ICYMI IN CASE YOU MISSED IT / JANUARY 11 - JANUARY 17

[Beefy]

JANUARY 11 - JANUARY 17


Hello HallyuPlussers and welcome to another week of ICYMI!!! This week we saw some great comebacks from (G)I-DLE & Victon as well as some exciting news related to the film and television divisions of the entertainment industry. we hope that you had a great start to 2021 over these past few weeks, and with that said let's get ready to jump into another amazing article!

BY BEEFY & POLARIS_TAE


MONDAY:
#1- Momoland's Nancy, unfortunately, had a photo taken without her consent spread through social media; thankfully MLD Entertainment acted quickly and shared that they will be taking decisive legal actions against those found sharing malicious images of the idol online. We are disgusted that this event has occurred and hope the culprits are punished accordingly.

#2- Chungha will be pre-releasing her single 'X' on January 19th, and will release her first full-length album Querencia a month later on the 15th of February! Sechskies announced that they will make their comeback through a project show titled Don't Look Back on January 22nd. Then the queen herself, IU, will also be releasing a new single ahead of her fifth full-length album on January 27th! Epik High shared the artists who will be appearing on their new album. They include former iKON member B.I, Woo Won Jae, G.SOUL (Golden), and Miso! Finally, GF Entertainment will be debuting their new seven-member boy group KINGDOM in February. Which future release are looking forward to the most?

#3- Sadly, the Japanese girl group CY8ER held their final live concert at Nippon Budokan on January 10th. The group was formed in 2017 by Rinahamu, a founding member of BiS, and recently released their last single and music video titled 'Toki o Tomete (Stop Time)'. We'll miss the group and wish all of the members the best with their future endeavours.

#4- Now for some news on variety shows, former Topp Dogg's P-Goon and RaiNia's Yumin will appear on TV Chosun's We Got Divorced, the divorcees were only married for six months. Despite last year's rigging controversy, MNET will be launched global auditions for their upcoming survival show Girls Planet 999, a joint project between Korea, China, and Japan. Will you be tuning into either show?

#5- Rookie boy group Enhypen announced that they are holding their first fan meeting 'EN-CONNECT' on February 6th and 7th! The fan meeting will be taking place at the BLUESQAURE Mastercard Hall, and you can find more information on weverse. We are really excited for this event!

#6- Supergroup SSAK3 has donated 100 million won of their profits from their activities to UNICEF! We are happy to see that they are using their money for such a charitable act!



TUESDAY:
#1- CJ ENM has shared that they are reportedly in discussions with IZ*ONE member's agencies on the topic of a contract extension, they have currently not spoken to all the agencies yet. How do you feel about the possibility of a contract extension?

#2- Now for releases, Kangta released his new track 'Cough Syrup' on January 15th, and AleXa released her new single 'Never Let You Go' just a day before on January 14th! BerryGood will finally be making their comeback on January 19th with their fourth mini-album UNDYING LOVE; while three days later on January 22nd, soloist Yang Da Il will be releasing his second full-length album Our Joys and Sadnesses! Then Colde will be making his comeback with the mini-album '이상주의 (idealism)' on January 25th, and just a day later on January 26th, Dreamcatcher will be releasing their sixth mini-album Dystopia: Road to Utopia! THE BOYZ will be releasing their first full-length Japanese album Breaking Dawn on March 17th. The legendary voice actress and singer Megumi Hayashibara will release the BEST ALBUM on March 30th to celebrate her 30th anniversary!

#3- We have quite a bit of news about the world of drama and variety! We start with Weki Meki's Yoojung joining the cast of SBS' Plus beauty variety show Trend Record 2 beginning on January 22nd! Then, Ock Joo Hyun and Park Seri will be joining the cast of the new SBS Pilot variety show AI vs Human, which will pit humans against robots in multiple categories to see if there's a noticeable difference. We finish off variety with the news that actor Joo Won and soloist Ivy will appear on Knowing Bros! Later, we also learned that Lovelyz' Yoo Jiae would make her acting debut in the SBS drama 거울의 방 (Mirrors room). The drama will premiere on March 11th! The upcoming KBS drama, Daebak Real Estate confirmed its leads in Jang Na Ra and CNBLUE's Yonghwa. Finally, the cast members from the hit drama Penthouse held a special broadcast sharing behind the scene stories and more!

