Singer Rain’s boy band Ciipher on Wednesday dropped its third EP “The Code,” making a return in eight months since their last album. The seven-piece band -- comprising members Tan, Hyunbin, Hwi, Keita, Tag, Dohwan and Won -- conducted a press conference in Seoul on Wednesday afternoon ahead of the album’s release that day. Spruced up in chic black suits, the boys performed the new title song “Fame” leading “The Code,” along with the sub-title tra

　 Tomorrow X Together’s fourth EP “minisode 2: Thursday’s Child” sold more than 1.07 million copies in two days, according to label Big Hit Music on Wednesday. 　 The EP came out Monday and became the boy band’s first million-selling album, only three years since its debut, a record in K-pop history. It sold more than 1.46 million units in preorders. 　 The five-track EP topped iTunes top albums chart in 43 regions upon release as did focus track “Good Boy Gon

Ex-Justice Minister Cho Kuk made a surprise appearance via video to ask conservative Korean moviegoers to watch “The Red Herring” during a press conference held at CGV Yongsan on President Yoon Suk-yeol’s inauguration day, Tuesday. “What I want the people to know is that there are different perspectives on the situation and that there are different experiences and different testimonies,” Cho said in the video. “I hope this documentary will be watched by man

Even for veteran director Hirokazu Koreeda, who won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2018 for “Shoplifters,” directing a movie in a foreign country was a challenge. During a press conference at CGV Yongsan in Seoul on Tuesday, the Japanese director said he got a lot of help from “Parasite” star Song Kang-ho while filming his movie, “Broker.” “Before shooting the film, I had a meeting with director Bong Joon-ho. We talked over a mea

Return of fan chants, cheers excite both players, audience

With South Korea’s COVID-19 social distancing rules lifted, big-name global pop artists are returning to the country. Norwegian singer-songwriter Jakob Ogawa will be the first pop artist to hold a concert after the government scrapped distancing restrictions. The musician will hold his solo concert “Jakob (fka Jakob Ogawa) Live in Seoul” at Rolling Hall in Mapo-gu, western Seoul on May 20. It will mark the artist’s first meeting with local fans. Icelandic iconic post-r

As new American players like Paramount+ and HBO Max are set to start their services in South Korea later this year, competition is expected to intensify in the local streaming service market. US media giant Paramount Global said earlier this month that Paramount+, its subscription-based video streaming service, will land in South Korea next month in partnership with Tving, a local online video-on-demand platform run by CJ ENM. Its original and library content from Paramount Pictures and CBS like

The choreography video for "How You Like That," a 2020 hit single by K-pop girl group BLACKPINK, has surpassed 1.1 billion views on YouTube. The group's agency YG Entertainment said Wednesday the video hit the milestone slightly after midnight, one year and 10 months after it was uploaded on the global video streaming service. The number 1.1 billion is the largest for a K-pop choreography video. The song's official music video has garnered 1.09 billion streams as of 9 a.m. Including th

Tomorrow X Together landed atop the iTunes top albums chart in 43 regions with its fourth EP “minisode 2: Thursday’s Child,” said label Big Hit Music on Tuesday. 　 The EP was released on Monday and sold over 910,000 copies on the day. The band is the second K-pop band to sell more than 900,000 units on the first day of sales, second only to BTS. 　 The main track “Good Boy Gone Bad” was No. 1 on the iTunes top songs chart in 19 regions, and the music video amassed 5

Amid the flood of sci-fi, rom-com and period dramas, director Chang hopes to draw viewers’ attention with a bizarre mystery thriller, “House of Lies.” “I recognize that many Korean content creators produced terrific TV series in different genres, allowing viewers to see occult creatures and zombies. Our series is dealing with a rather realistic story in South Korea, the rising price of old apartments that are being redeveloped, director Chang said in an online press con

Two Grammy-winning artists, violist Richard Yongjae O’Neill and violinist Hilary Hahn, are scheduled to perform in South Korea in the coming weeks. O’Neill will join the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra for two concerts on May 19 and 20 at the Lotte Concert Hall in Songpa-gu, Seoul, marking the first time in 15 years for the US-based violist to perform with the orchestra.  During the 90-minute concert, O’Neill will premiere Paul Chihara’s “Concerto for Viola an

As South Korea scrapped most COVID-19 social distancing restrictions, the World DJ Festival, an annual outdoor electronic music festival, will return to the physical stage in August at Auxiliary Stadium in Jamsil Sports Complex in Seoul. This year’s festival will be held for three consecutive days starting Aug. 11 and is expected to be the biggest in-person event since the pandemic, accommodating around 70,000 to 80,000 people, according to festival organizer BEPCTangent Creative on Tues

South Korean singer-rapper Psy has put his name onto Billboard's main singles chart for "That That," his collaborative tune with Suga of K-pop supergroup BTS, the US music magazine said Tuesday. The main track from Psy's ninth full-length album "Psy 9th" debuted at No. 80 on this week's Hot 100 songs chart, Billboard said on Twitter. All charts will be updated on the company's website a day later. The album was the first release from the singer in five years. The Hot 100 rank

TXT members hope to top Billboard 200 with fourth EP ‘minisode 2: Thursday’s Child.’

All seven members of GOT7 will make a comeback in an eponymous EP on May 23, according to Warner Music Korea on Monday. 　 The last time the group created new music was for the digital single “Encore” from February last year. The previous physical album, its fourth, was “Breath of Love: Last Piece,” which came out in November 2020. 　 “The album is for those who have waited for us, and everyone who is there for us,” the bandmates said in a statement, describi