On and Off, Intro Film Released… Preview of Original Worldview

The group ONF has released the intro film for their second full-length album, Part 1, ‘ONF:MY IDENTITY’. The intro film shows only the back of a member filing clues such as photo fragments related to ‘The Stranger’. Then, when the phrase ‘Where are all the Strangers in the world?’ appears, the lights in the space turn off one by one and soon it becomes pitch black. The background music and visual beauty, as if watching a mystery movie, are the best. The word ‘The Stranger’, which was seen in previously released teaser content such as the coming soon image, is emphasized once again in this intro film, raising curiosity about its meaning. ‘ONF:MY IDENTITY’ is ONF‘s new album being released approximately 10 months after their 8th mini-album ‘BEAUTIFUL SHADOW’ in April of last year. ONF, which has been drawing attention with its unique worldview for each album, has announced a more solid team identity, along with new music and performances to be unveiled.

G-Dragon heats up Bangkok Stadium on the 22nd

Singer G-DRAGON has confirmed his appearance on the new K-POP show ‘K-STAR SPARK’, which he is attempting for the first time this year, and is heating up Bangkok. According to his agency Galaxy Corporation, G-DRAGON will appear on ‘K-STAR SPARK’, which will be held at the RajamangalaNational Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand on the 22nd (local time). ‘K-STAR SPARK’, which is being held for the first time this year, is a new attempt at a performance in line with the growing global influence of K-POP, and is expected to be the starting point of a more evolved K-POP show. Interest is running high as G-DRAGON, an icon of innovation and challenge who is leading trends and creating a global sensation, will be the first performer on ‘K-STAR SPARK’. In particular, this concert, which will be held at Thailand‘s largest stadium with a capacity of 50,000, will be held with a concept that allows the audience to participate rather than simply watch. Accordingly, G-DRAGON

Boynextdoor published ‘1st popular song’ in the year of Eulsa

It would not be an exaggeration to say that this is the 2025 version of the ‘I Love You’ craze. The first popular song to open the door to K-pop in the year of Eulsa is ‘Only Today I Love You’ by Boynextdoor. No matter which SNS you turn on, you can easily detect the love syndrome caused by Boynextdoor, or ‘Bonec’ for short. The ‘I Love You Challenge’, which utilizes the short video ‘shorts’ form, has emerged as a trend, and the choreography that accompanies it along with the chorus of ‘I Love You Aishiteru’ has naturally become an ‘SNS ritual’ for the younger generation. As the ‘1st popular song’ of the year of Eulsa,

Espa and Ateez, reaching global summit and fulfilling their ‘KSPO Dome long-cherished wish’

The ‘4th generation representative groups’ aespa and ATEEZ that have conquered the world will finally enter KSPO DOME (formerly known as the Gymnastics Arena). Recently on overseas tours, aespa and ATEEZ will hold concerts at KSPO DOME in Seoul Olympic Park on March 15-16 and 22-23, respectively, to mark the end of their tours. Although aespa and ATEEZ have long been recognized as global top-tier groups, they have not had the opportunity to hold solo concerts at KSPO DOME, which is considered ‘a sign of the top K-pop group’, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, this year, in their 6th and 8th years, they have finally ‘entered KSPO DOME’

SM Entertainment, celebrating its 30th anniversary, uses the ‘power of memories’ as its new driving force

SM Entertainment, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, is once again proving its power as a ‘K-pop industry pioneer’ through various contents. In particular, they are focusing the attention of the global K-pop fandom by promoting the ‘power of memories’ discovered from the 30-year history intertwined with the development of K-pop as a new growth engine. A representative example is SM Entertainment‘s (hereinafter referred to as SM Entertainment) 30th anniversary commemorative album ‘2025 SM Town: The Culture, The Future’. The album, which SM Entertainment will officially release on the 14th, its anniversary, includes a total of 1 song including the new group song ‘Thank You’ and songs remade by senior and junior artists of SM’s hit songs.

‘Comeback D-2’ All Hours, ‘Smoke Point’ Concept Photos Released

The group ALL(H)OURS is drawing attention by foreshadowing a new transformation by revealing all of their concept photos. ALL(H)OURS (Gunho, Yumin, Jaden, Minje, Masami, Hyun Bin, ON) revealed the second set of individual concept photos for their third mini-album ‘Smoke Point’ through their official SNS from the 27th of last month until the 2nd. ALL(H)OURS, who previously showed off their gorgeous visuals with the group concept photos of the Purity version, showed off even more diverse charms through their individual concept photos. First, ON, wearing a neon-colored set-up outfit, exuded his signature energy with an energetic expression, while Hyun Bin showed off his unrivaled charisma with a bold bleached hairstyle and a fur jacket with a gorgeous pattern. Next, Masami made fans‘ hearts flutter with her model aura reminiscent of a fashion pictorial and her sculptural side profile. Minje, who stylishly wore a fur hat, added a dreamy atmosphere with her deep gaze, while Jaden emphasized

