For a Korean singer, Psy’s single “Gangnam Style” has gone viral and YouTube is flooded with his videos, especially in Korea. However, despite the invasion of videos of Psy, there is one video which takes a stand firm, attracting about 550,000 viewers, since it was uploaded on September 30. The video is about Greg Priester, an American citizen living in Korea, singing a Korean ballad song at the singing contest JeonGook NoRaeJaRang, which can be translated into the National Singing Contest.

The singing contest, which was first on air in 1908, is one of the well-known TV show in Korea, and it held special contest for expats to celebrate Korean Thanks Giving Day, Chuseok. Greg Priester was one of the contestants.

At the contest, Greg sang the ballad “For you” by Korean singer Lim Jae-bum with his exquisite voice, impressing lots of Korean people. He became the runner up in the contest.

After the show, his video has been spreading quickly among YouTube viewers and blog users, and many people have started to question, “who is this guy?”

Toonari Post recently had the opportunity to sit down for an interview with Greg Priester in Korea.

Toonari Post (TP): Tell us about your background; why do you want to be a singer?

Greg Priester (GP): My name is Greg Priester and I was born in Aiken, South Carolina, USA. I attended college in Indiana. After graduating I followed my dream and starting teaching high school English in Indiana. I realized from doing community service work in high school that I had a passion for teaching, then eventually ventured on another dream, teaching abroad. In the past few years here, I’ve discovered I have a similar love for singing. I enjoy the feeling, and I especially love sharing that with an audience.

TP: Your video from the singing contest is drawing public attention these days. How does it feel? What do you think about it?

GP: It’s quite shocking but it feels fantastic! I didn’t expect the video to be posted at all, but it was online the next day after airing on TV. There were hundreds of positive comments and thousands of views within the first day. After reading many of the comments, I found that many people I didn’t know were watching and really loved my voice. It is an amazing feeling to get that sort of feedback from around the world and especially from Korean viewers. It really gives me hope that I have a chance to be a popular singer if I continue to give it my best effort.

TP: As an American citizen, it would be easier for you to pursue your dream in the U.S. instead of Korea. What brought you here?

GP: Honestly, I came to South Korea to experience a new culture and teach in a new environment. I never planned to pursue singing. It definitely wasn’t my reason for coming to South Korea! My desire to sing started from a trip to a karaoke with friends. I was a bit reluctant to sing and sat quietly, but my friends pushed me to sing a song. Afterward, they were really shocked and loved my voice, so they pushed me to sing more. From that point, I was asked to sing at a friend’s wedding then many other local events and concerts. With each performance my confidence grew and made me feel a real love for singing!  But pursuing a singing career in Korea is not easy, especially with my limited speaking ability. I take it as part of the challenge to achieve my dream but overall I don’t care where or what I sing, I simply want to do it wholeheartedly!

TP: Tell us about your music experience or achievement so far.

GP: I’ve performed at more than 50 weddings in South Korea in the last two years. I sang on TBSeFM for the show, KPopular, which is hosted by “As One.”  Also I joined a few small singing competitions this year like: Global Super Idol, Siheung Migrants’ Singing Competition (1st place), Changwon Migrants’ Arirang (3rd place), and KBS national singing contest (2nd place).

TP: How is your life in Korea? What are the difficulties, and what things do you enjoy?

GP: My life in South Korea is quite simple. I stay very busy with teaching and singing. I guess my main difficulty is being so far away from my family and friends in the US.  There are sometimes cultural differences which are a bit difficult and also language barriers that come up on occasion but nothing life-threatening. I really enjoy Korean culture in most regards and absolutely love the food! Healthy and tasty is an unbeatable combination for me. I’ve actually lost over 20kg since coming to Korea.

TP: What do you think about K-Pop and Psy?

GP: I have a great appreciation for K-Pop because it’s SO energetic. Although my personal singing style is more focused on vocals, I really like the effort that Korean artists are putting into their artistry and all the elements of their performances. The passion is evident in each show and Korean audiences definitely seem to feed off of that! As for Psy, what can I say? He’s created the biggest song/dance craze of this generation. It’s amazing that people around the world can join in on the fun that this song brings! I think he’s taken a huge step for South Korea that will help other Korean artists crossover to foreign markets and also raise international interest about South Korea. Congratulations, Psy!  I’m jealous, and hope to one day have an international hit song like you!

TP: What is your future goal?

