Entertainment

• 
  BTS to release series of graphic books depicting hit songs' lyrics SEOUL -- K-pop band BTS will release a graphic book series that depicts lyrics of the seven-member band through a graphic-novel like storytelling. Big Hit Entertainment, the agency of BTS, said in a statement on Tuesday that the K-pop sensation will release "A Supplementary Story: You Never Walk Alone," a graphic book series, including six books -- "Save ME," ' House Of Cards," "RUN" and "Butterfly" 2020-06-23
• 
  Culture minister praises BTS for providing a way forward to K-pop SEOUL -- South Korea's culture minister praised the agency of BTS for providing a way forward to K-pop with a paid online concert, urging other entertainment agencies to follow suit and create "differentiated and high-quality" digital works using advanced technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality. "I pay respect," Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Park Yang-woo told a meeting of entertainment c 2020-06-19
• 
  BTS agency opens audition for Japanese female trainees SEOUL -- Big Hit Entertainment, the agency of K-pop sensation BTS, has opened an audition for Japanese female trainees who wish to become K-pop idols. The creator of BTS said through its official Japanese Twitter account this week that the company is looking for Japanese female trainees who were born in 2001 or after and can sing and dance. Big Hit said trainees from Japan are welcome regardless of levels of experience. Through numerous occasions, 2020-06-19
• 
  Over 90 percent OTT service users watch video content via smartphone: survey SEOUL -- More than 90 percent of over-the-top video-on-demand service subscribers used smartphones to watch video content in South Korea led by Netflix, the world's most popular OTT service, a survey showed. Over-the-top (OTT) services provide video content such as TV dramas, films and live broadcasts of sports games via connected devices such as smartphones, computers and smart TVS. Netflix has the largest number of 6.37 million paid subscribers in South Kore 2020-06-18
• 
  ​S. Korea's OTT service strives to maintain user pool in competition with Netflix SEOUL -- Wavve, an over-the-top video-on-demand service in South Korea, fell short of initial expectations, failing to secure a stable pool of users despite efforts to check Netflix, the world's most popular online and mobile video content service which has gained a strong base of subscribers in South Korea with more than 50 million smartphone users. Wavve was created by a joint force of South Korean over-the-top (OTT) service operators to challenge Netfl 2020-06-17
• 
  Actor Park Bo-gum to release new song in August to commemorate debut SEOUL -- Actor Park Bo-gum will release a song written and composed by South Korea's singer-songwriter Sam Kim in August as the last present for fans who would miss the K-drama star during his mandatory military service. He has applied for the keyboard part of the Navy's military music and honor guard. Blossom Entertainment, the 27-year-old's agency, said in a statement on Tuesday that the actor would release "All My Love" o 2020-06-16
• 
  BLACKPINK collaborates with AR avatar service to offer interactive 3D characters SEOUL -- K-pop girl band BLACKPINK has collaborated with ZEPETO, a South Korean 3D avatar creator platform service, to offer fans with characterized models of band members. Naver Z, the operator of ZEPETO, said in a statement on Tuesday that the company has released 3D models of BLACKPINK members through a 3D character creation studio app. Users can take selfies with BLACKPINK members using augmented reality (AR) technology. ZEPETO is a smartphone app that al 2020-06-16
• 
  ​Samsung to release BTS-themed special edition smartphone next month SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics will release a BTS-themed special edition smartphone adorned with the logo and iconic color of the K-pop sensation in July. The South Korean smartphone maker said in a statement on Monday that "Galaxy S20+ BTS Edition" will hit the shelves in some 50 countries including South Korea, the United States and Europe on July 9. ARMY, the international fan club of BTS, celebrates on July 9 the day when the global fando 2020-06-15
• 
  BTS online concert opens new way for global concert and performance industry SEOUL -- BTS proved its brand power as one of the world's top-grossing touring groups with a successful paid online concert that attracted more than 700,000 viewers worldwide. The concert provided new opportunities to the global concert and performance industry that sank deep into a depression due to a COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. A maximum number of simultaneous users estimated at 756,600 watched the live online concert from a special stud 2020-06-15
• 
  SM artist songs to be presented in orchestra version thru digital music release channel SEOUL -- SM Entertainment, an entertainment powerhouse based in Seoul, made a new attempt to release K-pop in an orchestra version through collaboration with one of South Korea's oldest orchestras. The company will establish its classical label, SM Classics. The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra said it signed a memorandum of understanding for collaboration with SM to present the songs of SM artists in an orchestra version. The orchestra would disclose 2020-06-12