Lisa, January Daily Life Revealed… Various Styling Eyes [DA★]

Girl group Blackpink‘s Lisa is drawing attention by showing off her slim body. On the afternoon of the 2nd, Lisa posted several photos on her SNS with the caption, “Byebye January”. In the photos that were released, Lisa is seen enjoying various daily lives. Lisa’s unique style that she pulls off in any outfit is drawing attention. Meanwhile, Lisa will be releasing her first full-length solo album ‘ALTER EGO’ on February 28th. Reporter Choi Yoon-na, Donga.com yyynnn@donga.com

Ken, surprise release of emotional ballad ‘The wind is blowing’ today (2nd)

VIXX‘s Ken is releasing a new song filled with his own winter emotions. The new song ‘The Wind Is Blowing’ is a deeply emotional ballad that highlights Ken’s appealing voice, soft tone, delicate emotional expression, and cool and beautiful singing ability. The lyrical sound of the attractive chord progression and the lyrics that contain vague emotions combine to create a new masterpiece ballad. This new song was produced by the hit song maker Bigguyrobin‘s team, who produced many famous songs such as Noel’s ‘In the Alley in Front of Your House Late at Night’ and Jeon Sanggeun‘s ‘Love Remains More Clearly as Time Passes’. The production was done by TWT Studio, which produced Shin Ye-young’s ‘Smiling’, Jin Min-ho‘s ‘I Want to Be the Sea’, etc., and increased the perfection of the album. In particular, ‘The Wind Blows’ was a surprise pre-release song at Ken’s solo concert ‘2025 KEN SOLO CONCERT: WONDER LAND’, and at the time, many fans were asking about the release due to Ken‘s unique sof

‘Hot as the Sun’ Taeyang Concert

‘The Sun That Rises at Night’ was intense and hot. It was the return of a legend whose song, choreography, and everything else could be described as ‘typical’. K-pop representative performer Big Bang Taeyang had an encore performance of his world tour ‘The Light Year’ at Incheon Inspire Arena for two days on the 1st and 2nd. He showed off his unchanging popularity by filling the audience of over 17,000 twice, and Taeyang put on a perfect performance as if ‘demonstrating’what a model concert ‘like Taeyang is. He greeted people in his R&B style and wore only a leather jacket.

Ive ‘Attitude’ MV Teaser Released “Luck, Always On My Side”

The new song ‘Attitude’ of IVE (Ahn Yu-jin, Ga-eul, Lay, Jang Won-young, Liz, Lee Seo) has been unveiled. On the 1st, the agency Starship Entertainment released the music video teaser for ‘Attitude’, the double title track of IVE‘s third mini-album ‘Ive Empathy’, through IVE’s official SNS channel. The released video begins with a scene where someone boldly checks ‘Yes’ on a form that asks ‘Are you sure to be a member of Loveless Society?’. After this, the image of IVE entering a loveless society is shown. The members maintained a unique ‘attitude’ while people were moving eggs with chopsticks while holding spoons in their mouths and dropping them, or looking forward alone when everyone else was turning their backs, and they were fun to watch. In particular, in the scene where they made half a heart with their hands in ‘a society without love’

STAYC, once again going global ‘March comeback → April tour held’

The group STAYC is signaling a hot streak in 2025. STAYC (Sumin, Sieun, Isa, Seeun, Yoon, J) announced their first half schedule through their official SNS on the 31st of last month. According to them, STAYC has confirmed a comeback in March and is focusing on preparing their new album. They will then kick off their world tour by holding the 2025 STAYC TOUR ‘STAY TUNED’ at the Olympic Hall in Olympic Park, Seoul on April 12th and 13th. STAYC‘s March comeback will be their first in about 5 months since their fourth single ‘… l (dot dot dot)’ in October of last year. STAYC, who have delivered a differentiated autumn mood with a funky rhythm, chill sound, and French house sensibility, plan to show off another unique musical transformation through this comeback. STAYC, who successfully completed their debut world tour ‘TEENFRESH’ in 15 cities last January, will meet fans around the world once again starting in Seoul in April. The first stop for ‘STAY TUNED’ is Seoul.

