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BTS’ Jungkook Drops Truth Bombs and Then Some on Live Broadcasts

Jungkook

BTS‘s Jungkook is breaking the mold in the age of carefully curated social media personas. Instead of traditional platforms, he has chosen Weverse live broadcasts as his home, where he can interact with fans in real-time, unfiltered and unedited.

His preference for live broadcasts reveals his desire to share his authentic self with his fans. He is open when discussing his experiences, both professional and personal. During a recent broadcast, he expressed joy and gratitude for his latest achievements, saying, “First of all, thank you so much for the first place on Billboard. I’m so, so happy.”

Moreover, his candidness extends to his decision-making process. After promoting in New York and London, he found himself contemplating his next move. He shared his thoughts during a broadcast, “I had promotions in New York and London, right? It was so much fun to do it after a long time. And then the music show came to mind. I was like, ‘What should I do about it?’ And then I won No. 1 on Billboard. I was so thankful, and I wanted to repay you with something. I wanted to do it [the music show] as soon as possible.”

Despite scheduling challenges, he managed to secure a spot on the music show, eager to give back to his fans.

Jungkook engages with fans meaningfully

Jungkook‘s live broadcasts are not just about sharing his thoughts and experiences. They’re also about engaging with ARMY in a meaningful way. Jungkook was moved to tears when he listened to a song they wrote and recorded for BTS, titled “Love Letters.” 

He praised the song, saying, “It’s touching. Why didn’t I know about this? ARMYs are good singers. The lyrics are pretty. Thank you.” He promised to memorize and sing the song for ARMY sometime.

During another broadcast, Jungkook acknowledged that he had been drinking. He said, “I’m drunk, so let’s discuss this. But even if I weren’t drunk, I would have said the same thing.” 

Despite his light-hearted demeanor, he took a serious tone when addressing certain concerns raised by fans. He passionately expressed his stance, asking everyone not to interfere with his decisions, “I guess people will watch this and say, ‘Jungkook is drinking while doing a live broadcast again.’ So what? Do you guys not drink? Don’t you say this or that after drinking? Just chatter away,” he said.

His fans, in turn, appreciate his honesty and independence. They promise to have his back as long as his actions don’t harm others. One fan encouraged him to live as he pleases. Another asserted that his drinking habits were inconsequential as long as he abstained from driving under the influence.

Jungkook‘s preference for live broadcasts reflects his desire to make genuine connections with his fans. His candidness and openness endeared him to ARMY and set a new standard for celebrity-fan interactions in the digital age. – K-Pop News Writer

Featured Image: One ARMY posts HD screenshots of his live broadcasts for other ARMYs to enjoy. Source: Twitter/boravoravie’s Twitter account.

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K-POP ARTISTS KPOP NEWS LATEST STORIES

Kyler Chua: South Korea’s Newest K-Pop Sensation

The K-pop industry is buzzing with excitement because of Kyler, a member of MLD Entertainment’s all-Filipino boy group HORI7ON. This rookie made a mark with his talent and resemblance to Korean celebrities like ASTRO‘s Cha Eunwoo and ENHYPEN‘s Heeseung.

Kyler, whose birth name is Kyler Chua, was born on July 6, 2002, making him 21. Despite his young age, he managed to capture the attention of K-pop fans worldwide.

Raised in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, Kyler was a trainee at Celebrity Studio PH before his rise to fame. He dreamed of joining showbiz, but that didn’t stop him from finishing his studies. Kyler took up Hotel and Restaurant Management in college, proving his dedication to his dreams and academics.

His passion for K-pop is evident in his admiration for various acts, particularly SM Entertainment‘s boy group EXO. He looks up to member Kai, renowned for his charisma and dance skills.

Kyler and his group

HORI7ON, the group Kyler is part of, debuted in South Korea recently with the full-length album Friend-SHIP. The album features 21 tracks, including the lead single, “SIX7EEN,” which symbolizes the members’ talents and youthful energy. The group was formed through the Filipino survival show Dream Maker, a collaboration between Filipino TV network ABS-CBN and MLD Entertainment.

