Entertainment

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  K-pop girl band GFRIEND announces disbandment SEOUL -- K-pop girl band GFRIEND has left many K-pop fans stunned by a surprise announcement that the six-member band will be disbanded in May, six years and four months after its first public appearance. "We express our deepest gratitude towards our fans who loved GFRIEND, and we wish for a lot of love and applause for members who will begin their new activities in a variety of fields," Source Music said in a statement on May 18. The agency said G 2021-05-18
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  Parasite director Bong finishes working on animated movie scenario SEOUL -- Bong Jun-ho, the director of the 2020 Academy-winning film "Parasite," has finished working on an animated movie scenario that deals with a story involving deep-sea creatures and humans. It would be a full computer graphics animation. Visual effects will 4th CREATIVE PARTY, a content media company based in South Korea, is responsible for visual effects. Bong's scenario was completed in January. He is curre 2021-05-13
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  CJ ENM organizes audition in S. America to form idol group targeting Spanigh-language fans SEOUL -- South Korea's entertainment group CJ ENM will organize an audition program in South America to form a male idol group targeting Spanish-language fans in the global market through cooperation with a Spanish-language content producer and HBO Max, an American subscription video-on-demand streaming service. The idol group will be created through training under a K-pop idol production system, CJ ENM said, adding K-POP artists and South American stars wo 2021-05-06
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  K-pop girl band ITZY shows more powerful, bolder image thru new mini-album SEOUL -- As a representative teen crush K-pop girl band of MZers (millennial and Z generations), ITZY will show a more powerful and bolder image than before through "GUESS WHO," a new mini-album released in eight months. The band hopes to secure a spot in Billboard 200, an American record chart. "Teen Crush, the concept that we've brought since our debut, is always the basis. I hope our growth in this album will be well imprinted,& 2021-04-30
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  'Academy isn't everything:' Actress Youn Yuh-jung reveals feelings about Oscar trophy SEOUL -- "I don't know if this moment is the best in my life. The Academy isn't everything. Is it?" This is what actress Youn Yuh-jung revealed her frank thoughts just after the 73-year-old grabbed an Oscar trophy for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the 2020 film "Minari" directed by Lee Isaac Chung. Youn earned enormous praise from fans, including President Moon Jae-in, as the first Korean and second Asian actress to take the tr 2021-04-27
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  K-pop wonder ​BTS to drop new digital single 'Butter' in May SEOUL --K-pop sensation BTS will drop a new digital single titled "Butter" on May 21, the seven-member band's agency said. Butter is the group's second full-English song after "Dynamite," a disco-pop song that was released in August 2020 and stayed in Billboard's top 100 most popular song chart for 32 consecutive weeks. "Brimming with the inimitable charm of BTS, the new single 'Butter' will melt its way 2021-04-27
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  ​Coupang to create original drama series starring popular actor Kim Soo-hyun South Korean actor Kim Soo-hyun smiles during a fan ceremony. SEOUL -- South Korea's ecommerce giant Coupang has partnered with a major domestic media content company to create an original drama series featuring popular actors Kim Soo-hyun and Cha Seung-won. The drama series titled "Some Day" is a remake of a 2008 British drama series "Criminal Justice." Coupang, known as the South Korean counterpart of Am 2021-04-26
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  McDonald's partners with BTS to release signature meal set inspired by S. Korean recipes SEOUL -- Global fast-food franchise McDonald's has partnered with K-pop wonder BTS to release a special meal set including spicy dipping sauces inspired by the franchise's recipes in South Korea. The super band's signature meal set is McDonald's first celebrity-themed menu that will be released in nearly 50 countries worldwide. The BTS meal set is part of McDonald's "Famous Orders," a promotion event series that releases fa 2021-04-20
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  Girl band (G)I-DLE to release new song without member Soojin SEOUL -- K-pop girl band (G)I-DLE will release a new song in April without Soojin, who suspended group activities after the 23-year-old singer was caught up in a school bullying scandal. (G)I-DLE will come back with "Last Dance (Prod. GroovyRoom)" scheduled for release in April 2021. All preparations including the recording of the song and the filming of the music video were finished in February, just before the school bullying scandal erupted in 2021-04-19
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  KT jumps into Vietnam's music streaming market with digital platform SEOUL -- KT, a top telecom company in South Korea, jumped into Vietnam's music streaming market through cooperation with Vietnam Television, a national television broadcaster, utilizing a digital platform based on artificial intelligence, big data and cloud. KT signed a memorandum of understanding with Vietnam Cable Television (VTVCab), a subsidiary of Vietnam Television (VTV), to optimize the platform business model of KT's music streaming service, Genie Mus 2021-04-09