GP: My short-term goal is to continue building my song repertoire and perform at all the events and weddings I can handle without burning out. Another goal is to continue learning and practicing Korean as often as I can. The big short-term goal is to join a large singing audition program within the next year, whether it be in South Korea or America. The long-term goals are to become an internationally known singer, continue to push for better education around the world, and live a happy life. I want to be known as an effective, powerful vocalist but also a fun and approachable performer. It will always be my ultimate goal for the audience to have strong feelings during my singing but also to leave the show with a fulfilled feeling. Also I want my fans to know me as a person, not just as a CD seller.

TP: Please say something for people who love your music and voice.

GP: Thank you so much for your kindness and support. The reason I love singing is because of you! You’ve strengthened my joy and desire for singing by the love you’ve shown me. I can only ask that you all continue to be there for me during this journey and I’ll do my best to give you the greatest singing I can.

The article Interview with Greg Priester: American Singer Inspires Koreans appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

A gun battle broke out on September 21 between armed gangsters in Thailand because of the song “Gangnam Style.”

Gangnam Style is the popular song by Korean pop singer Psy. This song is currently being appreciated by many people worldwide with its catchy melody and funny dance.

According to the Bangkok Post, two gangster groups, which have been rivaling with one another for years, fired off their guns at least 50 times at each other in downtown Bangkok on Friday.

The newspaper reported that two gangsters hold a ‘Gangnam Style’ dance contest. However, as the contest got along and the participants got excited, gang members started provoking and mocking each other, causing a volatile situation that broke into gun battle.

It is reported that some cars were damaged, but no people were injured.

Thailand has the second largest number of viewers of the Gangnam Style music video in the world, followed by the U.S., according to YouTube.

In Thailand, not only the original version of Gangnam style is enjoying popularity but also the parody versions are winning attention.

As of September 22, a parody video made by Thai YouTube user ‘tigercrychannel’ has attracted over 7,000,000 viewers, and another parody video, ‘Gangnam Style Bie The Ska’ has gotten over 3,600,000 viewers.

Meanwhile, The music video of Gangnam style has surpassed two million views on YouTube so far. The video ranked 30th in the number of viewers ranking of YouTube. It took only 70 days for Psy’s music video to land this spot.

It is expected that the music video of Psy’s Gangnam Style would attract over 500 million viewers by upcoming November at this pace, according to Korea’s newspaper etnews.

The music video of Gangnam Style attracted one hundred million viewers on YouTube only within 52 days, while it took 56 days for Justin Biber’s “Baby,” and 114 days for Beyonce’s “Single Lady.”

If the video of Gangnam Style reaches the number of 300 million viewers, it will be ranked in top 20, and when it attracts 500 million viewers, it will place its name in top 5.

Justin Biber’s “Baby” is currently on the first place of this ranking with having 780 million viewers.

Psy has just started his move in the U.S, promoting himself by being on many American shows and performing in concerts, it is expected that he would garner more viewers on YouTube and drag more people’s attention.

Gangnam Style is on the 11th spot on the Billboard and the 1st spot on iTunes Charts as of September 22.

The article ‘Gangnam Style’ Dance Contest Leads to Gangland Style Shootout appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

South Korean girl band Kara has released their fifth mini album including its title track, Pandora. The band performed on the Korean music show, KBS Music Bank, on August 23, causing controversy among Korean people regarding their performance and gaudy outfits.

Being one of the most popular girl bands in both South Korea and Japan, Kara is often the center of attention on the Asian music scene. However, this time they are receiving a different type of attention, which may or may not be intentional.

Kara, which debuted in South Korea in 2007, consists of five members: Park Kyu-ri, Han Seung-yeon, Nicole, Koo Ha-ra, and Kang Ji-young. After winning huge popularity in Korea, they flew to Japan and released their first album in 2010. They quickly became popular, introducing Korean pop music to Japanese people. They were the first to do so as a girl band. Now, many popular K-Pop girl bands exist in Japan, such as Girl’s Generation, After School, or T-ara. But the success of Kara in Japan still bears a lot of meaning.

The recent controversy began when Kara released their music video “Pandora” to the public. In the video, all members wear swimsuit-like short jumpsuits under blazers. The nude-tone jumpsuit makes them look as if they were not wearing anything but brassieres under the blazer. The most controversial part of the music video happens when all members turn around, facing the back of the stage, and take off their blazers halfway, showing their almost naked backs.

Given Korea’s conservative and conformist social atmosphere, it was no surprise that Kara’s performance would cause controversy. Even before Kara’s comeback show was held at the KBS Music Bank, an official of the show said, “Since most viewers of the show are teenagers, the show might change Kara’s performance of outfits if it is thought to be too lascivious.”