The septet, which includes Kyler’s members Jerome, Kim, Marcus, Reyster, Vinci, and Winston, went through a rigorous “K-training” regimen for 100 days to prepare for their debut. This regimen, much stricter and tougher than anything they’d ever done in the Philippines, included dance, language, and even vocal lessons.

HORI7ON‘s debut has been a significant milestone, not just for the group but also for the Filipino community. As the first all-Filipino group to promote in South Korea, they represent a unique case in the global music scene. They plan to be active in South Korea and their homeland to reach a broader audience. So far, they’ve performed on music shows like Inkigayo and M Countdown.

Kyler‘s rise in the K-pop scene is a testament to his dedication, talent, and the growing influence of Filipino artists. As he continues to make waves in the industry, fans eagerly await what the future holds for this promising star. – K-Pop News Writer

Featured Image: Some can’t believe Kyler is Filipino because he looks like top Korean stars. Source: Twitter/HORI7ON’s shared Twitter account.

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K-POP ARTISTS KPOP ALBUMS KPOP NEWS LATEST STORIES

The Boyz Release Sizzling “Phantasy” Album Concept Photos

K-pop sensation The Boyz are preparing for a grand comeback. The group recently unveiled concept photos for their second full-length album, Phantasy. However, its release won’t be traditional at all. As per the group’s agency, IST Entertainment, the album will be rolled out as a trilogy, making this comeback even more exciting for the fans.

The new photos are enchanting and heart-fluttering. They show Eric, Hyunjae, Jacob, Ju Haknyeon, Juyeon, Kevin, New, Q, Sangyeon, Sunwoo, and Younghoon swimming in a lush, paradise-like setting. As if that wasn’t enough, a second set of photos followed about an hour later. This set featured the members on vacation, hanging out, and doing different activities with each other. Both sets, called “PRESENT,” hint at the theme of the trilogy’s first installment, Christmas in August.

The Boyz, known for their dynamic stage presence (which helped them win Mnet’s Road to Kingdom in 2020), took a massive risk with these concept photos. Luckily, it paid off, as they piqued the fans’ interest, leaving them eager for the album. Today, the group dropped a third set called “GLITTER.” It’s more modest than the first two but no less captivating.

What else are The Boyz up to?

Christmas in August will hit stores and streaming services on August 7, 2023. This comeback marks the group’s return to music after six months. Moreover, this record comes about three and a half years after The Boyz’s first full-length album, Reveal, making it a highly anticipated return.

While preparing for their comeback, The Boyz are also touring Asia. 

Despite their packed schedule, the group’s dedication to delivering new music to their fans remains unwavering. Fans worldwide are eager to see what the boys prepared for them. For now, all they can do is sit back, enjoy the sizzling concept photos, and speculate about what kind of album Phantasy will be. – K-Pop News Writer

Featured Image: A shirtless Juyeon was just too hot for some fans to handle. Source: Twitter/The Boyz’s official Twitter account.

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Heeseung of ENHYPEN Covers Zack Tabudlo’s “Give Me Your Forever”

In a delightful surprise for fans worldwide, Heeseung, a member of the fourth-generation K-pop group ENHYPEN, recently covered the song “Give Me Your Forever.” 

Before Heeseung covered it, BTS’ Jungkook played the same song during a recent live broadcast via Weverse. The K-pop superstar praised the original artist’s vocals and the song, cementing its global appeal.

“Give Me Your Forever” was written by Filipino singer-songwriter Zack Tabudlo, who expressed his awe and gratitude to Heeseung on Twitter. 

“Give Me Your Forever” is a heartfelt ballad about true love. As Tabudlo explained via Apple Music, it’s about “how you can show your forever to the person you love. Whether virtually or physically, it’s how you make them happy and feel your love with your own take [on life].” The song’s relatable lyrics undoubtedly contributed to its widespread popularity.

This popularity is evident in the song’s impressive streaming numbers. “Give Me Your Forever” has hit more than 100 million streams on Spotify, a milestone shared by Republic Records Philippines on social media. This achievement is the latest in Tabudlo‘s burgeoning career, which started when he was a contestant on the first season of The Voice Kids Philippines. His other hits include “Binibini,” “Pano,” “Yakap,” and “Habang Buhay.”

