded its presence in the US, performing in front of some 30,000 people during the annual iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour, performing in front of some 30,000 local fans. The iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour, a holiday concert presented by Capital One, featuring the year’s top artists performing their No. 1 hits, kicked off Nov. 26 in Tampa, Florida. The multicity tour's lineup is one of the most anticipated, particularly of the Christmas holiday season. It stops at 11 cities

JYP Entertainment’s girl group Itzy is set to release a new album, "Born to Be," on Jan. 8. The agency announced the five-member group's comeback scheduled for next year, including the album promotion schedule and the album tracklist, on its official social media accounts, Monday. The upcoming release is a 10-track studio album led by the title track, “Untouchable.” The lead track was produced by renowned K-pop lyricists and producers Lee Seuran, Jam Factory and

The 49th Seoul Independent Film Festival, the only independent film festival in South Korea that features a competitive showcase, will for the first time screen independent Korean animation films from the 1980s and 1990s in local theaters. This year's Independent Film Archive Exhibition, being held alongside the film festival, will feature six indie Korean animations from the 1980s and '90s created using the cel animation method. Cel animation involves the manual creation of two-dimens