J.Y. Park announces comeback

J.Y.Park (a.k.a JYP) has announced that he will release an album after two years of rest.  In December 2009, he released a song called 'Sad Freedom,' went back to be a producer in his company, JYP Entertainment. He showed up in many other various shows such as the drama, "Dream High," as an actor and recently as a judge in an audition program "K-Pop Star."

JYP Entertainment has announced the exact date of J.Y Park's comeback is not set, but they are actively preparing for his new fresh album. They continued in that people should J.Y. Park in many different areas this year, as he's preparing to act in a movie, write a script for a movie called "5 Million Dollar Man." Recently, he also opened up a Korean restaurant in New York. 

JYP is known to be a talented producer who helped famous idol groups' debut such as 2PM, Wonder Girls, and 2AM. He composes all of these groups' songs, and they all proved how highly talented JYP is in terms of music. K-Pop fans are excited of how JYP will come up with another set of great songs. 

Hyunah launches her own fashion brand, "Spicycolor"

Hyunah, a member of the group "4minute," is launching her own fashion brand called "Spicycolor"  that is based on her personal style. She announced that she desires more people to understand her style and to follow it. As it's a brand that she's putting her name in, Hyunah will be involved in all photo shoots, designs, and in concept development.

4minute / Hyunah at the very right.

Hyunah was always famous for her own unique style, and her fashion in airports or in other public events have always been a hot issue. There were a lot of people actually trying to follow Hyunah's style, and this is part of the reason why Hyunah decided to launch a fashion brand. She announced that her brand will be based on a 'retro, chic, and sexy' concept, inspired from vintage looks that were popular during the 50's and the 60's. 

In a interview Hyunah stated, "I did show a lot of sexy concept recently, but my brand will not only cover sexy looks but concepts that are stylish and fashionable." Hyunah seems to be very passionate about her new line, and K-pop fans are anticipating for her work to get presented in public at the end of this month. 

Blue - Bigbang

Last week, Bigbang released a new album called "Alive." As this album is their very first this year, and it has been 2 years since their last album, K-pop fans were anticipating for their new songs excitedly. Just like how people expected, Bigbang's new songs are awesome and are unique compared to songs by other idol groups. All of the recent songs try to addict listeners by repeating their hook throughout the song (called "hook songs"); however, Bigbang broke this perception and produced music of their own style. Out of the seven songs they presented, I would want to recommend "Blue."

This song has beautiful lyrics. It's written about how people forget about their lovers as season changes. I love how G-Dragon and T.O.P's rap parts blend along with other members' harmonious vocals. Not only the lyrics, but the melody is not rhythmical, yet comforting to hear. It is a rather quiet and sad song that can emotionally touch any people: young or old, men or women. Recommended to listen to just before sleeping, or when suddenly you miss an old lover. :)

Daesung and G-Dragon from Bigbang ask for forgiveness

Left: G-Dragon / Right: Daesung

Last year, members from a famous idol group called Bigbang have gone through two huge incidents. One was Daesung getting involved in a car accident. Daesung was driving his own car at midnight when he saw a taxi that stopped in the middle of the road, so he stepped on the break as hard as he could but didn't see a person lying in front of the taxi and drove over him. The victim was taken to the hospital right away, but was dead about an hour later. The taxi driver stated that he found a bleeding person lying on the road, stopped the taxi and was observing whether the person was dead or not. Considering he was next to a motorcycle, police officers have assumed that the person got into an accident while riding the motorcycle, and they soon announced that the person was drunk while driving. The taxi driver have also stated Daesung's car was following the speed limit strongly, and it was a plain accident. Daesung was not found guilty, but he couldn't participate in public appearances for a while.

G-Dragon, on the other hand, got caught smoking marijuana. Big Bang's company has announced that G-Dragon was in a club located in Japan, and a fan of his came and offered him marijuana. G-Dragon, thinking that it was a cigarette, smoked it once and trashed it right after he realized it was a drug. The public, however, did not believe this statement and criticized G-Dragon for doing drugs.

Bigbang: Taeyang,G-Dragon,T.O.P,SeungRi,Daesung from the left

Big Bang, meanwhile, has announced they will introduce a new album in the upcoming month, and Big Bang fans are both excited and worried that the public might not welcome G-Dragon and Daesung. YG Entertainment has announced that G-Dragon and Daesung want to sincerely apologize for their mistakes and that they have asked for forgiveness on a TV show called "Healing Camp." This episode of "Healing Camp" will be broadcasted later this month.

3rd quarter independent book

Alice in Wonderland

Author: Lewis Carroll 

Genre: Fiction

SE7EN introduces new song, "When I Can't Sing"

SE7EN, singer from the YG entertainment, worked with JYP (a famous entertainment company producing idol groups such as Wonder Girls and 2PM) and announced a new song called "When I Can't Sing." This song has reached the top of all music charts in Korea the moment it was announced., "

Originally, "When I Can't Sing" was supposed to be sung by another singer, Ho Young Sohn from G.O.D. On March 2011,  Ho Young came out in a TV show and actually sang a part of this song, stating that it will be included in his upcoming album; however, when the album was released, the song had been omitted. The exact reason for Ho Young's decision is unknown, but it is certain that the song met the right owner at last. By announcing "When I Can't Sing," SE7EN was able to change his image from a boy to a more mature man.

