Taeyong of NCT will start his mandatory military duty from April 15, label SM Entertainment said Monday. The musician shared the news with a hand-written letter uploaded on a fan platform on the day thanking his fans and bandmates for letting him grow and mature. “Every single moment has been really meaningful and blissful,” said the idol promising that he will do his best and learn a lot during the service and return as a better self. He will be the first member of NCT to enlist a

YG Entertainment’s K-pop rookie group Babymonster is ready to promote its upcoming first EP, “Babymons7er,” which drops on April 1, with its lead track, “Sheesh.” YG founder and executive producer Yang Hyun-suk unveiled the track list of the EP via the agency’s official YouTube account on Monday. “The lead track ‘Sheesh’ is a hip-hop number. Different from the concept of the group’s previous single ‘Batter Up,’ which was bri

New album released after 3-year break aims to show how band has grown

BTS is not planning on leaving a void while they are away serving their mandatory military duty. On Friday, V of BTS released a new English digital single, “Fri(end)s.” The single was played on Spotify more than 4.72 million times on the day of its release, quickly landing at No. 7 on Spotify’s Daily Top Song Global playlist. The new single broke V's record on the chart as his previous release, “Love Me Again,” a B-side track of his first solo album “Layo

Jungkook of BTS who has been serving his national defense duty since December last year, gave fans an update on his life in the Army on Saturday. “ARMYs (fandom name), are you guys doing well? I’m doing well,” said Jungkook on the global fan communication platform Weverse. “I’ve been working out. I’ve also been cleaning even the ceilings. I’m also cooking. It’s mid-March already. I will update you again soon. I miss you guys a lot. Salute,” h

BTS member V topped the iTunes Top Song charts in 87 countries around the world with his new solo single, "FRI(END)S," on Saturday, less than 24 hours after its release, his agency, BigHit Music, said. The digital single was also at No. 1 on the Worldwide iTunes Song and European iTunes Song charts, respectively, as of 8 a.m. Released at 1 p.m. Friday (Korean time), the pop soul song is the artist's first solo project since "Layover," his debut solo album released in Sep

Seventeen will join the lineup for this year's Glastonbury Festival, becoming the first K-pop act to do so, according to Pledis Entertainment on Friday. The 13-member act will perform at one of the UK's largest music festivals along with the likes of Dua Lipa, Cold Play, SZA, LCD Soundsystem and Little Simz. The outdoor event will last for five days starting June 26. The band was also invited to headline Lollapalooza Berlin slated for September 7-8. In the meantime, Seventeen will ki

Hwasa, who is continuing her music career both with girl group Mamamoo and as a solo artist, will hold her first stand-alone concert to meet fans. According to P Nation on Friday, Hwasa will host "Hwasa the 1st Fancon Tour 'Twits' in Seoul" at Sejong University's Daeyang Hall in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul on April 20. Through the event, Hwasa will showcase a variety of sections, ranging from games to talk segments, as well as colorful performances, the agency added. Along with t

Singer-songwriter Stella Jang is set to hold a solo concert in April. The upcoming concert, dubbed "Interstellar Festival 2024," will be held at the Noduel Live House on Nodeul Island, Seoul, at 6 p.m. on April 13 and 5 p.m. on April 14. The poster, released through the singer's official social media, includes mysterious space-themed images. The concert will be a festival-style performance that will include various artists appearing on the stage. Stella Jang will deliver a unique

Blackpink added another record under its belt as it reached 1 billion plays on Spotify with “How You Like That,” according to label YG Entertainment on Thursday. It is the first K-pop girl group -- and third female band, only after Fifth Harmony and Spice Girls – to hit the milestone with a single song and did so in the shortest time at three years and eight months. The group has amassed 12.6 billion streams on the platform so far and won a Guinness World Record last year as

K-pop rookies Lun8 returned with a new mini album, “Buff,” on Wednesday after seven months. “This album is about youth full of dreams and that we can make the dreams come true by creating a positive synergy when together,” said Chael of Lun8 during a press conference in Seoul on Wednesday. Lun8 consists of seven Korean members -- Chael, Jinsu, Junwoo, Dohyun, Ian, Eunho and Eunseop -- and one Japanese member, Takuma. The group debuted on June 15, 2023, with its first mini

J-Hope released the main trailer of his upcoming documentary series, “Hope on the Street,” on Thursday. The six-episode documentary series shows J-Hope visiting Osaka, Paris, New York and his hometown of Gwangju in Korea to connect and dance with street dancers on the scene. “It all started with dancing. I am curious to look back at what genres of dance I used to work with and also to look back on my roots. I want to find an answer to what the future I dream of is,” said

K-pop boy group Seventeen will headline Lollapalooza Berlin, scheduled to take place at the Olympiastadion and Olympiapark Berlin in Germany Sep. 7-8, according to Pledis Entertainment. Launched in 2015, Lollapalooza Berlin is one of the biggest music festivals in Europe. This is the first time that Seventeen is performing at a renowned music festival in Europe. They are also the only K-pop artist invited to the event this year. Other headliners performing at Lollapalooza Belin this year include

Although it is the third month of the year, March can be a month of new beginnings, as sprouts poke through the ground and a gentle spring breeze shakes off the dust of a dark winter. Celebrating the beginning of a new semester and the warmth of spring, The Korea Herald presents some cheerful songs to wish for luck in the heart-throbbing season. Peppertones – “Good Luck to You” Peppertones, a duo of Shin Jae-pyung and Lee Jang-won, formed in 2003 after the two friends met

Singer AleXa will kick off her American concert tour and visit six local cities. AleXa will begin her United States tour concert dubbed, "Sick of you US Tour," on March 29, local time. The tour will open in New York, move to Chicago, Atlanta and Tulsa, Texas, before ending in Los Angeles. Concert title "Sick of you" is an extension of AleXa's latest song title, "Sick," which was released in the US on Feb. 23. AleXa has prepared a "love and concern counseli