K-pop Countdown (Inkigayo) on Wednesdays! Catch it tonight at 11.45pm/10.45(JKT)!
Guests: SHINee, 2PM, 4Minute, B1A4, T-ara N4, Nine Muses, Seo In Young, Juniel, Hello Venus, C-Clown, HISTORY, LC9, N.Sonic, Zia and Han Byul (LEDApple)
According to an announcement by the Asian Music Chart in Germany on May 29, B.A.P’s title song, “One Shot,” of their second EP ranked at the top of the monthly chart in May, having stayed at the top for three months in a row.
The group debuted in January last year. Their song “No Mercy” ranked first for two consecutive months and was chosen the song of the year on the German chart.
B.A.P are now on a world tour and recently finished their concerts in the United States and Japan, where they drew a total audience of 10,000 in each country.
On May 29, Lee Min Jung’s side had a phone interview with Newsen, “The rumor that the wedding will soon happen is false. Lee Byung Hun and Lee Min Jung haven’t had an official meeting with the parents from both sides and haven’t discussed any details about picking a date for the wedding.”
It’s been reported that the couple attended a close friend’s wedding earlier on May 29 where Lee Min Jung caught the bouquet.
Her company revealed, “When it comes to her private life, we can’t confirm because the company doesn’t check her every single move. She finished filming for ‘All About My Romance.’ Lee Min Jung is currently exhausted and sleeping so we can’t contact her for any confirmation.”
Her side continued, “We hear that Lee Byung Hun is just starting to promote his movie ‘Red 2.’ Doesn’t it make sense to start talking about wedding preparations when their schedules clear up a bit?”
And regarding Lee Min Jung’s plans, “After ‘All About My Romance,’ she plans to take a small break. Of course, she’ll be looking at her next project. There are a lot of scripts that have poured in and will come back as soon as there’s a great project.”
Meanwhile, Lee Byung Hun and Lee Min Jung admitted their relationship on August 2012.
Monday and Tuesday nights will never be the same in K-drama land with the premiere of new KBS 2TV drama 'Shark' and the adventure-packed romance that MBC's 'Book of the House of Gu' brings, leading to the big question: Which drama won in the ratings department this week?
According to AGB Nielsen Media Research, the May 28th broadcast of 'Book of the House of Gu' achieved a 18.2% viewer rating, which is a 1.8% increase from its previous viewer rating of 16.4%. The drama was still shy of the 20% mark but nevertheless, it maintained its position as the #1 Monday-Tuesday drama.
Meanwhile, SBS' 'Jang Ok Jung' rose to second place, achieving a 10.5% viewer rating. 'Shark' previously kicked off its premiere with a decent 8.2% viewer rating, but it seems the buzz quickly faded as it dropped to a poor 6.7% in one day.
SS501's Heo Young Saeng is planning to enlist for his mandatory military service this November!
This would make him the second SS501 member to enlist following Kim Kyu Jong, who started his service in July of last year.
A rep from B2M Entertainment said, "It seems that Heo Young Saeng has decided to enlist by the end of this year. If he receives a draft notice, he will not delay it and plans to perform his duty to the country."
After a health checkup, Heo Young Saeng was found to be fit for active duty by the Office of Military Manpower Administration.
Detailed information about his exact enlistment date and training location have yet to be decided.
5 member Kpop male group, CHAOS, has decided to disband officially on May 14. The decision was made by all members. This shows that success in Kpop is definitely tough, even for the best groups to debut.
Members of the boy band CHAOS include Hyunsun, Park Taeyang, Heejae, Dongmin and Duhwan. They debuted into the Korean pop scene in January of 2012. And after 16 months of staying together for the promotion of their hits, "She's coming," followed by a mini-album "Racer" and finally a single "Kiss Kiss.", the boy band finally decided that it would be wise to just go their separate ways.
Fans that have easily come to love the boy band were greatly saddened by this news. CHAOS has been described by their fans as one of the groups to have one of the best debuts in the industry and it is just such a waste to see them go.
Hopefully the following rookie groups will stay strong and not cave under the pressure since this industry is known to be one of the toughest. Pray that your rookie groups will do well for the following 100 years!
Korean actorLee Min Ho, now also a recording artist, also released his solo album "My Everything" as a gift to his fans in Japan. The album was produced with Lee Min Ho feeling grateful for all the love he receives from his fans worldwide. The album features six tracks, of which the title song is features the light, airy track "Always You". On the day of the release, May 27th, the album nabbed the No. 1 position on the prestigious Oricon chart daily ranking.
Lee Min Ho also recorded two songs in Japanese for the album, showcasing his gentle vocals.
In June, Lee Min Ho embarks on his World Tour in Japan with stages set for Yokohama and Osaka. While tickets are now available via PIA and Lawson, performances are fast sold out. The World Tour promises to be a place for Lee Min Ho to perform his tracks live for the first time.
