ICYMI IN CASE YOU MISSED IT - 2020 ROUND UP (SPECIAL ARTICLE!)

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JANUARY 1 - DECEMBER 31


Hello, everyone, and welcome to our second annual special edition of ICYMI! If you were wondering why we took a not-so-secret one-week break from ICYMI, you now have the reason - our team was adding the final touches to this thread in order to celebrate the end of 2020! We (Polaris_Tae, Nara, and Beefy) have been working since the end of November to compile everything that has happened in the past twelve months. We can all agree that 2020 was a rough year, starting off with bushfires in Australia to being on a global lockdown following the worldwide spread of Covid-19. Regardless, we hope that 2021 will fare much better. This article is divided into four separate posts, which we hope would be more than enough for you to start the year 2021 with all the information you will ever need on news, hot releases, chart results, achievements, and various other achievements.

Before you start, feel free to get yourself something to drink, grab some snacks, and make sure there's nothing to distract you for a while! We hope you enjoy reading the article as much as we enjoyed putting it together!






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BY POLARIS_TAE

Disclaimer: the writing of this portion required a lot of reading and researching. Some stories deserved more than a short paragraph to be told completely; however, I had to keep some recaps relatively short. I hope that the information here will still be accurate enough, and if that isn't the case, feel free to correct me in the comments section!

JANUARY:
#1- The year began, unsurprisingly, with the fallout of the Produce 101 vote manipulation scandal. During a last-minute press conference, the CEO of CJ ENM had issued a public apology for the vote manipulation scandal and stated that they would provide appropriate compensation to the trainees that were affected by the controversy. It was also revealed the profits (approx. $213K USD) that were made from all of Mnet's manipulated programs—such as the Produce 101 series—would now be going toward a fund to protect and develop the Korean music industry. It was initially reported that I*ZONE and X1, the resulting groups from the third and fourth season of Produce 101, respectively, would be resuming group activities. However, it was later reported that X1 would be disbanding following an extended discussion between Mnet and the individual trainees' respective companies. Later, Dispatch revealed the details surrounding the meeting about the future of X1 and shared that half of the companies involved had voted for disbandment. I*ZONE, however, had fared much better than their junior group, as it was announced that they would be continuing activities with the release of Bloom *Iz in February.


#2- January also saw the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, which would go on to adversely affect the entertainment industry throughout 2020. Beginning in China, due to this crisis, we saw the suspension of multiple highly anticipated dramas across Zhejiang province including Legend of Fei starring Zhao Liying and Wang Yibo, as well as Yang Mi and Bai Yu's medical drama, Thank You, Doctor. Also affected was Hengdian World Studiosthe largest film studio in the world where a large number of Chinese dramas and films base their operations. Later, the China Federation of Radio & Television Associations’ producers and actors’ groups announced that they would be halting all scheduled productions within China due to the COVID-19 crisis and that any productions chose to continue filming would be held responsible, should any cases of the virus occur.


#3- The COVID-19 crisis had also begun to affect the international Kpop community, as many Korean artists started to cancel their schedules abroad as well as in South Korea. WJSN postponed their Guangzhou fan sign, NU'EST's Ren postponed his finale live show in Macau, Youth With You 2 delayed its air date until early March, and BLACKPINK's Lisa did not travel to China in January as a result. In Southeast Asia, both GOT7's KEEP SPINNING in Bangkok and Singapore, as well as Taeyeon and NCT Dream's concerts in Singapore, were postponed due to the outbreak. AKB48 Team SH cancelled their trip to AKB48's Akihabara Theatre following the outbreak, and all of MOMOLAND and TWICE's Japanese schedules were postponed indefinitely. Korean Broadcasters addressed their plans for filming amidst the fears of coronavirus. Music and variety shows would later adopt a zero-audience policy to lessen the risk against their staff and guests. SUPER JUNIOR recorded their comeback show, Super Junior The Stage, in private while PENTAGON cancelled their fan showcase entirely in light of the outbreak.


#4- The beginning of the year had also brought with it a series of revelations of new relationships. While Dispatch did not provide us with their regular New Years' couple, Market News dropped the dating scoop of the year when they reported that Super Junior's Heechul and TWICE's Momo were dating. This report was later confirmed by each of their respective companies. Later on that month, we received even bigger news when Exo's Chen surprised us all by announcing that he was getting married and expecting a child. Finally, it was confirmed that TVXQ's Changmin was dating a non-celebrity. The couple has since got married.


(Main sources: hallyuplus.net; soompi.com; @balloon_wanted on Twitter; @OH_mes2 on Twitter; @Kpop_Herald on Twitter; @seunghyonkr on Twitter; @dramapotatoe on Twitter; @theseoulstory on Twitter; @OneProductionSG on Twitter; @JPopProjectNews on Twitter.)



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FEBRUARY:
#1- February was a month full of generosity, as many celebrities had stepped up to show their kindness in the face of adversity by donating to a greater cause. Within the Chinese Entertainment industry, Xiao Zhan donated numerous much-needed medical supplies and ventilators directly to a hospital in Wuhan, which was the initial hotspot for the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, Xiao Zhan's labelmate, Mao Buyi, commented that should the time come that there would be more medical personnel needed on the frontline, he would gladly volunteer. Prior to his life in the entertainment industry, Mao Buyi was a trained nurse.

Within the South Korean music industry, we had also seen many generous donations! Kim Chungha donated masks to children in celebration of her birthday; Park Boyoung, Gong Yoo, and Jung Woosung each donated 100 million KRW in an effort to help those affected by the coronavirus pandemic; Kim Yuna along with her fans donated a total of 185 million KRW to UNICEF Korea with the same hope to help the affected victims. Many celebrities donated to the Hope Bridge Foundation in an effort to alleviate the pressure from those affected by COVID-19. These parties included: SM Entertainment with a pledge of 500 million KRW; Super Junior's Eunhyuk with 100 million KRW to the cause; Kang Daniel with 50 million KRW; and Yoo Jaesuk with 100 million KRW. The Community Chest of Korea had also received many generous donations from numerous celebrities. Red Velvet showed their generosity by donating 30 million KRW, with Red Velvet's Wendy also separately donated 100 million KRW. SNSD's Yoona further proved her generosity by pledging 100 million KRW to the Community Chest of Korea. Finally, Super Junior as a whole donated 10K masks to the same organization to support those affected by the pandemic.


#2- There were two major events that put Korea on the map during the awards circuit of 2020. The Korean hit movie Parasite received 6 Oscar nominations for the 2020 Academy Awards. Of these nominations, they had won four awards, which included Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film. Meanwhile, during their second year attending the Grammys, BTS was invited to perform alongside Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus during their performance of "Old Town Road."


#3- Two controversies saw their conclusion in February. B.I had tested negative for drugs following his removal from IKON the previous year due to illegal drug consumption accusations. Meanwhile, it came to light that Roy Kim was not in an illicit chatroom with Jung Junyoung, but was instead involved in a chat where they discussed fishing.