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  K-pop girl band MAMAMOO's label acquires rival entertainment company SEOUL -- The label of K-pop girl band MAMAMOO has built up its size for global expansion by acquiring a rival entertainment company that manages artists such as B1A4, Oh My Girl and ONF. Rainbow Bridge World (RBW) said it has secured more than 70 percent of WM Entertainment shares through a stock purchase agreement. Financial terms were not disclosed. WM Entertainment became a subsidiary of RBW, but the label would maintain its current management and i 2021-04-07
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  BTS agency expands U.S. business scope thru acquisition of Ithaca Holdings SEOUL -- Through its American subsidiary, the agency of K-pop wonder BTS acquired Ithaca Holdings, a Los Angeles-based investment holding company that controls the label of Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, underlining efforts to expand its business scope in the U.S. music market. The deal came two weeks after Big Hit Entertainment founded by Bang Si-hyuk changed its name to HYBE to herald a new start as a comprehensive entertainment lifestyle platform company t 2021-04-02
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  CJ's drama-making wing forges partnership with webcomics studio YLAB SEOUL -- Studio Dragon, the drama-making wing of South Korea's entertainment group CJ ENM, has forged a partnership with YLAB, an online entertainment studio, to dramatize popular webcomics, also known as webtoons, for the global over-the-top content market. Studio Dragon said in a statement on March 29 that it would dramatize "Super String," a fictional universe. "Based on YBLAB's successful IPs and Studio Dragon's project planning and 2021-03-29
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  Historical inaccuracies lead to rare withdrawal of TV series in S. Korea SEOUL -- Historical inaccuracies, coupled with anti-Beijing sentiment caused by a controversial research project aimed at redefining China's ancient history, led to the rare withdrawal of a South Korean fantasy-supernatural television series after just two episodes aired. SBS, a national TV network, said in a statement on March 26 that it decided to cancel its new drama, "Joseon Exorcist," after feeling "heavy responsibility," although the prod 2021-03-26
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  JYP Entertainment ties up with China's music streaming arm of Tencent SEOUL -- The music streaming arm of Tencent has forged a strategic partnership with JYP Entertainment, a South Korean entertainment and record label backed by K-pop groups such as TWICE, ITZY and Stray Kids. They would maximize synergy by creating various music entertainment services along with joint marketing, promotions and live events. Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) is a joint venture between Tencent and Spotify, the world’s most popular audio streaming 2021-03-24
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  BTS label changes corporate name to HYBE to herald new start before moving into new building SEOUL -- The agency of K-pop wonder BTS changed its name to HYBE to herald a new start as a comprehensive entertainment lifestyle platform company that creates and delivers extended content and services based on music to fans. Big Hit Entertainment announced its new corporate name through its official YouTube channel on March 19. The new name will be officially used after a meeting of shareholders on March 30. "I felt the need for a new corporate name as a 2021-03-19
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  Girl band ITZY to release dedicatory song for fans thru first online event SEOUL -- K-pop girl band ITZY will release a dedicatory song named after the five-member band's fan club "MIDZY" through an online fan meeting event. The song will be released in Korean and English, targeting fans at home and abroad. JYP Entertainment said in a statement that "MIDZY" includes a message of "ITZY exists thanks to fans' strong trust." The song will be showcased through the online fan meeting usi 2021-03-19
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  Viral YouTube video spotlights obscure K-pop girl band Brave Girls to become top star SEOUL -- Brave Girls, an obscure K-pop girl band that has been almost forgotten in the major music scene, was unexpectedly put on a road to fame and became a star overnight after a YouTube video showing online comments for their dance performances went viral. The video was uploaded when band members lost their momentum to maintain team activities any longer and started discussing their dismantlement. Since Brave Girls debuted as a five-member band in 201 2021-03-12
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  [TRAVEL] North Chungcheong Province launches 'Wellness Trip' for body and mind SEOUL -- In an effort to heal the body and mind of those who suffer from COVID Blue, a feeling of depression and isolation caused by changes in lifestyle due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the Korea Tourism Organization have selected "Wellness Trip 44," a collection of tourist hot spots that are ideal for healing. According to government data, COVID Blue inflicts feelings of depression, isolati 2021-03-09
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  BLACKPINK member Rosé reveals name of upcoming solo album title track thru teaser video SEOUL -- Through a short teaser video, Rosé, a member of K-pop girl band BLACKPINK, has revealed the name of the title song included in the 24-year-old's first solo album to be released on March 12. YG Entertainment uploaded a teaser video titled "ROSÉ - 'On The Ground' M/V TEASER" onto YouTube on March 8, showing snippets of the music video for "On The Ground," the title track of Rosé's sol 2021-03-08