K-Pop
Three BTS Projects Coming to Disney+, Including “Permission to Dance on Stage” Concert Film
Disney and HYBE have forged a new partnership, and their first order of business is producing a series of projects featuring the members of BTS. According to The Hollywood Reporter, HYBE — the South Korean entertainment company in charge of BTS’ record label, Big Hit — has signed on to create five titles with the Mouse House for Disney+, including three exclusive projects featuring BTS or some of its members. The first is BTS: Permission to Dance on Stage — LA, a concert film immortalizing the group’s November 2021 performance at Los Angeles’ Sofi Stadium, which marked their first in-person live event since 2019. The second project, In the Soup: Friendcation, is a travel reality show that sees BTS’ V, Itaewon Class’ Seo-jun Park, Parasite star Woo-shik Choi, Hyung-sik P...
BTS’ Label Recruits ARMY to Protect the Band From ‘Personal Attacks and Defamation’
BigHit Music, the South Korean record label, says it is going after “malicious postings” related to K-pop supergroup BTS – and is looking to fans to supply intel to aid in the crackdown. On June 29, BigHit released a note on social networking platform Weverse warning that the company had recently filed “additional criminal complaints against postings with personal attacks and defamation,” using new information provided by fans and collected through its own monitoring activities. The Weverse note came two weeks after BTS shook up the pop music world by revealing that the seven-member boy band was taking an indefinite break to pursue solo projects. The group’s fan group, known as ARMY, has lashed out on Twitter against journalists in the U.S. for their portrayals of the group’s break, which ...
j-hope Unleashes New Single “MORE”: Stream
BTS’s second chapter is moving full steam ahead with j-hope kicking off his next era of solo work with new single “MORE.” Known for his sunny disposition and optimistic energy, j-hope subverted expectations when he started rolling out teasers for the single ahead of his first full-length solo album, Jack in the Box, due later this month on July 15th. Promising a darker tone from the rapper and dancer, promotional photos for “MORE” echoed j-hope’s recent statement describing the new sides of himself that longtime listeners might not be expecting: “If I was going to convey the things I wanted to say, I would have to be darker. It’s something I’ve never done before, so I was excited to try something new,” he explained. The first single is a major departure from the vibrant, rainbow-hued ...
Aespa Makes U.S. Late Night Debut With ‘Life’s Too Short’
Everyone’s talking about aespa right now, and with good reason. The singers made a splash last fall with their EP Savage – The 1st Mini Album, which blasted into the Top 20 of the Billboard 200, one of the highest entries for a K-pop girl group’s debut. TIME named aespa to “The Next Generation Leaders, Class of 2022” and the foursome was named Apple Music Up Next Artist. Next up, the EP Girls – The 2nd Mini Album, which is due out on July 8. Girls features “Life’s Too Short,” the group’s first English-language single, which got its debut at Coachella 2022. “Life’s Too Short” is a “reminder to all our MYs to stay true to yourselves and spread love because life is too short for hate,” aespa explains in a statement. The girls spread the love Wednesday night (June 29) when they made their U.S....
What’s Your Favorite BLACKPINK Music Video? Vote!
BLACKPINK is the revolution! The K-pop girl group reached yet another historic milestone on Tuesday (June 28) by becoming the first act in the history of YouTube to reach 75 million followers. The latest high-water mark achieved by Rosé, Jennie, Jisoo and Lisa comes less than a year after they dethroned Justin Bieber as the most-followed musical artist on the streaming platform, and the girls have gained nearly 10 million more followers since then. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news BLACKPINK’s latest YouTube record has us here at Billboard all up in our feels over the quartet’s impressive videography. So while we take a trip through their always-fierce visuals, we want to know which BLACKPINK music video you love the absolute most. Back i...
How to Get Tickets to ITZY’s “CHECKMATE” World Tour
Ahead of their new mini-album, CHECKMATE, set to arrive on July 15th, ITZY have mapped out their very first world tour. Yeji, Lia, Ryujin, Chaeryeong, and Yuna will be making stops throughout South Korea and the US late this summer into early fall, and we’ve got the details below on how to secure tickets. With this being ITZY’s first world tour and the group’s first visit to America since the pandemic began, it’s expected to be a competitive ticketing on-sale. Get tickets here and find details below regarding on-sale times and more. What Is ITZY’s Tour? In support of their upcoming mini-album, CHECKMATE, the ladies of ITZY will be embarking on a world tour of the same name. Things kick off with two nights in Seoul, South Korea before the group arrives stateside, where they’ll make their wa...