However, Kara went ahead with the show, without changing their performance or outfits.

After the performance, many Korean social websites were heated by people’s mixed reactions. Some conservative viewers actively disagreed, saying “It just looked like a lingerie show. Was it necessary?” Meanwhile, others defended Kara, saying “What to wear and how to dance are all up to the artist. It is related to a freedom of expression. People should not blame them.”

The article K-Pop Singer Kara’s Outfit Receives Mixed Reactions appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Korean pop has become extremely popular in the last five years not only in Asia, but worldwide. Annually, Korean artists sell millions of copies of their albums; spectacular concerts reinforce popularity. However, the South Korean entertainment industry has its own dark secrets.

How prestigious is it, in fact, to be an idol in one of the fastest developing Asian counties?

Being a K-pop star is not what teenage fans think it is. And if you are one of those who is ready to throw yourself into the maelstrom of the Korean pop industry, arm yourself, first at all, with patience. Do not deceive yourself that the way up to fame is short and that the red carpet has something in common with the magic carpet of Aladdin. Korean artists have a hard time during their pre-debut, but the light in the tunnel doesn’t show up when they start their real career.

To become a famous star in South Korea you need long, exhausting and, in most of the cases, undeserving training. The so called trainees are young enthusiasts, blinded by the fictional idea of becoming celebrities, believing that life is much easier on stage.

Usually trainees are still students that don’t give up their education because of the training. Besides attending regular classes, they spend at least four hours a day learning music, choreography and even foreign languages like Japanese and English. However, a lot of youngsters prefer to drop out of school in order to devote all of their time and efforts to the dream of becoming K-pop idols. In this case they start a full-time training, which sometimes continues from morning until night.

This way of life lasts differently for everyone. Jo Kwon from the famous boy band Big Bang and Girls Generation’s Sooyoung trained for seven years before their debut. For others, like the female singer G.NA, the training program continued five years. Only a few cases last less than a year, like the Wonder Girls’ Yubin, whose pre-debut lasted only three months.

Entertainment companies invest in their future stars from half a billion to one billion Korean wons, or roughly $500,000 to $1,000,000 USD. Of course, companies quickly retrieve their money and start to earn it back from their just debuted idols.

In the first months after their official debut, new celebrities and their entertainment companies concentrate on increasing the popularity of the idols. They take part in variety of TV shows, give autographs, and do everything to win the hearts of the ordinary people. For all this they receive nothing but fame and love. The wages of the K-pop stars, especially at the beginning of their career, are minimal, but responsibilities and work triple.

In addition, the incessant control that the management companies exercise over the Korean pop artists takes away their freedom as performers. Both the personal life and career of the K-pop celebrities depend on the decisions their representatives make. Often, these decisions can be life changing.

In 2010, three of the five members of the Asia’s most popular boy band Dong Bang Shin Ki (DBSK) began a lawsuit against their management company, SM Entertainment, on the grounds that their 13-year-contract was too strict, giving them no freedom as entertainers and no possibilities for self-success.

“The members did not receive the right treatment even from SM. Without getting any contract fees, the initial contract was that if their album sells more than 500,000 copies, each member will get about 10 million wons during the next album release. If they sell less than 500,000 copies of album, they will get nothing,” a representative of the affected boys commented in an interview during the legal proceedings.

Ultimately, the other two members continued to support their management company. However, DBSK was officially disbanded.

In July 2012, the members of the famous girl band T-ara were also engaged in a scandal. When their management company, Core Contents Media, officially terminated the contract of one of the singers, Hwayong, some of the Korean fans speculated that that Hwayoung was tormented by the rest of the girls. However, their management company denied these hearsays.

“I would like to say that the rumors surrounding T-ara concerning bullying are not true…T-ara’s teamwork is what is most important and after listening to the opinions of 19 staff members who are having a hard time because of the members, we have decided to terminate Hwayoung’s contract,” Kim Kwangsoo, the CEO of Core Content s Media, declared in an interview.

“If there is a member who makes the image of the group bad or only is in the group for the fame, it is necessary to change out members of the group. In order to keep T-ara’s future bright, we must always take precautions,” he added.

Korean performers enjoy exceptional popularity in Asia and overseas. While in their home country fans prefer to download music for free, in Japan K-pop artists make huge profits from selling their albums. Bernie Cho, the head of DFSB Kollective, a Korean music distribution company, declared that “a lot of top idols make more money for a week in Japan than they do for a year in South Korea.” However, international concerts are the main source of money for the Korean artists and their management companies.