Heeseung captured the song’s emotional depth

Heeseung, born Lee Hee Seung, is a member of ENHYPEN, a boy group that debuted in November 2020. Known for his vocal prowess and stage presence, Heeseung has built a significant fanbase. His cover of “Give Me Your Forever” effortlessly captured the song’s emotional depth, showcasing his versatility as an artist.

Heeseung’s take on “Give Me Your Forever” is more than just a cover of a popular song. It signifies music’s power to transcend cultural and geographical boundaries. It serves as a reminder of how art can connect people. As both artists’ fans continue to celebrate this musical triumph, one thing is for sure: music knows no boundaries, and its power to unite is truly remarkable. – K-Pop News Writer

Featured Image: Heeseung will do a world tour with his members soon. Source: Twitter/ENHYPEN’s shared Twitter account.

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Starship Entertainment Sues Youtubers Who Spread False Rumors on Ive

Starship Entertainment has taken legal action against YouTubers who published false and malicious content targeting their artists, including K-pop girl group IVE. 

“We have been taking strong legal action regarding instances of malicious slander, circulation of false information, posts with personal attacks, and defamatory posts and comments,” the agency said in a statement on Tuesday, July 25.

The agency revealed that they first filed a legal complaint against these hateful content creators in October 2022.

Starship Entertainment said that those who were sued were sentenced to six months in prison, employment restrictions, and being listed on sex offender registries. 

 

They added that they’re also carrying out criminal and civil lawsuits overseas since November 2022 with the help of LIWU Law Group. 

Who is Starship Entertainment suing?

Starship Entertainment shared that between May and July 2023, the agency was able to obtain information about the admin of the “Sojang” channel through the help of the Google headquarters in the United States.  

In their statement, Starship Entertainment described Sojang as a well-known channel that “caused serious defamation of our artist IVE’s members by continuously spreading false information.” These malicious content, the label said, affected their operations. 

However, the agency continued that by the time Google informed the owner of the Sojang channel about the provision order, the channel claimed to have been hacked. Sojang also deleted numerous videos on their channel and issued an apology. 

Despite Sojang’s apology, Starship Entertainment stressed that they will “hold  civil and criminal liability for their past illegal acts.”

 

Aside from Sojang, the agency said that they’re also verifying information of the hosts of other cyber wrecker channels. 

“We plan to take all possible legal actions without leniency for the current and future cases of defamation or other additional damages caused to the artists,” Starship Entertainment promised. 

The agency added that they will also operate a monitoring system to protect the reputation, privacy, and rights of their artists. 

Starship Entertainment is home to K-pop groups such as MONSTA X, Cosmic Girls, CRAVITY, IVE, and soloists K.Will, Yoo Seung Woo, Jeong Se Woon. 

 

They also manages actors under King Kong by Starship, including Yoo Yeon Seok, Song Seung Heon, Lee Dong Wook, Kim Bum, Goo Ara, Ryu Hye Young, Shin Seung Ho, and more. 

Featured image: IVE’s Facebook

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K-DRAMA K-POP ARTISTS LATEST STORIES

Exo’s Suho Returns as an Actor in ‘Behind Your Touch’

Suho of K-pop group EXO will be making his acting comeback through the JTBC comedy-drama series Behind Your Touch. 

On Wednesday, July 27, JTBC shared still images of Suho’s character in the upcoming drama.

One photo showed him outside of a convenience store, while another featured him holding a cat. Another image also captured him staring into a distance. 

Behind Your Touch will follow Bong Ye Boon (portrayed by Han Ji Min), a veterinarian who has the supernatural ability to see the pasts of other people and animals. 

Han Ji Min will be joined by Lee Min Ki, who plays the ambitious detective Jang Yeol who plans to use Ye Boon’s special ability so he could be moved to the criminal investigation team in Seoul.

Suho will be portraying Kim Seon Woo, an outsider who moves to Ye Boon’s crime-free rural village Mujin. 

