A series of press conferences and interviews were canceled following Lee Sun-kyun's sudden death on Wednesday. As Korean actors and entertainment industry insiders express their condolences, more industry events are likely to be canceled over the next few weeks. Local broadcaster tvN said Wednesday it would reschedule the live online press conference for its new romantic comedy drama "Marry Me Now" to Jan. 1. The press conference was prepared to take place at 2 p.m. Wednesday. Act

Broadcasters' year-end music festivals have come under fire for poor production value, counterfeit tickets and selecting overseas venues over domestic ones, making it hard for K-pop fans to attend. The "SBS Gayo Daejeon 2023,” which was held at Inspire Arena in Yongjeong-do, Incheon, on Christmas Day, several accidents threatened the safety of artists in attendance. A man jumped over the safety line while girl group aespa was about to leave the red-carpet photo wall. A bodyguar

Touted as the most anticipated Netflix original Korean drama series of the second half of the year, "Gyeongseong Creature," the latest work of director Jung Dong-yoon, fell flat upon its release. Set against the backdrop of Gyeongseong, today's Seoul, in 1945, "Gyeongseong Creature" is a 10-part thriller drama that centers around the stories of two individuals who encounter monsters in a mysterious hospital. While the series proclaimed itself as a monster horror series,

South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun, 48, was one of Korea's most decorated actors on television to silver screen, both domestically and internationally. Lee debuted as the lead actor in the short film "Psyco Drama" in 2000, a story about a lonely nurse. On television, Lee first appeared on broadcaster MBC's sitcom series "Lovers" in 2001, playing an unemployed troublemaker. Lee rose to stardom with the character Choi Do-young in MBC's megahit medical drama "Be

Easy listening, a popular music genre of soothing vocal and instrumental sounds that first appeared in the 1940s, or also sometimes called "elevator music," hit the K-pop scene this year. In a departure from their typical conceptual-driven songs, many K-pop groups started introducing easy-listening singles. Releasing a single of this genre was one of the key factors in girl group Fifty Fifty's record-breaking feats on the biggest music charts in the West, the US-based Billboard an

Pledis Entertainment, which represents K-pop boy band Seventeen, is to launch a new boy band under the name TWS on Jan. 22, 2024. The six-member TWS will release a single, “Oh Mymy: 7s,” on Tuesday prior to the official debut, according to Pledis Entertainment on Wednesday. The predebut single will be part of the group’s debut EP, “Sparkling Blue.” TWS is scheduled to release various video content before its official debut, such as a clip on the story behind the deb

48-year-old actor had claimed innocence, requested lie detector

As the year draws to a close, the cultural tapestry of traditional performances comes alive across national venues, offering a rich and diverse celebration through the year-end and New Year concerts to usher in the upcoming year. National Gugak Center revives traditional ‘Narye’ To ward off evil spirits on the eve of the year's end and welcome a peaceful new year, the traditional palace ritual known as "narye" has been reimagined as a grand-scale performance. Wrappin

Seventeen is rolling out a trot song on Tuesday to the surprise of its fans. Under the title “God of Light Music,” the single was originally made as a promotional content for the band’s 11th EP “Seventeen’s Heaven.” It was created for the 13-member act’s documentary, part of its YouTube show “Going Seventeen,” and many of the fans requested the music to be officially released, according to agency Pledis Entertainment. A Korean trot version o

As it celebrates two decades in the music business, TVXQ said Tuesday it hopes to slowly but steadily continue its journey as K-pop artists for many years to come. “We’ve run forward like wild horses during the past 20 years. For the next 20 years, we hope to work slowly but continuously," said Yunho of TVXQ during a press conference in Seoul. "Looking at other artists who have been in the industry longer than us, I learned that we’ve also got to make new attempts ins

From Bong Joon-ho’s first work in five years to global blockbuster sequels, theaters ready to attract more moviegoers

The most searched-for television program on the mobile version of the nation's most popularly used search engine was "The Glory," with the most searched-for movie being "The Roundup: No Way Out," according to a report from Naver. According to Naver's report on popularly searched for keywords in 2023 released Thursday -- which made use of Naver's data collected from January to November -- the most searches for a television show on Naver's mobile application

A rush of veteran K-pop boy groups returning with new releases stirred up nostalgia among old K-pop fans and enriched the music scene. That includes the so-called "second-generation" boy groups, those who debuted between 2003 and 2011, such as legends SHINee, Ukiss, Infinite, Teen Top and TVXQ. SHINee started the comeback race with the release of its eighth studio album, "Hard," in June, breaking a hiatus of more than two years. The group celebrated its 15th anniversary this

Rookies who embarked on a new journey as K-pop idols this year wrote many firsts in K-pop history. Even in the overpopulated industry, the debut acts managed to set the bar high for those following their footsteps by setting new records. Zerobaseone, a group of nine artists chosen through Mnet’s idol survival program, “Boys Planet,” made its grand debut in July with its first EP, “Youth in the Shade.” According to local album sales tracker Hanteo Chart, 1.24 million

Exports of South Korean-made TV programs soared nearly 30 percent on-year to a record high last year thanks to rising demand from global streaming platforms, a government report showed Monday. A total of 728.2 billion won ($561.3 million) worth of Korean TV content was sold overseas in 2022, up 29.6 percent, or $128.1 million, from a year earlier, according to an annual report on the local broadcasting industry by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Communications Commission. It is the