Korean Media News

Kim Junsu, a member of popular South Korea boyband JYJ, on Wednesday announced plans for his first solo tour, a day after releasing his first solo album.Kim, also known as Xia, said he would perform in seven Asian cities including Bangkok, Taipei, Jakarta and Shanghai from May to July, starting with a concert in Seoul later this week. The 25-year-old has been a member of two groups at the forefront of the K-pop boom which has taken Asia by storm over the past decade and spread as far as Europe and Latin America.His first major band, TVXQ, has sold more than eight million records at home and abroad since 2003. Amid legal disputes with its agency, he and two of his fellow performers broke away in 2009 to form JYJ. They held 15 concerts in nations such as China, Spain, Germany, Chile and Peru over 11 months to March, drawing some 210,000 fans in all.K-pop has devoted fan bases in some overseas regions, even though most Korean boybands have not officially released songs in Latin America or Europe.More than 20,000 tickets for Kim’s Seoul, Bangkok and Jakarta concerts were sold out minutes after they went on sale online, his agency said.“Such enthusiastic response from our foreign fans… who get to know our music on the Internet like YouTube… really stunned us,” Kim told reporters.
“Now I’m learning real hard how to speak basic phrases in countries where I’ll perform.”Kim’s new album, a mix of electronic dance and R&B ballads mostly written by him, is called “Tarantallegra” after the Dancing Feet Spell featured in the Harry Potter books and films.
Credit: AFP

K-Pop groups continue to dominate Japanese market, ranking high on the Japan’s prestigious Oricon Chart!

On May 16th, SHINee released their fourth Japanese single “Sherlock” while FT Island released their third Japanese album “20 (Twenty)”. Both idol groups achieved an amazing start, ranking within the top 3 on Oricon Charts a mere day later.

SHINee’s “Sherlock” placed second on Oricon Chart’s Daily Chart by selling 28,045 copies, while FT Island’s “20 (Twenty)” debuted in 3rd place on the Oricon Daily Album Chart with 20,372 copies sold.

Girl group 2NE1 is celebrating their third year anniversary today, and member Sandara Park thanks fans for their greetings and support.

On May 17th, Sandara posted a photo of a cake on her me2day account with the message, It’s 2NE1′s third year anniversary since our debut! It’s really, really, really, super, super, super, daebak, daebak, daebak, congratulationssss~! This is a special cake that brings out the meaning of 2NE1 and Blackjacks who have been together for three years already! We ordered it specifically made! ^_^ Smack, smack ~ I love you, Blackjacks! Always together Blackjacks! Lasting forever Blackjacks! Blackjacks jjang!”

The photo shows three-layered purple cake with figurines of the girls on top. The cake has the writing, “2NE1 3rd” to celebrate the 3 year anniversary and “Forever with Black Jack” to show their appreciation for their fans.


Credit: BlackjackBelle@OhDara/ SlaveTranslator@WeLoveDara

Despite the fact that Lee Min Ho’s hit SBS drama “City Hunter” has been aired in Japan on terrestrial networks from March, the show is set to be broadcasted again, but this time through cable TV.

From May 29, the action drama from last year will be shown on BS Fuji, testifying to the fame of the hallyu actor in Japan. The drama, renamed “City Hunter in Seoul” for Japanese release, just finished airing not long ago there.

“Just as ‘City Hunter’ came to an end, they started broadcasting Lee’s other drama, ‘Personal Taste,’ on TBS. Since then, Lee’s popularity has skyrocketed,” said an entertainment insider from Japan.

Away from the brown box too, Lee seems unstoppable as various media and fashion outlets want a juicy piece of the young Korean actor.

In China too, Lee’s fame knows no bounds. Back in April, in the runup to an appearance at a Chinese clothing store, Lee had to forego the event for security reasons as a thousands-strong crowd gathered to get a glimpse of the star.

In Korea, fans are holding their breath until August, when “Faith,” Lee’s next project, will air on SBS. Lee will work with actress Kim Hee-sun on the drama.


By Carla Sunwoo
Source: JoongAng Daily

tvN’s upcoming drama ‘I Love Italy’ unveiled the character stills of the lead cast Super Junior’s Kim Ki Bum. In the photos, the singer-turned actor donned a stylish full black suit coupled with a red necktie.

Kim Ki Bum will take on the role of Geum Eun Dong, a middle school student who suddenly finds himself a man in his 30’s and a secretary of Lee Taeri (played by Park Ye Jin).

‘I Love Italy’ is a fantasy romance-comedy drama and a sequel to “The Wedding Scheme.” The drama, which was produced by screenwriter Moon Ji Young and director Kim Do Hyuk, will be aired every Monday and Tuesday starting May 28th.

INFINITE has zoomed across the country in a five-city, one-day showcase that it completed on Tuesday.

Despite having already been to Busan, Daegu, Gwangju and Daejeon, the seven members were still exuberant and ready to go when they touched down for their final show in a helicopter at 8 p.m., in Olympic Park, southeastern Seoul.

“Actually, it was quite scary riding around in the helicopter all day. But we also managed to get some rest up in the air, traveling from one place to the next,” the band said.

At the Seoul showcase, the boys sang and took time to answer questions from the hostess of the night, comedienne Park Kyeong-rim.

INFINITE emphasized that, as a Hallyu group, it wanted to create work to represent all of Korea, and that it did with title track “The Chaser,” which features an upbeat melody and emotionally charged lyrics.

The highlight of the night was when Dong-woo threw two poem-inscribed paper airplanes into the crowd.


By Carla Sunwoo
Source: JoongAng Daily

Former idol star Go Young Wook spent more than 10 hours in detention at the Yongsan Police Station on Tuesday being investigated on charges of sexual assault against a minor.

An official complaint about Go Young Wook raping an aspiring entertainer surfaced about a week ago, and while he was at the police station, a local media outlet received a tip that more than one child victim might be involved in the case.

“While we were in the middle of investigating whether Go raped a minor, another victim came forward with the same complaint,” a police representative said. “Thus, we started investigating this, too.”

When journalists quizzed Go about the allegations as he made his way out of the station, the entertainer merely stammered, “It’s personal!”

Media also asked Go if he was guilty of the charges. He deflected questions by simply saying, “I’ll continue to cooperate with the police.”

Go Young Wook rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the idol group Roo’Ra.


By Carla Sunwoo
Source: JoongAng Daily