#4- Actress Go Soojung had passed away on the 7th of February. She was 24 years old.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net; @xzhan1005 on Twitter; @dramapotatoe on Twitter; news.naver.com; @OH_mes2 on Twitter; @relief_sos on Twitter; @theseoulstory on Twitter.)


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MARCH:
#1- During March we saw a number of artists either sign new contracts or renew their current contracts! Some artists even terminated their contracts with their agencies! EXID's LE terminated her contract with Banana Culture. Meanwhile, her groupmate Solji signed with C-JeS Entertainment. It was shared that Gong Myung had left Fantiago following the expiration of his contract and joined Saram Entertainment. Former I.O.I member Zhou Jieqiong filed a request for contract termination against both her Chinese and Korean management agencies. Her Chinese management, XCSS Entertainment, released a statement claiming that they would be taking legal measures to ensure that their contract with the artist would remain in effect with both them and her Korean agency, PLEDIS. In response, the artist released a statement explaining her wishes to settle the matter amicably. Meanwhile, on the other side of the spectrum, it was announced that Yuehua had terminated the contract with their trainee, Huang Zhibo, who was found to be running an online scam selling overpriced masks. Following this, the former trainee was sentenced to jail and ordered to pay fines for his crimes.

Meanwhile, all remaining BIGBANG members renewed their contract with YG Entertainment, thus returning to promotions under the company. There was also a number of artists that joined new companies! Son Jihyun, formerly of 4MINUTE, signed an exclusive contract with Wells Entertainment; Hyelim joined rrr Entertainment, an agency operated by her former Wonder Girls groupmate, Yubin; Han Sunhwa joined Keyeast, and Ladies Code's Zuny signed with Actorsaid Entertainment. Finally, in preparation for the global market penetration, Chungha had signed an exclusive contract with ICM Partners.


#2- Following a two-month hiatus in the filming of Chinese dramas along with the closure of Hengdian World Studios in January, a number of dramas had begun production and principal photography again. One of the conditions that allowed the continuation of production was that all cast and crew working on the drama would spend two weeks in isolation following their arrival at the set, prior to filming.


#3- Actor Moon Jiyoon passed away on the 19th of March due to acute sepsis. He was 36. On the following day, Lee Chihoon, the Ulzzang Generation cast member turned Afreeca BJ, also passed away from the same illness. He was 32.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net; soompi.com; @OH_mes2 on Twitter; news.naver.com; @dramapotatoe on Twitter; @theseoulstory on Twitter; entertain.naver.com,;cfen.si.)


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APRIL:
#1- It was reported that a Korean Entertainment CEO was undergoing investigation for charges of sexually assaulting an employee. Meanwhile, the Chinese entertainment industry was also suffering a similar case. It was reported that a ZTE executive had been accused by his foster daughter of a year-long sexual abuse. Following this revelation, multiple male and female celebrities including Zheng Shuang, R1SE's Xia Zhiguang, YangYang, and Kris Wu, had voiced out their support for the daughter. Yao Chi went a step further to highlight the issue by sharing his experience of sexual assault as a child at the hands of one of his neighbors.


#2- May was a month full of news about survival shows! During the ongoing trial regarding the Produce 101 vote manipulation scandal, the prosecution announced that they would be reinvestigating Produce 101 Season 2 for voting manipulation allegations. Meanwhile, Mnet's Road To Kingdom announced that its 1st round results would be calculated under the watch of agency representatives in order to ensure fairness. This was likely a precaution stemming from the Produce 101 vote-rigging scandal.

In China, The judging line-up for Youku's survival show, We Are Young, was announced! Zhang Yixing was announced as the youth producer, Cheng Xiao and Han Yu as the dance mentors, Tiger Hu as the music mentor, and Guo Jingming as an unspecified mentor. We also learned that the lineup for the resulting group from Produce Camp 2020 would only consist of 7 members, rather than the standard 11 members.


#3- On the 23rd of April, Show Luo was exposed by his ex-girlfriend, Grace Chow, who accused the Taiwanese singer of cheating during their long-term relationship. In response, the singer confirmed that he did indeed cheat on her during their relationship and apologized to her for his actions. Show Luo has yet to return to the Chinese entertainment industry following this scandal. Meanwhile, SKE48 found themselves in hot water when it came to light that one of their members, Tsuzuki Rika, had been trash-talking and insulting members of HKT48. As a consequence of this, her management Zest Inc. released a statement apologizing for her actions and announcing that they would be suspending Tsuzuki Rika's social media accounts indefinitely.



#4- During April, we saw a number of announcements of online content and fan meetings from various celebrities, in an effort to connect with fans following the cancellations of multiple events due to the COVID-19 pandemic. BTS finally released their Break The Silence Docu-Series on the 12th of May. This series followed them through their 351-day journey from the Love Yourself and Speak Yourself tours. The group also held an online concert weekend titled, "BANG-BANG-CON," which was a weekend of the groups' previous concerts and fan meetings. Meanwhile, following the release of his debut solo album, Exo's Suho held his online "o2asis" fan meeting on VLIVE.


#5- Okae Kumiko passed away on the 23rd of April due to coronavirus complications. She was 63. The Japanese voice actor Keiji Fujiwara, known for his roles as Maes Hughes on Fullmetal Alchemist and Hannes from Attack On Titan, passed away from cancer on the 12th of April. He was 55.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net; supchina.com; soompi.com; @zhaoleis on Twitter; @weverseofficial on Twitter; @OH_mes2 on Twitter; @BTS_BigHit on Twitter; @xujias on Twitter; allkpop.com; tokyohive.com; @piyosuuuuu on Twitter.)


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MAY:
#1- It was in May that we had to come to terms that Rocket Girls 101 would be disbanding in the near future, as their company, WAJIJIWA, announced the group's 730-hour countdown to their official disbandment, along with a teaser for the group's final album release. They released four tracks from May to June, which would make up the final album that would finally be released following the group's final single, "5453820," in late June. Also during late June, the group would hold their final disbandment concert that was pre-recorded and streamed for fans exclusively on Tencent. Sadly, Mimi Li Ziting would not be in attendance, as the singer had contracted a severe case of tinnitus just prior to the group's final concert. Following their graduation from the group, Wu Xuanyi and Meng Meiqi were given official update accounts that would be in charge of updating fans on the artists' schedules. Meanwhile, Sunnee had signed a contract with Universal Music China. Lastly, Fu Jing announced that she was in preparation for her upcoming first solo EP, Lit Up.


#3- We said goodbye to a slew of celebrities as mandatory military service had caught up with them in May. Many notable celebrities bid us a temporary goodbye as they took off their dancing shoes and stepped into their combat boots. Roy Kim confirmed that he would be joining the Marines in June. BTOB's Sungjae and Hyungsik also said goodbye to us, just when their leader, Eunhyuk, was being discharged from military service. Other notable enlistments included Exo's leader Suho, VIXX main vocalist Ken, PENTAGON's Jinho, and BlockB's UKWON.