#4- Former 4MINUTE member Heo Gayoon has signed an exclusive contract with Management Redwoods. This contract will focus on her acting career. We are looking forward to what this will bring for her!

#5- VIXX's Ravi will be holding an online fan concert 'RAVI'S ROOM' on January 30th. Speaking of concerts, BiS announced the dates for their upcoming tour 'KILLING IDOLS TOUR'! This will have the group travelling all over Japan until early February, but that's not all as the group also announced their new EP, KILLING IDOLS will be released on February 24th! We're looking forward to both parties' future events!

#5- Ex-Baby V.O.X member Shim Eunjin and actor Jeon Seung Bin registered their marriage on January 12th! We congratulate the lovely couple!

#6- Seventeen made a guest appearance on NBC's The Kelly Clarkson Show on January 13th! Were you able to catch their performance?

#7- FANTAGIO shared that ASTRO's Cha Eunwoo has received many CF offers since the airing of True Beauty. The idol received a spike in popularity on Instagram too thanks to the drama recently reaching 13 million followers. We are happy to see that the drama has brought so much attention to the idol!

#8- Dalcomsoft announced that Superstar Pledis will end its service and shut down on February 26th. It's unfortunate to see the app go and will miss it dearly.

#9- Former Girl's Day member Hyeri's personal YouTube channel has surpassed 1 million subscribers! We congratulate her on such a fantastic achievement! We'll continue with social media related news as Monsta X's Shownu has officially opened a personal Instagram account! Check out the linked thread and follow him ASAP!



WEDNESDAY:
#1- Soloist HYNN will be making her comeback on January 21st with her new single '그대 없이 그대와'; and Juice=Juice will be releasing their 14th single 'Ganbarenai yo / DOWN TOWN' on March 24th, the track will be a cover of 'Down Town' by the Sugar Babe! SF9's Chani will release an OST titled 'Longing' for the TVN drama True Beauty. We are looking forward to all of these releases!

#2- Unfortunately, VICTON's Han Seungwoo may not participate in group activities due to his health condition. We hope that his health will improve and that he can join his group again soon!

#3- CJ ENM is in hot water again after nCH ENtertainment accused the company of unfairly removing them from managing rookie group TOO. This is one of the reasons the group has been unable to make their comeback. Also, the company has not received payment for its services since August of last year. We hope this issue is resolved quickly and fairly!

#4- Let's see what's happening in the world of television. Takeuchi Miyu appeared on MBC Every1 South Korean Foreigners which aired on the 13th! Meanwhile, the thrilling second season to SBS drama Penthouse will be airing on February 19th, while the KBS' drama, Dear.M with Park Hye Soo and NCT Jaehyun will start broadcasting on February 26th! Finally, rising actor Jo Byung Gyu will reportedly be a male lead in the upcoming historical drama 어사조이뎐, the show will be airing in the second half of this year! Which show are you most looking forward to seeing?


#5- Actor Kim Young Dae was announced as the newest model for Samsonite Red. This title was previously held by Kim Soo Hyun, Lee Min Ho, Kim Woo Bin, and Lee Jong Suk. Meanwhile, T-ARA's Hyomin is the newest muse for cosmetic brand Abib! Continuing with the endorsement news, BLACKPINK's Jennie is the new model for Chum Churum Soju, she will be taking the title from Bae Suzy and represents a new chapter for the brand. We congratulate them all on gaining all of these new titles and opportunities!

#6- Lee Ye Rim, the daughter of entertainer Lee Kyung Kyu, will be getting married to football player Kim Young-Chan sometime in the second half of 2021. We congratulate the couple!



THURSDAY:
#1- Numerous artists announced a variety of comebacks on Thursday! CIX will be making their comeback with their 4th mini-album on the 2nd of February. Aiko will be releasing her 14th full album on the 3rd of March. 2PM has also announced that they will return to full group promotions after Junho completes his mandatory military service this March. We can't wait!

#2- TWICE have announced that they will hold an online CONNECT special live concert, 'TWICE in Wonderland' on the 6th of March. Meanwhile, YG Entertainment has revealed their intention to return their artists to M! Countdown after Treasure appeared on the music show for the first time in four years since the company-wide boycott in 2016!

#3- It was reported that SM C&C had signed Yang Sechan, Lee Jinho & Lee Yongjin to their label. We wish them the best in their future endeavours.

