ICYMI IN CASE YOU MISSED IT // MAY 17 - MAY 23

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Lilac

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MAY 17 - MAY 23


Hello Hallyuplussers and welcome back to another edition of In Case You Missed It! This week we were shocked to hear of a surprise disbandment, while we were also greeted with a number of great comebacks from the likes of aespa, BTS, Taemin & more. What were your thoughts on the events that happened throughout the week. Did any of the comebacks leave you excited for more, or did Tuesday's news leave a sour taste in your mouth about yet another fantastic group bidding us goodbye in 2021. Now with that said, make sure to continue reading if you want to find out every little detail of what happened throughout the world of Asian Entertainment this week!




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BY POLARIS_TAE


MONDAY:
#1- We started this week with the news that Red Velvet's Joy would be making her solo debut on the 31st of May with a special album titled 'Hello'. Are you looking forward to this upcoming release?

#2- Our favourite soloist IU has once again proven her generosity by donating 500 million KRW to various charities in honour of her birthday. We thank her for her generous contributions!

#3- Rookie girl group woo!ah! are the latest group to join the HYBE owned fan platform Weverse. Will you be subscribing to them?

#4- Nike Korea has announced that CL has been chosen as the latest face of the company. We can't wait to see Nike advertisements with CL's face all over them!

#5- MLD Entertainment has confirmed that Marco & MOMOLAND's Hyebin are in a relationship. What're your thoughts on this couple?



TUESDAY:
#1- A number of comebacks were announced for June this week; with MAMAMOO, Seventeen, Brave Girls & 2PM all aiming for comebacks next month! MAMAMOO will be the first to return on the 2nd of June when they come back with their 11th mini-album 'WAW'. Brave Girls will be returning for the first time since the success of their 2017 hit 'Rollin' with a brand new release on the 17th of June. The following day we'll see SEVENTEEN release their 8th mini-album 'Your Choice', while 2PM will be releasing their first album post-military service at the end of June. Now onto some Japanese releases! Kis-My-Ft2 will be commemorating their 10th anniversary with a greatest hits album; Snow Man will be releasing an OST for the movie 'Honey Lemon Soda' & Miyawaki Sakura will commemorate her official graduation from HKT48 with the release of a photobook. Which of these releases are you looking forward to the most?

#2- great news for fans of BTS! It was announced earlier this week that they'll be performing at the upcoming ABC '2021 Good Morning America Summer Concert Series' on the 28th of May. Will you be tuning in to see their performance?

#3- A number of announcements related to the renewal or expiration of contracts came out this week. 'Sing Again' contestant Han Seungyoon officially signed with FLEX M, while BESTie's U-ji will be calling World Star Entertainment home for the next few years after she signed an exclusive contract with the company. Okada Kenshi filed a legal petition this week requesting the nullification of his contract with his current agency. Finally, GFRIEND shocked us when it came out that they would be leaving Source Music and disbanding after six years together as a group. Will you miss them as much as we will?

#4- Japanese actor, Yamashita Tomohisa will be joining 'Dior Beauty' after he was selected as the company's latest brand ambassador earlier this week. We think that he'll be a great fit for the company!



WEDNESDAY:
#1- Eric Nam & Armaan Malik will be releasing a collaboration single, 'Echo' on the 21st of May just in time to commemorate the end of the month. Did you enjoy the release?

#2- SK Telecom & Louis Vuitton have selected new brand ambassadors this week! Jeon Somi will be joining Louis Vuitton as a brand ambassador for their 2021 Eyewear Global Campaign; while rookie girl group STAYC has been selected as the collaborative artists for SK Telecom's metaverse project. Congrats!

#3- GFRIEND formally said goodbye as a group on Wednesday after they shared handwritten letters addressed to their fans where the group officially addressed the news of disbandment for the first time. Did the news that they would be disbanding come as a shock to you too?

#4- former-B.A.P leader Bang Yongguk has announced that he has completed his mandatory military service on social media. The artist took to Instagram to confirm his return on Wednesday. We hope to see new music from him soon!

#5- Former After School member Lizzy was charged for driving under the influence this week after causing an accident while under the influence of alcohol. Hopefully, no one was injured and she can reflect on her actions and not repeat them in the future.



