ICYMI IN CASE YOU MISSED IT / MARCH 1 - MARCH 7

[Kłapouchy]

MARCH 1 - MARCH 7


Hello again Hallyuplussers and welcome to another week's worth of In Case You Missed It. This week was busy as the Korean Entertainment industry continued to face backlash following various school violence accusations, as well as the ongoing licensing dispute between Kakao M and Spotify. We also saw a number of fantastic releases that you'll surely be adding to your playlist this week! Now with that said, let's jump into another great article!

BY BEEFY & POLARIS_TAE


MONDAY:
#1- Our week started off with quite the bummer with Spotify and Kakao M's music license dispute. Both parties released statements addressing the unfortunate situation. Spotify shared that their licensing agreement with the company expired; however, Kakao M quickly fired back claiming that Spotify simply chose not to renew with them despite their request to. How are all our fellow Spotify users handling this KPOP drought?

#2- Former DSP employees chimed in on the ongoing controversy involving April and their former group member Hyunjoo. In their statements, they claimed that the idol was not giving it her all, thus resulting in tension between the group members. DSP Media released its official statement addressing the idol's brother's allegations, which claimed that Hyunjoo's health condition put stress on the group members and negatively affected the group. Later, DSP Media released another statement addressing Hyunjoo's friend's accusations, the company explained every single claim from their perspective; including the allegations about the members stealing Hyujoo's shoes and tumbler and Chaewon dating their manager at the time.

#3- As for releases, Sakurazaka46 will be releasing their second single "BAN" on April 14th! Voice actress Rie Takahashi, known for the voice of Emilia from Re:Zero and the idol unit Earphones, will be making her solo debut! Continuing with debut-related news, C9 Entertainment has opened the account 'C9ROOKIES' for their upcoming boy group. We are looking forward to all of these future releases and debuts!

#4- It was shared that INFINITE's Sunggyu will not be renewing his contract with Woollim Entertainment following his contract expiration on March 6th. However, he will be releasing one last album with the company. We wish him the best with his future company!

#5- SILENT SIREN and PoppinParty will once again be going head to head in a battle of the bands, 'NO GIRL NO CRY -Round 2' will be held on March 27th at Saitama's Metlife Dome! The groups held round one of this event two years ago, and even released a single together titled "NO GIRL NO CRY"! We are excited about this future event!

#6- Apink will be holding an online exhibition and pop store 'Pink Carnival' from March 3rd to 28th; which will feature content from debut till now and 110 pages of behind-the-scenes content! Will you be attending?

#7- Astro's MJ will be the new host for 'Fact In Stars' this upcoming season! We are excited to watch him on the show!

#8- Boy group Onlyoneof announced that their official name is "lyOn" which is a play on the word "lion"! Do you like the name?

#9- Momoland's Jane has opened a personal YouTube Channel! Make sure to click the linked thread and go subscribe to her ASAP!



TUESDAY:
#1- Shiroma Miru announced that she will be graduating from NMB48. A graduation concert will be held sometime during the summer, and to watch her full announcement speech please check out the linked thread! We are sad to see her go after so many years, but wish her the best with all of her future endeavours!

#2- We have more debut news! Spire Entertainment released a mysterious teaser for their new boy group Omega X, that will debut on Match 15th! On the same day, Rain's new seven-member boy group Ciihper will be making the debut with the track "안꿀려". Then C9 Entertainment confirmed that Produce X 101's Keum Donghyun will be a member of their upcoming boy group! We can wait for all of these upcoming debuts!

#3- FNC Entertainment shared that all the members of SF9 have renewed their contracts! Continuing with contract news, Lena Park has signed an exclusive contract with Bonboo Entertainment; this company is home to entertainers like Choo Sunghoon, Yano Shiho, Kim Donghyun, and Hwang Kwanghee. Wish them all success with their companies!

#4- Sadly, Forest Network announced that the boy group Seven O'CLock officially disbanded on March 2nd. We wish all of the members the best with their future endeavours!

#5- April's makeup artist and former hairstylist shared statements refuting the bullying allegations against the group. Just as mentioned earlier, they share Hyunjoo's condition put a strain on the group and that most of the allegations were a misunderstanding.

#6- Starship Entertainment announced that Soyou will make a comeback in mid-March, it was also shared that Lee Hyori will be participating in the release! We can not wait!

#7- Rising boy group ONF took home their first music show win on SBS MTV 'The Show' with their newest release "Beautiful Beautiful"! We congratulate the group on their new accomplishment!



