Though her music career has reached dizzying heights, Rose confesses in her new solo single that she’s found the most important things in life on the ground. Breaking out on her own for the first time since she made her debut five years ago, the Blackpink vocalist dropped her first solo EP, “R,” Friday afternoon. With a title that signifies her new start as a soloist, as well as the first letter of the artist’s name, “R” consists of two tracks: “On the

Blackpink wrapped up its virtual concert “The Show” to much fanfare in Seoul on Sunday. The group’s first pay-per-view livestreamed show, which ran for about 90 minutes on YouTube, featured the four bandmates performing a total of 19 songs, including their biggest hits “How You Like That,” “Don’t Know What to Do,” “Love Sick Girls,” “Whistle” and “Boombayah.” Songs from the group’s latest “The Alb

Sending a message of hope has always been the backbone of Epik High’s music career spanning over 17 years. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage, but the trio has never been so eager to reach out to and comfort listeners in this distressing time. “I’d once sworn that we wouldn’t release an album with two CDs anymore. But we couldn’t help but do it because there were so many stories we wanted to share,” said DJ Tukutz during the band’s self-hosted onl

Continuing to carve out its own niche, (G)I-dle has released a new single, “Hwa,” named for a Chinese character that can mean both “flower” and “fire.” The rhythmic moombahton number fronts the band’s fourth EP, “I Burn,” which follows debut EP “I Am” and later editions in the series “I Made” and “I Trust.” The self-produced “I Burn” credits all six members as either composers or lyricists, wi

It’s been a while since the group entered a stable orbit, and GOT7 feels responsible for its musical output more than ever. Back with new album “Breath of Love: Last Piece,” the seven bandmates, having participated directly in the creative process, expressed their hopes to continue growing as musicians with an unwavering mindset. “I get more serious about music each time we release an album. Since it‘s the same as producing my output and leaving my trace, I thin

Recognized as one of the most foundational acts in K-pop, BoA is looking back at her 20-year-career with the release of her new album “Better.” “It still feels a bit weird that it’s already been 20 years. So many people have congratulated me, but I feel like people around me are putting more weight on it than I do,” said the K-pop icon with a laugh during an online press conference that was held ahead of the release of “Better” in Seoul on Tuesday. Si

Enhypen, a new boy group from the Mnet survival show “I-Land,” made its grand debut with the single “Given-Taken.” Having already caused a sensation prior to its debut, the seven-piece multinational boy band held an online media showcase Monday in Seoul, where it unveiled the single and talked about its solid rookie effort. Pop-hip-hop track “Given-Taken” comes off of the EP “Border: Day 1.” “As much as we were created on a survival progra

A wave of hope continues with BTS, as the group returned with a highly-anticipated “BE” album that reaches out to those disheartened amid the pandemic. After dominating the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with its previous single “Dynamite,” the global pop sensation held a live-streamed press conference in Seoul on Friday ahead of the release of the new album. Strict disinfection measures took place at the entrance, while reporters were seated with extra distance. Excitem

Aespa, a new girl group under S.M. Entertainment, made its highly-anticipated debut with “Black Mamba” on Tuesday. The four-piece band, consisting of Karina, Giselle, Winter and Ningning, unveiled the single via its YouTube and SM Town channels, opting out of any press event and leaning toward a rather online-oriented approach to showcase itself to the world. Inspired by the futuristic “avatar” theme, the group’s name comes from “avatar, experience and asp

US music publication Rolling Stone recently announced plans to launch a Korean-language edition this month with the aim of broadening its K-pop coverage. The iconic magazine, which has 11 international editions, will publish a bimonthly print edition in South Korea that features original content and on-the-ground reporting as well as syndicated articles. Rolling Stone is the latest US music publication seeking its niche in the globally expanding K-pop industry. Its bigger rival Billboard, wh

When it comes to K-pop career, WEi is no stranger to spotlight, even though it debuted as a group just last month. Consisting of Jang Dae-hyeon, Kim Dong-han, Kim Yo-han, Yoo Yong-ha, Kim Jun-seo and Kang Seok-hwa, the six-piece group debuted under Oui Entertainment on Oct. 5 with its debut EP “Identity: First Sight,” featuring lead single “Twilight.” The group just made its first step, but the footprints of the bandmates are everywhere in the K-pop industry. Both Daehy

GFriend released its new full-length album, “Walpurgis Night,” Monday. “Right after releasing our previous ‘Song of the Sirens’ album, we’ve been constantly working on the new album right until the comeback. We really did our best to make it happen as soon as possible,” said band leader Sowon during an online press showcase for the new album in Seoul on Monday. The fully packed collection is fronted by upbeat disco track “Mago,” which abou

After making its long-awaited debut in August, Treasure has dropped three albums in less than 100 days as if to prove its presence as a rising rookie of the year. YG Entertainment‘s 12-piece boy band released its third EP “The First Step”: CHAPTER THREE” on Friday evening, shortly after rolling out its second installment of the “The First Step” series in September. The new album is fronted by the lead single “MMM,” a groovy and aggressive hyb

A BTS pop-up showcase in Seoul quenched local fans’ thirst during the pandemic era, offering them a unique experience related to the global pop music juggernaut. Taking over a three-story building at trendy Garosugil in Gangnam, southern Seoul, the offline showcase dubbed “BTS pop-up: Map of the Soul” opened its door to fans on Oct. 23. It follows BTS’ first pop-up store that opened last year in Seoul. Due to the prolonged COVID-19 outbreak, some major alterations were

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, this year turned out to be quite prolific for Weki Meki.  Having released three EPs from February to October, most recently highlighted by its power-driven single “Cool,” the eight girls of the rising K-pop girl group took time to look back on their four-year career, talk growth as musicians and share each of their life lessons for this year. “It was definitely a busy year, but we were glad to have shown new sides of us in terms of perf

Twice is facing the duality of good and evil in its brand new single “I Can’t Stop Me.” The nine-piece band dropped its second full-length Korean album “Eyes Wide Open” on Monday evening, which features the disco-tinged pop lead track “I Can’t Stop Me.” Ahead of the release, the bandmates shared details of the new song and excitement over releasing their first full-length album in three years. “Comparing ourselves to three years ago, we re

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

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

After basking in the limelight of “King of Mask Singer” in 2017, Sohyang has kept a low-profile, staying away from the small screen. Over the course of her public absence, she’s battled severe pneumonia, which recurred eight times and nearly took away her voice, and made her certain, at one point, that her singing career would be over. But ironically, it was also those times of despair that helped get her head above water and led her to music variety show “Begin Again.&rd

Enhypen, a new boy group from Mnet’s survival show “I-Land,” is slated to make its highly anticipated debut in November. It’s only been a few weeks since the multinational seven-piece band put up its first official profile, but this sensational rookie act has already attracted the spotlight. Initially, the high-profile show -- jointly organized by South Korean entertainment giant CJ ENM and Big Hit Entertainment, home to BTS and TXT -- had a rough start due to