#4- There was a shock announcement for the fans of PLEDIS groups like SEVENTEEN and Nu'est when it was revealed that the company would become a subsidiary of BigHit following the latter becoming the majority stakeholder of the company. Just prior to this official announcement, PLEDIS was shared to have announced this acquisition to its artists and staff.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net; @OH_mes2 on Twitter; @dramapotatoe on Twitter; soompi.com; @trendingweibo on Twitter.)


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JUNE:
#1- June was a month for relationships both beginning and ending. TVXQ's Changmin announced that he would be marrying his non-celebrity girlfriend in September, which would later be rescheduled due to the COVID-19 crisis. 2PM's Taecyeon was also announced to be in a relationship with a non-celebrity. Jang Kyungjoon, who is the bassist for the band Hyukoh, married his girlfriend on the 27th of June. Due to the upcoming wedding plans, Jannabi's bassist Jang Kyunghoon began his hiatus and did not participate in the group's 3rd album. CSJH's Sunday said "I Do" to her non-celebrity boyfriend on the 12th of July. Meanwhile, her former groupmate Stephanie Kim was reported to be dating former American baseball player, Brady Anderson. As for relationships ending, we found out that the couple Lee Joon and Jung Somin had unfortunately broken up following three years of being together due to the pair's busy schedules.

#2- In June, there was a slew of news regarding AKB48 and their sister groups. Mayu Watanabe, who was consistently one of the highest-ranked members during her tenure in AKB48 and had a successful solo career following her graduation from the group, announced that she would be retiring from the Japanese entertainment industry. Meanwhile, NMB48's Kobayashi Rina announced her graduation from the group. Her graduation ceremony was held on the 29th of June. AKB48 reopened their Akihabara theatre in June; however, performances were scheduled to take place without an audience. The group's OCU48 "Home" project that began as a way to keep in contact with fans during social distancing would continue concurrently with the reopening of the theatre. Their sister group SKE48 also returned with theatre performances in June, continuing with social distancing practices by streaming performances online and without a physical audience.


#3- There were a number of controversies that struck the Asian Entertainment industry in June. AB6IX had to delay their comeback until the 29th of June after it came to light that the group's leader, Im Youngmin, had been caught driving under the influence of alcohol and having his license revoked as a result (he has since been kicked out of the group). The former idol was also edited out of the Mnet hip-hop reality Good Girl. The former manager of BLACKPINK's Lisa was found to have swindled over 1 billion KRW from the artist since debut. Her company then released a statement that the manager was no longer under their employment and that they had created a payment plan, which they hoped for a smooth settlement.


#5- TST's Yohan passed away. He was 28 years old.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net, @OH_mes2 on Twitter; @dramapotatoe on Twitter; soompi.com; @trendingweibo on Twitter; @duanaojuans on Twitter; @XiaoQi101 on Twitter; @DailyCpop on Twitter; @aramajapan on Twitter; n.news.naver.)


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JULY:
#1- July was a month that saw a large number of controversies regarding group and company bullying. Mina, formerly of the FNC girl group, AOA revealed to the public that she had actually left the group due to relentless bullying at the hands of former leader of AOA, Shin Jimin. Following this, FNC revealed that Jimin had left her position in the group and has retired from the entertainment industry. Shortly after this incident, it came to light that another Kpop idol had suffered a similar incident at the hands of her former group members. ILUV's Minah had shared that she had also suffered bullying by her former group members, some of whom were set to re-debut as members of BOTOPASS. Later it had been revealed that she fainted and was rushed to the hospital. Thankfully, she is okay now. On the other side of the spectrum, following her graduation from Rocket Girls 101, it was revealed that Yamy—the former leader of the group—had been consistently degraded by her CEO in regards to her looks, fashion sense and singing. This came to light after the artist had shared a number of audio recordings and accused her boss of workplace harassment.


#2- Produce 101 China, otherwise known as CHUANG 2020 ended its most recent series with a seven-member girl group who would come to be known as Bon Bon Girls 303 (or Hard Candy Girls 303 in their native language). Ultimately, it was Xilinayi Gao (Curley Gao) who attained the prized centre position with SNH48 Team NII's Zhao Yue attaining the runner-up position. Also included in the group was Chen Zuoxuan from The Untamed fame, Zheng "Nene" Naixin known from the Thai BL drama 2gether & Gu9udan's Liu Xiening (Sally) among others. Also in cpop survival group news. It was announced that THE9 had picked a group leader in the form of An Qi.


#3- July sadly saw the conclusion of a number of groups and organisations.
Spectrum sadly announced that they would be disbanding due to their company's financial situation being heavily affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, Jpop idol group, piiiiiiin announced that they would be parting ways the following month. Another Japanese act, Mrs Green Apple announced that they would be going on hiatus following the successful completion of the group's "phase 1" plan. STU48 announced that they would be closing their shipborne theatre next Spring and would instead be performing in venues around the Setouchi region. Lastly, it was announced that Illionaire Records would be closing its doors after 10 years of operation. Prior to this a number of its high profile acts, including Beenzino had left the company.


#4- Kissbee member, Hina Takano passed away. She was 20 years old. Japanese actor Haruma Miura passed away. He was 30 years old.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net, @OH_mes2 on Twitter, @dramapotatoe on Twitter, @JPopProjectNews on Twitter, @XiaoQi101 on Twitter, soompi.com, @balloon_wanted on Twitter, @TrendingWeibo on Twitter, allkpop.com, @AORINGOHUZIN on Twitter)


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AUGUST:
#1- The bullying controversy between Kwon Mina and her former girl group continued to dominate news headlines throughout August. FNC released a statement regarding the bullying controversy apologising for failing to monitor the relationship between the members of AOA. They also stated that they have restricted the SNS access of the current members of AOA, thus explaining why they had failed to make personal statements in an attempt to stop misunderstandings. Following this, it was reported that Kwon Mina and her agency, Woori Actors have decided not to press charges in relation to the bullying she suffered while in AOA. They did, however, take legal action against a user spreading malicious comments regarding the actress. Later, Kwon Mina's mental health also took a turn for the worse as she posted numerous images related to her committing acts of self-harm. Following these incidents, the actress posted an apology for her drastic actions and deleted her Instagram account in an effort to take a break from the Entertainment Industry and focus on her recovery.


#2- In August, it was announced that Shiraishi Mai would be saying goodbye to her time as a member of Nogizaka46 after she revealed her intentions to graduate from the group in October. It was also revealed that she would release a graduation memorial book in order to commemorate the occasion.


#3- SNH48 held their 7th general election in August. Ultimately Sun Rui, Lu Ting & Song Xinran claimed the top three positions. It was also announced that the group would be holding a team shuffle in order to prepare for the upcoming graduation of their first & second-generation members. Also SNH48's youngest sister group, CKG48 introduced three new members of their fourth-generation line-up.


