Deaf trio refuses to be defined by disability

After tickets for aespa’s upcoming international tour sold out, the group added five concert dates, according to label SM Entertainment on Wednesday. Tour “Synk: Parallel Line” will now have 16 concerts in total. It will begin in Seoul where the group will go live twice on June 29-30 and the second day’s concert will be livestreamed as well. The four members will visit four cities in Japan and Singapore next month before heading to Hong Kong, Taipei, Tokyo, Jakarta and Sy

"Squid Game" star Lee Jung-jae said any criticism regarding the casting of actors from diverse backgrounds in the latest "Star Wars" series "The Acolyte" is "natural," considering the immense popularity of the franchise. The 8-part series tells the story of Osha (played by Amandla Stenberg), who is accused of a string of murders targeting Jedi -- the practitioners of the Force's energies. The series is set a century before the events of "Star War

When dancers who appear to be performing without rules suddenly move together in unison, each movement and step falling perfectly into beats, it creates a breathtaking effect. Choreographer Kim Sung-yong of “Init” likened this to an ink-and-wash painting, where different colors blend naturally and unpredictably. The Korea National Contemporary Dance Company is set to premiere the DMAU project, "Init," from Friday to Sunday at the National Theater of Korea's Haeoreum Gr

Several renowned American and British artists of diverse genres will perform in Korea in the latter half of this year. American singer-songwriter Tori Kelly will hold her first concert in Korea, performing at Myunghwa Live Hall in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, on Aug. 27 as part of her Asia tour "Purple Skies," according to Live Nation Korea. Kelly, winner of two Grammy awards in 2019, is best known in Korea for her collaboration with Le Sserafim's Kim Chaewon on her song "Spruce.&

SM Entertainment denied rumors that its artists bought sex and used drugs at an adult entertainment establishment in Japan. “Currently, groundless rumors about Johnny and Haechan of NCT regarding prostitution, drugs and other disturbing content are being spread and reproduced indiscriminately online. These rumors are completely false and spreading these rumors are criminal acts that severely defame our artists,” wrote SM Entertainment on Kwangya 119, its website established for repor

K-pop singer G-Dragon of Big Bang was named a visiting professor of the department of mechanical engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), on Wednesday. The singer‘s appointment is aimed at expanding the global competitiveness of Korean culture by incorporating the latest science and technology developed at KAIST into K-content, according to KAIST. “I am honored to be a visiting professor at KAIST, a school that produces many scientific geniuses

BTS member J-Hope, who is currently serving in the military, won the top prize in an Army presentation contest with his honest speech about his experience as a soldier. J-Hope, whose real name is Jung Ho-seok, participated in the competition held under the theme “2024 Strong Warrior, Army” at the War Memorial of Korea, Wednesday. About 170 soldiers and civilian workers attended the event that commemorates the month of patriots and veterans in Korea. J-Hope delivered a speech about

South Korean heartthrobs Suzy and Park Bo-gum said they were satisfied with their romantic chemistry as portrayed in upcoming AI fantasy romance movie “Wonderland.” Helmed by Kim Tae-yong of “Late Autumn” (2010), the movie revolves around people reuniting through AI in a simulated virtual world called Wonderland. Suzy and Park, who have developed special rapport as emcees of the Baeksang Arts Awards for many years, showed their special on-screen chemistry in “Wonder

K-pop powerhouses such as Hybe and SM Entertainment have recently shown increasing interest in the music market of the Middle East. Hybe Chairman Bang Si-hyuk last week met with United Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to discuss possible cooperation in K-pop ventures, upon his request. SM Entertainment, led by its founder and former chief producer Lee Soo-man, got its feet in the door early, signing a memorandum of understanding with the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Culture to

The 10th Gyechon Classic Festival concluded Sunday with the final concert featuring the Gyeonggi Philharmonic led by pianist-turned-conductor Kim Sun-wook and pianist Cho Seong-jin. The last performance of the three-day festival began right after a half-hour rain delay. The orchestra and star pianist Cho performed Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 35 in front of 7,000 spectators. For the encore, Kim and Cho joined forces to perform Brahms' Hungarian Dance No. 5, whi

Le Sserafim was named artist of the month by MTV’s Push campaign, a first for a K-pop girl group, according to agency Source Music on Tuesday. The campaign for “breakthrough” artists shed a spotlight on the quintet by uploading an interview clip as well as performance videos of “Easy” and “Smart” from its third EP, also named “Easy.” The mini album was released in February and entered the Billboard 200 at No. 8 while the titular track debuted

The tvN romance series "Lovely Runner," which aired its last episode May 28, has taken not only Korea but also the world by storm. The show, topping the charts in 130 countries on the global streaming platform Rakuten Viki, also made history in the Korean streaming services sector. On the day of the series finale, Tving, the exclusive domestic streaming platform for "Lovely Runner," surpassed Netflix in daily viewing hours for the first time. According to Mobile Index, Tving&

SM Entertainment’s China-based K-pop boy group WayV released its fifth EP, “Give Me That,” on Monday. The new EP includes six tracks led by the titular track “Give Me That” released in Chinese and Korean. This is the first time WayV has included a Korean song in their album. “We are glad to introduce a Korean song because it means that we now have more fans in Korea. We hope to meet with our fans from all around the world by making it to global music charts wi

Kep1er held a media conference Monday in Seoul to introduce its first full-length album “Kep1going On.” The 10-track album comes nine months after the group's fifth EP “Magic Hour.” “Since we are coming back after a long while, we wanted to show a more mature side of us,” said Hikaru. Every song counts and “the album celebrates the time we have been together with fans,” added Choi Yujin. The album will be a “turning point” for the