WEDNESDAY:
#1- In continuation of the ongoing bullying allegations involving April, DSP Media has announced that will be taking legal action against Hyunjoo and her family. Another one of DSP's artist MIRAE's Khael past bullying allegations were resurfaced by netizens, the post was created in 2019 and claimed that the idol beat up classmates, made inappropriate sexual comments, and more.

#2- It looks like more groups will be making their debuts within the month. ANS Entertainment's new girl group MAJORS, which former ANS member Bian is a member of, will be making their debut on March 9th with the single album "The beginning of legend"! Then King Top Entertainment will be debuting their new boy group W.A.O (short for We Are the One) in late March with the track "On the Fire". Which debut are you looking forwarded to?

#3- NEWS' Kato Shigeaki won the 42nd 'Yoshikawa Eiji Literary Prize for New Writers for his novel 'Alternate'; this award goes to the most promising new writer who has released an amazing work. This particular award made history as Kato Sigeaki is the first idol to win the award since its founding! We congratulate him on such a monumental achievement!

#4- Former Hello! Project and Berryz Kobo member Shimizu Saki announced that she will be getting married to a non-celebrity, and retiring from show business upon turning thirty in November. We congratulate her on the news and hope her future will be bright!

#5- GroovyRoom established their own label 'AREA' which will focus on production with backing from Jay Park. However, they're still signed to H1GHER MUSIC as artists. We hope all goes well for their new company!

#6- Hyukoh has announced that they will be holding ' HYUKOH 2021 ONLINE WORLD TOUR [through love]' on March 27th on Interpark and March 28th Dice! Will you be attending?

#7- The rapper Kilagramz was arrested for possessing and using marijuana. Are you surprised?



THURSDAY:
#1- To start off on Thursday, we learnt of a number of upcoming scheduled releases! ASTRO and Exo's Baekhyun will both be making their comeback in March! Baekhyun will be releasing his album on the 30th of March while ASTRO will come back on an unspecified date within the month.

#2- Now onto the world of Japanese pop! THE COINLOCKERS will be releasing their 1st album Seishun to Bando wa, Tanoshikute Mendokusai on the 24th of March. Cinderella Sengen has announced the addition of two new members to their group line-up after Yume and Mei officially joined the group earlier this week! They also announced the debut of brand new uniforms for the group. Meanwhile, Schödinger No Inu's Rinon has announced her graduation from the group citing study conflicts.

#3- Singer-Songwriter ESNA has signed an exclusive contract with Prizm Entertainment. We look forward to seeing all of their future activities together!

#4- The school violence and bullying controversies continued into this week as well. Cube Entertainment has effectively put (G)I-DLE's Soojin on an indefinite hiatus. They have stated that she will stop all activities and that (G)I-DLE will continue on as five members for the time being. Later, as a reaction to the bullying controversy within APRIL, it has been revealed that APRIL's Naeun has had all of her advertisements halted.

#5- Kakao M and Kakao Page have announced that they have merged to create what will now be known as Kakao Entertainment. The company will operate under two divisions, M Company and Page Company focusing on different areas of business.



FRIDAY:
#1- We learned of been more upcoming debuts and releases on Friday. PUNCH will be making her return on the 10th of March with her second mini-album, Full Bloom. As for new debuts, A.CONIC's 7-member project group, W.O.W will be making their debut on the 8th of March. Three-member Japanese girls unit, iScream will be making their major debut under LDH Japan known for their management of E-GIRLS & EXILE. Meanwhile, the Miss Trot contestants ranking between 7-18 including Heo Chanmi, BESTie's Hyeyeon, Playback's Woolim and more have formed a project group titled 'Miss Rainbow'. The group is set to hold a special performance on Miss Trot 2 Gala Show next week while the top 14 are expected to appear across various shows including TV Chosun's 'Love Call Centre.'

#2- KQ Entertainment has announced the launch of their very own shop aptly titled KQ Shop. The shop will be selling goods for their groups including Block B, ATEEZ and more! While on the topic of music labels, GOT7's Bambam will be calling Abyss Entertainment their new home! We can't wait to see his future activities with this new company!

#3- EXO's Xiumin has announced that he will be holding an online fan meeting on the 27th of March on VLive titled 'ON: XIUWEET TIME'. Will you be tuning in to see him later this month?

#4- Brave Girls four-year-old sleeper hit 'Rollin' has been making its way to the top of the charts. Following their sudden increase in popularity, the group has announced that they will be returning to perform the song on music shows. We can't wait!

