Despite a brutal heat wave that has plunged the country and its people into a state of exhaustion the last few weeks, rock fans of all ages are in for a treat, as Korea’s two most famous rock festivals are ready to jolt them with spectacular performances. Jisan Valley Rock Music & Arts Festival, one of Korea’s most notable annual music festivals that incorporates both music and art, is set to solidify its status again this year with eye-opening headliners and fun-filled activities.  The 2012 Jis

Girls’ Generation will make its long-awaited return next month with the release of its sixth studio album “Holiday Night” on Aug. 7.According to S.M. Entertainment, the album will consist of 10 songs of various genres, including the tracks “All Night” and “Holiday.” A teaser image of Yoona (S.M. Entertainment)In anticipation of the new album, the group released online teaser images and an interview video of Yoona on its official homepage Thursday. The agency said it will release teasers featurin

K-pop's true big players, for the most part, consist of highly choreographed and stylized boy and girl groups. But that doesn't mean there's zero space for diversity. From Bolbbalgan4 to Akdong Musician, several breakout talents have proven that the space and demand for new music exists in the Korean music scene. The East Light, a new six-member boy band that is an actual "band" -- as in musicians that play instruments and sing -- has emerged in that vein, with the young members (average age bei

More than a month after fans announced a boycott of the star, the mother of Super Junior’s Sungmin is still waiting for the calm after the storm.(S.M. Entertainment)Kang Kyung-sook, Sungmin’s mother, opened up about fans boycotting Sungmin during a recent interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul, saying she hopes he will overcome the hardships and get back on his feet with a stronger mindset. Sungmin’s fans declared a boycott of the Super Junior member in June, criticizing him for his disrespect

VIXX has wrapped up concerts in three Japanese cities and is set to kick off its fan meeting tour in Southeast Asia, its agency said Wednesday.According to Jellyfish Entertainment, the boy band will kick off its tour Thursday with a show at KL Live Center in Kuala Lumpur. It will perform at the Kasablanka Hall in Jakarta on Saturday. The group will wrap up the tour at Muang Thai GMM Live House in Bangkok on Sunday.The band performed in Nagoya, Tokyo and Osaka, where it showcased hits including “

EXO has taken the No. 87 spot on the Billboard 200 with “The War: The 4th Album,” the highest spot the K-pop group has ever reached.The latest album by EXO entered the chart between the Chainsmokers’ “Collage” and Journey’s “Journey‘s Greatest Hits.” Jay-Z’s “4:44” retained its place at the top spot. EXO (S.M. Entertainment)EXO had previously cracked the list with “Exodus” in 2015, which went to No. 95 spot. It also took 129th place in 2014 with its subgroup Exo-K’s “Overdose.”The highest place

Hip-hop artist and producer Primary is set to hit the K-pop scene with a new EP in August. Primary (Amoeba Culture)The artist’s label Amoeba Culture said Tuesday that the upcoming EP is slated to be released on Aug. 4. It will be his first release since his second full-length album “2” in 2015. “Primary has put utmost effort into the upcoming EP. Every song from the EP will be great enough to be chosen as a lead track,” an agency official said. The hit-maker gained recognition in the Korean hip-

When a Seoul court sentenced K-pop superstar T.O.P to 10 months in prison, suspended for 2 years, for marijuana use last week, the catchy hook by the rapper and his Big Bang bandmate G-Dragon likely popped up in the minds of many fans.The 29-year-old may not have actually been “high” when he wrote the lyrics for the popular tune, but the public has been casting a suspicious eye on the duo nonetheless, especially given G-Dragon’s previous run-in with authorities over alleged marijuana use.The Big

K-pop acts Black Pink and Sechskies will perform at the 2017 Busan One Asia Festival in October, according to organizers Tuesday.The two groups, along with GFriend and Ailee, were part of the second roster of K-pop artists announced by Busan Metropolitan City, set to perform at the festival scheduled for Oct 22-31 in South Korea's second-largest city in the southeastern coast. (YG Entertainment)Leading idol bands Apink, B.A.P, Astro and indie duo Bolbbalgan4 were previously announced to take par

K-pop sensation Twice's inaugural Japanese album has sold over 200,000 copies, according to its agency Tuesday."#TWICE" has sold 200,018 copies in Japan since the June 28 release there, JYP Entertainment said, citing a tally from Oricon, Japan's key music sales tracker. The album remains one of the top selling records in the country, ranking fifth on Oricon's daily album sales chart as of Sunday. (JYP Entertainment)The record holds Twice's past hit songs both in Japanese and Korean. It topped ni

Boy band Winner on Monday set Aug. 4 as the release date for its next album. Its agency YG Entertainment uploaded teaser images along with the album‘s title “Our Twenty For” and the release date via its blog at www.yg-life.com. Winner (YG Entertainment)The photo shows images of the bandmates with an outdoor pool on the background. YG hinted that the teaser, along with a prereleased photo of the boy band shooting a music video in Hawaii, indicates the new song will be a “cool summer song.”Winner

FT Island will kick off a global tour next month to commemorate the 10th anniversary of its debut, the band said Monday. The concert “2017 FT Island Live [X] in Seoul” will be held on Aug. 26 and 27 to mark the beginning of the group’s world tour.  (FNC Entertainment)FNC Entertainment said it will soon reveal other cities that the band will be touring.Tickets for the concert will be made available on Interpark and Auction at 8 p.m. Thursday. Members of the group’s fan club Primadonna will have a

South Korean girl group Apink resumed its Japan tour after a four-month break, according to its agency Plan A Entertainment. The group, which started its third tour in Japan on Saturday, will unveil its eighth single “Motto Go Go” on Tuesday. The song -- based on the theme of friendship with an upbeat tempo -- follows its seventh single “Bye Bye,” released in March. Apink started its concerts in Kobe on Saturday, and will perform in Nagoya on July Wednesday and Yokohama on July Sunday. The six-p

K-pop act GFriend on Sunday released teaser images for its new EP “Parallel” via official social media pages.The images, uploaded just after midnight, showed the concepts to be applied on “Love Whisper,” the band‘s lead track for its fifth EP. (Source MusicThe bandmates are seen clad in pink and white, which the agency pointed out was intended for a more feminine look. According to Source Music, the title of the EP refers to the sense of longing for a love that cannot be reached, along with a st

The brother-sister duo of Akdong Musician is at it again, as its new song “Dinosaur” continues to go strong on major online music charts in Korea.As of Sunday afternoon, the song was at the No. 1 spot on charts for Olleh Music, Bugs Music, Genie and Soribada. (YG Entertainment)With “Dinosaur,” Akdong Musician tried their hands at electronic dance music, a first for the beloved duo.On Saturday, the two held a concert in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, to wrap up their nationwide tour consisting of 17