EXO also shared the character posters of Suho in the upcoming drama, teasing that the idol will act as the “mysterious part-timer Kim Seon Woo.” 

Suho on acting again

Behind Your Touch will serve as Suho’s first acting stint in almost five years, following the 2018 film Middle School Girl A and series Rich Man. 

As to what made him return to acting, Suho said that it’s because he’s a fan of director Kim Seok Yoon’s work and has always wanted to work with him. 

“The script was really fun to read, and I found the character of Sun Woo extremely appealing, so I thought to myself that I really wanted to try playing him no matter what,” he was quoted by Soompi. 

The idol-actor also teased fans they’ll enjoy how the drama mixes multiple genres such as thriller, comedy, and romance. “I think this drama will be an especially meaningful one for me, because I was able to work together with such wonderful people and create a great drama,” he said. 

Behind Your Touch will premiere on August 12. 

 

Meanwhile, aside from acting, Suho has also been busy with EXO’s activities. 

The group recently made their comeback with their seventh full-length album EXIST. 

EXO will also be airing the fourth season of their hit variety show Travel the World on a Ladder starting August 11.  

Featured image: JTBC Drama’s Instagram

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Bae Suzy’s Malicious Troll Gets Fined by Court

A man who posted libelous comments against idol-actress Bae Suzy in 2015 has been found guilty in a legal battle that lasted for almost eight years. 

According to reports from Korean entertainment outlets Soompi and The Korea Herald, the malicious commenter (hereafter referred to as “A”) was a man in his 40s. 

The Korea Herald reported that A left a comment about Suzy online on October 29, 2015 that read: “A bubble created by media manipulation, just a national hotel girl.”

Soompi added that A also left other defamatory statements about the idol-actress in the comment section of articles regarding Suzy from October to December 2015. 

Who is being sued?

A was then sued by Suzy’s camp and went on trial on the charges of insult, with the prosecution reportedly demanding a monetary penalty on the malicious commenter. 

A pleaded not guilty and requested for a former trial, to which he was sentenced to a fine of 1 million won. However, a higher court overturned the ruling in the first trial. 

According to The Korea Herald, the judge in the appeal ruled that comments about celebrities should be judged differently on whether they’re worthy of punishment as celebrities are public figures. With the reversal, the court lowered A’s sentence to a fine of 500 thousand won instead. 

Although A appealed again, the Supreme Court dismissed his appeal and upheld the verdict that the man is guilty of insulting Suzy.

“The expression ‘national hotel girl’ implies the opposite image of what Bae had established during her career, and it denounces her by sexually objectifying her,” the Supreme Court was quoted as saying. 

As of writing, Suzy’s camp has yet to address the ruling. 

Bae Suzy made her debut as a member of girl group Miss A under JYP Entertainment in July 2010. The “Bad Girl Good Girl” hitmakers officially disbanded in December 2017. 

Suzy also garnered worldwide popularity as an actress. She starred in series Start-Up, Vagabond, Uncontrollably Fond, Dream High, and Anna. 

Her upcoming works include the film Wonderland and series All Your Wishes Come True.

Featured image: MANAGEMENT SOOP’s Instagram

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Wow! Blackpink Becomes 1st Artist to Reach 90 Million Subscribers on YouTube

Are we even surprised, BLINKs? K-pop girl group BLACKPINK continues to set new records! 

YG Entertainment announced on Monday, July 17, that BLACKPINK has surpassed 90 million subscribers on their official YouTube channel at 5:36 am KST. 

The group is the first artist to reach this milestone and they achieved the feat within seven years and one month since the YouTube channel was launched in June 2016. 

In July 2020, BLACKPINK became the first non-English language artist to be part of the top five YouTube channels with the most subscribers.  

 

In September 2021, BLACKPINK reached 65.5 million subscribers and became the most subscribed artist on YouTube, surpassing pop stars Justin Bieber, Eminem, Ariana Grande, and Ed Sheeran. “We would like to dedicate this honor to all of our fans around the world who have loved and supported us throughout,” the group said then about the milestone. 