j-hope Sets Release Date for New Solo Album Jack In The Box
j-hope is set to kick off “BTS Chapter 2” with the release of his new solo album, Jack In the Box, on July 15th. As a preview, the BTS member will release the album’s first single this Friday, July 1st. “Jack In The Box lends voice to j-hope’s aspirations to break the mold and grow further. The album represents j-hope’s own musical personality and vision as an artist,” promises a press release issued by BIGHIT Music on Saturday. Meanwhile, in an interview with Weverse Magazine earlier this month, j-hope said he hoped to explore a “different side of me” with the upcoming solo album. Advertisement Related Video “As you know, I often present myself with a sunny demeanor. So I have a strong desire to display a different side of me. I personally challenged myself to do that in my current projec...
TWICE’s Nayeon Is the Perfect ‘Pop!’ Star With Debut Solo Album: Listen
Since TWICE‘s 2015 arrival on the scene, Nayeon has been known as the face of the group, becoming one of the most recognizable members of the crossover K-pop act. Now, Nayeon takes her enormous appeal to the masses with the release of her first solo album. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Released globally on Friday (June 24), the EP cleverly titled Im Nayeon (her full name but also acts as the introduction “I’m Nayeon”) honors all parts of the charming singer-songwriter with a refreshing twist that spotlights her true superstar appeal. Nayeon’s debut solo single “Pop!” recalls the feel-good K-pop anthems that TWICE became famous for but now with punches of exuberant brass acting as an excellent match to the star’s sugary vocals. No expens...
BTS’ Jungkook and Charlie Puth Are Hopeless, Goofy Romantics in ‘Left and Right’ Video Preview
Get ready for the launch of the BTS break era. After teasing last week that he would drop his collaboration with BTS’ Jungkook if he got 500,000 pre-saves, Charlie Puth posted a pair of tantalizing previews of the duo’s bubbly pop tune “Left and Right” on Thursday morning (June 23). Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “Memories follow me left and right/ I can feel you over here/ I can feel you over here/ You take up eery corner of my mind,” Puth croons in his signature falsetto in the video sneak peek. In the short clip, the two men cycle through a series of outfits as they sing back-to-back and Jungkook tries to listen to a conversation on the other side of a wall using a glass and hangs on to a car hood for dear life as it speeds through town. Pu...
BTS Holds Atop Hot Trending Songs Chart With ‘Yet to Come,’ Bounds to Top 5 With ‘For Youth’
BTS‘ “Yet to Come” tallies a second week at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Hot Trending Songs chart (dated June 25), powered by Twitter, becoming the group’s second multi-week leader. The track leads with 8.1 million Twitter mentions in the June 10-16 tracking week (up 4%), according to Twitter. As previously reported, parent album Proof launches at No. 1 at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with the biggest week for an album by a group in 2022. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The song is BTS’ record-extending third No. 1 on Hot Trending Songs, which began last October, after “Butter” (20 weeks on top) and “Permission to Dance” (one). BTS also ranks at Nos. 2, 5 and 18 and the chart with “Run BTS,” “For Youth” (both from Proof) and “Butter,” respectivel...
BTS Break Sparks Debate on Continued Activism, Military Exemptions
The surprise announcement by BTS last week that they were taking a break to focus on members’ solo projects stunned their global fanbase, shaking their label’s stock price and leaving many questions about the K-pop supergroup’s future. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news HYBE, the company behind the band, denied the group was taking a hiatus — a word used in a translation of the group’s emotional dinnertime video announcement. In the days since, band members have remained active on social media, continuing the stream of posts, photos and assurances that the band wasn’t breaking up. Despite the immediate impacts — HYBE’s stock initially dropped more than 25% and has yet to fully recover — several factors may still affect BTS’ futur...
After BTS Announced Hiatus, Management Label HYBE Lost $1.7 Billion in Market Cap
Following BTS’ announcement of a “hiatus,” their management label HYBE Co. lost $1.7 billion in market cap, a massive dip that did not reverse even after the group clarified, “We are not disbanding.” The company’s stock price plunged a whopping 28%, The New York Times reports, reaching an all-time low of about $108 (139,000 won) per share. HYBE, which was founded as Big Hit Entertainment and which rebranded in 2021, made about $1 billion last year, with BTS alone accounting for a 58% increase in revenue over 2020. The news is seen as a bearish sign for South Korea’s economy, where BTS contribute about $3.5 billion annually. The Korea Culture and Tourism Institute had thought that the Bangtan Boys would generate even more income as pandemic restrictions loosened, n...
