Entertainment

• 
  BTS' lead vocalist Jimin releases solo album 'FACE' SEOUL -- Jimin, the lead vocalist of BTS, has rolled out his first solo album titled "FACE." The 27-year-old, who expressed his feelings during the COVID-19 pandemic through the album, will interact with global fans through "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," a popular American talk show for two days starting on March 24. "As the album contains the meaning of facing my true self, I tried to showcase my honest feelings and features that I have never sh 2023-03-24
• 
  BTS' brother band TXT to headline annual music festival 'Lollapalooza' in US SEOUL -- TXT (Tomorrow X Together), a K-pop boy band organized by the agency of BTS, will interact with global fans in Chicago through Lollapalooza, a popular global music event, as its headliner. The five-member band will take part in the global music festival along with American rapper Kendrick Lamar and Billy Eilish, an American singer-songwriter. Lollapalooza is an annual global festival that was held in various countries including the United States, Chile, and Brazil. BTS mem 2023-03-22
• 
  BTS member J-Hope receives enlistment schedule from state military manpower administration SEOUL -- BTS' main dancer J-Hope has received an enlistment schedule from the state Military Manpower Administration. The 29-year-old artist would be the second BTS member to fulfill compulsory military service, followed by Jin, the eldest member who completed his basic training in January 2023 at a frontline army boot camp. "I am unable to provide specific information, but the enlistment date has been confirmed and it's about time for me to get ready," J-Hope tol 2023-03-17
• 
  Pinkfong to work with Saudi Arabian government for expansion of content business SEOUL -- The Pinkfong Company, famous for its children's YouTube mega-hit song "Baby Shark, has partnered with a Saudi Arabian ministry in charge of issuing licenses to foreign investors, to expand its business in the Middle Eastern country. Saudi Arabia accounts for the largest portion in terms of cumulative viewing time on Pinkfng's YouTube channel in the Middle East and North Africa region. Pinkfong has gained global popularity for its Baby Shark content. Baby Sha 2023-03-17
• 
  South Korea's theme park & amusement fair to be held in KINTEX in July SEOUL -- "2023 Korea Theme Park & Amusement Fair" (KAAFAIR), one of South Korea's largest annual theme park exhibitions, will be held in KINTEX in Ilsan northeast of Seoul for three days in July. Various companies from South Korea and the global theme park and amusement park industries will participate in the event. After its first successful event held in the southern port city of Busan in 2020, KAAFAIR will be held for the first time in three years for three day 2023-03-16
• 
  Lotte's home shopping channel selects human influencers to promote virtual model Lucy SEOUL -- The home shopping channel of Lotte Group has selected human influencers who will be in charge of managing Lucy, a 29-year-old virtual model with some 104,000 followers on Instagram. Based on actual experience, the human managers will plan various types of content for the virtual influencer who made a debut as an online shopping show host in 2022. Lucy, created by synthesizing a face with an image of a real person, has interacted with viewers through live commerce shows. Sh 2023-03-14
• 
  Thriller series 'The Glory' maintains explosive popularity despite director's bullying allegations SEOUL -- Although the director of "The Glory" has admitted his bullying allegations during his teenage years, it has not affected the content's global popularity. The South Korean thriller series has become the second-most watched content on Netflix through its second part which includes episodes from nine to 16, only three days after its release. According to Flixpatrol, a Europe-based Netflix content ranking service, the second part of The Glory, released on March 1 2023-03-13
• 
  ​HYBE withdraws plan to acquire SM Entertainment SEOUL -- HYBE, the entertainment agency that houses various top K-pop artists such as boy band BTS and girl band NewJeans, has pulled back from a race to acquire SM Entertainment, also one of the top K-pop powerhouses, leaving South Korea's web service giant Kakao as the winner of the fierce takeover competition. The agency led by Bang Si-hyuk, the prodigy producer who created K-pop wonder BTS, said in a statement on March 12 that it will stop all acquisition processes of SM. P 2023-03-13
• 
  Boy band &TEAM to release soundtrack for web cartoon 'Dark Moon: The Grey City' SEOUL -- A soundtrack for "Dark Moon: The Grey City," a digital cartoon created based on concepts of &TEAM, a nine-member multinational boy band formed by the agency of BTS, will be released in Korean, English, and Japanese. Four members of the K-pop band participated in the soundtrack which portrays the story of nine werewolves with different personalities overcoming various obstacles and stereotypes. Hybe, BTS' agency, collaborated with Naver Webtoon, the web car 2023-03-10
• 
  BTS member Suga donates $75,642 for child earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria SEOUL -- BTS's main rapper Suga has donated 100 million won ($75,642) to a London-based nonprofit organization to help child earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria. Suga's donation will be used to purchase emergency relief items such as blankets, mattresses, and school supplies. The 30-year-old will go on a solo world tour, starting with the first concert in Belmont Park, New York on April 26. Save the Children said in a statement that Suga made the donation on his birthda 2023-03-09