THURSDAY:
#1- SEVENTEEN'S Wonwoo and Mingyu excited us on Thursday when they announced that they would be releasing a digital single, featuring the vocals of Lee Hi, on the 28th of May. Following the announcement that 2PM would be returning next month, it was reported that their former labelmates, 2AM -- which was established as the ballad-centric opposite to 2PM -- were currently discussing a possible group comeback for the first time in seven years. Also coming out of disbandment soon is BOYFRIEND, who will be celebrating their 10th anniversary with a special single on the 26th of May. We can't wait!

#2- Mnet has announced the second lineup for their 'KCON:TACT 4U' online concert! We'll be seeing performances from ITZY, ASTRO, Ha Sungwoon, JO1, PENTAGON & more. Meanwhile, 88rising has announced that they'll be holding an online concert, 'Asia Rising Together: Benefit Concert' on the 26th of May with performances from eaJ, Bizzy, Yoon Mirae, Tiger JK & more. Are you looking forward to any of these upcoming performances?

#3- Kentaro Miura, who was known as the creator of the manga Berserk passed away on the 6th of May at the age of 54. His cause of death was stated to be acute aortic dissection. We thank him for his contribution to popular culture and hope he rests in peace.



FRIDAY:
#1- Following the solo debut of (G)I-DLE's Yuqi, the group's leader, Soyeon will be making her solo comeback this June. while on the topic of new releases, Good Luck Entertainment has announced that they are currently planning to debut a four-member girl group this Summer. The group is said to be a joint venture between Chinese and Korean Entertainment companies.

#2- This week's edition of KBS 'Music Bank' was cancelled as a precaution following a staff member testing positive for COVID-19. We hope that this potential outbreak was prevented through these actions. Also in Entertainment news, it was announced that Lovelyz Yoo Jiae will be a special DJ for the SBS Power FM radio show, 'Young Street' from the 24th - 30th of May. Will you be tuning in to listen to her?

#3- Sadly, it has been announced that THE BOYZ Younghoon will not be participating in any of the groups' upcoming schedules in order to recover from a recent surgery to treat his clavicle injury that was sustained in 2019. We wish him a speedy recovery and hope he feels better soon!



SATURDAY:
#1- Ha Sungwoon will be releasing his 5th mini-album, 'Sneakers' on the 7th of June. Are you excited about this upcoming release?

#2- Minegishi Minami, AKB48's last remaining original member will graduate from the group on the 28th of May. The idol held her graduation concert on Sunday at Pia Arena MM but will officially graduate from the group next week. We wish her the best of luck in her future career apart from the group that she has represented since 2005.


SUNDAY:
#1- BTS will be holding their annual anniversary muster event, 'BTS 2021 Muster Sowoozo' in order to commemorate their 8th anniversary from the 13th - 14th of June. This event will be held online to conform with current COVID-19 regulations. Will you be watching them live?





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BY DRAGON OF THE WEST


#1. BTS - BUTTER
The biggest group in the world at the moment have made their first comeback of 2021. Following the success of "Dynamite" last year, BTS have dropped their next English digital single "Butter", which improves on the former in every single way. The groove is more dynamic, the vocals clearer, the lyrics less jarring and the energy more effusive. It also manages to feel distinctly BTS despite the layers of studio polish thrown over the top. Its core appeal comes down its surging energy. Its chorus is instantly memorable yet never cloying and glides into a euphoric, brass-kissed breakdown before we hit the bridge. The rap here is attuned to the song’s flow, bringing another shot of rhythm to the bounding instrumental.





#2. TAEMIN - ADVICE
Taemin — following the return of his fellow SHINee members from their mandatory military service — will be enlisting himself at the end of this month. As a parting gift before that happens, he has released his 3rd mini-album Advice with the title track of the same name. "Advice" is easier to appreciate than enjoy. It’s artistic and moody and very much in keeping with his musical touchstones. The instrumental is built upon flourishes of piano but this element is fused to an overly-familiar, modern hip hop beat that goes nowhere. The instrumental necessitates a kind of repetitive phrasing, where both the verses and chorus adhere to a lurching rhythm that never makes room for shots of dynamic melody. Taemin’s performance is suitably magnetic, but once again his material doesn’t quite match his enormous range of talent.