#4- Yuehua Entertainment found themselves in hot water after it was revealed that they were facing an administrative penalty from China because EVERGLOW participated in a South Korean military performance. The company later apologised for their actions.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net, @OH_mes2 on Twitter, soompi.com, @kvwowv on Instagram, @balloon_wanted on Twitter, @46FansINA on Twitter, @nogizaka46 on Twitter, @snh48g_wikia on Twitter, @snh48_today on Twitter, @theseoulstory on Twitter)


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SEPTEMBER:
#1- The resulting group form the BigHit-CJ survival show was given the name ENHYPEN and its 7-member lineup was announced to consist of Jay, Yang Jungwon, Jake, Niki, Lee Heeseung, Park Sunghoon & Kim Sunwoo. Following this, the group opened its official SNS accounts and debuted their official logo trailer.


#2- September was a great month to be a fan of BTS as the group continued their promotions for "Dynamite" by holding "BTS Week" on the Jimmy Fallon Show! The group then went to deliver a message of hope to the world when they spoke at the 75th United Nations General Assembly. Then, just as the month was coming to a close we learned that in the group's first physical concert in months Map of the Soul ON:E
where they were set to hold a simultaneous online & offline concertBigHit had cancelled the in-person portion of the concert following a resurgence in COVID-19 cases.


#3- The management team behind the girl group FANATICS found themselves in hot water after it came to light that the agency was forcing them to show off their legs during a VLive stream in September. Following this, the groups' agency, FENT released a statement apologizing for the sexual harassment controversy and denied any mistreatment towards their Chinese member Sika. Later in the month, it was reported that FENT had been acquired by the Chinese company Color Star Technology.


#4- Also in September, we learned that 22/7's Kuraoka Mizuha and =LOVE's Takamatsu Hitomi would be returning to their respective groups following a period of extended hiatuses. We also learned the new name Keyakizaka46 would be promoting under, when they rebranded themselves as Sakurazaka46



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net, @OH_mes2 on Twitter, @ENHYPEN on Twitter, @balloon_wanted on Twitter, @FallonTonight on Twitter, @ralinfanatics on Twitter, @fansdramaw on Instagram, @JPopProjectNews on Twitter, @Sennaneru_227 on Twitter, @WeStillSubbing on Twitter)


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OCTOBER:
#1- Red Velvet's Irene was in major headlines throughout November after it came to light that she had partaken in gapjil towards a staff member and her team. Gapjil, in this context, refers to an arrogant authoritarian attitude committed by those with a position of authority toward those in a lower position of power. During the latter half of October, following a post by a Stylist/Editor on Instagram about an idol that had verbally abused her and her fellow employees, Red Velvet's Irene revealed that the idol in question was, in fact, herself. In the post, she apologised for her past behaviour and later met the stylist so she could apologise to them personally.

That's not all though. Following this revelation, a number of schedules that Red Velvet was due to attend, or had already recorded for, had either been rescinded or had the group edited out entirely. Feeling that the controversy was getting far too out of hand, the original victim of Irene's Gapjil controversy once again spoke out to clarify some details regarding the situation. Stating that she wanted a sincere apology from the artist in order to protect her dignity as a human being and explaining that this was the reason she took to social media to air her grievances in the first place. As a conclusion, the stylist requested her only wish; that fans of the artist stop continuously harassing her on SNS following the culmination of the ordeal.


#2- BTS found themselves on thin ice with China following their speech thanking the US for their contributions during the Korean war. The Chinese State-run media, as well as Chinese netizens, took issue with the fact that the idol failed to mention the Chinese contributions to the Korean War. The Global Times, one of the State Mouthpieces went on to slam the group and their stance claiming that they were biased toward the US. Following this backlash, both Fila & Samsung, who have BTS as their global spokespersons went on to remove all BTS-related content from their Chinese SNS accounts and advertisements.


#3- R1SE found themselves at the centre of not one, but two controversies during October. First, it was revealed that R1SE member, Ren Hao had not only been dating someone during the entirety of his career as an idol, which began in 2016—prior to him joining CHUANG 2019 as a competitor (and his subsequent debut in R1SE). It was also revealed that he had cheated on his long-term girlfriend, Zhao Wenrou, who had supported him throughout his career and introduced opportunities to the idol. The third party of the relationship, Sue Xiaozi, claimed that she had been in a relationship with the idol during the past winter (sometime between December - February of 2019/20) and that they did not break up until Spring of 2020. It was also revealed that during his relationship with Sue, he had been using an alias throughout their entire relationship. Following these revelations, the idol issued an apology to his fans and the people involved in the controversy, stating that he accepts all criticism and would be taking a break from SNS in order to reflect upon his actions. Meanwhile, Ren Hao's younger bandmate, Xia Zhiguang, who only just turned 20 in January of 2021, also found himself at the centre of a dating controversy, likely in conjunction with Ren Hao's controversy. It was revealed that he was in a relationship with actress and Beijing Film Academy student Zhong Lili. The idol later apologised on Weibo for his actions. As a conclusion, both he and the formerly mentioned Ren Hao received disciplinary action from their agency WAJIJIWA Entertainment. Ren Hao would not receive any solo schedules for three months and had to take a break from SNS, while Xia Zhiguang would have his solo schedules cancelled for one month. Zhou Zhennan also found himself under fire when it came to light that his parents owed millions of CNY in debt. Netizens accused the artist of living lavishly on the backs of the people that his parents had scammed money from. Following this, the artist released a statement apologizing on behalf of his parents and stating that he would help repay the money in any way possible.


#4- To cap off October, we learned that we would be saying goodbye to two of ARASHI's long-running variety shows. The iconic variety, VS ARASHI, along with the slightly less popular Arashi ni Shiyagare at the end of 2020. This was after the groups' announcement that they would be going on an indefinite hiatus following the conclusion of 2020. In a stroke of luck though, we won't be saying goodbye to the format of the shows, just their respective names, as VS ARASHI will be renamed to VS Tamashi in 2021 and will be hosted by ARASHI member Aiba Masaki.



(Main sources: hallyuplus.net, @OH_mes2 on Twitter, @globaltimesnews on Twitter, asianjunkie.com, soompi.com, @centnews1 on Twitter, @dramapotatoe on Twitter, @TrendingWeibo on Twitter, @loveshulinggg on Twitter, @cloverblossoms_ on Twitter, @sandysatoshi on Twitter, centkent.blogspot.com)


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NOVEMBER:
#1- In November, we saw a number of artists say goodbye to their respective groups or companies. EXILE's Atsushi announced that he would be graduating from the jpop super-group, EXILE following his final group single, "SUNSHINE" on the 16th of December. This announcement came just short of the groups' 20th anniversary. The artist revealed that the covid-19 pandemic, as well as just recently turning 40 made him re-evaluate his life and position in the group. Going forward Atsushi will be focusing on his solo career. Also in jpop, Denpagumi. inc announced that Eimi Naruse would be graduating from the group in February 2021. Moving on to Kpop a number of artists left their companies following the expiration of their respective contracts. Following his discharge from mandatory military service earlier this year, VIXX's N announced that he would not be renewing his contract with Jellyfish Entertainment, but would instead join 51K Company. Blue D also said goodbye to her company following the expiration of her contract with YG Entertainment and will hopefully move on to even better opportunities. In what came as a questionable, but expected move from the Chinese members of WJSN—Meng Meiqi, Cheng Xiao and Wu Xuanyi removed WJSN from the display name of their Weibo accounts. That same day, Meng Meiqi & Wu Xuanyi, who are also former members of Rocket Girls 101, also removed their "Rocket Girls 101 member" status from their Weibo verifications. Could this mean the end of OT13 as we know it?