In SBS "Running Man" aired today, Kim Soo Hyun came out as a guest.
As a game, he played rock-paper-scissors with Song Ji Hyo of the opposing team, and the losing team members flew into the water. In order to make the game more breathtaking, Song Ji Hyo covered their game with a towel.
When the atmosphere changed from a game one to a date-like one, Gary could not keep his eyes off them and revealed envy.
Kim Soo Hyun finally won the game and Lee Kwang Soo said, "Make her fall deeper in love with you," arousing laughter.
Jang Keun Sukhas always hinted about a US debut for Team H. His fans in the US have speculated and waited for too long. In a surprise announcement after a successful concert in Seoul, the actor-turned-idol is officially en route to the US. Mere weeks before his 26th birthday, Jang Keun Suk, also dubbed as Asia Prince will be party it up in California -- with his US tour stopping by Los Angeles on June 22nd, and San Jose on June 28th.
While ticket information and other tour information have yet to be released, Powerhouse Live has issued a save-the-date for fans who've been holding their breath for this event. Co-presenting with Powerhouse is leading concert tour producer AEG Live.
The US tour announcement comes ahead of the release of his 2nd Japanese album on May 29th. Prior to the US tour dates, Keun Suk will be participating in album activities in Japan. kpopstarz
As K-Pop idol groups attempt to venture into Chinese and Taiwanese markets, a good grasp of the Chinese language is extremely helpful as they record Chinese songs and promote on variety shows.
Of all the K-Pop idol stars who are not of Chinese descent, who is the best at Chinese?
One of the best K-Pop idols in the Mandarin language is none other than Sunye of Wonder Girls. The girl group made a huge hit with “Nobody” in 2008 and started a huge K-Pop wave in Taiwan, along with Super Junior’s “Sorry Sorry” in 2009.
While promoting at a Taiwanese variety show called “Kangxi Is Coming” in April of 2010, Sunye was able to converse fluently with the hosts, showing off her strong grasp of Mandarin. The Wonder Girls as a group recorded Chinese versions of their biggest hits, “Nobody” and “2 Different Tears.” Sunye, who is now married and a soon-to-be mom, reportedly studied Chinese for 2 years while training at JYP and says that she loves the language.
Out of all other idols, Super Junior-M is the group that has spent the most time promoting in both mainland China and Taiwan. Their fluency in Chinese is unbelievable, and the group had a long stay in Taiwan, which helped them get even better at Chinese. During their promotional activities on television variety shows, all the members were able to converse easily in Mandarin.
Although two of the members, Zhoumi and Henry, already knew Chinese, the other members worked hard to learn the language. Out of all the Super Junior-M members, Kyuhyun has the best pronunciation and speaks like a native. During the press conference for the group’s Chinese album, “Too Perfect,” Kyuhyun drew attention for his ability to recite Chinese idioms at lightning speed. On variety shows, Kyuhyun would also be able to make jokes in Chinese and sang famous Chinese songs, including “If You Also Heard” by Taiwanese singer, A-Mei.
As for other Super Junior-M members, Ryeowook is the most diligent of them all and writes in his diary using Chinese in order to practice the language. Siwon, who landed a role in Taiwanese Drama “Skip Beat!” along with Donghae in 2011, has studied in China before and could quickly pick up the language. Donghae is also known for saying sweet Chinese phrases to fans, such as “I will meet you all in my dreams tonight.”
Other than Super Junior-M, Park Jung Min, who is a former SS501 member, has also received attention from Taiwanese fans for his knowledge of many difficult Chinese phrases. He learned Chinese through acting in Taiwanese Drama “Fondant Garden” in 2012. He was able to interact naturally with his Taiwanese co-stars in Chinese, and even joked around with them.
Park Jung Min further showcased his Mandarin skills when he sang for the drama’s OST in Chinese with a song called “Bad Guy.”
More recently, 2PM’s Taecyeon revealed that he and his fellow 2PM member, Nichkhun, have both studied Chinese in the past. In an interview for “We Got Married: Global Edition,” Taecyeon said that the two had studied in the same advanced-level Chinese class. While Nichkhun’s pronunciation was better, Taecyeon was able to recognize and read more Chinese words.
In Taecyeon’s virtual marriage with Taiwanese actress Gui Gui (Wu Ying Jie), the beast idol showed off his Chinese with occasional words like “Cheers” (Gan Bei) and “Thank you” (Xie xie). He was even able to write out Gui Gui’s name in Chinese characters in the snow. It seems that the 2PM members’ foreign language skills were able to help them “get married” to lovely Chinese ladies, as Nichkhun was also virtually married for a time to f(x)’s Victoria.
Fluency in Mandarin Chinese may prove to be even more helpful as K-Pop’s influence continues to spread to Chinese-speaking regions. The idols’ diligence in mastering Chinese will help them avoid awkward situations that arise with translators assisting in between during promotional activities overseas.
