KEYEAST, JYP, CJ Media team up for drama "Dream High"

Hallyu star Bae Yong-joon and JYP CEO Park Jin-young [KEYEAST and JYP Entertainment]

 

Major entertainment companies KEYEAST, JYP Entertainment and CJ Media have come together to create a new TV series titled "Dream High," according to a press release by KEYEAST on Wednesday.

KEYEAST and JYP jointly established a drama production company under the name Holym which last week signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with major cable unit CJ Media in producing the series.

Hallyu star Bae Yong-joon, a major shareholder of KEYEAST, and famed producer Park Jin-young, also the founder and CEO of JYP, are set to take part in directing series as well as making guest appearances.

Bae is also expected to engage in the planning and producing of the show while Park is slated to arrange the music and choreography. CJ has been set to invest and participate in the drama as a co-producer.

Holym is currently searching for up and coming actors, singers and entertainers for the cast of the show which is aiming at broadcasting during the latter half of this year.

"Dream High" is about students attending a school of performing arts where the story will be relayed through song and dance.

KEYEAST engages itself in various facets of the entertainment industry including managing celebrities, exporting Korean cultural content and producing and investing in films.

JYP focuses on different aspects of the entertainment business including music production, new artist recruitment, training and management.

Reporter : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr

Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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Former 2PM member Jae-beom to star in "Hype Nation"

Former 2PM member Jae-beom [Asia Economic Daily]

 

Boy band 2PM's former leader Park Jae-beom has signed on for movie "Hype Nation," according to an official with the film on Wednesday.

The official explained that Park signed a contract with the movie's producer Young Lee, agreeing to appear in "Nation" as well as participating in the soundtrack for the movie which is set for filming starting June.

Park is expected to fly into Korea for the film since 70 percent of the movie will be shot in Korea.

"Nation," about a dance contest between an American dance crew and South Korean dancers, is targeted at a global market with the lines to be relayed in English.

The role for the female lead has yet to be set but Lee is said to be in talks with a member from a Korean girl group.

Lee had originally cast Korean female singer Son Dambi for the lead role but Son reportedly pulled out of the project after production of the film got delayed.

Park quit his band last September after comments he made on his MySpace account before his debut surfaced and stirred nationwide controversy.

He was expected to rejoin the group earlier this year but officially parted with JYPE for good in February over "a huge personal wrongdoing."

Last month, he was seen participating in a b-boy dance contest in Vancouver, Canada with his dance crew Art of Movement.

Reporter : Ko Kyoung-seok kave@asiae.co.kr

Editor : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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2PM unveils teaser image on official website

Members of idol group 2PM for their new single [JYP Entertainment]

Korean idol group 2PM has released a teaser image of themselves ahead of returning to the local music scene later this month, according to their agency JYP Entertainment on Wednesday.


A photograph of the six members went public on the music section of portal site Naver as well as their official website earlier today. A date under the image indicated the boys would be making a comeback on April 19.


2PM made their debut into the music industry with seven members in 2008 with their first single "Hottest Time Of The Day."


Leader Park Jae-beom quit the band last September, however, after comments he made on his MySpace account before his debut surfaced and stirred nationwide controversy.


He was expected to rejoin the group earlier this year but officially parted with JYPE for good in February over "a huge personal wrongdoing."


The group continued its activities with its remaining six members, making a successful return in November with their first full-length record "1:59PM" containing title track "Heartbreak" which topped various music charts.


Reporter : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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Idol band A.N.JELL opens official website

Members of A.N.JELL from the hit SBS series "Minamishineyo" [SBS]

An official website for idol band A.N.JELL from hit SBS series "Minamishineyo" has been launched.


The webpage, which can be viewed in four different languages including Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese, features the profile of the four members of the band, a news board and a message board, as well as photographs and videos of A.N.JELL.