#2- We also saw a number of artists and celebrities announce that they would be going on hiatus from the entertainment industry due to various reasons. Jung Hyungdon would be taking time off from the entertainment industry following a relapse in the comedian's anxiety disorder. Ahn Jiyoung of BOL4 would also be halting her activities due to an anxiety disorder and poor health. Meanwhile, Suga of BTS took a break from BTS following recent corrective shoulder surgery undertaken in order to prepare for the idols eventual mandatory military service. Two artists were forced into indefinite hiatuses due to controversy. First, Johnny's Jimusho announced that Kondo Masahiko would be indefinitely suspending activities following confirmation that the artist committed an extra-marital affair. Meanwhile, OnlyOneOf announced that Mill would be halting activities with the group following a violation of an unrevealed group rule.


#3- More details were revealed in November about the Produce 101 vote manipulation scandal, of which a total known number of twelve trainees were forcibly booted from the show due to behind-the-scenes manipulation. The list most notably included two former PLEDIS trainees, Nu'est's Baekho and former AFTERSCHOOL member Lee Kaeun, the latter of whom had not left the top 11 until the show's finale. Both trainees were thought to have guaranteed positions in their respective produce debut teams. Mnet later announced that they had completed compensation negotiations with some of the companies of the affected trainees, but not all. Following this announcement, PLEDIS stated that they had yet to receive contact from CJ ENM regarding compensation, but were glad that the truth regarding vote manipulation against Baekho had been released.


#4- Comedienne Park Ji-sun passed away alongside her mother on the 2nd of November. She was 35. Akira Kubodera, known for his roles in Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon & Kamen Rider passed away on the 13th of November. He was 43.


(Main sources:
@natalie_mu on Twitter, @theseoulstory on Twitter, @daramapotatoe on Twitter, @bluedupdates on Twitter, @dempa_translate on Twitter, @balloon_wanted on Twitter, @dalbitbangtan on Twitter, allkpop.com, @doramaworld on Twitter, @OHmes_2 on Twitter, nhk.or.jp, @yonhaptweet on Twitter)



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DECEMBER:
#1- The biggest news of December was the spread of Covid-19 throughout the South Korean Entertainment industry. This began when UP10TION's Bitto had found out that he had tested positive for the virus. The idol had previously attended two music shows—SBS MTV THE SHOW & Inkigayo—prior to his diagnosis. As a precaution, SBS MTV THE SHOW cancelled their December 1st broadcast and all staff and artists that had been in attendance were tested for the virus. Ultimately, only UP10TION member, Kogyeol had positive results. Later in the same week, it was also announced that EVERGLOW's Yiren & Shiyeon had also contracted the virus after they had been in contact with someone who had tested positive. Both groups went into 14-day self-isolation in order to recover from the diagnosis. Later in the month, Chungha had been tested for the virus only for a clerical error to return her results as negative. Following this, the artist had attended a birthday party for Gu9udan's Kang Mina alongside DIA's Chaeyeon & WJSN's Yoo Yeonjung. She also met with TWICE's Sana following the event. It later turned out that she had tested positive for Covid-19 therefore she would be postponing her comeback and going into self-isolation in order to recover. Everyone who she came into contact with thankfully tested negative for the virus & it was later announced that WJSN's Yeonjung, Gu9udan's Kang Mina & TWICE's Sana would be going into self-isolation as a precaution.

#2- Following the Mnet Asian Music Awards on the 6th of December, it came to light that the staff at the MAMA's had been treating the attending idols unfairly by having them wait in cars in the parking lot. They also had to use outdoor portable toilets rather than those accessible inside the venue and perform in an unsafe environment with fine dust from construction. On the other hand, actors and actresses presenting the awards were given waiting rooms despite the fact that the ceremony is held in order to celebrate the achievements of idols, not actors.

#3- In what barely comes as a surprise at this point, another R1SE member was caught up in a cheating scandal earlier this month. This marks R1SE's 4th scandal in under three months. R1SE's youngest member, Yan Xujia was accused of cheating by an ex-girlfriend. One of his accusers was revealed to be an actress named Pan Chengran after she accidentally used her primary account when exposing the idol. It was later revealed that Pan had been dismissed by her agency after speaking out against Yan. Yan Xujia later apologized for causing hurt and outright denying all accusations and wrongdoing. He went on to claim that he had spent the past few days reflecting on his actions stating that he is not mature enough in matters of love and promises to focus on work and school for the foreseeable future. Prior to the idol addressing the issue his fan club stated their intention to refuse to support the idol until he or his agency speak out regarding these claims. Netizens, however, do not believe his side due to a large amount of evidence that a number of his accusers provided, following their initial Weibo posts.


(Main sources: 38jiejie.com, @TrendingWeibo on Twitter, @dramapotatoe on Twitter, @balloon_wanted on Twitter, kpopstarz.com, @OH_mes2 on Twitter, @WJSNDAILY on Twitter, @theseoulstory on Twitter, @sbsmtvtheshow on Twitter, @leexiaokr on Twitter, @EVERGLOW_STAFF on Twitter)


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BY BEEFY

Throughout early December, our team gathered in order to select songs that, according to us, best represented 2020! Although we tried not to be biased by only choosing our favourites, we know that no such list can be totally unbiased. In the end, we chose twelve songs (out of multiple suggestions) for Beefy to feature in this article. We also chose to include songs from late December 2019 that didn't have the chance to be selected in last years' article. We hope you will enjoy our selection, and in case your favourite song didn't make it into the list, don't hesitate to promote it in the comments!

#1- RED VELVET / PSYCHO (DECEMBER 23, 2019)
We start off with Red Velvet's "Psycho", which we were, unfortunately, unable to appreciate on last year's round-up. Red Velvet finished off their fun and unique trilogy series 'The Reve Festival' with a far more mellow track in the form of December's "Psycho". Sticking to their concept, the group showcased their 'velvet', or R&B, side with the release and we absolutely adored it. It appears we weren't the only ones who adored it, however, which is shown by the song's amazing charting record. We can definitely say that "Psycho" set a high bar for releases in 2020, and deserved every ounce of praise it's received since its release!






#2- YOUNHA / WINTER FLOWER (FEBRUARY 25)
Our favourite release from the beginning of the year is a January release called "Winter Flower", which features BTS' RM! This track starts off calm, perfectly fitting the sombre feelings that come with winter, before exploding into a triumphant and fiery power ballad. This explosion can also be seen in the lyrics which touch on mental health, telling us that we'll always have someone by our sides and we should push through these tough times like a flower blooming in the winter. The lyrics in RM's raps are equally as powerful, as he shares the message that though everyone around you will devalue your struggles and tell you that they're not important, you can still grow and learn from them. This particular release can be used as a form of encouragement through these times, which is why we've decided to put a spotlight on it.






