Korea Observer

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines - Two more Korean celebrities have been convicted for separate offenses by Korean courts. Rapper Kim Jung Min of Seoul Connection was sentenced by the Seoul Central District Court to two years probation after he was found guilty of using marijuana. (Clockwise from top left) Kim Jung Min, Kim Yong Joon, Jeong Jin-su, Lee Sung-jin, Jeon Chang-geol and Yeo Wook Hwan. (Photos courtesy of Newsen.com, Naver and edaily.co.kr)

Singer Kim Hyun Joong appeared on the episode of KBS 2TV’s “Happy Together” that aired on June 23, and talked about his individual ideal type of woman.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin  MANILA, Philippines - Girl group 2NE1 is creating a buzz in the K-pop music scene not only with their latest   single “I Am the Best” but also with their new fashion style.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin  MANILA, Philippines – Following the declaration of the Seoul Yeong Deung Po Police last June 24 that tagged Big Bang member Daesung as the suspect in the death of a motorcyclist that her ran over with his car last May 31, thousands of fans are asking what will happen to the K-pop idol.

Lawyer: Daesung may receive minor, lesser conviction in motorcyclist's death | The Manila Bulletin Newspaper Online

Korea’s first pop concert hall opened in Seoul on June 22. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation cooperated for the establishment of the concert hall by renovating Olympic Hall, located inside Olympic Park. With newly upgraded facilities, the main concert hall can accommodate up to 3,000 people and the adjacent small concert hall can accommodate up to 240 people.

Richard Gere shared personal photographs which he says attest to the cruelty inflicted by the Chinese on Tibetans in Seoul Wednesday. An avid Buddhist and supporter of the Dalai Lama, the Hollywood actor took the initiative to make strong political statements regarding human rights in Tibet. From Korea.net

Fresh off the MuchMusic Awards, which she  opened  and  closed  in Canada last Sunday,  Lady Gaga  kicked off the MTV Video Music Aid Japan benefit show as part of a two-hour event that was expressly devised to benefit the Japanese Red Cross. The event was broadcast live from Makuhari Messe and aired to more than 30 million households on MTV Japan, MTV Korea, MTV SEA and MTV China.

In the “Entertainment Era” corner on the episode of “Live Info Show” that aired on June 15, the cameramen paid a visit to the place where singer Lee Joon’s commercial for underwear was being filmed.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP, Manila Bulletin  MANILA, Philippines - Big Bang member Daesung has been found by the Korean police to have caused the death of a motorcyclist during a traffic accident last May 31. The Seoul Yeong Deung Po police held at briefing Friday morning and announced the results of its investigation and autopsy by the National Forensic Service.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP, Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines - Oricon chart has released the list of the Top 50 artists in the Japanese music market for the first half of 2011, based on singles, albums and DVD sales. While the rankings are dominated by Japanese singers, six K-pop singers made it to the list, namely TVXQ, Big Bang, KARA, CNBlue, Girls Generation and Jang Geun Suk.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines - Korean stars are threatening to stop appearing in dramas and films due to unpaid talent fees amounting to 2.2 billion won (about P88.78 million) that production companies owe them.

KBS’s new Monday and Tuesday drama “Beautiful Spy" (directed by Hwang In Hyuk, written by Kim Eun Young and Kim Jeong Ah), which will begin airing on July 11, disclosed stills taken on the overseas location in Singapore. 

By JONATHAN M. HICAP MANILA, Philippines - K-pop groups KARA, Big Bang and Girls Generation continued their rise in the Japanese music market. The Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) released its latest certifications for May on mobile phone and PC downloads showing KARA achieving two feats.   

By JONATHAN M. HICAP  Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines - K-pop boy band SHINee’s lead vocalist Jonghyun and actress Shin Se Kyung have ended their eight-month relationship because of their demanding schedule. Shin’s agency was quoted as saying that the Jonghyun and Se Kyung’s busy schedule prevented them from seeing each other regularly that led to their breakup although they decided to remain friends, according to Korean media.

MESSAGE FROM SHINee:  We are SHINee :) We will finally debut in Japan on June 22nd and will get to meet more fans in Japan! What a good news! right?

The magazine contains various episodes and information about Kong Yoo (or Gong Yoo) such as his movies, TV commercials, stories happening during his poster shoots, travels, favorite music, books, hobbies, and his friends. A person from the publishing company of “Monster” said, “As the magazine contains various well-written content, the number of readers has been increasing thanks to word-of-mouth among Japanese fans. As readers are very much satisfied with the magazine, it is expected to have increased sales in the future.”

By JONATHAN M. HICAP K-pop boy band BEAST concluded the promotions of their first studio album “Fiction and Fact” on a high note, topping music charts and sweeping awards on Korean TV music shows. The album was released online on May 17 and on the same week, the group began performing the title track “Fiction” on TV shows Mnet “M! Countdown”, KBS “Music Bank”, MBC “Music Core” and SBS “Inkigayo”.

JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin  MANILA, Philippines -- A decade ago, Korean dramas were the main driver of hallyu, or the Korean wave, with such hits “Winter Sonata,” “Jewel in the Palace,” “My Name is Kim Sam Soon” and “Coffee Prince." But with the explosion of the internet and social networking sites such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter in the past few years, Korean pop music, or K-pop, has overtaken Korean dramas to become the  top purveyor of the Korean wave worldwide.

JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines – The 22-year-old male contestant on reality TV show “Korea’s Got Talent,” who was laughed at by the audience for being a manual laborer, has been hailed by world media as the next Susan Boyle with his audition video on YouTube getting 6.2 million views.

Good news for Filipinos who want to learn Korean culture. The Korean Cultural Center (KCC) in the Philippines is offering KCC Culture Classes. Registration will be until July 5 and classes will start on July 9. 

Known for having such massive following from the K-Pop community, boasting-off back-to-back hit singles and top-selling albums, MCA Music’s Girls Generation will unleash two of its highly sought-after albums: “Hoot” mini album and “Mr. Taxi-Run Devil Run” single album during the much-awaited grand launch event titled “GG Revolution!” 

June 10, 2011 Popular French Newspaper ‘Le Monde’ and ‘Le Figaro’ Reports on SMTOWN Concert in Paris! SMTOWN LIVE WORLD TOUR in PARIS which is the first single brand concert in Europe by Korean entertainment company has been attracting an intense attention from local medias in France.  

By JONATHAN M. HICAP  Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines - Three Korean stars were convicted by courts in South Korea, Thursday, of marijuana charges, gambling and fraud. Korean-American rapper Crown J (real name Kei Hoon Kim) was sentenced by the Seoul Central District Court to eight months in prison and two years probation. He was also fined and ordered to do 80 hours of community service.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP  Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines – It’s very rare for K-pop stars to admit that their looks were enhanced by plastic surgery. But hallyu star Kim Hyun Joong, leader of SS501, surprised his fans and viewers when he announced on a Korean talk show program that he underwent nose surgery or rhinoplasty.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP  MANILA, Philippines -- Jo Seung Woo and Cha Ji Yeon bagged the best actor and best actress trophies in the 5th Annual Musical Awards held last night at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP  MANILA, Philippines – K-pop trio JYJ, composed of Xiah Junsu, Micky Yoochun and Kim Jaejoong, will push through with their concert Tuesday in Japan despite legal threats over contract with their Japanese agency Avex Entertainment.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP  MANILA, Philippines - Hours before they brought the house down during their concert at the Araneta Coliseum on June 4, 2NE1 members Sandara Park, Park Bom, CL and Minzy met with the press at the Hotel InterContinental Manila and talked about their career, their Filipino fans, food and even their favorite Korean idols.