The four-piece act held the record since then. They reached 80 million YouTube subscribers in September 2022 and added another 10 million in less than a year – proving BLACKPINK’s consistent growth in popularity. 

BLACKPINK sets more achievements

Reaching 90 million subscribers on YouTube is the latest addition to BLACKPINK’s growing accolades.

In April, BLACKPINK also set another Guinness World Record for being the most viewed channel on YouTube. As of writing, the group has now surpassed more than a total of 32 billion views of all its videos on their official channel. 

Music videos of “Boombayah,” “Ddu-du Ddu-du,” and “This Love” have more than 1.5 billion views each. But aside from group music videos, BLACKPINK’s official YouTube channel also holds behind-the-scenes videos of the girls’ activities, as well as the solo releases of each member.

Aside from their group and solo music activities, members Jisoo and Jennie have also ventured into acting, with Jisoo working on Snowdrop and Jennie in the recently-concluded The Idol.

BLACKPINK, who made their debut in August 2016, is known for songs “As If It’s Your Last,” “How You Like That,” and “Shut Down.” The group is currently embarking on their “BORN PINK” concert tour. 

The group’s seven-year contract with YG Entertainment is set to expire by August 2023, with member Lisa being rumored to no longer renew with the agency. Stay tuned about BLACKPINK’s contract renewal news here!

Featured image from BLACKPINK’s Twitter

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Kim Sejeong to Make September Comeback

Mark your calendars because idol-actress Kim Sejeong will be releasing new music. 

The K-pop star’s agency Jellyfish Entertainment confirmed the news on Thursday, July 27. “Kim Sejeong will release a new album in September,” they said. 

Additional details, such as album name, number of tracks, and final release date, have yet to be announced. 

The upcoming September comeback will serve as Sejeong’s first music release in two years following her second mini album I’m, which was released in March 2021. 

 

Since then, Sejeong has mainly focused on her acting career – starring in the hit Netflix romantic-comedy series Business Proposal with Ahn Hyo Seop, Today’s Webtoon, and The Uncanny Counter 2.

Sejeong gained popularity through the first season of Produce 101 in 2016, where she finished as runner-up and became a part of the project group I.O.I. The group made their debut in May 2016 and disbanded in January 2017. 

 

 

While still a member of I.O.I, Sejeong also made her debut as a member of Gugudan, a group under Jellyfish Entertainment. Gugudan, however, disbanded in December 2020. 

She made her acting debut in School 2017, where she won a Best New Actress award. She also hosted variety shows Busted, Get It Beauty, and Wanna Hear Your Song, and even made her musical debut. 

Sejeong also released OST soundtracks for dramas Crash Landing On You and The Legend of the Blue Sea, and released her own digital singles.

Featured image: Kim Sejeong’s Twitter

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Look: Mamamoo’s Hwasa Releases Profile Photos for P Nation

In celebration of Hwasa’s recent signing with their agency, P NATION has released new official profile photos of the MAMAMOO member. 

Even in the black-and-white photos, Hwasa is still oozing with sultriness.

Aside from the new stunning set of photos, P NATION also released a video of Hwasa covering “Walk On By” by Dionne Warwick. 

 

It was in June when Hwasa left RBW, the agency who formed K-pop girl group MAMAMOO. She’s the second member to leave the agency, following Wheein who left in 2021. Only Moonbyul and Solar remain with RBW, but the group assured fans that they’ll continue activities as MAMAMOO. 

After her departure from RBW, Hwasa signed with P NATION, the agency established by Psy, in early July. 

Other artists under P NATION include Crush, Heize, Penomeco, Swings, and group The New Six (TNX). 

The release of Hwasa’s new profile photos also coincide while the singer is in the middle of controversy. A complaint was reportedly filed against the idol following her performance at Sungkyunkwan University. 

P NATION has briefly issued a statement to acknowledge that the police are reviewing the case, but other developments about the matter have yet to be disclosed. 

Outside of MAMAMOO, Hwasa made her debut as a solo artist in February 2019 with the song “Twit.” She released her solo debut EP Maria in June 20200 and single album Guilty Pleasure in November 2021. 

Featured image: P NATION’s Twitter

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