In 2011, $3.8 billion were added to the Korean treasury just from entertainment, which is around 14% more than in 2010. As the K-pop industry gathers speed, the price of fame should not be underestimated.

Imag Courtesy of  USAG-Humphreys

The article The Price of Fame in South Korea appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

This year, the high profile South Korean boy band, Big Bang, will make their very first world tour titled ‘ALIVE TOUR 2012′ through Live Nation, performing in 25 cities throughout 16 countries including Asia, North America, South America, and Europe.

Big Bang was formed by YG Entertainment and debuted in 2006. The group consists of five members: G -Dragon, Taeyang, T.O.P, Daesung, and Seungri. Unlike many other bands, they do not have an eye-catching appearance, but they do have enough talent to be famous and have changed audiences’ attitudes. Each member has impressed audiences with their talents, can sing and rap well, compose music, dance, and act.

Representing Asia-Pacific, Big Bang emerged to the bigger world audience as a nominee for Best Worldwide Act winner of 2011 MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) held in Belfast, Northern Ireland. There, apart from Queen, Big Bang was the only winner not from North America.

Live Nation has conducted world tours for Madonna and U2, and Big Bang is the first Asian group with whom they have teamed up. Live Nation is currently a promotional agent for K-pop singers in one to two regions in America and Europe.

Alan Ridgeway, Live Nation’s president, said that he is very happy to work with YG Entertainment and Big Bang to show their work to worldwide K-pop fans. He hoped this world tour would be a good starting point for the Korea branch they established last December, and they expect it to contribute to the K-pop fever expansion.

To prepare for the tour,  Laurieann Gibson, who is a well-known director, choreographer, actress, and creative director, will be taking the lead position as director for ‘Alive Tour 2012′. She is known for directing Lady Gaga’s ‘The Monster Ball Tour’, in addition to choreographing “Poker Face”, “Judas”, and “Telephone”. She has also worked with top stars like Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Beyonce, and Katy Perry.

Leroy Bennett will be the stage/lighting designer, and Ken Van Druten will be the sound director. Bennett has previously worked with Madonna, Paul McCartney, and the Eagles, while Druten has worked with Eminem, J-Jay, and Linkin Park.  The visual contents producing team, Possible Productions, will also prepare for Big Bang’s world tour.

YG Entertainment expressed in their press release, “We are in the process of preparing the world’s best concert with the best production team to equal the anticipation of the world fans who are waiting for the first concert they will get to meet Big Bang… With the newly released album and the starting of the world tour, you will be able to confirm Big Bang’s maturity and skill.”

Image Courtesy of    http://www.flickr.com/photos/koreanet/

The article Big Bang: ‘ALIVE TOUR 2012′ appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The Wonder Girls are a Korean girl group under JYP Entertainment. Each of the five original members were selected through auditions. Debuting in early 2007, they became popular in the fall of that year with the song “Tell Me.” They have scored three consecutive #1 hit singles: “Tell Me,” “So Hot,” and “Nobody.” In 2008, they won two “Artist of the Year” awards. The group embarked into the American market in 2009, with the English version of their hit single “Nobody.” They are co-managed in the US by JYP Entertainment and Jonas Group.

As a group, the Wonder Girls were initially introduced through a program called MTV Wonder Girls. The first four episodes outlined the characteristics and profiles of each member and showcased their schedules for the day. After those episodes, a fifth member was added and the Wonder Girls had their first showcase in the MTV Studio. They performed “Don’t Cha” by the Pussycat Dolls as well as some of their own songs, including “Irony” and “It’s not Love.”

The girls officially debuted in early 2007 on a Korean show “Show! Music Core” singing their song “Irony” a single from their debut mini-album, The Wonder Begins (February 2007). The mini-album sold over 11,000 copies and established a fan club. Unfortunately, 2007 was not the best year for these girls. All the members were beset by various injuries and health problems. One member, Sohee, was sidelined for a month after tearing a knee ligament in a fall from a running motorcycle during the filming of her movie. In late July, the parents of member Hyuna had withdrawn her from the group permanently due to health problems. She was later replaced in the fall of that year.