#4- Louie of Geeks is reportedly dating singer, U Sung-eun. They have apparently been a couple for the past two years. What are your thoughts on this couple?

#5- ARASHI's Ninomiya Kazunari has some fantastic news! He and his wife are expecting a child later this Spring. We congratulate him on this new addition to his family!



FRIDAY:
#1- We began Friday with the announcement that iKON's Bobby will be holding his first solo comeback in over four years. We can't wait!

#2- FNC Entertainment has revealed that Cherry Bullet's Yuju will not be attending the groups' upcoming comeback showcase after coming in contact with someone who tested positive for Covid-19. Thankfully, she has tested negative for the virus but will be self-isolating regardless.

#3- tvN's On & Off will be returning soon for a 2nd season and with this announcement comes the announcement of a new fixed cast! They shared that Choa, formerly of AOA, along with Uhm Junghwa & Sung Sikyung will be joining the show as their latest cast members! Meanwhile, it has been announced that Baek Jongwon will be guesting on an upcoming episode of Run! BTS as a collaboration with SBS Delicious Rendevous. Will you be tuning in to this upcoming episode?

#4- EXID's Hani has started her very own YouTube series, Hani-ani-Heeyeon through the OOTV YouTube channel. Have you subscribed yet?



SATURDAY:
#1- Now on to some exciting news! SM Entertainment has announced that they are searching for trainees for their upcoming boy group. They are looking for boys born between 2002 – 2008 to showcase their talents through their latest auditions! So if you think you've got what they're looking for, why not consider applying!

#2- Great news for Bong Joon-ho! He's received an appointment as the jury president for the 78th Venice Film Festival this September. We congratulate him on this exciting new opportunity!

#3- Takuya Eguchi, the voice behind GIVEN's Akihiko Kaji officially launched his solo music career! The singer/voice actor has signed a contract with the management agency, Kiramune and plans to release music in the future. We can't wait!

#4- The guitarist for Jannabi, Kim Dohyung, announced that he'd be enlisting in the military on the 26th of January. We're sad to see him go.



SUNDAY:
#1- Sadly, we learnt that Honey Popcorn has disbanded after the group member Nako took to Twitter to share the news. We wish each of the members the best of luck in their future endeavours.

#2- The January girl group member brand rankings were announced! BLACKPINK's Jennie took the top spot while Oh My Girl's Arin & fellow BLACKPINK member Jisoo too 2nd and 3rd positions respectively. Did your bias manage to rank on the list for January?

BY BEEFY


#1-(G)I-DLE - HWAA
(G)I-DLE is back with the fiery winter track 'HWAA' from their new mini-album I Burn. This release comes as a follow up to August's upbeat single 'DUMdi DUMdi Dumbdi'! The two tracks could not be any more different, 'HWAA' harnesses the cold and frigid nature of the winter season with a sprinkle of fire-like intensity, leaving behind the summery sound found in their last single. Soyeon, the group's charismatic main rapper, surprisingly starts the song off with beautiful and solemn vocals. This particular part creates the song's unique mood, and later the verses and pre-chorus add a further dramatic flair and overall atmosphere. The chorus is reminiscent of the group's track 'HANN', which swaps out something more traditional for a catchy vocal harmony repeating the phrase "hwaa", and it fits the song perfectly. The instrumental is one of the standout aspects of the track. It is a blend of a traditional and modern sound; this is done thanks to the successful incorporation of delicate flutes and percussion. We can fully understand the song's feelings once its lyrics are revealed; in them, the group sings about having to burn the cold, bitter feelings they once had and to let them be reborn. The song's title itself reflects this too with the stylized character '火花' which means anger or spark. I Burn is a fantastic album that showcases all of the group's many strengths and continues with a similar theme to "HWAA"; some personal favourite tracks include the upbeat and catchy 'Where Is Love' and the sorrowful 'Lost'. Overall, this was an interesting follow-up to 'DUMdi DUMdi' and showed yet another side of (G)I-DLE. We are looking forward to seeing what concept they'll take on next!





