BLACKPINK agency to seek new K-pop artists through audition in Japan

SEOUL -- Girl band BLACKPINK's agency YG Entertainment will collaborate with Japan's entertainment agency Avex to hold an audition in Japan. Regardless of nationality and gender, anyone born between 2003 and 2013 can apply for the audition, which seeks talented K-pop artists. YG Entertainment said the "YG x Avex Audition 2024" will take place in seven cities in Japan in April, starting in Sapporo on April 7. The other six cities include Nagoya, Fukuoka, Osaka, a

February 16, 2024

Lotte's TV home shopping channel adopts virtual fashion model targeting young consumers

SEOUL -- The home shopping channel of South Korea's conglomerate Lotte has selected virtual model Lucy as the host for a TV show designed to promote popular fashion brands for young consumers. The virtual human with about 171,000 Instagram followers interacts with viewers on Lotte Homeshopping's weekly TV show "Lucy Talk Live" to sell trendy fashion items, such as sweaters and zip-up hoodies. Lucy, created by synthesizing a face with an image of a real per

February 13, 2024

Boy band Enhypen to go on encore tour in US

SEOUL -- Boy band Enhypen will go on an encore tour in April and May in the United States. The seven-member band will interact with fans in five regions starting with Anaheim, California on April 24. This encore tour, titled "FATE PLUS," serves as an extension of the "FATE," a six-month world tour held in 13 cities including Los Angeles and Tokyo. According to Belift Lab, the band's agency, FATE PLUS will also take place in Oakland, Tacoma, Rosemont, and Be

February 8, 2024

Naver's streaming platform CHZZK to inject $3.7 mln to attract more content creators

SEOUL -- CHZZK, a video content streaming platform operated by South Korea's web service giant Naver, is preparing to open its purse to attract more content creators to its service. The new livestreaming platform's move is aimed at filling the gap created in South Korea's $4-million games livestreaming market, caused by the recent exit of Twitch, Amazon's video live-streaming service, from the domestic market. Game livestreaming services can be easily explained as

February 6, 2024

Le Sserafim's agency to seek new girl band through auditions in S. Korea

SEOUL -- BTS agency's record label Source Music will hold auditions to form a sister band of the label's multinational girl group, Le Sserafim. Regardless of nationality, females born after 2007 can apply for the audition, which seeks talented members in vocals, rap, dance, and other areas. The "2024 Source Music Audition" will take place in six cities in South Korea next month, starting in Seoul on March 2. The other five cities include the southern port city of

February 6, 2024

YouTube becomes S. Korea's favorite smartphone app for first time: market data

SEOUL -- YouTube, the video content-based social media platform operated by Google, became South Korea's favorite smartphone app, surpassing messenger app KakaoTalk, the former king of South Korea's smartphone app ecosystem, for the first time in December 2023, according to data released by mobile big data company IGA Works. KakaoTalk, with more than 45.5 million monthly active users (MAUs), has maintained its status as South Korea's favorite smartphone app since the e

February 5, 2024

Indonesian Embassy in Seoul to improve cultural ties with S. Korea through traditional music event

SEOUL -- The Indonesian embassy in Seoul is seeking to improve cultural ties with South Korea through music events. The embassy aims to host a special music event featuring a collaboration between Gamelan, traditional Indonesian ensemble music, and Korea's traditional musical instrument Gayageum. Gamelan is a traditional ensemble music or the instruments used in the ensemble. It is mainly played with percussion instruments such as metallophones and drums. Gamelan is deeply roote

February 1, 2024

NewJeans to participate in Seoul's biannual fashion event as honorary ambassador

SEOUL -- Girl Band NewJeans will participate in South Korea's major fashion event "Seoul Fashion Week" as a global ambassador. The five-member band will promote the biannual event, featuring 21 South Korean brands, at its fashion show. The fashion event, organized by Seoul City, is scheduled for five days starting on February 1. A total of 68 fashion brands will engage in a trade exhibition where they can interact with 101 overseas buyers from 23 countries including

January 30, 2024

BLACKPINK's 'Pink Venom' surpasses 800 mln views on YouTube

SEOUL -- The music video for BLACKPINK's dance song "Pink Venom" has garnered more than 800 million views on YouTube, 527 days after its release on August 19, 2022. The song with hip-hop and electronic dance music features entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart and topped the charts of major domestic online music streaming services in 2022. The music video had 801,064,451 views as of 5:39 p.m. (0839 GMT) on January 29. The number of music video views on YouTube surpass

January 29, 2024

NewJeans selected as 'Group of the Year' at 2024 Billboard Women in Music Awards

SEOUL -- Girl band NewJeans will receive Billboard's annual award given to influential women in the music industry. Along with American singer Maren Morris and Nigerian singer-songwriter Tems, the five-member band will be honored at YouTube Theater, a live theater in Los Angeles. NewJeans, which debuted in July 2022, has gained recognition for its exceptional dance performances and singing skills across different genres, including R&B and hip hop. The sister band of BTS ha

January 26, 2024