PYEONGCHANG, Gangwon Province -- Pianist Son Yeol-eum, the new artistic director of the Pyeongchang Music Festival, appeared nervous but excited to see the very first concert she has devoted herself to. The Korea Herald met the artistic director Wednesday at the convention center near the Alpensia Concert Hall and Music Tent. “It’s unbelievable. I had doubted this day would ever come, but here I am, feeling nervous yet excited. The only thing I am very certain of is that the performances will be

BTS’ upcoming album “Love Yourself: Answer” has sold over 1.5 million albums nationwide, according to BTS’ management agency Big Hit Entertainment on Wednesday.Preorders for the album began July 18 and ended Tuesday with a total of 1,511,910 orders, recording the highest number of preorders for BTS. (Big Hit Entertainment)“Love Yourself: Answer” sold 62,000 more preordered albums than “Love Yourself: Tear,” which was released in April. “Love Yourself: Answer” has also claimed the No. 1 spot in A

Leo of VIXX will perform next month, this time without his bandmates.According to Jellyfish Entertainment, Leo’s first solo concerts will be held at the Blue Square in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, from Aug. 31 to Sept. 2. They share the same title with his first EP as a solo artist, “Canvas.”  The poster for Leo’s upcoming concert. (Jellyfish Entertainment)The EP will be released at 6 p.m. next Tuesday, with the lead track “Touch&Sketch.”Tickets for the concerts will be made available online at I

Girl groups Twice and Apink officially wrapped up their respective promotional activities with appearances on SBS K-pop ranking show “Inkigayo,” Sunday.Twice edged out Apink to take the No. 1 spot with “Dance the Night Away,” securing the top spot on all five major TV music ranking programs, including KBS’ “Music Bank” and MBC’s “Show! Music Core.” Twice (JYP Entertainment)“I’d like to thank Once for always being there for us for the past two weeks (of the promotional period) despite the heat,”

When Victon’s recent single “Time of Sorrow,” which was released in May, topped Japan’s Tower Record chart earlier this month, the bandmates could hardly believe their eyes and ears. The song was the group’s first song since its debut in November 2016 to enter the top 100 of a Korean music chart and won third on popular music show “M!Countdown.” However, the song’s crossover success in Japan, a country where the group had not officially debuted, was completely unexpected. “I first heard the news

Shaun claims innocence amid chart-rigging allegationsAs of Sunday, Twice, Black Pink, Apink, Mamamoo, BTS and other K-pop giants had claimed leading spots on charts of most music streaming websites in Korea. But snubbing them all for the top spot at Melon, Genie and other major charts was “Way Back Home,” by far lesser-known musician Shaun.Shaun is a singer who also plays synthesizer for rock band the Koxx. He has made a name for himself since his band’s 2009 debut, but has never been considered

K-pop boy band Seventeen held a media showcase of their new album "You Make My Day" in Blue Square in central Seoul on July 16."Oh May!" fronts the new album, which has five other tracks of self-produced music.(Yonhap)The songs are an easy listen that can fuse comfortably into the summer background, according to the group. (Yonhap)

Monsta X’s Hyungwon, who has been active as a DJ recently, released a single with DJ Jimmy Clash on Thursday. According to his agency Starship Entertainment on Thursday, the single “My Name” is an energetic electronic dance music track featuring a female vocalist.  Hyungwon of Monsta X and Jimmy Clash (Starship Entertainment)The two artists met in June as they performed together at Ultra Korea 2018, Seoul’s biggest musical festival, the agency said. Hailing from the Netherlands, Clash is an awar

K-pop superstars BTS' upcoming album, "Love Yourself: Answer," claimed the No. 1 spot in the CD category of the biggest American online retailer Amazon.com in the first day of preorders, its management agency said Thursday.Preorders for the new BTS album, set for release on Aug. 24, began Wednesday, and the album has since become the best-seller in the CD & vinyl category, according to Big Hit Entertainment and the Amazon website. (Yonhap)This marks the third time a BTS album has topped the Amaz

US rapper Wiz Khalifa has refused to apologize for the controversial “eyes looking Korean” lyric in his song “Hot Now” and defended himself by saying he has Korean friends.The rapper was asked about the controversy over the lyric while on the New York-based radio show “The Breakfast Club” and said, “I have Korean friends that are not offended so I don’t know these people who are saying that.”He told the critics to “chill out” and added he is “not racist” and loves Koreans. (Twitter)Khalifa’s new

K-pop act Apink’s vocalist Yoon Bo-mi will be featured in hip-hop duo Mighty Mouth’s new single. Shorry of the duo broke the news on his social media account, saying that the collaborative song with Yoon titled “Pretty Woman” will be released Friday.  Mighty Mighty Mouth and Yoon Bo-mi (Allmighty Records)Mouth and Yoon Bo-mi (Allmighty Records)“After seeking a female vocalist that fits best with our new song, we thought of her. Thanks to her, the song got much brighter,” he said.According to Mig

Mamamoo“Red Moon”Loen EntertainmentWhile tropical bubblegum sounds with sun-bleached lyrics have long defined “summer tunes” in K-pop, Mamamoo’s new album is nothing to be expected from such a standard: It adds more heat to the fire. But hey, it works. Like the group’s distinct vibe and character, Mamamoo’s new EP “Red Moon” is successful in that there is no single track to lose. Never forgetting the soulful vocal group’s own identity, the six tracks on the EP show what “variety” means, embracin

S.M. Entertainment composer Yoo Young-jin, 47, was booked without detention for swapping the license plate on his motorcycle according to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on Wednesday.Yoo used another license plate on his imported vehicle because it had not passed environmental testing requirements in Korea. He bought the motorcycle in March and swapped the license plate with that of his other motorcycle.This finally came to light in May after a motorcycle accident in Seoul. As Yoo filed for

K-pop boy band BTS' latest album "Love Yourself: Tear" charted on the key Billboard ranking of 200 popular albums for the eighth week in a row, the American music chart showed Wednesday.The 11-track album ranked 48th on the Billboard 200 chart, retaining its presence since it landed atop the competitive chart less than two weeks after its release on May 18.This week's result marks one step below the 47th place recorded last week. (Big Hit Entertainment)It was a further extension of BTS' record a

Amber has confirmed via social media that she has been keeping in touch with bandmate Krystal.The singer was asked by a fan via Twitter on Saturday whether she has missed Krystal, as four-piece girl group f(x) has been on hiatus for about two years.In response Amber said she talks to “that little one” every other day. (Yonhap)The Taiwanese-American singer also responded to a YouTube video the fan linked chronicling moments in their friendship.“Good song and lyrics. The story had a nice build but