#2-TREASURE - MY TREASURE
Rookie boy group Treasure made their first comeback of the year with 'My Treasure' from their first full-length album, The First Step: Treasure Effect; we last saw the group in November with their single 'MMM'. With this new year, the group goes with a concept that is a complete 180 from 'MMM', 'My Treasure' is a light-hearted slightly groovy pop track. We are brought into the song by a soulful piano melody and simultaneously serenaded by Bang Yedam's honey-like vocals. The instrumental is light and rather basic, but its absolute grooviness makes it enjoyable and fun, and it takes an exciting turn in the second half during the rap portion. Here it takes on a deep trap beat that oddly enough fits right into the song, maintaining Treasure's quirky sound. The most memorable part of the release is its refreshing and endearing chorus. We are treated to a vocally driven and beat-drop-less one instead. 'My Treasure' is a feel-good song from its instrumental to its lyrics, which encourages listeners to cheer up and keep smiling through dark days! The album contains all of the group's previous singles such as 'Boy' and 'Orange'; with the addition of the long-awaited official audio release of 'Going Crazy' which appeared on the survival show YG Treasure Box two years ago. This album was simply a refreshing comeback that put a big smile on our faces. We're looking forward to seeing all the different sounds and concepts Treasure will be bringing to the table in the future!





#3-VICTON - WHAT I SAID
Victon released their first full-length album Voice: The Future is Now, with the title track 'What I Said'; making it half a year since June's 'Mayday'. Unfortunately, this album was delayed from its original December release date due to COVID-19 precautions, but thankfully we can start the year off with this new release! 'What I Said' is an energetic Latin-inspired pop track, that fully showcases the group's charismatic side. The verses are filled with an interchangement of the member's distinctive vocals and their main rapper Hanse's rapid and assertive raps. Once we enter the pre-chorus, the instrumental and vocals take on a lulling and playful manner before dropping us into an explosive chorus. The chorus is a two-parter, initially its an addictive beat drop with the repetition of "what I said" but it soon switches to vocals and doses us with yet another earworm. One noticeable thing about the instrumental is the ever-present sample of Pete Rodriguez's "Like It Like That" which is responsible for the song's Latin sound. Overall, 'What I Said' is an excellent dance track that will definitely be stuck in your head after just one listen! The album has a lot of variety. There's something for everyone; some recommendations include the bright 'Up To You' and 'Utopia' which is a solo by group member Lim Sejun. This comeback was well worth the wait, and we're looking forward to Victon's next release!





#4-LING CHAO - REBELLIOUS
ONER's Ling Chao celebrated his 20th birthday with the release of a brand new English-language album. The music video for which continues Hacker's storyline previously established in the "STRUCK" music video series. Further carrying on with their 19+ video series, 'Rebellious' is true to its name and is rebellious both in its sound and visuals. We see the artist live his life like a rebel without a cause by causing a mess wherever he goes. The song itself has a laidback nature where the artist acts defiantly through the track's vocals and instrumentals. The most remarkable aspect by far within this 'Rebellious' releases is instrumental. It is through this that the artist establishes the sassy EDM-dominant nature of the track! The song opens with various percussion hits that later develop and layer on top of each other to create an EDM-based instrumental. It is then during the chorus that it really picks up. The song is an instrumental driven song—rather than a vocally driven song—but that is by no means a bad thing! Despite Ling Chao not displaying his vocal prowess to the fullest in 'Rebellious', he instead gives us a look at his playful nature through the artists' annotation in specific words. When accompanied by the exciting instrumental, this tactic continues to draw up in deeper until we become even more obsessed with "Rebellious" promising to live a day in the life of ONER's Ling Chao by letting our inner rebel shine at least once in our lifetime!





#5- KANGTA - COUGH SYRUP
Kpop veteran Kangta released his new single 'Cough Syrup' through SM Station, this will mark four years since his last single 'Doll' and five since his last official release with 2016's 'Home' Chapter 1. This single was actually pre-released at the SMtown concert 'SMTOWN LIVE Culture Humanity' held on January 1st, and we are glad we finally have an official release! 'Cough Syrup' is a smooth r&b track that's sprinkled with piano melodies and maracas-like percussion. Its laidback nature aided by Kangta's unique and soothing makes it an extremely easy listen. The song has an interesting change in its bridge, here its structure diverges a bit, and we're met with a little musical breakdown, then Kangta lets his stunning vocals take centre stage. The outro to the track is also a standout as we can hear a brief moment of scat singing and one last vocal showcase. As for the lyrics, he sings about the painful emotions that come after a breakup, relating them to a bad cold or cough, as he begs for a distraction or in this case some "cough syrup". This is a lovely track that can soothe any broken heart. We highly recommend you give it a listen! We hope to see more releases from Kangta this year!