Although there were many unfortunate incidents, the girls released their first mini-album and their debut single “Tell Me” reached #1 on various Korean television and internet music charts. On May 22, 2008, the lead single of their CD single was released; “So Hot” topped online music charts. After a brief hiatus, the group returned in early fall of 2008 with a music video and song for their next single, “Nobody.” The song went to #1 on several Korean television music charts and remaining there for four consecutive weeks, as well as winning “Song of the Month” award for two months: September and October 2008. At the end-of-the-year awards show, Wonder Girls took home three awards, including the highly-desired “Song of the Year” award as well as “Best Video” for “Nobody” and “Best Female Group.”

The Wonder Girls got an amazing break in June 2009 when it was announced that they would be joining the Jonas Brothers for the North American leg of the Jonas Brothers World Tour 2009! The group would be one of the opening acts. JYP Entertainment announced that “Nobody” would be the first English single, followed by “Tell Me,” and that an English album would be forthcoming. However, in order to fully concentrate on their American debut, members Sohee and Sunmi had to drop out of high school. The group was originally contracted for thirteen shows, but eventually went for forty-five shows!

Almost one year after the Jonas Brothers Tour, the Wonder Girls headlined their own tour across the US and Canada: Wonder World Tour, which included fellow label-mates 2PM. The tour was to be a combination of the English and Korean versions of their title hits, covers of popular English songs, and their new songs from their upcoming album. Currently the girls can be seen in both Korea and New York recording their songs for their American album as well as attending different events in New York, including many fashion events.

Image Courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/bokamokacoka/

The article I Want “Nobody” but Wonder Girls! appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Dong Bang Shin Ki (DBSK), also known as TVXQ, was originally a five member group with Leader U-know Yunho, Hero Jaejoong, Mickey Yoochun, Xiah Junsu, and Max Changmin. Like label-mate Super Junior, DBSK began under SM Entertainment in 2003. Debuting on December 26, during a BoA and Backstreet Boys showcase, they performed their debut single “Hug” and an a cappella rendition of “O Holy Night” with BoA.

The group released their debut single “Hug” on January 14, 2004; it peaked at #4 on the monthly charts and sold about 170,000 copies, making it the fourteenth best-selling record of the year. Their second single, “The Way U Are” (July 2004), debuted at #2 on the charts, selling more than 200,000 copies, becoming the ninth best-selling-record of the year. DBSK released their debut album, Tri-Angle, in October 2004, selling more than 200,000 copies, making it the year’s eighth best-selling record.

In April 2005, DBSK debuted in Japan with their singles “Stay with me Tonight” and “Somebody to Love” before returning to Korea and releasing their second Korean album Rising Sun. Rising Sun became the fourth best-selling record of 2005 with over 200,000 copies sold.

With the success of their first two albums, the group had their first international tour Rising Sun 1st Asia Tour in 2006, making stops in China, Thailand, and Malaysia, making them the first Korean performers to hold a concert in Malaysia. From 2004 to 2010, the group released four Korean albums, one Korean compilation album, four Japanese albums and one Japanese compilation album. However, in 2009, the group began to have a falling out.

On July 31, 2009, three of the members: Jaejoong, Mickey, and Junsu, submitted an application to the Seoul Central District Court to determine the validity of their contract with SM Entertainment. The members stated a list of complaints including a thirteen-year contract being excessively long, schedules were held out without confirmation or permission from the members, and the group’s earnings were not fairly distributed amongst the members.

Early termination penalty of their contract would have cost them twice the profit that it was estimated the group would earn the rest of the contract period. The Seoul Central District Court ruled in favor of the three members; thus, after many months, DBSK split into two groups: JYJ (Jaejoong, Yoochun, and Junsu) and DBSK (Changmin and Yunho).

Under the new group, DBSK, Yunho and Changmin released their fifth Korean album (ninth overall), Keep Your Head Down, on January 5, 2011 as a special edition and on January 14 as a normal edition. Their repackaged version was released in mid-March with the addition of a new song “Before You Go.” The normal edition sold about 130,000 copies the first day, placing them #1 on the Oricon daily singles chart. With about 230,000 copies that first week, Keep Your Head Down topped the Oricon weekly chart. This was the ninth time, overall, the group had ranked #1 on this chart, setting a record for the highest amount of #1 by a foreign artist.

Regardless of the fact that this group had go through an unfortunate lawsuit splitting the group into two, DBSK has always created amazing songs and music videos. They have also made it into the Guinness Book of World Records twice. The first time was in 2008 for having the largest official fan club. Cassiopeia, the group’s official fan club claimed of having more than 800 thousand members and counting! The second time was on March 19, 2009, for “most photographed celebrity in the world.” These five members are estimated to have been photographed indefinite times in magazines, album jackets, commercials, etc, including individual photos.