• 
  Virtual artist YuA rolls out remake of '90s K-pop song 'Violet Fragrance' SEOUL -- YuA, a virtual artist created by South Korean game publisher "Smilegate" and a visual effects company, released a remake of "Violet Fragrance," a folk song that gained explosive popularity in the 1990s. Through the single, the 20-year-old artist expressed her feelings for her first love. YuA with some 675,000 followers on Instagram has a goofy personality and enjoys eating ice screams. Her favorite song is "Dancing in the Moonlight" by Topload 2023-03-07
• 
  J. Cole collaborates with BTS member J-Hope for solo single 'on the street' SEOUL -- J. Cole, an American rapper with six albums that topped Billboard's top 200 popular albums chart, collaborated with J-Hope on the 29-year-old BTS member's single song. The American artist showcased his rapping skills in J-Hope's song titled "on the street," which is a place where the South Korean singer first started to dream of becoming an artist. J. Cole is known for his husky tone and melodic rap performances. The 38-year-old is regarded as one of 2023-03-03
• 
  BTS 'Dynamite' to be recreated into Lego pop-up store in southern Seoul SEOUL -- BTS' global mega-hit song "Dynamite" will be recreated into a pop-up store with various Lego items. At the offline store run by South Korea's mobile carrier LG Uplus, visitors can purchase Lego sets created under the theme of the Dynamite music video which gained more than 1.6 billion views on YouTube. The disco-pop song that rolled out in August 2020 stayed in Billboard's top 100 most popular song chart for 32 consecutive weeks. The seven-member band 2023-03-02
• 
  Billboard includes genius idol incubator Min Hee-jin in 'The 2023 Women in Music' list SEOUL -- Min Hee-jin, a genius idol incubator who has planned concepts for K-pop superstar band NewJeans, was included in Billboard's list of influential women in the music industry. Min who has nurtured various SM Entertainment groups including Girls' Generation, f(x), and EXO was picked as the chief brand officer for ADOR, a subsidiary label of the agency of BTS. Min is currently in charge of nurturing rookie artists and producing music at ADOR. At SM Entertainment, she b 2023-02-28
• 
  Mcdonald's Korea to collaborate with girl band NewJeans for promotion of new menu SEOUL -- The South Korean office of McDonald's will collaborate with NewJeans, a girl group formed by ADOR, a subsidiary label of the agency of K-pop superstar BTS, to promote its new menu. The five-member band has captivated global fans through dance songs such as Attention, Ditto, and OMG. McDonald's Korea said in its Instagram post: "Curious about a crispy burger which NewJeans is looking for? 3/2 Coming Soon!" A photo of the girl band was also posted on the co 2023-02-27
• 
  BTS' main dancer J-Hope to roll out solo single 'on the street' in March SEOUL -- BTS member J-Hope will release his solo single before starting his mandatory military service in South Korea. The 29-year-old composed the song titled "on the street" which is a place where he first started to dream of becoming an artist. "The title 'on the street' refers to j-hope's roots—street dance—from which his dream to become an artist began, and the path the artist and fans will continue to walk together," said Big Hit th 2023-02-27
• 
  BTS' lead vocalist Jimin to release solo album for first time SEOUL -- Jimin, the lead vocalist of BTS, became the boy band's fourth member to release his first solo album, followed by J-Hope, Jin, and Rap Monster. Although the group is taking a hiatus after its agency announced that all members would fulfill their compulsory military service, the 27-year-old has consistently interacted with fans by collaborating with fashion brand Dior and singer Taeyang. "'FACE' is all about Jimin facing himself head-on as he gets ready for 2023-02-22
• 
  K-pop girl band Brave Girls to disband after rolling out digital single 'Goodbye' SEOUL -- Brave Girls, a four-member K-pop girl band, will disband after releasing its last single titled "Goodbye." The band that unexpectedly stepped into the spotlight 10 years after its debut with a single dance track titled "Rollin'" in 2021 did not renew the contract with its agency "Brave Entertainment." All group members will end the exclusive contract, said Brave Entertainment, adding that the group will release Goodbye at 6 p.m. (0900 GMT) 2023-02-16
• 
  Reality competition series 'Physical: 100' captivates global fans on Netflix SEOUL -- "Physical: 100," a South Korean competition show featuring physically fit contestants engaging in various games and competitions to win prize money of 300 million won ($233,681), became the most watched content on Netflix's non-English chart. The reality survival content showcases various celebrities such as UFC fighter Akiyama Yoshihiro (Choo Sung-hoon) and the 2012 London Olympic vault champion Yang Hak-seon. The global streaming service giant said that t 2023-02-15
• 
  BTS's main rapper Suga to go on solo world tour in six countries SEOUL -- BTS member Suga will go on a solo world tour, starting with the first concert in Belmont Park, New York on April 26. The 29-year-old became the first BTS member to launch a solo world tour. Big Hit, the seven-member band's agency, said in a statement on February 15 that Suga will cover six countries -- United States, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, and Japan. BTS' main rapper will interact with global fans from April to June in various cities including 2023-02-15