"When I Can't Sing" became first place of the iTunes R&B chart. Seven's soft voice and the melody made by JYP make a great harmony, and the kpop fans are fascinated by how YG and JYP – usually known to be rivals – could blend so well together. I myself and a lot of Seven and JYP fans are looking forward for his further performance in upcoming TV shows and radios. 

Dream Concert

Last night, the annual 2011 Dream Concert was opened in the World Cup Stadium. The Dream Concert was formed to give teenagers hopes and dreams, and a time to forget all of their school works and stresses. Numerous idol groups came to perform.

The idol groups that performed last night were : 2PM, 5 dolls, FT Island, F(x), TaeWoo Kim, TVXQ, Rainbow, Beast, Shinee, Inkook Suh, Sistar, IU, After School, U-Kiss, ERU, Jewelry  Gina, Kara, K0Will, T0ara, 4minute, and Flower. 

Fans holding their fan-club-colors in their assigned seats in Dream Concert

Teenagers cheering

Each idol groups performed their hit songs, and the concert lasted for about 3 hours. During those three hours, the audience were able to forget the concerns they have and release stress. There weren't any major accidents, and the 2011 Dream Concert was a success. 

20,000 JYJ Concert Tickets get sold in 15 minutes

As JYJ announced they would have a world tour next month, the Busan concert tickets were sold starting from last night through www.interpark.com. 15 minutes after Interpark has launched the tickets to be sold, all 20,000 were perfectly cleared out.

Interpark added, "..even before the tickets were sold, there were numerous question asked from JYJ fans... this was only possible because it is JYJ."

JYJ
starting from left : JunSu, JaeJong, YooChun

The director of JYJ's world tour announced that he felt the JYJ fans' support by his skin, and that he is considering for additional concerts for the fans who couldn't buy their tickets.

Sunye from Wonder Girls visits Haiti

Recently, the G.A.P (Global Assistant Partners) revealed that Wonder Girls' leader SunYe had visited Haiti to help. The site also added, "... she had served children in the orphanage and showed the love of Christ during their stay."

SunYe had washed and prayed for the adults and children suffering from dehydration, and tried her best to support as best as she could. Although she is now a top star, and has a lot of schedules to take, she actually cared to visit Haiti secretly and support them. SunYe also was known for visiting elderlies who live alone in Korea to help them out. As SunYe is not doing all these volunteer works for attention nor money, K-Pop fans are clapping for her love and care.

2NE1 holds first live session of "Lonely"

2NE1, a girl group known for their amazing skills and performances, recently announced a new song called "Lonely." Instead of coming out in TV shows such as "Music Core," or "Music Bank," YG entertainment announced 2NE1 would hold private live sessions online. Their live session was a success with over 300,000 views.

2NE1 successfully demonstrated their perfect live skills in the broadcast, and fans are urging for another one. "Lonely" is a very calm love song with acoustic rhythm and slow but strong beats. I personally love the song, and I suggest listening to it late at night. 

Bora from SISTAR gets injured

Today, April 30th, Bora, from a girl group called SISTAR had to go to the hospital due to an injury in the middle of recording a program called "100 out of 100." In this show, members from various girl groups held a competition on 50m and 100m race.

As the 50m race started, Bora soon took the lead, and ran as quickly as she could towards the finishing line. However, soon as she passed the finishing line, she tripped over and fell down on her head. She was immediately sent to the hospital and was luckily did not get a terrible injury.

F(x) come back!

Last week, one of the girl-groups called F(x) came back with a brand new song called "Pinocchio." They had their first stage in Music Core and surprised the k-pop fans with their splendid performances and live skills.

Recently, f(x) had won the first place K-chart from Music Bank for the first time ever. This was their first time ever winning a trophy after their debut in 2009, and f(x) members were delighted. They cried and thanked people that supported their albums. 

Congratulations to f(x) ! 

SNSD TaeYeon gets kidnapped?

A famous idol group, SNSD (So Nyu Si Dae), had a little mini concert in Lotte World on April 17th, 2011. While SNSD was singing one of their hit songs called "Run Devil Run," a stranger popped on to the stage and grabbed Taeyeon's hand, attempting to kidnap her. TaeYeon was saved by Sunny, one of the members of SNSD, and the MC, Oh Jung Tae.

Sunny, from SNSD

Oh Jung Tae

The bodyguards soon captured the "kidnapper," but the audience was still shocked by the fact that over 100 bodyguards did not notice a stranger going on the stage. SNSD fans were furious that TaeYeon went through such happening, and that without Sunny and Oh Jung Tae, horrible things might have happened.

Currently, SNSD's entertainment company, SM entertainment, had announced TaeYeon is fine and that she's resting comfortably in her house. 

