New York Times: Social networking sites help popularize K-pop phenomenon

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - The power of social media, including Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, is propelling Korean Wave, or hallyu, to new heights and helping the spread of its popularity to North America and other regions.

Super Junior (www.newsen.com)

Complete winners of the Billboard Japan Music Awards

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines – Japanese girl group AKB48 swept the Billboard Japan Music Awards, bagging four awards including the Artist of the Year.

AKB48 (Billboard Japan)

T-ara (Billboard Japan)

Jeon Ji-hyun to Marry Childhood Sweetheart

Jeon Ji-hyun will marry the grandson of renowned hanbok designer Lee Young-hee at a hotel in Seoul on June 2, the actress' agency said on Friday.

Winners of the 9th Korean Music Awards

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines – Indie band Jang Kiha and the Faces swept the 9th Korean Music Awards, winning four awards including Album of the Year.

Held on Feb. 29, the Korean Music Awards recognized the musical talent of Korean singers rather than their popularity or album sales.

IU, 2NE1 and Infinite (Photos courtesy of www.newsen.com)

Big Bang releases "Alive" album, "Bad Boy" MV

K-pop boy band Big Bang released their fifth mini-album "Alive" last night and also the music video for the song "Bad Boy." 

Forbes Korea's Top 'Power Celebrity 40' ranking

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

Seoul Metropolitan Government picks 100 movie and drama locations

The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Film Commission have selected 100 places that are highly popular as movie and drama shooting locations, and published a book titled The Places in Seoul Cinema Fell in Love With. The book singles out and introduces 100 attractions that showcase the many faces of Seoul and presents rich images associated with them from among the numerous sites that feature frequently in Korean movies and dramas. 

[Korea.net]: K-Pop's official debut

2011 was an exciting year for K-Pop fans and the Korean music industry. In August, Billboard opened a new chart for K-Pop music, Billboard K-Pop Chart. Following the J-pop Chart, this is the second release of a country based music chart from Asia. And only a few months later, Google operated webcast provider YouTube launched its K-Pop Channel online. 

The news created a buzz among fans and industry experts alike as it was the first time that YouTube had created an exclusive channel for any one country. The main reason for the decision was based on the fact that there are over 5 million K-Pop related webcasts on YouTube, but only 600,000 of these can be found using the search word ‘K-Pop’. A separate K-Pop channel was in demand to facilitate the search for Korean music for K-Pop fans worldwide. 

Korea donates soccer balls to Azkals

The KOREA Council of Sports for All and the Korea Sports Promotion, together with the Korean Cultural Center in the Philippines, donated 100 soccer balls and 100 shirts last February 21 in the hopes of promoting Korea's major sports to the Filipinos. The formal turnover of donations was held at the Korean Cultural Center in Taguig. 

Photo courtesy of the Korean Cultural Center in the Philippines

Block B's new apology: 'We never meant to hurt anyone'

By JONATHAN  HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines – Boy band Block B issued another apology to Thailand for their actions during a TV interview that people interpreted as being insensitive to the recent flooding in the Southeast Asian country.

Block B became a victim of cyber-bullying