Cube Entertainment has been hard at work with their current roster of acts lately, and nowRainis set to join their lineup.
With a series of comebacks in the works, it looks like the agency is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon and the latest news that Rain will soon join their ranks puts them as serious contenders for a top spot among the Korean entertainment industry's elite.
It is well known that in South Korea there are three major agencies, usually regarded as the Big Three, YG, SM, and JYP Entertainment. But with the newest signing deal, Cube Entertainment has serious potential to up the competition. By the time Rain finishes his military service and releases his next album, we may have to start referring to the Big Four agencies instead.
On May 28 Cube Entertainment CEO Hong Seung Sung announced that Rain would indeed be joining the company following the completion of his mandatory military service. The label currently represents other popular K-Pop acts such as Beast, BtoB, 4Minute, and G.Na - the addition of Rain to the roster will undoubtedly increase their global recognition and revenue.
Hong Seung Sung is the former president of JYP Entertainment, Rain's former label. During the singer's time at JYP before starting his own company, J.Tune Entertainment, he and Hong established a close working relationship.
Prior to enlisting in the military, Rain sold his company to his mentor and JYP Entertainment CEO Jin Young Park, while Hong Seung Sung had gone off to form Cube in 2008.
Since the foundation of his label, Hong has maintained a good relationship with his former company - and Rain as well is still on very good terms with JYP.
The new Rain-Cube partnership will be interesting to watch play out, especially as the agency starts to creep up on JYP Entertainment as one of the biggest and best record labels in South Korea.
Rain has been very busy while serving his country in the service and was recently selected as a special representative for the World Peace Arirang Festival in Washington DC.
The singer has also said that he is looking to make his musical comeback very soon after finishing his duties as a soldier - and his fans are definitely looking forward to seeing what new music he will present under the tutelage of Hong Seung Sung.
Almost immediately after the cuties ofBoyfriendreleased their latest single "On & On," there was a response from those pesky citizens of the internet saying the idol group has the worst timing. Not even critiques about the song or the video - just that the group should have waited and not released the song on the same day asCL's solo debut.
Probably the worst argument I can think of. For starters, the timing was perfect.
"On & On" was not meant to be a comeback for the group, but a special treat for their fans and a way to celebrate the group's two year anniversary since their debut. Bad timing? What are they supposed to do, go back in time and debut a week later?
It is a fun and carefree tune to ease us all into summer, and the playful video puts a smile on your face, whether you are a fan of it or not. The target audience, the sentiments, the overall feeling of the song are a far cry from "The Baddest Female" released by the 2NE1 leader on the same day.
If we can't compare efforts, then why bother chastising Boyfriend for having a good time and giving a musical gift of thanks to their fans?
"On & On" is Boyfriend's first digital single and is a playful song with the typical pop melody.
The video is adorable and shows the six members strolling around the streets of Tokyo and Enoshima having a fun time together on vacation. However the music video for the youthful song could have just as easily been set in an amusement park or shopping mall.
The sweet charm of the individual members really shines through with some close-up shots, friendly pranks, and constant smiles.
And the hair - oh, the hair! They all look so adorable in their spring blazers and perfectly styled quaffs, it makes me want to pinch their cheeks. Or, at the very least, I would not mind spending an afternoon hanging out with them.
The song itself is nothing particularly special or interesting, typical boy band fare, but that doesn't mean it's not good. Quite the opposite really. "On & On" is a great summer tune that would be perfect for the soundtrack to a teen rom-com, an afternoon drive to the beach, or a stroll in the park.
Not the greatest effort we've seen from Boyfriend, but again, that was not the point. The Best Friends I'm sure can agree - "On & On" is fun way to celebrate Boyfriend's anniversary and a nice summertime treat for their fans.
Check out the video below and let us know what you think of "On & On" by Boyfriend!
The one thing that idols get that is the biggest gift of all is the ability to be able to travel. Whether they have to perform in this part of the world or practice in the next on 2 hours or no sleep at all, they still get to see the sights and go to places that they could not even imagine being in before.
With this gift, the boys of BTOB decides to visit Cambodia in order to say hello to the children who reside in an orphanage. The boys were playful with the children, happily interacting with them despite the language barrier that existed between them.
They watched performances prepared for them and cheered on the performers during their presentation. They took many pictures as well as posed for every camera in sight. Some of the members even took it upon themselves to test the safety of the jungle gyms out of the kindness of their hearts.
If you did not love BTOB enough, you definitely will drown in your feels for them now!
![K-pop Countdown (Inkigayo) on Wednesdays! Catch it tonight at 11.45pm/10.45(JKT)!
Guests: SHINee, 2PM, 4Minute, B1A4, T-ara N4, Nine Muses, Seo In Young, Juniel, Hello Venus, C-Clown, HISTORY, LC9, N.Sonic, Zia and Han Byul (LEDApple)
For more info: http://www.onetvasia.com/shows/k-pop-countdown-inkigayo
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