Korea Observer

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin  MANILA, Philippines – Just days before they were to do a concert in Peru and Chile, members of boy band JYJ were swept into an issue involving the so-called “sasaeng,” stalker fans who follow Korean stars 24/7, harass them and invade their privacy. JYJ: victims of sasaeng fans (www.newsen.com)

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines – K-pop group Girls Generation topped Forbes Korea’s “Power Celebrity 40” ranking for the second straight year. The list is based on the celebrities’ income, influence and reputation. Photos courtesy of www.newsen.com

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino fans belonging to   Cassiopeia   Philippines will celebrate the career and music of boy bands TVXQ/JYJ with the holding of their ninth gathering dubbed as “9G: The Red Room Exhibit.” The event will be held on Feb. 25, from 12 noon to 10PM, at the Top Shelf of Fully Booked at Bonifacio High Street in Taguig City. Cassiopeia Philippines, which was named as the 2011 Fanclub of the Year at the 3rd Philippine K-pop Awards last Dec. 30, has been in existence since 2006 to support and promote TVXQ and JYJ. The “9G: The Red Room Exhibit” will be held on Feb. 25. (Photos courtesy of Cassiopeia Philippines’ Facebook page)

By JONATHAN M. HICAP, Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines – Korean stars have not only helped in boosting the popularity of Korean music and dramas but have driven up the sales of Korean cosmetics. SHINee for Etude House, Kim Hyun Joong for The Face Shop and Song Joong Ki for Tony Moly (Photos by Jonathan Hicap)

By JONATHAN M. HICAP, MANILA BULLETIN MANILA, Philippines – Korean dramas “Sungkyunkwan Scandal” and “The Greatest Love,” which aired in 2010 and 2011 respectively made it as finalists in the mini-series category of the 2012 New York Festivals International Television and Film Awards.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin  MANILA, Philippines — Boy bands JYJ and TVXQ, whose members used to be in one group, have achieved No. 1 feats with their albums in Korea and Japan, respectively.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines – Korean TV station KBS has admitted to canceling the scheduled TV appearance of boy band JYJ to promote Jeju Island because of the latter’s ongoing lawsuit against SM Entertainment.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin  MANILA, Philippines – K-pop trio JYJ, composed of Xiah Junsu, Kim Jaejoong and Micky Yoochun, will file a complaint against Korean TV station KBS for canceling the group’s scheduled TV appearance aimed at promoting Jeju Island to be one of the New 7 Wonders of the World.

By JONATHAN M. HICAP Manila Bulletin MANILA, Philippines – JYJ’s Micky Yoochun has been chosen as the best idol actor while boy band TVXQ was picked as having the most impressive performance by fellow Korean singers in a survey held recently.

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.

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.

Korean singers JYJ (Junsu, Micky Yoochun and Jaejoong), Jay Park and Heechul are finalists. Congratulations! From www.theshortyawards.com We are delighted to announce the Shorty Awards finalists in the main categories after receiving over 750,000 tweeted nominations. The  Real-Time Academy of Short Form Arts & Sciences will determine the winners from among these finalists. The announcement will be made at the Shorty Awards Ceremony on Monday, March 28th, 2011 at The TimesCenter in New York City.  Tickets are on sale now. Are you a finalist?  Register here to let us know if you can attend the ceremony. Heechul, Jay Park and JYJ are finalists in the 3rd Annual Shorty Awards

Thai fans, get ready for JYJ. Thai company 411 Entertainment has announced that popular K-pop trio JYJ, composed of Xiah Junsu, Micky Yoochun and Youngwoong Jaejoong, will be holding a two-day concert in Bangkok, Thailand in April.