Stupid Liar - Bigbang

This week, Bigbang introduced a whole new album called "Bigbang 4th Album." After they made a great hit with their title song, Tonight, they produced another album called "Bigbang Special Edition." This whole new album included songs that the group, Bigbang, sang individually, and three new songs. One of them is called "Stupid Liar."

Stupid Liar is a rock style music composed with many electronic sounds. It's a genre that Bigbang never tried before, so it pulled a lot of people's attention. I personally love every part of this song, from beginning to end. It has pretty melodies, but also holds strong beats at the same time. I especially like the climax, which is very addictive. I highly encourage listening to this song when you are depressed or when you wanted to get pumped up. 

TV show, "We Got Married" decides EunJung as their next bride

K-Pop fans were recently upset that SeoHyun from SNSD and YongHwa from CNBlue had to "divorce" and get off the tv show, "We Got Married." In "We Got Married," two stars pretend they are married and the show draws how they live their lives as wives and husbands. As SeoHyun got off, it is decided that EunJung from T-ara will fill her spot.

Her husband is not yet decided, but K-Pop fans are excited to see EunJung as a married woman, instead of being a little young lady on stage. People are also anticipating to see EunJung, as it is her first show after "Dreamhigh" (a recent, Korean drama) ended. EunJung was complimented by perfectly acting the villain in the drama. 

Let's wish luck for EunJung! 

Lim Jung Hee gets inspired by the movie, "Inception"

Lim Jung Hee is a singer in Korea known for great vocal skills, and the sweet ballad songs she produces. She's originally from the JYP Entertainment, but recently has moved her company to BigHit Entertainment.

One of Jung Hee's new songs, "Can't Be Real," is a sad ballad about a woman trying to deny the break-up with her love. I personally found it very interesting that "Can't Be Real" was composed after the producer got inspired by the movie, "Inception." "Inception" illustrates stories about people entering others' dreams, and this directly connects to the lyrics of "Can't Be Real." I was attracted by the fact that there can be such connections between movies and ballad songs. 

To find out more about the movie, Inception, visit :http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1375666/

Can't Be Real - Lim Jung Hee

Korean Stars Donate to Japan for Support

As Japan went through a dreadful natural disaster last week and had met huge damages, popular celebrities from Korea such as, Kara, YongJoonBae, Hyun Joong Kim (SS501), Jee Woo Choi, and many others are donating a lot of money to Japan to help them recover faster. They all have been actively supporting the Japan, and some even volunteered to go help the reconstructions themselves.

Kara

The Japanese government and the fans of these stars had announced that they really appreciate the support the celebrities are giving. Also, Kara (image above) announced that they would donate all the profit they gained from their new mini album to the Japanese government. Kara also was generous enough to send letters they wrote themselves to their fans in Japan, and these fans were able to cheer up even after the huge disaster they had to go through. 

Korean stars' donations and support will continue, and I hope for Japan to recover quickly from its crisis due to the earthquake.

Dreaming - Kim Soo Hyun

Kim Soo Hyun is one of the actors that played a role in Dream High, a popular drama that ended recently. Kim Soo Hyun had not only surprised the viewers with his skillful acting, but also astonished the people with singing skills. One of the many songs he sang in the drama, I would recommend "Dreaming."

"Dreaming" holds hopeful lyrics of a person reaching out for his/her dream. Along with it, it has bright and colorful melody, that can really cheer a person up. I personally suggest to listen to this song when you failed something you wanted to accomplish, or just when things don't turn out the way you want. It'll really pump you up to try again, and to never give up.

"Even though I get hit and shaken by obstacles, I still take a step... for the dream I will meet one day." -Dreaming-

Dream High OST succeeds with the drama

A drama called, "Dream High" draws out stories of teenagers who are getting trained to be singers and dancers. "Dream High" was popular amongst teenagers, young kids, and even adults, showing interesting facts about the entertainment career that people usually don't know about. The last episode would be broadcasted today, February 28th, 2011.

As the drama itself is getting a lot of attention from various regions of Korea, its OST albums are also being listened to many people. The albums contain the songs that the main characters of "Dream High" sang, and that were used in the drama. People seemed to enjoy listening to the music and picturing the following drama scene at the same time. 

"Dream High OST" album does actually hold many songs that have beautiful melodies and lyrics, which are very pleasing to listen to! I do want to recommend all six OST albums, especially the song called "Dream High" in OST Part 1. It's a great song to listen to when you are depressed that can cheer you up. 

Thank You & You - Bigbang

As Bigbang recently came out with their new mini album, there were a lot of songs I wanted to suggest. I hesitated between the title song and the intro. song, but I decided to take the intro. this time. "Thank You & You" is a very short song that basically introduces what Bigbang's new album sounds like as a whole.

Within 1 minute and 40 seconds, this song amazingly attracts the listeners.It does not have a lot of lyrics at all, but instead, it contains addictive melody and beats, which is the most tasty part about this song.