FIFTY FIFTY’s label Attrakt terminates contracts of members Aran, Sio and Saena

SM Entertainment has previewed its upcoming music releases for the first quarter of 2024, featuring new music by aespa, NCT’s Taeyong and RIIZE.In the newly published SM Entertainment Earnings Release report for the third quarter of 2023, the company included a preview of the music line-up for the first quarter of 2024 It details a slew of planned album, mini-album and single releases from several SM artists for the period.Following the most recently announced upcoming release of Taeyeon’s mini-album ‘To. X’ on November 27, SM Entertainment has revealed that other artists slated to put out new music for the rest of the year include Super Junior’s Ryeowook, NCT 127 and TVXQ.

Taiwan Creative Content Fest kicked off in Taipei today with organizer, Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), emphasizing its soft power ambitions and growing international cooperation activities, in particular with France, South Korea and Japan. 

It’s so hard to say goodbye, but sadly, several K-pop groups are disbanding for good.

(G)I-DLE, aespa and IVE will release a new collaboration, titled ‘Nobody’.Today (November 6), South Korean YouTube channel M:USB announced that one member from (G)I-DLE, aespa and IVE each will collaborate on an upcoming song, titled ‘Nobody’.According to a report by Dispatch, the members of the girl groups who will be participated in the upcoming single will be “introduced sequentially” over the coming days through the YouTube channel’s official social media accounts.The song will be written by HYBE producer El Capitxn (known for his work with BTS, Tomorrow X Together and more) and lyricist Seo Ji-eum (known for working with Red Velvet and NCT 127, among others).“This is a collaboration that breaks existing conventions and formats,” said one of the song’s producers, per Dispatch. With the participation of artists, composers, lyricists and staff members who all represent K-pop, it will be a special gift for global music fans.”‘Nobody’ will be released on November 16 at 6pm KST.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “The Boy and the Heron” supposedly the final feature film by Japanese animation maestro Miyazaki Hayao, placed on top of the south Korean box office for a second weekend. It held off challenges from a clutch of new releases, including “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” and “Talk to Me.” “The Boy and the Heron” collected $2.49 million between Friday and Sunday, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic).

FIFTY FIFTY will continue on as a group with “three new members”, their agency Attrakt has shared.Yesterday (November 2), K-pop agency Attrakt announced that it would be adding three new members to K-pop girl group. The news follows a months-long legal battle with original former members Saena, Sio and Aran, whose contracts with the agency have since been terminated.“We plan to reorganize FIFTY FIFTY centring around Keena, who recently returned [to the agency].

Lisa of BLACKPINK‘s Weibo (a Chinese equivalent of Twitter) account has been suspended amid controversy over her Crazy Horse Paris performance.This is according to a report by CNN, which notes that Lisa’s Weibo page is no longer accessible as of Wednesday afternoon (November 1). The suspension comes just weeks after the singer performed at the Crazy Horse cabaret in Paris, one which has “sparked a huge debate on China’s tightly regulated internet”, according to the news outlet.The Thai K-pop idol’s account @lalalalisa_m, which was previously verified, has been replaced by a page that reads: “The account can longer be viewed because it has received complaints of breaches of law and regulations, as well as relevant rules from the Weibo Community Management Regulations”.It is currently unclear what complaints Lisa’s account had received prior to its suspension.

CUBE Entertainment has responded to reports of BtoB’s contract expirations in an official statement.Earlier today (November 1), South Korean media outletIlgan Sports reported that the contracts of five BtoB members had expired, alledging that the K-pop idols and CUBE Entertainment have yet to come to an agreement on a possible renewal.According to the report, BtoB are interested staying as group even if they leave CUBE Entertainment. Ilgan Sports also claims that several other labels have offered up to ₩6billion (approximately £3.64million) as a down payment to house the group if they decide to depart from their long-time agency.Shortly after reports of BtoB’s contract expiration surfaced, CUBE issued a brief statement to Xport News, saying that “the contract between CUBE Entertainment and some of the BtoB members has not yet concluded”, as translated by Koreaboo.“We plan on doing our best until the end of the contract,” CUBE Entertainment added.“We understand that the BtoB members are working through this situation with an open mindset, looking at various options.”In response to claims of third-party labels approaching BtoB, CUBE Entertainment said: “The amount mentioned in the article has nothing to do with our company’s position related to the matter.”BtoB debuted as a seven-member group in 2012, and have last renewed their contracts with CUBE Entertainment in 2018.

EXCLUSIVE: Picture Tree International (PTI) has boarded sales on German Iranian director Alireza Golafshan’s comedy Everything’s Fifty Fifty about a divorced couple who embark on a family vacation, ahead of the AFM.

FIFTY FIFTY will be “reorganised” following legal troubles, says the act’s agency Attrakt.Earlier this year, the four members of the girl group – Keena, Saena, Sio and Aran – filed a lawsuit to suspend their exclusive contracts with K-pop agency Attrakt.The Seoul Central District Court rejectrf the girl group’s injunction request in August 2023, with all four members later appealing the decision. However, Keena withdrew her appeal earlier this month and returned to the Attrakt.Soon after, the K-pop agency announced that it terminated its exclusive contracts with the remaining three members, alleging that the trio had “show[n] o sign of remorse for violating their contract”.In the wake of that decision (October 29), Attrakt has announced that Keena would be attending the 2023 Billboard Music Awards this November to represent FIFTY FIFTY.

