LE SSERAFIM’s Huh Yunjin drops new solo track ‘blessing in disguise’

The Great British Bake Off will scrap its national-themed challenge weeks in the new series after viewers slammed these rounds in recent years.

Mark Schilling Japan Correspondent In 2021, Hamaguchi Ryusuke won truckloads of awards and nearly universal critical acclaim for his three-hour drama “Drive My Car,” including three prizes at Cannes and a best picture Academy Award nomination, the first ever for a Japanese film. (That Oscar went elsewhere, but “Drive My Car” was named best international feature film.) Instead of trying to top this triumph with a bigger budget and more internationally known names in the cast, Hamaguchi has returned to his indie roots with “Evil Does Not Exist,” which premieres in competition at this year’s Venice Film Festival.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hong Kong-based, Mainland China-born auteur Yonfan has scandalized and enthralled Chinese-speaking parts of Asia in a career that has spanned fine-art photography, filmmaking and journalism. Further afield, he has become a regular on the Lido. His 1995 feature “Bugis Street,” which has been restored and is screening in the Venice Classics section, achieved notoriety at the time of its debut. It is set in the red-light area of Singapore, at a time shortly after the country had achieved independence and before it earned its buttoned-up, conservative reputation. Loosely structured, the film follows a 16-year-old woman (played by Hiep Thi Le), who’s an employee at the appropriately named Sin Sin Hotel.

For your listening pleasure and a trip down memory lane. John Stamos has dropped a new version of the Full House classic “Forever” the Beach Boys song performed by Stamos several times in the show. Stamos’ new iteration is a lullaby performed by the actor with American Idol alum singer-songwriter Jax.

Mitski has announced listening parties for her upcoming LP ‘The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We’, along with film screenings.The music and film double features will occur next week on Thursday, September 7. These events will be presented in movie theatres in eight international cities, including Chicago, Dallas, London, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Nashville, Sydney, and New York — plus one planetarium in Tokyo, Japan — with the US events co-presented by Spotify.Fans will be able to gather together in an intimate setting for an early preview of ‘The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We’ in its entirety.

K-pop girl group H1-KEY have made a comeback with their new mini-album ‘Seoul Dreaming’ and its title track ‘SEOUL (Such a Beautiful City)’.In the visual for ‘SEOUL (Such a Beautiful City)’, the quartet connect to the rest of the city through soundwaves, before heading out to roam the streets as confetti falls from the sky. Later, H1-KEY sit on a rooftop together admiring the cityscape at night.“Such a beautiful city / Everything shines like it’s enchanted / I dance along with those lights (I dream) / In the bustling streets / Until everyone looks at me / I keep singing endlessly,” they sing in the synth-filled chorus.The girl group’s second mini-album ‘Seoul Dreaming’ also includes the pre-release single ‘Time to Shine’, which they released last week alongside its own music video.

LOONA member Chuu will soon be making her solo debut.On August 29, Sports DongAh reported that the K-pop idol was gearing up to make her solo debut. The news was later confirmed by her agency, ATRP, which said that Chuu is “preparing to release a solo album in October”.The upcoming release will mark Chuu’s first solo music since her firing from girl group LOONA in late 2022 by her former agency Blockberry Creative.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Lost in Perfection,” the second film by journalist-turned-filmmaker Sung Hsin-yin (“On Happiness Road”), has set Oct. 27 as the date of its commercial release in Sung’s native Taiwan. Ahead of the Taiwan release, the film is expected to have its world premiere at a major festival.

Disney parks in the U.S., and especially abroad have been bolstering the company’s quarterly earnings coming out of Covid, and the company is investing to ensure that growth continues. Its Parks and Experiences division has laid out an ambitious schedule of openings for rides, attractions, hotels and cruises over the next 1-4 years.

Lisa is having a fun night out!

Yard Act have spoken to NME about introducing some impressive choreography into their live show and plans for new material. Watch our full interview from Reading 2023 above.Long before the festival’s opening day ended with a party-heavy co-headline set from Foals and an emotional closing show from Sam Fender, the band opened the main stage with a raucous early afternoon gig – re-enacting the choreography from the video to recent single ‘Trench Coat Museum‘, culminating in frontman James Smith being carried away.We met the band backstage shortly afterwards for an interview, before bassist Ryan Needham took lead of the conversation by discussing the etymology of everyone’s surnames.“I always felt it meant ‘need food’, like ‘you need some ham’,” he said of his own. “It means ‘need home’.”Guitarist Sam Shipstone meanwhile, claimed that his originates from coming “from a really bad line of boat builders” before the band pondered if drummer Jay Russell’s surname was simple from the sound of “people knocking about in the bushes”.After that, we got to talking about Reading, Leeds, Japan, and what’s next.Needham: “Yeah, massively.

