NEWSWORTHY
South Korea may seek change in controversial military exemption for athletes
South Korea may seek to revise its military exemption program for athletes amid calls for stricter rules after the country's soccer and baseball teams earned the exemption by winning gold medals at the Asian Games over the weekend. Military service is a highly contentious issue ...
BTS is big, let's hope the hype helps other Asian acts
Earlier this month, an album sung mainly in Japanese landed on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart at No. 43. That's a rare accomplishment for any Japanese artist — and an even less frequent one for a non-Japanese outfit to pull off. But it's just ...
K-pop stars turn diplomatic envoys with concert dates in North Korea
They won over buttoned-up investors at a banking conference with their jingles about teenage love, but the K-pop girl band Red Velvet is about to face what may be its toughest audience yet: North Korea. The chart-topping starlets will perform Sunday with 10 other South ...
Pyeongchang's pop takes home gold
Politics hovered over the opening ceremony of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. The pageantry came against a backdrop of geopolitical intrigue, featuring the presence of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's younger sister, Yo Jong, who was on hand to watch a unified Korean ...
Kim Jong-hyun, lead singer of South Korean boy band SHINee, dies at 27
Police say the lead singer of popular South Korean boy band SHINee has died in a suspected suicide. They say Kim Jong-hyun, better known by the stage name Jonghyun, was found unconscious at a residence hotel in Seoul on Monday and was pronounced dead later ...
South Korea's Moon tries K-Pop and TV stars in China charm offensive
South Korean President Moon Jae-in will unveil an array of TV talent and K-pop celebrities at events, including a state dinner, in China on Thursday as he attempts to smooth out a year of difficult diplomacy with a star-laden charm offensive. South Korean celebrities, including ...
Twice shows just how resilient K-pop can be
Last week, Korean pop group Twice made its "official" debut in Japan, featuring the release of a Japanese-language best-of compilation and a showcase at Tokyo Gymnasium on July 2. In between, the members appeared on the popular weekly TV show "Music Station" and posed ...
Twice carries K-pop's flag into its debut Japanese gig
The halcyon days of Hallyu (the Korean wave) in mainstream media are long over, but the impact South Korean pop culture has had on Japan is still evident. Just look at K-pop outfit Twice, which features three Japanese members and has experienced massive success ...
K-pop girl group Kara to disband as contracts with three members end
South Korean girl group Kara is set to disband as its agency DSP Media said Friday that its exclusive contracts with three members of the quartet ended the same day. Kara, which was formed in South Korea in 2007, has also been popular in Japan ...
As world leaders debated ways to penalize North Korea's claim of a fourth nuclear test, South Korea voiced its displeasure with broadcasts of anti-Pyongyang propaganda across the rivals' tense border Friday, believed to be the birthday of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The broadcasts ...
m-flo's Taku Takahashi talks about Japan's music scene, K-pop and that controversial tweet
Taku Takahashi wants you to know, he's a positive person. The producer and DJ, who is one half of the group m-flo, says that when he controversially tweeted "F*ck Jpop 2012" three years ago, it was more of a plea for something new than old-fashioned ...
Korean pop band Bigbang back with new single after three years
South Korean boy band Bigbang is back on the music scene after a three-year hiatus, with a new single delving into the stresses of daily life. The track, titled "Loser," has dominated South Korea's online music charts since its release on May 1 and its ...