#3- APINK / DUMHDURUM (APRIL 13)
Apink blessed us once again with another hit; the group continuing to develop their new mature and refined sound with the addictive April release "Dumhdurum". We've never heard such a bright and happy post-breakup song, and it added some necessary spice to our lives earlier this year. With an ultra-catchy chorus and vibrant verses, we were instantly pulled into this track; and based on experience, once you listen to it, it's extremely hard to stop. Thanks to this release, Apink maintain their status as our second generation queens, and we are looking forward to what 2021 has to bring for the group!






#4- DAY6 / ZOMBIE (MAY 11)
Day6 returned with the track "Zombie", its main subject being the monotony of daily life and routine. The song starts out slow and sombre, however, it suddenly gains a lot of life and energy contradictory to its title. With its powerful instrumental and compelling vocals, we are able to enjoy every single listen of the song. This release's lyrics also speak to a variety of people, whether it be those tired of the quarantine life and routine, or those with depression. Due to this, in some ways, it feels like "Zombie" has defined the feelings or emotions that may have hit us all this year. All of the song's elements come together to make a truly impactful release; so if you haven't listened to it already, what are you waiting for?






#5- OH MY GIRL / DOLPHIN (MAY 16)
The month of April also brought us Oh My Girl's refreshing and charming b-side "Dolphin", which gained quite a bit of love alongside the album's title track "Non-Stop". The song is catchy, cute, and is simply a fun listen from beginning to end. This sound and lyrics are exactly what we needed this year to brighten up some of our darker days, and we are happy the group blessed us with it. Due to a lot of exposure from popular singers like IU, absolutely adorable performances from the group themselves. and the MC duo featuring TXT's Soobin and Oh My Girl's Arin, we've all come to know and appreciate the song. We'll surely have "da da da da...." stuck in our heads for days or even years to come!
(*Note: The song was released April 27, 2020. MV released May 15, 2020.)







#6- SEVENTEEN / LEFT & RIGHT (JUNE 22)
Just as we entered summer, Seventeen released the June track "Left & Right", which showcased a laidback and quirky sound from the group, something yet to be seen from them conceptually. With a fun and creative music video, an unforgettable chorus, and a TikTok-esque choreography, the song was instantly a charmer and mainstay on our dance playlists. The track also serves as a little cheer session, encouraging us to let go, party, and dance a little bit! Though it was surrounded by a bit of controversy, "Left & Right" proved to be the perfect track to get us out of our seats and dance along with its easy-to-follow choreography. It looks like Seventeen achieved their goal of making us let loose and have some fun!






#7- DAOKO / KAERITAI (JULY 3)
Soloist Daoko crafted a creative masterpiece in the form of her new release "Kaeritai". The song touches on the many issues with work culture, including the feeling of wanting to return home and enjoy some time to yourself and the dread of having to return the next day. It also touches on the work culture that exists within a school environment, making this release relatable to all demographics. Overall, we were treated to commentary on today's society in a very unique and entertaining manner; thanks to the song's dynamic verses filled with expressive vocals and charismatic rapping. The music video adds another layer of enjoyability with Daoko in eye-catching attire (which she styled herself), bright animation, and a bit of tongue in cheek humour with one particular scene. So, because this song was an absolute treat from beginning to end, it has made its way right onto our list.
(*Note: The song was released June 29, 2020. However, the music video dropped on July 3, 2020.)







#8- SIS / NIGHT SURFING (JULY 15)
Newly debuted CPOP group SiS released their third single "Night Surfing" in the heart of summer. This groovy EDM track instantly brightened up our day with its catchy 'to be or not to be' chorus and vibrant, vocally driven verses. The song's lyrics hit rather close to home, as it speaks on the complex feelings that come with taking the first unsure step into something new and not caring about what others may think of your decision. With each year, this feeling becomes more and more relatable, which is why this song can be seen as a form of motivation for taking that first step out. Along with a music video that perfectly reflects this theme, SiS has put out a phenomenal track. We can not wait to see what else is in store for the group in the new year!
(*Note: The song was released on July 10, 2020. While the MV dropped on July 15, 2020.)







#9- BTS / DYNAMITE (AUGUST 21)
BTS continued to live up to their title as international superstars with their explosive crossover hit "Dynamite". The group released this ever-so-catchy, disco-influenced track in late August. This particular release stood out amongst their discography due to the fact it is entirely in English. "Dynamite" is exactly the pick me up we needed later into the year, when exhaustion began to take its toll. With its upbeat and funky nature, no one could resist cracking a little smile and humming along. This was also reflected in the song's charting dominance all around the world; it appears everyone had "Dynamite" on repeat at some point this year. Are you still listening to this hit?





#10- WEKI MEKI / COOL (OCTOBER 8)
Weki Meki showed us a new side of themselves with October's release, "Cool", which perfectly embodies its title. This marked the group's third comeback of the year with their previous releases including "Dazzle Dazzle" and "Oopsy", both displaying their signature quirks and providing fun listens for bored kpop fans. However, "Cool" set itself apart with its sleek and vogue-like sound, with aloof model visuals to match; this totally won over our hearts! Upon first listening to the track, you may feel that it's too minimalistic or simple, but that definitely built into the song's strength and charm! Make sure to keep a close eye on Weki Meki's tracks next year, because we are confident they'll deliver again!






#11- GFRIEND / MAGO (NOVEMBER 9)
Gfriend went head-on into the retro trend with November's release being the euphoric disco track "MAGO", completing their witchy trilogy series '回'. This release honed in all our desires to go out, let loose, and party during these days of quarantine. Thanks to "MAGO", we can now dance and party in our rooms all night long with no fear of any judgment, just like its lyrics instruct us. This release received a lot of love from fans and non-fans alike, even landing itself on Billboard's top kpop releases of the year; which you can tell we full-heartedly agree with! So, have you done your daily duty and streamed "MAGO" today?






#12- TWICE - CRY FOR ME (DECEMBER 18)
We finish off the year with the surprise release of Twice's first digital single "Cry For Me". This track instantly grabbed our attention when the group performed the unreleased track at MAMA this year, and due to high demand, JYP released official audio. "Cry For Me" is exactly what we've been craving this year. With a dramatic flair and memorable chorus, the group was able to cement their places in our playlists in record time. Though we were unfortunately not blessed with a music video to go along with the track, its iconic lyrics definitely make up for this. We got many delightful lines such as "Make your rain fall, cry for me", "You really make me a mad girl", and the theatric finisher "I want you to die for me". Twice gave us one last taste of the amazing music quality 2020 has given us, and thanks to them, we are looking forward to what the new year brings us!