A.N.JELL is the fictional band from the show composed of Hwang Tae-kyung played by Jang Keun-suk, Go Minam by Park Shin-hye, Kang Shin-woo by Jung Yong-hwa and Jeremy by Lee Hong-ki.


"Minamishineyo" aired in Korea during the latter half of 2009, maintaining viewership ratings in the 10 percent range despite competing against KBS blockbuster drama "IRIS" starring top actors Lee Byung-hun and Kim Tae-hee.


The show was a success overseas as well, soon selling its publication rights to several broadcaster's throughout Asia including CCTV (China), BBTV (Thailand), GMA (Philippines) and MATV (Singapore).


The series was also sold to Japan's KNTV last month and began its run in the prime time slot on March 27.


Reporter : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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Jay Park Jae Bum is coming back to Korea as his 'Hype Nation' casting was confirmed

2PM's former member Park Jaebum has confirmed his casting for the movie 'Hype Nation' and will be returning to Korea in June.


On the 14th, an associate of 'Hype Nation' stated that Park Jaebum has recently signed his contract for the movie and is currently preparing for the crank in starting in June. 70% of the movie will be filmed in Korea and it seems as if Jaebum will be returning as an actor.


Park Jaebum has contracted with American movie producer Young Lee and will be making an official comeback to the celebrity world. 'Hype Nation' is set to be an internationally released movie spoken in English and the producer has stated that Jaebum is perfect for the role. Park Jaebum has even participated in the OST, showing off his talents as both an actor and a singer.


'Hype Nation' is the story of Asian b-boys with Park Jaebum as the main role. The female lead is revealed to be a girl group member from Korea. The associate of 'Hype Nation' stated, "The producer, Young Lee, will be returning from America in late April and so everything else will be revealed then."


'Hype Nation' had originally attempted to cast Son Dambi but was canceled midway, causing the movie to switch paths by flipping the female role into a male role.

Source: Asia Economy

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SM Entertainment Fires Back With a Lawsuit Against the Three TVXQ Members

After months of legal dispute between entertainment giant SM Entertainment and the three members (Jaejoong, Junsu, and Yoochun) of the five member group TVXQ, the group recently had announced stepping on the brakes of all their activities in Japan. Fans thought that was big news. Well, the situation has proven to have become even stickier.


After winning the lawsuit in 2009 over allegedly unfair profit distribution, SM Entertainment announced on the 13th, that they're lashing back with a legal lawsuit of their own. The company released a statement saying that they have done the best that they can to maintain the group as a whole. However, being that the three members had recently filed for an injunction, and because they have halted all activities as a group, the company was left with no choice but to retaliate. SM Entertainment is objecting against the trio's stance on the contract terms between both parties and is seeking to verify the contract's remaining validity.

Source: KBS

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SM takes legal action against TVXQ members

From left, TVXQ members Xiah Junsu, Hero Jaejoong and Micky Yoochun receive an award at the 2009 Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA) on November 21, 2009. [Chae Ki-won/10Asia]

SM Entertainment, the talent powerhouse in charge of discovering and managing boy band TVXQ, has taken legal action against three of the group's members whose exclusive contract with the agency was nullified last year.


"On April 12, we filed an objection against the court's decision ordering provisional disposition of the contracts as well as a lawsuit to reclaim their validity," the agency stated through a press release Tuesday.


SM explained they had held off from taking legal action against Hero Jaejoong, Micky Yoochun and Xiah Junsu last year "in an effort to see the group continue to exist" but made the move this week after "the three failed to officially express any intention of resuming their activities as a group and TVXQ recently halted their activities as a group in Japan."


Hero, Micky and Xiah had asked a court last July to invalidate their exclusive 13-year contract with SM to which the court ruled in favor of the young singers in an interim ruling, declaring that the agency will not interfere in their individual activities.


The five-man band had stopped working as a group in Korea ever since, although carrying on their activities in Japan including making TV and magazine appearances as well as releasing albums, until announcing on April 3 that the group would no longer pursue a singing career together.


