Korea Observer

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Korean boy band Super Junior will be coming back to the Philippines to hold their world tour in August. This has been confirmed by Happee Sy of Pulp Live Productions to  Bulletin Entertainment  via text message. Sy also announced on Twitter, May 22: "24 Days to CNBlue BlueMoon Tour Manila! Less than 100 days to SS5 Manila. Kpop friends, are you spazzing enough?" Photos by SM Entertainment

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin The former head of boy band Block B's agency and the girlfriend of singer Son Ho Young were found dead in two separate incidents of apparent suicide. Mr. Lee, the former CEO of Stardom Entertainment, who allegedly took off with 70 million won (P2.6 million) from the boy band's parents and disappeared, was found dead in his home.

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin T-ara N4, the new sub-unit of girl group T-ara, will be venturing into the US market through a collaboration with Chris Brown, Snoop Dogg and other rappers. The girl group, composed of Hyomin, Eunjung, Jiyeon and Areum, recently went to the US to meet with Brown. On May 20, T-ara N4 held a press conference in Seoul and talked about their plans.

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Japan maintained its position as the second largest music market in the world while South Korea kept its 11th place despite a decline in music sales in 2012. In the top 20 markets for Global Recorded Music Sales in 2012, the United States is still No. 1 with sales of $4.48 billion, a decline of 0.5 percent from 2011, according to the RIAJ Yearbook 2013 issued by the Recording Industry Association in Japan (RIAJ). Girls' Generation (top) and AKB48 (Photos by www.newsen.com)

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Besides rapper Psy, Super Junior's Siwon also attended the famous Met Gala in New York City together with other Korean stars. In an interview with Billboard.com before the gala, Siwon said he couldn't believe it that he was going to attend the event. Siwon with Chanel's Karl Lagerfeld and Korean actress Jung Ryeo Won (Photo courtesy of Jung Ryeo Won's Twitter)

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Cebu is still the favorite destination of Korean celebrities in the Philippines. Two K-pop stars went to Cebu in southern Philippines recently to shoot a special episode of a Korean TV show. Son Dambi, former After School leader Kahi and stylist Chae Han Suk were in Cebu to tape an episode of MBC's "Son Dambi's Beautiful Days" lifestyle TV show. Son Dambi and Kahi in Cebu (Photos courtesy of Kahi's blog and MBC)

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Legendary singer Seo Taiji is getting married for the second time to another actress. It was announced that 41-year-old Seo Taiji, a pioneer in popularizing K-pop in the 1990s, will be tying the knot with 25-year-old actress Lee Eun Sung, who is 16 years younger than him.

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Korean rapper Psy will be performing his latest single "Gentleman" at the finale of "American Idol," which will be aired in the US on May 16. The finale of the FOX show will decide who will be crowned as the new "American Idol" between finalists Candice Glover and Knee Harrison. Besides Psy, other performers at the finale are former "American Idol" judge Jennifer Lopez and current judges Keith Urban and Mariah Carey, according to the "Idol" blog mjsbigblog. Psy at Harvard (Photo courtesy of Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard News Office and Harvard Magazine)

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Korean pop singer Baek Ji Young is reportedly pregnant with her first baby, just a month after she announced that she would be getting married to her boyfriend. "I heard that Ms. Baek Ji Young is pregnant. She is being very careful because she's in the beginnings of her pregnancy," ENewsWorld quoted a source as saying.

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin Actor Ryu Seung Ryong and TV host Yoo Jae Suk were the big winners at the 49th Baeksang Arts Awards on May 9, taking home the "daesang," or grand prize, for their respective works in film and TV. Ryu Seung Ryong won the daesang in the film division for "Miracle in Cell No. 7," which became the fourth bestselling film of all time in Korea with 12.8 million tickets sold since its release last January.