 
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BY NARA

Disclaimer: This portion was written in mid-December, our writer couldn't list all achievements and recap everything with perfect accuracy. We instead focused on compiling shortlists for this section. We would like to apologize if anything important is missing, and encourage you to provide information or corrections in the comments section!

BIGGEST ACHIEVERS

#1- BTS made history in Billboard charts as they earned their 5th Billboard 200 #1 with their latest album BE. They're the first non-English act to reach this milestone! Their title track 'Life Goes On' launched at #1 on Billboard Hot 100. 'Life Goes On' is their third song overall and their first non-English song on the Billboard Hot 100.

#2- TWICE's 'Eyes Wide Open' entered #72 on Billboard 200 and this is their highest entry on the chart! This surpasses 'More & More', which entered at #200! They join BLACKPINK and 2NE1 as the only Korean female acts to make this entry. Congrats to them on this massive achievement!

#3- LiSA became the first female artist in 16 years to top both the Oricon single and album chart in the same week with 'Homura' and 'LEO-NINE' respectively. This is the first time since Utada Hikaru in 2004. Congrats on achieving this feat!

#4- BTS earned a GRAMMY nomination for Best pop duo/group performance for their hit single 'Dynamite'. They're the first Kpop group to ever receive the GRAMMY nomination! Congratulations to them!


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NOTABLE AWARD WINNERS
#1- BTS won the Favorite Duo or Group - Pop/Rock award for the second year in a row at the 2020 AMA (2020 American Music Awards). Congratulations to the group for such an astounding achievement!

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NOTABLE WINS ON MUSIC SHOWS
#1- Congrats to Pentagon, Cravity, LOONA and SF9 who received their 1st ever music show win this year! At SBS The Show, Pentagon took their first win with 'Daisy' and Cravity had their first win with 'Flame'. At M Countdown, LOONA got their first win with 'So What' and SF9 took their first-ever win with 'Good Guy.'

#2- TWICE won their 100th music show in June with their title track 'More & More.' They subsequently received their 101st music show win on the same week, thereby breaking the record for the most number of music show wins by a girl group!

#3- BTS 'Dynamite' took its 20th music show win and their 8th win in a row on Show! Music Core! They continued to win even more music shows afterwards.

#4- IZ*ONE's 'Secret Story of the Swan' achieved a music show clean sweep, meaning that they won all 6 music show awards in the same week! Congrats to them on this feat!


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BIGGEST ALBUM SALES
#1- BTS has surpassed 15 million cumulative album sales in Hanteo, and they are the first artist to do so. A huge congratulations to them!

#2- BLACKPINK's "THE ALBUM" has sold over 1.2 million copies, and the group became the first girl group to have over 1 million sales for an album! Congrats on this notable achievement!

#3- TWICE became the 1st girl group to sell over 10 million copies of albums overall! Congrats to them!

#4- Congrats to BTS for their album 'Map of the Soul:7' which has achieved many milestones: platinum certification in the US, first-week album sales record broken by selling over 2.6 million copies on its first day, and debuting at #1 in France and Germany in their official charts (and becoming the first Asian act to do this). Also, it surpassed 1 billion streams on Spotify, their 5th album to achieve this!

#5- BTS' 'Mic Drop' has been certified Silver in the UK after selling over 200K units. It is their third single after 'Boy With Luv' and 'Dynamite' to receive a Silver certification!


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PERFECT ALL KILLS
#1- Refund Sisters (consisting of Uhm Junghwa, Lee Hyori, Jessi, & Hwasa) is the first girl group to surpass 100 Perfect All-Kill hours with their release 'Don't Touch Me'! Congratulations to the group for this amazing achievement. May they continue to release future music!

#2- Zico's 'Any Song' has surpassed 100 hours with Perfect All Kill. Congratulations to Zico for another hit song!

#3- IU's 'I Give You My Heart', an OST for the drama Crash Landing On You has achieved a Perfect All Kill. Congratulations to IU on this achievement!


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NOTABLE YOUTUBE MILESTONES
#1- Congrats to BLACKPINK for achieving over 50 million subscribers on YouTube. They're now the second most subscribed artist worldwide!

#2- Kenshi Yonezu is the 1st Japanese artist to have over 5 million subscribers on YouTube! Have you had a chance to subscribe to him yet?

#3- BLACKPINK continued to set records! For this year's release, 'How You Like That' scored the biggest premiere in Youtube history when 1.65 million fans tuned in to watch the music video. Also, it became the most viewed music video on Youtube in the first 24 hours with over 74.8 million views! Their collaboration with Selena Gomez with 'Ice Cream' reached 400 million views on YouTube and their title track 'Lovesick Girls' from their first studio album 'The Album' reached 200 million views! 'BOOMBAYAH' and 'Kill This Love' both reached over 1 billion views on YouTube and 'As If It's Your Last' surpassed 900 million views!

#4- Congrats to BTS for reaching 1 billion YouTube views for their smash hits 'Boy With Luv' and 'DNA'! They also set a record for this year's summer hit 'Dynamite' which surpassed 101.1 million YouTube views on the first day, making history as the most viewed video within the first 24 hours! It eventually reached 600 million views as of November; as of December, it has over 715 million views! Their notable YouTube records from before 2020 include 'Fake Love' which reached a whopping 800 million views and 'Dope' which surpassed 600 million views!

#5-Congrats to TWICE for their milestones for MVs released this year as their hits 'More & More' and 'I Can't Stop Me' have surpassed 200 million and 100 million YouTube views respectively!

#6- Other releases this year that reached 100 million views include IU's 'eight' featuring Suga and NCT U's 'Make A Wish (Birthday Song)'. Congrats to both acts!

#7- Congrats to Stray Kids whose MV for 'Back Door' surpassed 80 million views, and to Pentagon whose MV 'Daisy' reached the 20 million views milestone!


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OTHERS
#1- TWICE surpassed 2 billion streams on Spotify, and they're the fastest Korean artist to reach this milestone (in 956 days)!

#2- 'BLACKPINK's 'Kill This Love' has surpassed 400 million streams on Spotify! Congrats to the girls!

#3- TXT's official Twitter account has surpassed 6 million followers in just 720 days! Congrats to the monster rookies!

#4- Jessica Jung's debut novel Shine debuted at #5 on the New York Times bestseller Young Adult Hardcover list! Hope you got the chance to read it!


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Awards Team: Hey there, H+ users! We, the Awards Team, would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! Although this year surely wasn't a great year overall, I think we did well in our little H+ corner of the internet. Big thanks to everyone who participated in this year's Awards Change Season, as well as the many other awards-related threads. So here's to a better year and even more beautiful badges added to the system in 2021! Stay safe and have a fun holiday season.

Events Team: Hey guys! On behalf of the entire Events Team, we wish you a Happy New Year! We want to thank everyone who participated in all the events and games we hosted this year. With 6 major events hosted and many games, needless to say, 2020 was an exciting year for the forum. Now, in real life, 2020 was a pretty awful year; but the good news is, it's finally over! Now t2021 is here, and I hope all of you stay safe and happy in this new year, and like always, we will keep you entertained with more events!