Hero and Micky are currently in shooting for dramas while Xiah is preparing for a solo album release.


Since their debut in 2004, TVXQ has been one of the most successful K-pop acts in Asia who reportedly have the largest fanbase in the world.


They had enjoyed great success in the Japanese music industry in particular, becoming the first foreign artist to top the Oricon singles charts six times with their 27th single "Share the World/We are!" released last year.


They made music history in Japan again in early April, when they placed their single and album simultaneously within the top three slots of Oricon's singles and albums chart, the first time for a foreign artist to do so in 15 years.


Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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T-ara's Qri: "Paparazzi? Who the heck are you?!"

T-ara Qri's paparazzi-like pictures were released.

In her Minihompy on the 12th, she released the pictures with comments "Oh, you caught me!".

The pictures revealed that Qri's fashion sense is sexy, yet casual through her jacket, mini-dress, and boots.

On the 7th, Qri released another batch of pictures with co-member, Soyeon and these pictures also gained much attention. These pictures portray the girls in a cute manner.

Meanwhile, Qri is participating in T-ara's Shopping Mall Real Variety Show T-ara Dot Com which airs every Wednesday at 9:00PM.

Other Pictures: 01 | 02

Source: http://thestar.chosun.com/site/data/html_d...0041201267.html
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Lee Hyori's new album sweeps online music charts

Album cover of Lee Hyori's fourth album "H.Logic" [Mnet Entertainment]

 

Pop sensation Lee Hyori's fourth album "H.Logic" has skyrocketed to the top of online music charts in just a day of its release.

Title track "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" has taken over the No. 1 spot on all music charts, while other tracks on her record have entered the top 50 of several online music charts including Melon, Dosirak and social networking website Cyworld.

On the web-based charts of cable music channel Mnet and music provider Bugs, the entire record listing successfully broke into the top 30 slots.

The artist is currently preparing for her stage comeback on Thursday where she will perform on Mnet's televised music program "Mnet Countdown."

Lee, 30, made her debut in 1998 as the leader of the now-disbanded girl group Fin.K.L and soon after began her solo career in 2002. She has released three studio albums producing several hits including "10 Minutes," "Hey Girl," "Get Ya" and "U-Go-Girl."

She expanded her career into other branches in the entertainment business through acting, hosting and appearing on variety shows. Her most notable role was co-hosting the first season of SBS' "Family Outing" alongside Yoo Jae-suk.

Reporter : Park Kun-ouc kun1112@asiae.co.kr

Editor : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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U-KISS Soohyun’s Thigh Humiliation “I Did Taekwondo For 13 Years But My Lower Body Is…”

On the April 10th broadcast of MBC Change The World (Sebakwi), Soohyun revealed that his strong thighs due to the fact that he did Taekwondo for 13 years. However his pride collapsed in front of Jo Hyerun’s power.

Soohyun confessed “I have a very strong lower part of body because I did Taekwondo for 13 years. It won’t hurt me no matter how hard you hit my thigh.”

Hearing this, Sebakwi’s MCs requested for a test to be done in order to test the strength of Soohyun’s thigh. MC Park Miseon took the test first by hitting Soohyun’s thigh and said that her hand was sting. After that, Jo Hyerun went to Soohyun to test his thigh’s strength.

Soohyun was screaming in pain after Jo Hyerun hit his thighs hard. In Sebakwi, Jo Hyerun is famous for her powerful strength. With these, Soohyun’s ego of 13 years experience in sports was crushed down by Jo Hyerun.

The guests list for this episode were Tak Jaehoon, Han Sangjin, Noh Yoo Min, Beast’s Lee Ki Kwang, U-KISS’s Soohyun and Dongho, Noh Minwoo, Kim Taeho etc.