#5- After Jisoo became embroiled in a school violence controversy, it was announced that he has been cut from the cast of the KBS2 drama 'Where The Moon rises'. The broadcast company behind the drama has announced that they have cast Na Inwoo as his replacement.



SATURDAY:
#1- TWICE has announced that their upcoming Japanese single is set to release on the 12th of May. While on the topic of Japanese music, voice actress Kana Hanazawa will be releasing her new digital single, 'Magical Code' on the 31st of March. Are you looking forward to any of these releases?

#2- Scriptwriter Kim Eunhee along with BLACKPINK have been listed on the 54 Influential women who have had the greatest influence on global entertainment. The March brand reputation rankings for TV personalities has been released! Yoo Jaesuk has proven himself to be a king of variety by taking the top position, while Jang Doyeon & Kim Jongkook round out the top three positions. Congrats!

#3- Loco and Chungha have some exciting news for us this week! The two have been chosen as the new faces for the sportswear brand Reebok. We congratulate them on this new and exciting opportunity!

#4- ARASHI's Ninomiya Kazunari took to Instagram on Friday to announce that he and his wife had become parents to a baby girl. We congratulate the pair on the new addition to their family!



SUNDAY:
#1- There was no noteworthy news on Sunday.

BY BEEFY


#1- ATEEZ - FIREWORKS (IM THE ONE)
ATEEZ released a continuation of their 'Fever' series in the form of "Fireworks (I'm The One)" from their sixth mini-album Zero: Fever Part.2! Their previous release came in July of last year with the bombastic "INCEPTION" and "THANXX". For this release, group member Mingi is on hiatus due to his mental health, but he's still very much present in the track as his voice is still featured and he also took part in the lyric writing process! "Fireworks (I'm The One)" fits its name perfectly as it's an energetic EDM with trap beats song with an absolutely explosive chorus. The song actually starts off rather slow and its verses are smooth, and once it's paired with the member's charismatic vocals it makes a great listen. The pre-chorus is filled with rapid-fire rapping which builds up an immense amount of energy before dropping us into an equally as energetic chorus. Now for the chorus, it is a two-parter with it initially starting out with the deep repetition of the words "bulloriya" and "malliji ma". The second part goes into a lively and aggressive chanting of the phrase "playing with fire" and somehow takes on even more life. As mentioned earlier member Mingi along with leader Hoongjoong took part in writing the lyrics for this track. The lyrics talk about having your own inner passion or flame and being proud of it despite what others may think. Zero: Fever Part.2 has quite a bit of diversity despite its short run time, as it switches between soft and more in your face tracks. A personal favorite is the groovy and retro synth track "Take Me Home" which also has an English version on the album! Just like IKON, ATEEZ will also be taking part in April's Kingdom! So we looking forward to their growth throughout the rest of the year!





#2- SCANDAL - ETERNAL
In celebration of their 15 Year Anniversary, iconic band SCANDAL released their 25th single "Eternal"! This new release is an ambient pop-rock track, that steadily builds up energy until it reaches an explosion of emotion. The song starts out calm with the members' delicate vocals and fluttering synth in the instrumental; however, after a peaceful pause, we are met with the vibrant chorus. Here the song leaves behind its light instrumental and puts an assortment of instruments on full display, like a rhythmic guitar, loud percussion, and some strings far in the back. Paired with the vocalist's passionate vocals, it makes for a compelling and powerful chorus. "Eternal" does an amazing job at creating a soothing atmosphere and maintains it throughout its entirety, which makes it a very pleasant listen. The lyrics for this single are just as gorgeous as the song itself, I personally interpreted them as someone wanting to hold onto a precious memory for eternity, whether positive or negative feelings are attached to them. Which fits the theme of their anniversary year. "Eternal" is a beautiful track and we highly recommend that you give it a listen! We congratulate SCANDAL on such a monumental milestone, and look forward to many more years with the group!