Graphics Team: Hi, Hallyu+! As one of the new staff leads appointed this year, I want to thank you all for accepting us so well and giving us encouragement as we manage our teams. Without users supporting us, we would have had a much harder job. On a more graphics-related note, every time I see a user saying how they like a new theme, slider, or OP design, it makes me so happy that we as a team have been able to make this site look smart and visually pleasing. If you're interested in joining our team, we're always looking for new members! Finally, I want to thank my team. To Mocha and Mina, our current team members, to Jindori, who was part of my team's first line-up, and to Llama and Aki, who are always there when we need extra hands - THANK YOU! I hope I've been alright to work with since I've become the lead and I'm looking forward to working with you guys more and more!

Shop+ Team: Hello, H+ users! The Shop+ team would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! We would also like to thank all users who have added great items to our shop and hope 2021 will bring even more items for all of you to enjoy. Another huge thank you to my team members, Baymax and yooamygirls, who both have been incredibly helpful this past year. Stay safe, everyone!

Social Media Team: Hello, Hallyuplussers, and Happy New Year! We finally made it to the end of 2020, and I have to say that I'm glad it's over! Now with that said, the team would like to give our thanks to all the love and support that our fellow users have shown us in 2020 and hope that we can continue to publish quality content well into 2021 as well. We would also like to thank all the users who gave us quality content to publish on our Twitter account, as well as all of our SNS team members (past and present) who worked hard to feature as many users as we were able to. We hope to have an even better year in 2021 and look forward to having even more great interactions this year as well!

Public Relations Team - Video Division: Hello, H+! Thank you all for giving a warm welcome to the new PR team. As part of the video unit, I cannot wait to bring fun content to you guys. Let's have a great time together in 2021, and please look forward to our YouTube channel!

Public Relations Team - Outreach Division: Hello From the PR+ Team. As Hallyu+ newest, we are so excited for 2021 and all the new features we are going to bring to the forum. We hope to make this your second home like it is to many of us! We know this year hasn't been easy for anyone, but we want to thank each and every person for being strong and ending 2021 on a strong note! Thanks to everyone who participated in the Hallyu+ first PR event and we hope to bring you more fun and amazing events in 2021! Also, give a big hand to Chococo and Arandomfan for working so hard to make this team come alive! Can't wait to share more with you in 2021 and we hope that you have a wonderful year coming up!

Translations Team: Happy New Year, Hallyu+! We are so thankful for the love and support you have given to our team members, and we appreciate every comment and interest you have shown toward our translated work! Our team has so many great things planned, and we hope to welcome many more team members in the coming years. Like many of you, we are excited to move forward from this challenging year, and we welcome what 2021 will bring us next!


Community Manager/Moderators: Happy New Year, H+! Thank you all for sticking with us for one more year. At times when online communities are more important than ever to all of us, I hope we have been of some comfort to you. We're thankful that we often see you guys talk about how comfortable and friendly H+ is—this is the most important to us and it couldn't have been achieved without the contributions of every single one of our users. In the year to come, the mod team will keep working hard to become more reliable and efficient in helping the community grow in a clean and safe environment. Stay tuned for an improved H+ in the future and stay safe always!


This brings us to the end of your journey through 2020! We would like to say our thanks to you for clicking on this thread and spending a little bit of your time with us. We're preparing more surprises for you and they are coming very soon, so please anticipate and keep an eye on our Social Media section.

A special thanks to all of our press members who gave all of their thoughts and opinions and to our ICYMI writers who helped resurrect this format from the brink of disbandment multiple times throughout the year. We also welcome any (constructive) feedback about this article or our team in general, so feel free to reach out to us. Our team of writers (Polaris_Tae, Nara, and Beefy), proofreaders (Stannie, Akidoki, fleur de lune & lex.), and graphic designer (yerm), had spent weeks preparing this article and would like to thank you for sticking with us throughout 2020 as well!

You may have noticed that our "Best Contributors" section from last year did not make an appearance in this thread. This is due to the fact that we've sadly stopped counting tweets from trophies since mid-2020. But don't worry—we have a special raffle for those of you who have stuck with us throughout 2020! All you have to do is leave a comment and tell us what you most liked/disliked about 2020 and you'll go in the running to win 150,000 + 1 Ørb each. The top three winners will be determined by RNG, so don't forget to drop us a comment!






GFX BY @yerm
PROOFREADERS @AStan, @AKID❀KI, @fleur de lune, @lex.
FEATURED ARTISTS Watanabe Mayu (ex-AKB48), Young K (Day6), Yoojung (Weki Meki), Jungkook (BTS), Hyojung (OMG), Suho, Irene, Nino (ARASHI) & Hayoung (Apink)

2020 YEARLY ROUNDUP
 

Stannie

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All you have to do is leave a comment and tell us what you most liked/disliked about 2020 and you'll go in the running to win 150,000 + 1 Ørb each. The winners will be determined by RNG, so don't forget to drop us a comment!

^Since nobody is reading instructions, give me the coins, Polaris :fab:

I think it's obvious what the bad things about 2020 are, but I'm also incredibly thankful for a lot of things. I feel like this year has made me realize, more than ever, how fragile life can be and how we simply have very little control of many things. That in turn makes me cherish my loved ones and just most things more. Going into 2021 I'll definitely never take for granted "mudane" things like going to the grocery without care, hanging out with friends, etc, anymore.

Happy New Year, everyone!
 
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thank you as always to the staff team you give us your best to deliver a complete recap even at the end of the year, we're so lucky to have you guys running this forum :yagotit:
i hope this new year will be a new beginning for all of us,
Happy new year everyone! :shablob:
 

UMJI MOODS

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The amount of hard work that the team put in to this. You all are a wonderful group. Much love and respect to you.

2020 is not going to be at the top of my all time years list for obvious reasons, but there are still highlights here and there. Welcome to 2021.​
 

Dragon of the West

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Lovely way to close off the year. Thank you Polaris and the rest of the ICYMI team!


2020 has had it's fair share of drawbacks and personally, I hate how it has led to the closing of most gyms here in my country especially when I really got into working out towards the end of 2019. They're slowly opening back up so I guess that's one thing I can look forward to next year.

Saying that, one thing I'm grateful for in 2020 is that being stuck indoors has made me spend even more time with my family which is always a great thing. Also, my friends and I have made a habit of hopping onto video calls pretty much every other day for a couple of hours. In a year of social distancing, my bond with those closest to me has become stronger than ever.

Happy New Year everyone, and I hope that 2021 brings lots of joy and fulfilment to you all!
 
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Chu

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Awwww thank you ICYMI/SM team! You really do a whole lot. The GFX is so cute!

Thanks to the rest of the staff, it’s not an easy job but you’re out here doing this for free. We appreciate all of your hard work!

Happy New Year!!!

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Qoptyi

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Thanks as always to the ICYMI team! It's one of the best things of H+. I find it really helpful and interesting to learn about things I haven't heard about it. :)
 
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