Plans for new neighbourhoods with thousands of homes, a school and a health centre in North Manchester are set to be approved next week. The major development is part of a £4bn project to rejuvenate this part of the city.

Seulgi of girl group Red Velvet has renewed her contract with K-pop agency SM Entertainment.On August 21, South Korean news outlet Star News reported that Seulgi had decided to review her contract with SM Entertainment. The news was confirmed the next day (August 22) by the K-pop agency.In a statement to Xportnews, as translated by Koreaboo, SM Entertainment said: “We have renewed our contract with Seulgi.” This is the second time the K-pop idol has renewed her contract with the entertainment company, after first re-signing in 2021 alongside her fellow Red Velvet members.Seulgi’s decision to renew her contract with SM Entertainment comes after a tumultuous year for the K-pop agency, which saw a number of long-time artists leave the label.

Kanye West’s new romantic partner Bianca Censori seems to have a bigger role in his life, following their unofficial wedding ceremony in January 2023. The Australian Architect, who has been working for Yeezy since November 2022, is in charge of some important decisions when it comes to managing some of the rapper’s business ventures.BIANCA CENSORI: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT KANYE WEST’S NEW ‘WIFE’WHY KIM KARDASHIAN REFUSES TO ‘PAY ATTENTION’ TO KANYE AND BIANCA’S ‘MARRIAGE’BIANCA CENSORI AND KIM KARDASHIAN HAVE A LOT MORE IN COMMON THAN YOU THINK: MEET HER LOOKALIKE SISTERSAs reported by US Sun, documents indicate that Bianca has a special power of attorney, not to be confused with a general power of attorney, making her a finance manager, specifically for selling Kanye’s property in Hidden Hills, which be purchased for $4.5M in 2021, later sold for $4.25M in March 2023.One of the reasons for her new role in Kanye’s life allegedly involves his past statements and controversies, and she might be helping him rebuild his brand, potentially planning for a music comeback and new announcements when it comes to his fashion deals, after losing his partnerships with Balenciaga, GAP, and Adidas.And while the pair have been traveling all over the world, previously spotted in Japan and Italy, enjoying some sweet moments together, and even spending time with Kanye’s kids, most recently with North West on his birthday in Los Angeles, the pair are reportedly settling down in West Hollywood, California.It was revealed that Kanye and Bianca are living together in a luxury apartment building in WeHo, close to the headquarters of his company Yeezy, where Bianca works as Head of Architectural Design.

Jane McDonald isn't afraid to get her kit off if it's all in the name of cultural traditions, and she did just that in her most recent travel show, Lost in Japan.The 60 year old former Loose Women star stripped naked to bathe in a natural pool at Mount Fuji in the Far East. She can be seen with her brunette locks piled on top of her head as she swims out in the pool and overlooks a stunning view beyond the natural rock formations framing the edge of the water.

Kim Kardashian, Kanye West went on to give love a second chance, not just starting a new romance with his new partner Bianca Censori, but also shocking fans and online users after it was reported that the pair had decided to tie the knot in a secret ceremony that took place in Beverly Hills, in January 2023.Born in 1995, the 28-year-old Australian architect was raised in what has been described as an affluent area, the Melbourne suburb of Ivanhoe, in Victoria. As reported by The Herald Sun, the new celebrity couple have spent some time in Ivanhoe, which could indicate that Kanye has already been introduced to her family.Bianca grew up in a big family, with her two sisters Alyssia Censori and Angelina Censori, similar to Kim, who is known to have a close relationship with Khloé and Kourtney Kardashian.

LUN8 is one of the fast-rising boy bands on the K-pop scene, and we want Just Jared readers to exclusively get to know them even better!

Fox has moved up the Season 10 premiere date for The Masked Singer to 8 PM ET/5 PM PT, Sunday, September 10, immediately following the NFL Double Header. Initially scheduled to debut on September 27, the competition series will take two weeks off, then return on that date for its official time period slot from 8-9 PM ET/PT/ for the remainder of the season.

K-pop boyband Stray Kids has released a new solo track titled ‘Hold On’.On August 13, the K-pop singer unveiled his new original solo song ‘Hold On’ on the boyband’s official YouTube channel. The track was written and composed by Stray Kids bandmates Han and Bang Chan.“Though I cannot see you at the moment / Someday, after quite some time has passed / When I stand before you, please / Come running to me once again,” he sings on the chorus.Seungmin’s new track is the latest in Stray Kids’ ‘SKZ-RECORD’ YouTube series, through which members of the group drop song covers and unofficial tracks.

K-pop girl group IVE are set to embark on their first world tour this October.On August 11, Starship Entertainment announced that the six-member act will kickstart their world tour, titled ‘Show What I Have’, with a two-night concert in Seoul this October.