JYP Entertainment’s Japanese girl group NiziU officially debuted in South Korea with its first Korean single album, “Press Play,” on Monday. The nine-member group debuted in December 2020 as part of the agency’s project to localize K-pop in different places, “Globalization by Localization.” NiziU was trained under JYP’s strategic K-pop training system, which focuses on differentiating the group from other local bands bands through developing a K-pop iden

JYP Entertainment’s girl group NiziU has won the best pop video award at the MTV Video Music Awards Japan 2023. According to MTV, NiziU’s titular track of its 5th single album “Paradise,” also the theme song of “Doraemon the Movie,” won as this year’s best pop video. Before this, NiziU had received the best dance video award at MTV VMAJ in 2020 with its pre-debut single “Make You Happy,” and the best buzz award -- given to artists who have ge

Seventeen set a new first-week sales record, selling over 4.62 million copies of its 11th EP in four days, according to a local tally on Friday. This surpasses Stray Kids’ “Five-Star,” which logged 4.61 million in sales and dethroned Seventeen’s previous EP “FML,” which sold more than 4.55 million in the first week. The EP “FML” still holds a record, though, as the first album in K-pop history to sell more than 3 million units on the day of releas

The remake of the musical "Sister Act, which is getting ready for its world premiere on Nov. 4 in Busan, caused a buzz when it showcased its diverse cast at an open rehearsal at Dongseo University in the southern port city on Wednesday. The production house behind the musical is South Korea's EMK Musical Company, known for its success in turning international productions into popular musicals here. "Sister Act" is a blend of Korean and American talent, including cast members

An Argentinian vice presidential candidate’s old X post in which she said the name of boyband BTS sounded like “a sexually transmitted disease” has recently gone viral, angering the septet’s fans worldwide. Far-right politician Victoria Villarruel on Feb. 11, 2020, made the comment in response to another X (formerly Twitter) user who said the band's name sounds like the name of a health insurance company. The 48-year-old politician's comments at the time were me

The boy band will give a speech at the 13th UNESCO Youth Forum on Nov. 14 in Paris

“12.12: The Day,” a political drama revisiting a coup led by a Korean military that took place in 1979, is set to be released Nov. 22 in Korean cinemas, its distributor Plus M Entertainment said Friday. The film covers the nine hours on Dec. 12, 1979, during an attempted coup in Seoul. Although the film’s motif is based on a real event, the names of the characters have been altered to allow for a fictionalized plot line, according to the director Kim Seong-su, who has helmed va

The country’s largest queer film festival, Seoul International Pride Film Festival, kicks off on Nov. 2 at CGV Myeongdong Cine Library. The weeklong festival will screen queer movies from 39 countries, including 27 world premiere films, 13 Asia premiere films and three Korea premiere films. The British queer thriller flick “Femme” by Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping will open the festival. “Femme” follows a young man called Jules, who becomes the target of a horrifi

K-pop singer G-Dragon on Friday flatly denied rumors that he had used illegal drugs. "First of all, I have not taken any drugs," he said through a statement released by his attorney, refuting the accusation point-blank. "I am also unrelated to the drug use act violation case being reported in the news recently," he reiterated, adding, "However, as many people are worried, I will fully cooperate and do the best I can in the police investigation." G-Dragon, whose real

“The Boys” (South Korea) Opens on Nov. 1 Drama/Crime Directed by Chung Ji-young Three young men aged 19 to 20 from a small rural town are falsely arrested for involvement in a murder in 1999. Veteran detective Joon-cheol (Sol Kyung-gu) receives information on the real culprit and throws himself in to reinvestigate the case. “Killers of the Flower Moon” (US) Opened Oct. 19 Drama/Crime Directed by Martin Scorsese A series of murders among the Osage Native American tribe

Seventeen’s 11th EP topped Oricon’s daily album ranking, according to the latest chart published on Wednesday. EP “Seventeenth Heaven” landed atop the iTunes albums chart in Japan as well as Line Music’s real-time albums chart, said agency Pledis Entertainment on Thursday. It also headed straight to the top of all major music charts at home including Melon’s Top 100, becoming the first boy band to sit atop the chart this year. The 13-member act brought out th

Entertainment industry anxious over fallout from stars' drug scandals

Former (G)I-dle member Soojin is gearing up for her solo comeback, two years since she left the girl group due to bullying allegations. Soojin, whose real name is Seo Soo-jin, on Wednesday posted a performance video on her newly launched social media platforms. Titled "Black Forest," the black-and-white clip showed Soojin dancing gracefully to an instrumental tune. Whether the song pertains to the K-pop star's new album was not stated, but the video clearly indicates she is nearin

Cirque Du Soleil has returned to Seoul with its latest masterpiece, “Luzia: A Waking Dream of Mexico," along with 50 cast members for the performance. In South Korea, the Canadian circus ensemble has attracted more than 1 million spectators over the previous performances: "Quidam" in 2007 and 2015, "Alegria " in 2008 and 2022, “Varekai" in 2011, "Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour" in 2013 and "Kooza" in 2018. Luzia, derived fro

G-Dragon, 35, a former leader of the K-pop band Big Bang, was reportedly booked for drug use on Wednesday. G-Dragon, whose real name is Kwon Ji-yong, is under police investigation for breaching the Narcotics Control Act without detention, according to local media citing Incheon Metropolitan Police. Despite reports linking the investigation to the alleged drug use of Lee Sun-kyun, who starred in the Oscar-winning “Parasite,” police denied any connection between the two cases. The ar