#3- IKON - WHY WHY WHY
IKON made their first comeback of the year with the single "Why Why Why", the last release we heard from the group was a year ago with February's "Dive". This new track comes a month before the group is set to appear on MNET's Kingdom, airing April 1st; so it's nice to get one last taste of their music before they head off to the competition. For this new single, the group takes on a more soft and subdued sound compared to their previous track. The instrumental is rather sparse sans an ongoing mellow synth, deep percussion, and a guitar melody. Thanks to this the song takes on a melancholy and listless tone, which is a sound we haven't heard from the group in quite a long time. The chorus is very laidback and doesn't differ from its verses very much, but it's catchy and memorable nevertheless. We are also treated to an unexpectedly soft melodic rap from Bobby, which fits the song's energy and overall vibe perfectly. Speaking of parts, it seems that all members were able to shine with their own unique parts within the track! The accompanying music video is very visually pleasing as each member has their own little set, which depicts the negative feelings of a break up in physical form. For example, one member is shown in a room with rising water much like the phone he discarded in front of him. "Why Why Why" is a great track to start the year off with, and it has definitely grabbed our attention just in time for Kingdom!





#4- VERIVERY - GET AWAY
VERIVERY prove to be VIXX's younger brothers with their new release "Get Away" from the single album SERIES 'O' [ROUND 1: HALL]. The group completed their 'FACE' series last year with October's "G.B.T.B.", and are bringing in this new era with quite the bang. "Get Away" is a dark reggae-inspired pop track with playfully subdued verses and a dramatic chorus. For this release, the group returns to a more laid-back sound compared to previous tracks like "G.B.T.B." which had plenty of energy and intensity. The verses are made of taunting-like vocals and catchy lines paired with interesting vocal melodies like "tell me what you wanna do". As mentioned, before the chorus is a big contrast from its verse as it fully dives into the dramatics with the introduction of commanding percussion and a dark bass-line. This matches the phrase "gotta get away" as it feels like a desperate plea or declaration of their departure. The music video is a fun and confusing watch, it depicts the members' slow descent into chaos and violence at a mysterious dinner party; there's even attempted murder via a fork which was funny. They also make sure to include references, such as an extra bed and pair of shoes, throughout the video for their member Minchan who could not join them this comeback due to his mental health. There's something addictive about "Get Away" and you may unexpectedly find yourself looping the track on repeat! As VERIVERY transitions into a darker and more mature concept, we hope that they'll make sure to deliver plenty of bops like this new release!

BY NARA


#1- This week brings more fantastic news for Brave Girls! 'Rollin' has entered #4 on MelOn chart! Not only that, they now join WJSN & GIDLE as the only Girl Groups to top both Genie Realtime & Bugs Realtime Charts simultaneously in 2021! 'Rollin's reverse charting also made a positive effect on the group's latest comeback "we ride" which has also charted.

#2- Congrats to BTS Suga (aka Agust d) whose solo song from last year 'Daechwita' has reached 200 million views on YouTube! Don't forget to check out this scenic and symbolic MV!

#3-ATEEZ topped daily Hanteo sales chart with 'ZERO : FEVER part.2' which sold over 156K copies in one day! Congrats to them on their massive sales!

#4- April's 'Tinkerbell' finally debuted #3 on YouTube South Korea songs chart 5 years after its release! Huge cheers for its newfound popularity!

#5- Psy's global and phenomenal hit song 'Gangnam Style' has reached 4 billion views on YouTube! Congrats to him for this marvelous achievement!

BY POLARIS_TAE

The Translations Team worked hard again to bring us more fantastic updates!

Vanilla Cupcake brought us lyrics o former Rocket Girls 101 member Duan Aojuan's '18 Right?'. They also gave us an article translation on Red Velvet's Wendy revealing just how stressful it is to be an SM idol.


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This brings us to the end of ICYMI for another week! Did anything surprise you this week? Do you think that the school violence accusations or over or do you expect IT to continue for a least another week? If you liked anything about this article make sure to drop a like or leave a comment and we'll see you again next week for more great updates!





GFX BY @yerm
PROOFREAD BY @Polaris_Tae
FEATURED ARTISTS Song (iKON), Yukikia, San (ATEEZ), Rina (Scandal), MJ (ASTRO)​

 

[Katniss]

Thank you!

 

[UMJI MOODS]

Another wild week. Thanks for helping to keep us knowledgeable.​

 

[kimsguardian]

thank you for the updates! y'all amazing!

 

[Qoptyi]

Thanks as always for the update!

Got excited to see Yukika in the headline picture, but then no content about her in the written section. I'm guessing it got missed out by mistake?

She's had a pre-release single out a last week:

 

[Kłapouchy]

Thanks as always for the update!

Got excited to see Yukika in the headline picture, but then no content about her in the written section. I'm guessing it got missed out by mistake?

She's had a pre-release single out a last week:

skdjsk
I knew I forgot to add something
I'll add it when I get home later today

 

[anh]

thanks for the updates!