BTS' leader RM completes basic training at army boot camp as elite soldier

SEOUL -- BTS' leader RM has completed five weeks of basic training at South Korea's largest army boot camp. The 29-year-old started his mandatory military service with V, a 28-year-old member of the seven-member band on December 11, 2023. In South Korea, males aged 18 and above are obligated to fulfill their military service unless exempted for valid reasons. Those enlisted in the army serve for about 18 months. RM and V joined the boot camp in Nonsan some 154 kilometers (

January 16, 2024

Science fantasy film 'Alienoid: The Return to the Future' tops box-office on opening day

SEOUL -- Science fantasy action film "Alienoid: The Return to the Future," directed by Choi Dong-hoon, has topped South Korea's box-office on its opening day, getting ahead Walt Disney Animation Studio's animated musical film "Wish." The South Korean action film is the second part of the 2022 movie "Alienoid." In the "Alienoid Part 2," wizards from the Goryeo Dynasty, which ruled the Korean Peninsula from 901 to 1392, time-travel to

January 12, 2024

[CES2024] Singer G-Dragon explores high-tech products at CES 2024

LAS VEGAS -- Singer G-Dragon has visited the Consumer Electronics Show, the world's largest annual consumer electronics exhibition held in Las Vegas, on January 9. The 35-year-old former BIGBANG member explored various South Korean high-tech products including LG Electronic's next-generation mobility concept "Alpha-able" and "Ballie," an artificial intelligence-based home companion robot created by Samsung Electronics.

January 10, 2024

NewJeans wins grand prize at S. Korea's Golden Disc Awards

SEOUL -- Girl band NewJeans won the grand prize for the digital songs at South Korea's annual music awards. The five-member band lifted the top award trophy at the Golden Disc Awards with Ditto, the group's global hit song released in December 2022. The dance-pop song with a nostalgic vibe garnered more than 520 million streams on Spotify, the world's top music streaming service. NewJeans, which debuted in July 2022, was formed under the command of Min Hee-jin, a geni

January 8, 2024

BTS Jungkook's 'Golden' named on Billboard's top 200 popular albums chart for eight consecutive weeks

SEOUL -- "Golden," BTS member Jungkook's very first album, was named on Billboard's top 200 popular song chart for eight consecutive weeks. The album was released 39 days before the 26-year-old artist started his mandatory military service on December 12. Billboard's chart released on January 3 showed that Golden ranked 46th on the Billboard 200 chart. The album, containing 11 English songs, depicts the story of Jungkook's journey to becoming a global pop

January 4, 2024

Boy band NCT Dream takes grand prize at Seoul Music Awards

SEOUL -- Multinational K-pop boy band NCT Dream was awarded the grand prize at South Korea's annual music awards for this year. The seven-member band took the first place at the Seoul Music Awards two years in a row. NCT Dream is a subgroup of NCT, an 18-member project group formed by SM Entertainment in 2016. Billboard chose NCT Dream as one of the 21 most talented artists or groups under the age of 21 for the third time in 2021. The Billboard list is determined based on vari

January 3, 2024

Pinkfong's animation show 'Bebefinn Playtime' tops Netflix chart in eight countries

SEOUL -- "Bebefinn Playtime," an animation show created by South Korea’s educational entertainment company Pinkfong has garnered popularity mainly in English-speaking countries on Netflix. The animation content topped the over-the-top (OTT) service's daily chart featuring popular children's content in eight countries. Bebefinn Playtime was created in December 2023 as a follow-up to "Bebefinn," a three-dimensional animated series featuring the five

January 2, 2024

Historical film depicting 1979 military coup garners more than 12 mln viewers in less than 2 months

SEOUL -- "12:12 The Day," a historical film directed by Kim Sung-su, has garnered more than 12 million moviegoers in less than two months of release. Normally, any film that attracts more than 10 million people in South Korea with a population of about 5.2 million is considered a successful work. The military coup took place on December 12, 1979, after the assassination of President Park Chung-hee. Major General Chun Doo-hwan, who led the coup, took control of the govern

January 2, 2024

NewJeans performs on US broadcaster ABC's special New Year's Eve show

SEOUL -- NewJeans has become the first K-pop girl band to interact with American fans through an annual special New Year's Eve show hosted by American broadcaster ABC. The program titled "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest" broadcasts the countdown event at Times Square in New York and showcases promising artists of the year. The group's agency ADOR said on January 1 that NewJeans appeared on New Year's Rockin' Eve. The five-

January 2, 2024

Historical film about 1979 military coup d'état in Seoul exceeds $1 million in ticket sales in N. America

SEOUL -- "12.12: The Day," a historical film directed by Kim Sung-su, has surpassed $1 million in ticket sales in North America. The movie portrays the 1979 military coup d'état in Seoul which pushed South Korea into a new eight-year era of military dictatorship. The military coup took place on December 12, 1979, after the assassination of President Park Chung-hee. Major General Chun Doo-hwan, who led the coup, took control of the government and declared martial

December 28, 2023