• 
  Solo singer Baek Yerin sells 15,000 copies of vinyl record album thanks to young consumer trend SEOUL -- Baek Yerin, a 22-year-old former member of JYP Entertainment's female duo 15&, has unexpectedly sold about 15,000 copies of her new album in a vinyl album format through a special order thanks to the retro trend among young consumers. The vinyl record, also known as LP (long play) album, is the 12-inch analog sound storage introduced in 1948. The circle-shaped record remained as the standard format for record albums until the early 1990 2020-06-09
• 
  BTS online concert to provide fans with new viewing experiences SEOUL -- K-pop sensation BTS will provide a new level of viewing experiences to fans through a live online concert on June 14, using a cloud-based solution developed by Kiswe Mobile, a New Jersey-based startup that makes streaming technology for watching live sports and video. The 90-minute concert, "BANG BANG CON The Live," was arranged after BTS suspended its world concert tour due to the COVID-19 pandemic that forced artists to go onli 2020-06-09
• 
  Indie music chart operator partners with Japanese music label South Korean indie band Hyukoh SEOUL -- Mirrorball Music, a South Korean indie music distributor, has forged a partnership with Bside, a Japanese music label, to provide a biweekly indie album chart that lists popular tracks of indie artists in Japanese. The South Korean music distributor said in a statement on Monday that it has signed an agreement to provide K-INDIE CHART, a popular indie album chart, through BUZZY ROOTS, Bside's online media specialize 2020-06-08
• 
  BTS joins international human rights campaign against racism SEOUL -- South Korea's leading K-pop band BTS joined an international human rights campaign by opposing racial discrimination and violence via social media in a show of support for protests that followed the violent death of an African-American man called George Floyd, who died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for several minutes. "We stand against racial discrimination. We condemn violence. You, I and we all have the right to be respected. 2020-06-04
• 
  K-pop bands to introduce S. Korea through TV travel show SEOUL -- To ease the social stress of global K-pop fans who mostly stay at home to keep their social distance, K-pop bands including MONSTA X will take viewers around South Korea to experience cuisines, tourist attractions and cultural spots hand-picked by stars. SBS MTV, a cable TV music channel, said that "Travel At Home," a travel show, will air at 7:00 p.m. (1000 GMT) on Friday. The show will be available in some 150 countries. K-pop stars will 2020-06-04
• 
  S. Korean web cartoon company partners with popular comics studio targeting consumers in US and France SEOUL -- Lezhin Entertainment, a web cartoon company in South Korea, partnered with Kidari Studio, the country's largest webcomics production studio, to release webtoons targeting young consumers in the United States and France. Web cartoons, widely known as webtoons or webcomics, are digital comic books created to fit into web or mobile platforms. South Korea is the birthplace of webtoons, with its webtoon market valued at one trillion won ($82 2020-06-04
• 
  S. Korean zombie action film joins lineup of Cannes Film Festival's official selection SEOUL -- "Peninsula," a sequel to the 2016 zombie action horror film "Train to Busan," directed by Yeon Sang-ho has joined the lineup of 56 films selected by the annual Cannes Film Festival. Having a film included in the list of Official Selection announced by the prestigious international film festival is seen as receiving a badge of honor. Train to Busan staring popular actors Gong-yoo and Ma Dong-seok garnered unexpected popularity at home for 2020-06-04
• 
  Cube Entertainment partners with NetEase Music to attract Chinese fans SEOUL -- Cube Entertainment, a South Korean entertainment agency that has girl band (G)I-DLE and boy band Pentagon under its wings, has forged a partnership with China's NetEase Cloud Music, a freemium music streaming service, to attract young Chinese music fans. The freemium music service is a form of content service that allows users to enjoy basic content for free but it requires users to pay for monthly subscriptions or other payments in order 2020-06-02
• 
  Actor Park Bo-gum takes test to become naval military bandsman SEOUL --Actor Park Bo-gum has volunteered to perform his mandatory military service as a naval military bandsman. The South Korean navy said Tuesday that the 26-year-old applied for the keyboard part of the Navy's military music and honor guard and took a practical test in Gyeryong city some 145 kilometers (90 miles) south of Seoul on Monday. The result of the test will be announced on the website of the Military Manpower A 2020-06-02
• 
  BLACKPINK members' solo songs to be released later this year SEOUL -- Solo songs by members of K-pop girl band BLACKPINK will be released later this year in an album format, the four-member band's agency said. YG Entertainment said it has been working on ROSÉ’s first-ever solo track for over a year. JENNIE’s first-ever solo single released in November 2018 received a good response, but some fans criticized YG of offering JENNIE a special favor because of her popularity. The agency asked 2020-06-01