Source: Newsens

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Girls' Generation to embark on Asia tour this weekend

Members of Girls' Generation promoting "Run Devil Run" [SM Entertainment]

 

Korean pop princesses Girls' Generation will kick off their Asia tour this Saturday starting in China, according to their agency SM Entertainment on Tuesday.

SM explained that the nine-member group will hold a concert in Shanghai followed by shows in other countries throughout Asia including Thailand on May 29.

The girls have recently seen their eighth back-to-back hit with "Run Devil Run," the title track from their repackaged second album of the same name released in late March.

The song has triumphed on numerous online and offline music charts as well as taking its second consecutive win on televised music shows over the weekend.

Girls' Generation has been one of the most popular female idol groups in the country since making their debut in 2007.

They gave a successful encore performance of their "1st ASIA TOUR CONCERT - Into the New World" in late February.

Reporter: Cho Bum-ja anju1015@asiae.co.kr

Editor : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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2PM goes on countdown ahead of end-April comeback

Image of 2PM's official website on countdown [JYP Entertainment]

 

K-pop idol group 2PM has gone on a countdown ahead of making a comeback to the local music scene with a mini-album later this month.

A clock tower in an empty lot, posted on their official website (2pm.jype.com) late on Monday, indicated there is one day left till the group reveals information about their new record.

The boys had last released an album in November last year, promoting their first full-length record "1:59PM" for three months. Their title track "Heartbeat" topped various televised and online music charts for several consecutive weeks.

2PM originally made their debut with seven members in 2008 but turned a six-man band after their agency JYP Entertainment announced in February that it would terminate its contract with former leader Park Jae-beom over "a huge personal wrongdoing."

The young singer had been absent from the group since last September after sparking national controversy over comments he made on his MySpace account before his debut but fans had been anticipating his return.

Members of 2PM have ventured onto individual projects including variety show and drama appearances.

Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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Rain celebrates double win on Mnet charts

Picture of Rain on the cover of his special album "BACK TO THE BASIC" [J.Tune Entertainment]

 

Korean pop sensation Rain has made his way to the top of cable music channel Mnet's singles chart with his latest single "Love Song."

The title track from the singer's latest album "BACK TO THE BASIC" bounced up three slots from its previous position to rank the hottest single during the week of April 5 to 11.

Rain's songs "Hip Song" and "One," also from the new release, placed among the top 20 on the chart.

"Magic" by four-member girl group Brown Eyed Girls bowed into the chart in second place, while new tune "Swing" by pop princess Lee Hyori swung its way from the bottom of the list to No. 3.

Meanwhile, Rain's record knocked out two-week winner T-ara to claim the title as the best-selling album last week and new special album "Festa on Ice 2010" featuring songs by Brown Eyed Girls entered the chart at No. 2.

The original soundtrack to MBC TV series "Personal Taste" starring Lee Min-ho and Son Ye-jin made an extraordinary 87-spot jump to third place.

Reporter : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr

Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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Rain says was "swamped" with female celeb date requests

Asian pop sensation Rain [Mnet]

 

K-pop sensation Rain said he was once "swamped" with date requests by female celebrities.

The 27-year-old singer made the remark on KBS talk show "Win Win" aired on Monday, responding to whether he had been asked out on a date by female celebrities before.

"It was after I finished promoting my second album containing song 'How to Avoid the Sun.'... I was completely swamped with them," Rain explained, recollecting on his experience from early 2004.

He added, however, that he was not aware they were date requests at the time. "They would ask if I would have dinner with them, I would just think 'Why with me?' so that's really all we would do."

Rain, whose real name is Jung Ji-hoon, is considered one of the most successful Korean stars in the entertainment business, leading a popular singing career throughout Asia and expanding his acting career into Hollywood.

Since early last week, he has been promoting his latest special album "BACK TO THE BASIC," which has been topping various local singles and album charts.

Reporter: Cho Bum-ja anju1015@asiae.co.kr

Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr

Source: Asiae

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