How many times can you say that a single group has had both accomplishments amongst the many chart toppings and albums sold? Clearly, they hold the title of “Asia’s Star” for a reason, even until today.

Even though the group may have split into two, these boys are never short of funny moments. For example, when all five of the members try to speak in English, the end result is always laughing too hard that your abs hurt. One moment that always makes me laugh was when one of the members, Junsu, was playing badminton and he could not hit the birdie. When his members asked why not, Junsu replied “I can’t see it, OMG SUN!” (He was trying to explain that the sun was blinding him so he could not see the birdie). I could sit here and recite all the crazy times this group has gone through but we’d be here for a while. But, one thing is for sure: whether they are a five member band or two separate bands, these five members are always entertaining their fans.

The article Two-Time Guinness Book Winners: DBSK appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

What do the following boy bands have in common: Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, and New Kids on the Block? All of them have at least five members. These three will forever be remembered, even if boy bands rarely exist in American music. However, on the other side of the world, boy bands are high in demand in countries like South Korea. They are so popular that one boy band was nominated to be in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the boy band with the highest number of members: lucky 13! This group is no other than Super Junior!

In 2005, under SM Entertainment, Super Junior debuted with twelve members: Leader Leeteuk, Heechul, Han Geng, Yesung, Kangin, Shindong, Sungmin, Eunhyuk, Donghae, Siwon, Ryeowook, and Kibum. SM’s original plan was to create a rotating project called Super Junior 05 where the members would “graduate” and new members would be added. However, in May 2006 before the release of their second album, a thirteenth member, Kyuhyun, was added and the project was abandoned. The thirteen members became Super Junior.

On May 25, 2006, Super Junior released their single “U” online for free download. With over 400,000 downloads within five hours of release, the single had crashed the server. The single became one of Korea’s most popular songs of the year, yielding #1 spots for five consecutive weeks on two of Korea’s top music programs. By the end of the year, Super Junior had collected over seven awards, including “Best New Group of 2006.”

Under the main group, there are four sub groups: Super Junior K.R.Y., Super Junior-T, Super Junior-Happy, and Super Junior-M. The first sub group, debuting in late 2006, consists of three members: Kyuhyun, Ryeowook, and Yesung, and they mostly sing ballads. The members of Super Junior-T sing trot songs, while Super Junior-Happy’s music style involves the common style of contemporary dance music and bubblegum pop. Finally Super Junior-M (M stands for Mandarin) targets the Chinese music market, but not limited to only China. Only K.R.Y. and Super Junior-M are still active, as well as the parent group Super Junior. In fact, on February 28, 2011, Super Junior-M released their latest EP “Perfection.”

After their second album, “Don’t Don,” Super Junior released their third album “Sorry, Sorry” in 2009, with their title track of the same name. About 150,000 copies of “Sorry, Sorry” were pre-ordered, and 30,000 copies sold after release, making it the biggest opening day for the group. The album debuted #1 on Hot Tracks Gayo Best 5 by the third week.

This album was also the first Korean-language album to sell over 215,000 copies in 2009. The following year, the group released their fourth album, “Bonamana” on May 13, 2010 with 200,000 pre-ordered copies and over 36,000 copies sold on the first day of release. According to the South Korean album chart Gaon, a cumulative total of almost 300,000 copies of all versions were sold, awarding the album “Best Selling Album of 2010.” The group has also headlined three tours and has been affiliated with three tours with their company’s other artists. The group, along with a few other SM artists, just completed a two-day concert event in Paris on June 10 and 11 as part of the SMTown Live ’10 World Tour.

Presently, the group is down to ten members in the parent group and twelve members, including the two members from Super Junior M. This is due to one member, Kangin, serving his mandatory two years service in the military, Kibum who is pursuing his acting career, and Han Geng who left the company, under a lawsuit.

However, this has not stopped the members from continuing to produce new songs, especially with a fifth album soon to be released. The members are also radio show hosts, MCs on different shows and continue to be guest stars on variety shows. They are still an amusement to watch, each not afraid to show their comedic and silly sides.

The group recently finished their Super Show 3 tour across Asia. During the middle of each concert, one member would turn into “Lady Hee,” as a parody of Lady Gaga and would sing “Poker Face.” Right after Lady Hee would exit, three more members, dressed in one piece black leotards and girl wigs, would start singing and dancing to “Single Ladies” by Beyonce. At the end of this comedic feat, the trio would meet up with Lady Hee to sing and dance to “Crazy in Love” by Beyonce. This just proves that the boys are not afraid of dressing up as girls and creating laughter and amusement for their fans.

