The seventh season of music cable channel Mnet’s rap competition show “Show Me the Money 777” has made a solid debut on the weekly TV chart.The first episode, which aired Friday, took the No. 2 spot with a Content Power Index score of 257.6 on the chart for Sept. 3-9.The popular competition show has drawn 13,000 applicants for the latest season, in which a winner earns 200 million won ($177,000) in prize money. With a bigger talent pool, the show boasts more competent rappers than previous editi

Popular YouTuber Wassup Man offered a rare glimpse of the headquarters of major entertainment agencies JYP Entertainment and S.M. Entertainment in a recent video.The video featuring the Korean-American YouTuber’s visit to JYP and S.M.’s headquarters had been watched over 3 million times as of Monday afternoon. (Wassup Man's YouTube)The rapper and YouTuber, whose name is Park Joon-hyung, first headed to JYP’s new headquarters in Seoul. The agency is behind successful K-pop groups like Twice and G

Major talent agency YG Entertainment and streaming service Netflix announced Monday their co-produced sitcom series “YG Future Strategy Office” is to be released on Oct. 5. The eight-episode series will center on Seungri of Big Bang, who has been in the spotlight alone since all of his bandmates enlisted in the military earlier this year. He has appeared on many entertainment shows lately. “YG Future Strategy Office” (YG Entertainment)Seungri will star as the head of YG’s future strategy office,

A theme park run by veteran actor Im Chae-moo went viral on social media Thursday, the day after Im appeared on the MBC talk show “Radio Star” and recalled the park’s early days. The 69-year-old actor opened Doori Land in 1991 and decided a week after its launch to open it to the public for free. Im encountered a father who was hesitant to enter the park, he said on Wednesday’s show, because he couldn’t afford the admission fees for his family. (MBC)“I immediately gathered the executives and ask

BTS will appear on next week’s episode of “America’s Got Talent.”The group, which is currently in the US for concerts in Los Angeles this week, will perform on NBC’s popular talent show on Wednesday.The official Twitter account of “America’s Got Talent” confirmed the news on Wednesday morning.(AGT's Twitter account)“Screaming! BTS is blessing the AGT stage next Wednesday. Retweet if you are freaking out about #BTSonAGT!” read the tweet, which had been liked over 193,000 times as of Wednesday.Mod

A humorous video clip in which Big Bang’s Seungri talks in Japanese and a Japanese celebrity speaks in Korean is going viral on Twitter Japan.(Twitter)The post shows a clip from a live Japanese broadcast featuring Seungri and ex-SMAP members. Seungri is seen conversing with former SMAP members in Japanese, while Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, better known as Chonan Gang in Korean, sticks to speaking in Korean.“A Japanese star talking to a Korean star talking in Japanese,” wrote a Twitter user.SMAP was one o

Key from boy band SHINee wants to keep it real with guests on his new “cooking talk show,” titled “Cheongdam Key-chin” and set to air on Kakao TV every Thursday night starting this week.(Shot and edited by Park Ju-young / The Korea Herald)Viewers will get to see the singer welcome guests from various backgrounds to his kitchen in the nice Cheongdam neighborhood in southern Seoul -- celebrities, models and even some of Key’s ex-colleagues.“Cheongdam Key-chin,” as the singer’s very first show, wil

Top Japanese actor Yutaka Matsushige talked about Korea’s dining culture during a visit to Seoul on Monday to attend the 2018 Seoul Drama Awards. The 55-year-old actor gained popularity in Korea for his role in the Japanese TV drama “Kodoku no Gurume (The Solitary Gourmet).” The show depicts the journey of salesman Goro, who visits eateries across Japan to try out local cuisine.  Yutaka Matsushige (Yonhap)Appetizing footage of him relishing the dishes has swept social media platforms in Korea as

German drama series “Babylon Berlin” won the grand prize at the 13th Seoul International Drama Awards held at the KBS Hall in Yeouido on Monday. Crime-period drama “Babylon Berlin,” which portrays post-World War I Germany, took the top spot for its well-written storyline and stunning visuals. Moritz Herzogenberg, producer for “Babylon Berlin” (Seoul International Drama Awards)Poster for “Babylon Berlin” (Seoul International Drama Awards)Apart from the grand prize, this year’s competition was div

Singer-comedian Shin Jung-hwan has broken his yearslong hiatus with an appearance on the JTBC’s hit talk show “Knowing Bros,” but the comeback has sparked controversy from the public still disgruntled about the gambling scandal that led to his absence.In Saturday’s episode, Shin appeared as a guest, along with Kim Ji-hyun and Chae Ri-na. The three and Lee Sang-min, a permanent cast member of the show, were members of old-school co-ed group Roo’ra. The show mainly focused on the fame and the popu

(Screen-captured from MBN`s "Cart Show 2")Suhyun of AKMU shared the story behind her decision to become one of a growing number of Korean beauty vloggers during Thursday’s episode of MBN’s variety program “Cart Show 2.”  (Screen-captured from MBN`s "Cart Show 2")The singer-turned-beauty vlogger revealed that her peers used to “bully her in the past for having squinty eyes and a small nose.” Even after she debuted as a singer, she said, some netizens wrote hurtful things about her appearance.  (S

BTS will be making a return appearance on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” According to the show’s Ellentube webpage, the seven-piece act will appear on Thursday’s episode, which will be hosted by Mario Lopez and also feature actress Kathryn Hahn, as titular host Ellen takes the day off. “Then, it’s the global phenomenon BTS! The group makes waves wherever they go, and their ARMY is sure to follow! They’ve got another unbelievable performance in store, and it’s sure to get everyone excited for the ne

If you asked which YouTube channel was the most popular among young Koreans these days, “Wassup Man” would be near the top of the list. “Wassup Man” -- otherwise known as Joon Park, a member of the legendary K-pop group G.O.D. -- is enjoying a new heyday with the channel, which makes the most of his outgoing personality as he visits the trendiest neighborhoods and tries out various restaurants and activities.  (Studio Lulu Lala)Since launching “Wassup Man” in June, Park has taken viewers to Ikse

Actor Kim Jung-hyun is to quit his role in MBC drama “Time” due to health concerns. Kim, who has been starring in the Wednesday-Thursday drama series “Time,” decided to step down from his role, according to network MBC and his agency O& Entertainment on Sunday. O& Entertainment issued a statement saying that Kim has been unable to eat or sleep properly. Kim Jung-hyun (O& Entertainment)“Kim has been shooting the drama while receiving treatment, with the determination to not trouble the production

Singer Hong Jin-young’s newly launched cosmetic brand sold out upon airing on home shopping TV.Sunday was the fourth show that aired beauty products of Hong’s beauty company Hong Shot. The batch of the products prepared on the GS Home shopping program on Sunday included One Shot foundation, Concealer compact, Lip Tint and a sponge set. (J.One Cosmetic)As Hong herself appeared on the show to introduce the products and demonstrate them, the stock sold out before the program’s end. According to the