#6- SKE48 - KOI OCHI FLAG
SKE48 is back with their 27th single 'Koi Ochi Flag' which will releases officially on February 3rd. This particular release is extremely special as it is Jurina Matsui's—the group's centre and final first-generation member's—graduation single. The idol was heavily involved in many aspects of the new single album, from writing lyrics for two of the album's track to having her own solo song 'Memories ~Itsu no Hi ka Aeru Made~'! 'Koi Ochi Flag' is a funky and energetic single that instantly grabs your attention with a catchy chorus and groovy bassline. After immediately getting hit with this spirited chorus the song does not let up, maintaining this life throughout its entirety. We can still hear the funky bass throughout the verses, but it's paired with a lively guitar melody. Then we are once again hit with the explosive chorus which takes on new instruments such as strings and drums. The group delivers a little rap breakdown as the instrumental sans a simple drum drops out, which adds a bit of spice into the already impressive track. The song's sound perfectly reflects its lyrics, the girls sing about being so in love with someone that it becomes extremely obvious as if they have a flag over their heads, and encourage their crush to "take a shot". Everything about this song screams cuteness, and we enjoyed every single second of it. The single features all 68 members of SKE48, and as does the music video, which also makes references to different points in Jurina Matsui's career. 'Koi Ochi Flag' feels like a true send off to the iconic idol, and is completed by her thanking the audience at the very end of the music video. We will miss Jurina and look forward to what the future brings for her and SKE48!

BY NARA


#1- Congrats to TWICE as their music video for 'I Can't Stop Me' has surpassed 200 million views! Hope you had a chance to check out this bop!

#2- (G)I-DLE made a comeback this week and its title track 'HWAA' debuted #1 on Melon, Genie, and Bugs real-time charts! Have you checked out the song yet?

#3- The MV for BTS' Japanese track 'Lights'has surpassed 100 million views on YouTube! It's their 30th MV and 3rd Japanese MV to achieved this milestone. If you haven't checked it out yet, it's a beautiful song not to be missed!

#4- GOT7's latest (and possibly final) comeback still has something to celebrate as their MV 'Last Piece' has surpassed 30 million views on YouTube. Congrats to the group!

#5- BLACKPINK Jennie's hit track 'SOLO' surpassed 600 million views! Congrats to her for reaching this huge youtube milestone!

BY POLARIS_TAE

Shop+ fans, our team worked diligently again this week to provide even more great items for our users to purchase. Did you see something you liked added to the shop this week? If so, make sure to purchase them today!

This week, our Public Relations team announced that they had secured themselves their very first interview. For our first interview, they are set to interview Former Nine Muses member, Ryu Sera! Are you excited about the upcoming interview?

Our Translations Team was busy again this week fulfilling all of your lyric translation requests! Our Chinese translator Vanilla Cupcake blessed us with a translation to Chen Xiao's most recent release, 'Focus-X'.

In addition to this, we had four Chinese article translations as well! An article about the possible addition of a new international member to SM Entertainment's new girl group aespa; GOT7's struggle under the management of JYP & why each of the members have chosen not to renew; an article on (G)I-DLE's comeback with 'Hwaa' & how Yuqi feels having to sport her first short haircut since her debut! Finally, we had an article translation about the global consumption ranking of idol group fans.


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Hallyu+ is actively recruiting for staff. If you want to contribute to the forum's growth and join our amazing team, don't hesitate and apply now!
We are searching for new members for the following teams GFX, Public Relations - Video & Outreach Divisions, Translations and SM Team - Both Divisions.


At long last, this finally brings us to the end of another amazing article. We hope to see you again next weekend where we can debate just what was our favourite comeback of the week: Epik High or Yunho? Until then, we'll bid you adieu for one more week and remind you to drop a comment if anything in this article piqued your interest!







GFX BY @yerm
PROOFREAD BY @Polaris_Tae
FEATURED ARTISTS Ling Chao (ONER), Minnie (G IDLE), Sejun (Victon), Hyeri& Kangta​

 

[kimsguardian]

always pleasing to read all the recap from our lovely staffs.
thank you for your hardwork!

 

[UMJI MOODS]

Many thanks for another great review of the week.​

 

[demasta]

thanks for the updates

 

[Happy]

Thank you for the updates!

 

[anh]

thanks for the updates!