Most of all, they still have one of the largest fan-bases across the globe, and that is a feat! While it may be easy to read about this group, it is much more enjoyable to look them up and listen to their music. Just because a listener doesn’t understand Korean, doesn’t mean he or she can’t enjoy the different styles that this group conveys. So check them out, you won’t be disappointed.

Image Courtesy: http://sjfantasy.files.wordpress.com

The article Guinness Book Nominee: Super Junior appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

CNN.com is always a good news site to read about top stories in all categories. They are always up-to-date with journalists on-site and live videos. CNN tries to find stories from across the globe, so it is no surprise that they have a talk show, “Talk Asia” dedicated to all things Asia.

Broadcasted to nearly 280 million people around the world, CNN Talk Asia is a documentary-style interview-based half hour show that has spotlighted numerous large names; including Former President Bill Clinton, Lady Gaga, Jackie Chan, Roger Federer, as well as many Koreans, including Rain, Lee Byung Hyun, and Park Ji Sung. Epik High is the first Korean hip-hop group to be on the show.

On April 21, 2010, Korea’s very own hip-hop trio Epik High appeared on Talk Asia. Regarding this opportunity, member Tablo expressed, “I found it very cool that CNN had a keen interest in the depth and diversity of the Korean music scene—it is an honor for us to represent Korean hip-hop on such a huge worldwide stage.” The group conducted an interview with the show’s anchorwoman Anjali Rao, where they discussed their difficulties, success, and future ambitions. The half hour episode was very informative on the lives of the members of Epik High, as well as the music market, and answered some questions as to why the Korean music critics behave in the method they do. However, it is much easier to watch it yourself to receive the full message of the video.

Epik High, composed of Tablo, Mithra Jin, and DJ Tukutz, debuted in 2003 with the album Map of the Human Soul, and gained popularity with the success of their consequent albums High Society and Swan Songs. The trio has released eight albums, their recent Epilogue released in March 2010. They are a Korean indie hip-hop group, who are currently on a break while members Mithra Jin and DJ Tukutz are serving mandatory military service.

Epik High has been hit from every direction, from controversies to banning of their music, but none of that has stopped this group from creating music that has depth and truth behind it. Sure, most of their songs have been banned from Korean music market, but that just intensifies the urge to hear their music, and that is just what fans around the world have done. When Epilogue was released, it was ranked on the US iTunes Hip-hop Album Chart at #1, beating out performers such as Ludacris, Kayne West, Jay-Z, Beastie Boys, and Black Eyed Peas. Yet, there are many anti-fans who tried their hardest to bring down Epik High, especially member Tablo.

In 2010, anti-fans claimed that Tablo falsified his graduation from Stanford University. Even with the diploma, friends at Stanford, and professors stating that Tablo did indeed go to the university and graduate, the anti-fans still claimed he had lied. After months of accusations and numerous actions, on October 8, 2010, the Korean police justified Tablo’s educational background, which finally shut down the controversy.

However, in the midst of these accusations, Epik High found themselves in another. A community café named “We Require the Truth from Tablo (TaJinYo) claimed that the group had plagiarized almost forty songs, and had even gone to the lengths of making YouTube videos with the Epik High songs alongside the “originals”. After a few months of these accusations, the claim had finally died down and the group was free.

Aside from the accusations that the anti-fans have claimed, Epik High has also had their songs banned from several channels. Some songs from their fourth album were banned due to issues dealing with sexual crimes, war, education, and religion. They have also had music videos banned due to the theme being suicide or containing violent scenes of torture.

Yet, it falls down to the same concept: ban an artist or their songs/music videos and people are that much more3 interested in the artist. So the bans actually increased Epik High’s popularity as one of the few groups to risk their careers and sing about such issues, as well as create such music videos like “Breakdown.”

Image Courtesy of  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Epik-High/38911104963

The article Epik High, A Korean Hip-hop Trio appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Five guys with powerful voices, who can sing perfectly solo, but when put together in one band, make an explosion with every song. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Big Bang. They are not any theory or a television show, but a boy band from South Korea. While boy bands may have died here in the US, they are still lively in South Korea and Big Bang is far from the exception. The band is made up of leader G-Dragon, Taeyang, T.O.P., Daesung, and SeungRi. Making their first official debut on August 19, 2006, these boys are no strangers to the entertainment industry.