Ange Postecoglou admits his vibrant Tottenham Hotspur side took inspiration from Manchester United favourite Cristiano Ronaldo when opting to unleash Son Heung-min as a central striker.

BTS, (G)I-DLE and LE SSERAFIM, have denied any rumours of links to a recent spate of drug-related investigations in the Korean entertainment industry.In the past week, popular South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun and Big Bang member G-Dragon were booked on suspicion of drug use. The two cases are said to be unrelated to one another.Soon after the news broke, rumours that other high-profile K-pop stars were also being investigated for drug use started circulating online, according to SBS Star.Among them were LE SSERAFIM’s Kim Chaewon, (G)I-DLE’s Jeon Soyeon and K-pop boyband BTS.

The Finals has announced another beta for the upcoming free-to-play shooter and players will be able to earn in-game extras and keep them for launch.Held from October 26 to November 5, this will be available for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S players and it will an open beta allowing for cross-platform play.Two maps from the closed beta will return, Monaco and Seoul, and a new map titled Skyway Stadium will be introduced.Players can get to grips with The Finals mechanics and movements in the practice range before entering one of the four game modes.Cashout involves teams of three players who will compete to find cashboxes, secure them and then deposit them in vaults.

EXCLUSIVE: Yvette Nicole Brown (Community) and Jonnie “Dumbfoundead” Park (Raya and the Last Dragon) have joined the cast of K-Pops!, the film marking the directorial debut of eight-time Grammy winner Anderson .Paak, which we were first to report on. Also now aboard the project from Stampede Ventures, which has secured an interim agreement from SAG-AFTRA, is new strategic partner Live Nation Productions, which has made an equity investment into the production alongside the former company. It’s been set to enter production in Los Angeles October 30, with additional filming to be done in Korea and AlUla, an ancient Saudi Arabia market city which was scouted through Film AlUla, the film agency of The Royal Commission.

D.O., a member of K-pop boyband EXO, has left his long-time label SM Entertainment after 11 years.SM Entertainment confirmed that EXO member D.O. would be leaving the K-pop agency after the expiration of his currently contract in early-November.

Chinese director Ning Hao has flown directly from Busan film festival in South Korea to China’s Pingyao International Film Festival (PYIFF) with his latest film, The Movie Emperor, starring Andy Lau. 

SM Entertainment has addressed a report about EXO‘s Sehun and Chanyeol signing with a different agency for their solo activities.Earlier today (October 17), South Korean news outlet SBS reported that EXO member Sehun and Chanyeol would be signing with a new agency for their solo careers. Notably, the two K-pop idols make up the boyband’s sub-unit, EXO-SC.According to SBS, the unnamed agency is reportedly founded by Jeong Hoon-tak, the former CEO of iHQ (also known as SidusHQ).

FIFTY FIFTY member Keena – real name Song Ja-kyung – has dropped her lawsuit against K-pop agency Attrakt and has returned to the label.Keena and her fellow FIFTY FIFTY members had filed to suspend their exclusive contracts with Attrakt in June 2023. That injunction was denied by South Korean courts in August 2023, which the girl group later appealed.However, Keena reportedly withdrew her appeal against Attrakt on Monday (October 16), according to a report by Korea JoongAng Daily.

(G)I-DLE singer Soojin is reportedly preparing to make her solo debut after signing with a new agency.On October 16, South Korean news outlet SpoTV News reported that ex-(G)I-DLE member Soojin is currently “quietly preparing to make a solo comeback”, as translated by Korea JoongAng Daily.This was followed by a separate report by News1, which claimed that Soojin had signed an exclusive contract with a newly founded K-pop agency called BRD Communications.The news outlet also alleged that the singer is preparing to release music later this month under her new label. At the time of publishing, neither the singer nor the agency have commented on the reports.Soojin first made her debut in 2018 as a member of (G)I-DLE under CUBE Entertainment.

BLACKPINK’s Jennie has shared a live performance video for a jazz version of her latest solo single, ‘You & Me’.The star shared the original version of the track last week (October 6) after premiering it on the ‘Born Pink’ world tour in 2022.In the new video, Jennie sits on a chair in front of the moon background that appears in the original performance video shared upon the single’s official release. With glowing orbs sitting on the floor around her, she delivers a poised performance of the track, with its melodies reinterpreted in jazz form.The jazz version marks the third incarnation of ‘You & Me’ that has been shared so far, alongside the original single and the ‘Coachella Remix’.In a press release about the release of ‘You & Me’, YG Entertainment said, “We hope the song becomes a special gift through which fans remember their memories from ‘Born Pink’ tour”, per The K-pop Herald.‘You & Me’ is Jennie’s second solo single, following her 2018 debut single ‘Solo’.