#3. FROMIS_9 - WE GO
fromis_9 are finally back as they released their 2nd single album 9 Way Ticket and the title track "We Go". The song forwards on optimism and a generous dose of hooky refrains. Its first few seconds seem to borrow from K-pop’s recent obsession with city pop, but the track quickly morphs into a more robust summer sound. Never once does "We Go" lose momentum, and that consistency is key to its success. It may not bring anything new to the table but compensates for this familiarity with incredible energy. The b-side "Airplane Mode" is an optimistic blast of polished dance-pop all the way through, and as an album opener, it does a fantastic job establishing this comeback's travel concept.





#4. ROCKET PUNCH - RING RING
More than 9 months after they released "Juicy", Rocket Punch were finally let out of Woolim's dungeon as they released their 1st single album Ring Ring, led by the eponymous title track. "Ring Ring" has an instrumental that largely just interpolated the iconic riff from a-ha's "Take On Me". You can never go wrong with this particular instrumental. The track is buoyed by an incredibly strong pre-chorus and a hook that regurgitates just enough retro touchstones to draw upon nostalgia. I would recommend checking out the b-side "Ride" which is arguably a more cohesive track and sure to pique your interest if you enjoy the recent retro invasion of K-pop.





#5. AESPA - NEXT LEVEL
aespa have dropped their third release in 6 months as they released their 3rd digital single "Next Level", which is a remake from the Fast & Furious spin-off Hobbs & Shaw. Though if follows the basic formula of its source material, the whole track has that easily identifiable SM sound. The instrumental is crucial in grounding the silliest moments of the song, including the blustering chorus. It eventually works its way into an interruptive r&b breakdown. The track is upended – rhythm and all – for an exciting vocal showcase that hearkens back to SM’s old-school sound.





#6. TO1 - SON OF BEAST
TO1, formerly known as TOO, have had their first comeback under their new group name. They have released their 1st mini-album RE:BORN and the title track "Son of Beast". Despite being a much more hard-hitting song than their past releases, much of its edge has a funk-flavored overtone, making most of the track feel quite nimble and energetic. True to 2021 form, the song opens with a deep rumble of bass guitar. This rhythmic backbone has quickly become omnipresent in K-pop. The vocal layering delivers an addictive texture, aiding the song's funky assault. It becomes especially fun during the final chorus, when that refrain interacts with a secondary hook for a call and response energy. Overall, this is a solid re-debut for this promising group. Just make sure you don't mishear the "Beast" in the chorus as being something entirely different. You know what we're talking about.







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BY NARA


#1. LABOUM's 'Journey to Atlantis' has reached its new peak and hit #3 on MelOn daily chart! Congrats to the group for earning new recognition for their 2016 bop!

#2. NiziU 'Step and a Step' has reached 100M stream in Japan according to Billboard Japan! Congrats to the group for reaching such huge streaming numbers!

#3. TXT achieves more than 670K album copies of pre-orders for their upcoming album 'The Chaos Chapter: FREEZE'. Congrats to the group and anticipate their next comeback!

#4. BTS 'Butter' has set a new all-time record on the biggest music platforms. It had the biggest ever YouTube premiere with 3.9 million peak viewers, broke their own 24-hour view record with 108.2 million views, surpassing what they achieved with 'Dynamite'. It also had the largest single-day streams in Spotify's history with 20.9 million global streams! Global success aside, the song also achieved amazing feats on domestic charts and scored a Certified All-Kill! Shortly after that, the song then went a step further as it managed to achieve a Perfect All-Kill making them the first group to achieve this for the fourth year in a row. Have you checked out the song yet?

#5. BLACKPINK's MV for 'Kill This Love' has surpassed 1.3 billion views on YouTube! Congrats to the group on yet another milestone in views! Member Rosé also surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify with her single 'On The Ground'.

#6. Congrats to TWICE for surpassing 500 million streams on Spotify in 2021 (in just 140 days)! We look forward to more hit songs from them in the future!

#7. ITZY's 'In the morning' reaches 100 million views on YouTube! Congrats on being the fastest MV by a 4th generation idol group to reach this big milestone!





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BY POLARIS_TAE


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Shop+ fans, our Shop+ team was busy again this week adding more great items for you to get your hands on! These were all of the items added to our shop this week:

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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 - Press Division.



This brings us to the end of the article for another week! If anything piqued your interest make sure to let us know in the comments, and as always we appreciate your feedback and will see you again next week for another great ICYMI!





GFX BY @yerm
PROOFREAD BY @Dragon of the West
FEATURED ARTISTS Juri (Rocket Punch), Taemin, Ningning (aespa), Jungkook, Jiwon (fromis_9)​
 
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