Two of the members, leader G-Dragon and lead vocalist Taeyang had signed with YG Entertainment since they were both twelve years old (thirteen years old Korean age), while a third member, T.O.P. was an underground rapper. Shortly after, the band released their first mini, mini album known as a single, on August 28, which reached #5 on the South Korea Monthly Chart. Exactly one month later, on September 28, the boys released another single, followed by a third in November of the same year. Big Bang finally released their first album, “Bigbang Vol. 1” on December 21, 2006, reaching #1 on the weekly charts and #10 on the monthly charts.

Since their debut in 2006, Big Bang has released four EPs, four concert albums, three singles, two studio albums, and one compilation album—and that is just the Korean discography. They have also debuted in Japan, releasing five singles, three studio albums, two EPs, and two compilation albums. Big Bang released their first live concert album “The First/Real Live Concert” in February 2007, which after the initial sell-out, the album continued to be in such a high demand that YG Entertainment were forced to repackage and resell the album by the end of 2007.

Riding on their success of their mini-album, the group received many awards, including “Best Male Group,” “Song of the Year” and “Artist of the Year.” In early 2008, the group ventured into Japan, releasing their first Japanese EP, which charted at #10 on the Oricon chart with little promotion. By 2009, and enough fans in Korea and overseas under their belts, the group decided to take a break and pursue solo activities. Leader G-Dragon, SeungRi, and Taeyang released one album each, while rapper T.O.P. and Daesung collaborated with other artists.

After two years on hiatus as a full group, Big Bang returned in 2011 with their Big Show concert along with their latest EP, “Tonight” on February 23, 2011. “Tonight” was the first album to reach the top 10 on US iTunes, and is the only non-English language album in the top 100. The album had a pre-sale order of over 10,000 copies. In a week, over 100,000 album copies were sold! The EP gained much popularity in countries all over the world, and was received quite positively. The group has also been the models for various commercial films (CFS) in Korea. From cell phones to cameras, beers, automobiles and even ice cream, Big Bang has endorsed a total of ten products from June 2010 to May 2011, ranking them second highest paid males in Korea, in terms of CFs.

From 2006 to present day, the members of Big Bang have been very busy. They have released a total of twenty-two albums and singles both in Korea and Japan. They have been in many CFs over the years, collaborated with many artists, and even traveled to Las Vegas to film their music video for their latest lead track “Tonight.” These boys have class, style, and skill, which will definitely take them as high as they possibly want.

Image Courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/deilaina/

The article Big Bang: The Korean Group, Not a Theory appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

In 1997, Park Jin-young (JYP) founded JYP Entertainment, primarily based in South Korea, but there is a US branch, JYP USA, which opened in June 2007. JYP is one of the three biggest management companies in South Korea, along with SM Entertainment and YG Entertainment. JYP is home to many Korean idols, including the originally seven-member 2PM. 2PM is one of the two subgroups that branched out from the eleven-member boy band One Day. Currently, they are a six member group, after an Internet controversy in 2009 forced the former leader to leave.

JYP created this band based not on a “pretty-boy,” but rather a “mature” image. He trained these boys to sing and dance, but to also perform acrobatic moves. On September 4, 2008, 2PM debuted with their song “10 Points Out of 10 Points.” One month later, they began promotion of their second single “Only You.” When their third single “Again & Again” released in April of 2009, they achieved No.1 for the first time. This song has break-dancing beats with an R&B feel. The music video did not let down many fans with simple and original choreography and acrobatics at the end.

On November 10, 2009, 2PM released their first studio length album, The First Album 1:59PM, symbolizing their leader’s absence after the Internet controversy in September 2009. This was also the last album that the leader would sing in. The very same day, their title track, “Heartbeat” was also released, and made an explosion on the charts reaching No.1. From that moment on, the boys of 2PM have produced many songs, including some for commercials. They have also debuted in Japan, Thailand, China, Malaysia, and the Philippines. They made their first overseas performance in Thailand in late February 2009 before releasing their “Thailand Special Edition Album” on June 25th. In 2010, 2PM was the supporting act for the Wonder Girls World Tour. They have also taken part in several endorsements ranging from modeling for a clothing company, EXR, to becoming representatives of foreign artists by the Thai government and many commercials. In fact, member Nichkhun is currently the Thailand Ambassador, urging outsiders to visit the country. Currently, 2PM is overseas promoting in Japan after releasing their latest single “Take it off.”

Image Courtesy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bokamokacoka/4599745190/sizes/z/in/photostream/

The article What Time is it? 2PM appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.