Almost all members of K-pop girl group Lovelyz will leave their management agency Woollim Entertainment this month when their contracts with the company expire, the agency said. "Exclusive contracts between our company and Lovelyz members are set to expire on Nov. 16," it said in a statement Monday. "After a long in-depth discussion, seven members -- Yoo Ji-ae, Seo Ji-soo, Lee Mi-joo, Kei, Jin, Ryu Su-jeong and Jung Ye-in -- have decided to prepare for another start." But t

The Boyz exuded charisma at an online showcase held on Monday to introduce its third single “Maverick.” 　 It has been only three months since the release of its sixth EP “Thrill-ing,” but the members were full of confidence saying that the new single will show off the band even clearer. 　 “We wanted to showcase more diverse sides of ourselves as fast as possible,” said Eric, adding with a laugh that there were no difficulties preparing for the return except

The music video for K-pop girl group BLACKPINK's "Boombaya" has surpassed 1.3 billion YouTube views. The video, released in August 2016, hit the milestone at 9:34 a.m. Monday, 146 days after passing the 1.2 billion mark, according to the group's management agency, YG Entertainment. "Even though four years have passed since the release of the music video, (the number of its YouTube views) has been on the steady rise," the agency said. "BLACKPINK now has its third music

Big-name K-pop companies saw their revenues from overseas rise sharply in the first half of the year, financial data showed Monday, as the number and influence of overseas-based fans grew to a point where they can determine the rankings of local music charts. According to data available on the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system as of Monday, Hybe, which manages BTS, Seventeen and Enhypen, saw domestic sales account for only 24.96 percent out of 456.9 billion won ($390

Twice announced the list of songs that will consist its third studio album Friday. 　 In keeping with the album title, “Formula of Love: O+T=<3,” the main track is called “Scientist,” putting a study of love into frank and upbeat lyrics. 　 The bandmates took a bigger role in making the songs: Dahyun, Nayeon and Jihyo wrote the words for “Cruel,” “Fall In Love Again,” and “Real You,” respectively while Jihyo got the credit for the me

Female soloist Jeon Somi is back, unveiling her first full-length album, “XOXO,” on Friday. Ahead of the album’s release at 6 p.m., Jeon held a media showcase in Seoul, livestreamed due to the pandemic. “XOXO” comes only three months after the singer gave a preview of the album with the single “Dumb Dumb.” “I want to show my confidence with the new album. If I showed a relaxed manner with ‘Dumb Dumb,’ now I have self-confidence. I ca

K-pop superband BTS has been nominated for three categories in this year's American Music Awards, including for the top Artist of The Year prize for the first time. In the 2021 AMA nomination list released Thursday (US time), BTS was recognized in the Artist of The Year, Favorite Duo or Group and Favorite Pop Song categories. It is the first time that the Korean boy band has made the cut for Artist of The Year, the grand prize of the fan-voted AMA, one of the largest music shows in the United

Park Jihoon held a media showcase to roll out his fifth EP, “Hot & Cold,” in southern Seoul on Thursday.   　 It has been only two months since his previous EP. During that short period he has also hosted an online concert and appeared on TV shows.   　 “I can’t not be busy since there are fans who like me,” he said, thanking them and adding that they are the source of momentum for him. He said he keeps himself healthy by boxing and learning how to pla

Lisa of Blackpink’s solo debut song reached over 300 million views on YouTube on Wednesday, her label YG Entertainment announced . 　 It took 48 days to reach the milestone, the shortest time for a music video released by a K-pop solo female artist. This replaces the previous record held by bandmate Jennie’s “Solo,” at 183 days. The two are the only music videos made by a K-pop female solo musician to achieve the feat so far. The video for “LaLisa” set the wor

A two-day Korean culture festival will bring together K-pop acts like NCT Dream and aespa next month to provide comfort to people around the world who are exhausted from COVID-19, the culture ministry said Wednesday. "The K-Culture Festival - 2021 World K-pop Concert" will take place at the Korea International Exhibition Center (KINTEX) in Ilsan, northwest of Seoul, on Nov. 13-14, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The event is aimed at comforting Korean Wave f

Kai of EXO is preparing a new solo album that will be released at the end of November, according to local media reports Tuesday. 　 Label SM Entertainment confirmed the news and asked fans to keep their eyes peeled. 　 The veteran idol put out his first solo music in November last year. The eponymous EP consisted of six songs including main track “Mmmh,” and topped iTunes top albums chart in 50 regions. 　 Now in his 10th year as a musician, also as a member of EXO and SuperM, he has

Group marks the start of a new series with virtual concert

Enhypen arrived on the Billboard 200 chart at No. 11 with its first full-length album “Dimension: Dilemma,” the publication tweeted on Sunday, US time. 　 The album was released on Oct. 12 and for the second time in its less-than-a-year-long career, the boy band found itself on the chart. The group’s second EP “Border: Carnival” from April debuted at No. 18 on the chart. 　 In Japan, the LP topped Oricon’s daily and weekly album charts as well as weekly total a

K-pop superband BTS was set to hold an online concert, "BTS Permission To Dance On Stage," on Sunday, featuring cutting-edge visual effects, according to its management agency. The seven-piece act's performance on a scale equivalent to an offline concert will be livestreamed from a local stadium, starting at 6:30 p.m., Big Hit Music said. It is BTS' first global online concert in about a year. The agency said powerful visual effects will help the audience enjoy computer-generated vis

Seventeen put out its ninth EP, “Attacca,” on Friday, with its first English-language song “2 Minus 1” included among the seven tracks.   　 “It is a song that Joshua and I sang together,” explained Vernon. It is a digital-only track and was made in English “to express our gratitude toward our fans from around the world,” he said.   　 The two searched for the best genre to highlight their charms, and as per Vernon’s suggestion, cho