​Stray Kids achieves second highest album sales in US

SEOUL -- Boy band Stray Kids ranked second in album sales in the United States, with Taylor Swift topping the sales. The eight-member band has gained explosive popularity through "5-Star," an album released in June 2023, and Maxidient, an album rolled out in October 2022. Through 5-Star, the group topped Billboard's top 200 popular albums chart in June this year. The music video of S-Class, the album's title track featuring hip-hop elements, has gained more than 11

September 4, 2023

French K-pop dance group RISIN' to perform at 'Busan Day in Paris'

SEOUL -- French K-pop dance group RISIN' will participate in an event in Paris designed to support Busan's bid for the World Expo 2030. The dance crew, consisting of only French members, will showcase its talents in the capital city where the Bureau International des Expositions, an intergovernmental organization in charge of the World Expo, is located. The group with 60 members from France covers various dance performances of famous K-pop groups such as BTS, NewJeans, EXO, and

August 30, 2023

Hybe reveals final 20 contestants for global girl group audition 'The Debut: Dream Academy'

SEOUL -- The agency of BTS has revealed the final 20 contenders for "The Debut: Dream Academy," a global audition program to launch a new girl band with K-pop features. The 20 members were picked among about 120,000 applicants from all over the world. Starting on September 2, the twelve-week final audition process will be uploaded on YouTube and other social media platforms. Hybe has worked with Geffen Records, a major music label of Universal Music Group (UMG) since 2021 to

August 29, 2023

Busking festival to be held on Seoul's artificial island in late August

SEOUL -- Seoul City will hold a three-day busking festival on Nodeul Island, an artificial island known as a cultural space. A total of 50 artist teams will perform various music genres such as jazz, acoustic music, and traditional Korean music on the island on the Han River that flows through Seoul. Nodeul Island is under the Han River Bridge that connects the central district of Yongsan and the southern district of Dongjak. The artificial island has various cultural facilities su

August 24, 2023

14.3 mln copies of K-pop albums sold in July 2023: market data

SEOUL -- The global popularity of K-pop reached the highest-ever point in South Korea's cultural history in July 2027. According to Circle Chart, a state-operated songs and albums chart formerly known as Gaon Chart, a total of some 14.3 million copies of K-pop albums were sold in July, up 32.1 percent compared to the same period last year. Data released by Circle Chart on August 22 showed that 14,305,353 physical K-pop albums were sold globally in July, marking the highest-ever m

August 22, 2023

K-pop festival KCON attracts 140,000 global fans in Los Angeles

SEOUL -- CJ ENM, a leading creator and distributor of the Korean cultural wave, has attracted some 140,000 global fans through KCON, an annual Korean culture convention. A total of 21 performance teams including boy band Stray Kids and girl band IVE showcased their talents at the three-day event in Los Angeles. This year, the K-pop concert festival attracted about 50,000 more people than the previous festival held in 2022 with about 90,000 global audience. CJ ENM said this year's K

August 22, 2023

K-pop super rookie NewJeans performs at Japan's music festival 'Summer Sonic'

SEOUL -- K-pop girl band NewJeans has performed in front of some 30,000 fans at Summer Sonic, a major music event held in Japan. The five-member band, debuted in July 2022, showcased 11 songs including Attention and Hype Boy for about 40 minutes. NewJeans was invited to the operator of Summer Sonic 2023 only after about a year of its debut, the band's agency said. This year's summer music festival took place at "Zozo Marine Stadium," a baseball stadium in Chiba on A

August 21, 2023

BLACKPINK's 'Lovesick Girls' surpasses 700 mln views on YouTube

SEOUL -- The music video for BLACKPINK's dance song Lovesick Girls has garnered more than 700 million views on YouTube, about two years and 10 months after its release in October 2020. The title track of the group's first studio album incorporated electronic dance music and country-style guitar sound. It debuted at No. 59 on Billboard's weekly song chart which ranks top 100 popular songs. The music video exceeded 700 million views at 4:06 p.m. (GMT) on August 16, the

August 16, 2023

State regulator reviews NewJeans' performance amid iPhone advertising controversy

SEOUL -- South Korea's media regulation body is currently reviewing K-pop girl band NewJeans' performance regarding its indirect iPhone advertising controversy. The state regulator has received a complaint after group members performed their dance song "ETA" on a weekly live music ranking show where they took photos and videos using a new iPhone product on the stage. The five-member band was embroiled in controversy for showcasing their song at SBS's "Inkigay

August 10, 2023

Girl band aespa completes two-day concert in Tokyo

SEOUL -- K-pop girl band aespa has completed its concert at Tokyo Dome, an indoor stadium regarded as a "dream stage" among Japanese artists. About 94,000 audience attended the two-day event. The four-member band will continue its world tour in the United States and other countries in South America and Europe. "aespa sets the record for holding a concert at Tokyo Dome the fastest since debut among foreign artists," the band's agency said on Twitter after gro

August 8, 2023