Song Ga-in, captivating hanbok look… concept photos released

Singer Song Ga-in has released the concept photos for her fourth regular album, ‘Gain;Moon’. In the photos, Song Ga-in is looking into the air while wearing a hanbok. The blue color of the hanbok contrasts with the black background, reminiscent of the moon in the night sky. The fluttering hanbok and Song Ga-in‘s expression as if she is missing something are making people even more curious about her fourth regular album. The fourth regular album, ‘Gain;Moon’, which will be released on February 11, is the album that marks the beginning of ‘Queen of Trot’ Song Ga-in’s solo career. You can feel Song Ga-in‘s diverse charms as it includes songs from various genres including traditional trot, ballads, medium tempo, and modern pop songs, which are representative of Song Ga-in. The previously released ‘Tears Are Falling’ was produced by the living legend of the music industry, Shim Soo-bong, and attracted much attention. This song stands out for its unique melody and musicality, and is characte

Need money? ‘Detention Center Drugs’ Yoon Byung-ho, working on a collect call in prison… Release of a song

Rapper Yoon Byung Ho (stage name: Bully Da Bastard), who is currently imprisoned on drug charges, will be releasing a new single, ‘Already’, at midnight on the 31st. According to his agency, FTW Independence Records, this song is something Yoon Byung Ho worked on before his imprisonment. The agency explained, “Yoon Byung Ho never lost his passion for creation even in difficult situations”, and “This single is a work filled with his sincerity and passion”. Along with the news of the release, it was reported that Yoon Byung Ho has not stopped working on music even in prison. It is said that while he was incarcerated, he made collect calls to his family from prison and asked them to record verses he wrote, and he is currently preparing a new song based on those voices. The recorded voice file will undergo professional post-production and be released as an official sound source. Yoon Byung-ho, who appeared on Mnet‘s ‘High School Rapper 2’ (2018), was indicted on charges of purchasing, poss

Kickflip tops Hunter and Circle Chart weekly album charts

The new group KickFlip has topped the weekly album charts of Hanteo Chart and Circle Chart. KickFlip‘s debut album ‘Flip it, Kick it!’, released on January 20, entered the top of the weekly album chart (2025.01. 20~2025.01. 26) of Hanteo Chart, an album sales aggregation site, and the weekly album chart and weekly retail album chart (2025.01. 19~2025.01. 25) of Circle Chart. As of January 15, before their official debut, the album had surpassed 300,000 pre-orders and sold 243,949 copies on the debut day according to Hanteo Chart. KickFlip is promoting the title song ‘Mama Said (What are you trying to become?)’, and is ranked #1 on the ‘K-pop Super Album Chart. Rookies are showing off their presence. They impressed K-pop fans at home and abroad with their powerful live performances on music shows during their debut week. Kickflip’s own content, which was presented during the holiday season, also caught everyone‘s attention. Starting on the 27th, they uploaded videos of themselves wearin

Ark, Andy from ‘PROJECT 7’ joins… 7-member system reorganized

The new group ARrC will be reorganizing as a 7-member group with the addition of new member Andy. On the 31st, Mystic Story stated, “Andy, who was active in JTBC‘s ‘PROJECT 7’, has joined ARrC as a new member. ARrC will continue promotions as a 7-member group in the future.” They continued, “ARrC is currently preparing a follow-up album and are doing their best to greet fans with good music and performances soon”, adding, “Andy and the members of ARrC have built friendships while practicing together since before their debut, so please show a lot of interest in their next activities based on their solid teamwork”, raising expectations for their comeback. Since their debut in August of last year, ARRC has proven their solid vocals, rap, and performance skills with high-quality stages, earning them the nickname ‘Diamond Rookie’. In particular, they boasted a strong topic of conversation by surpassing 100 million cumulative SNS content views in just two weeks since their debut. In addition

Ive, ‘M Countdown’ 1st place for 2 consecutive weeks… ‘Rebel Heart’ 5-crown crown

The group Ive (Ahn Yu-jin, Ga-eul, Lay, Jang Won-young, Liz, Lee Seo) has achieved 5 crowns on music shows with their pre-released song ‘REBEL HEART’. According to the official SNS of Mnet ‘M Countdown’ on the 30th, Ive won 1st place on ‘M Countdown’ for the last week of January with their new album‘s pre-released title song ‘REBEL HEART’. The ‘M Countdown’ broadcast that day was replaced with a highlight broadcast, and the 1st place was announced at the end of the broadcast. With this, Ive not only took 1st place for the second week in a row despite ‘M Countdown’ being canceled, but also made a record of 5 crowns on music shows with only pre-released songs. Ive said through his agency Starship Entertainment, “I feel like I received a surprise gift when my comeback is just around the corner. “It seems like there were only happy moments while promoting ‘Rebel Heart’, so I am so grateful that you gave me another #1,” he said, expressing his feelings. He continued, “Starting from February

Jang Min-ho, selected as a Pro-God of Living (Trotpick)

Singer Jang Min-ho has been selected as a Pro-God Singer. According to the Trot Star voting web service ‘Trotpick’ on the 31st, Jang Min-ho took first place in the special vote for the 4th week of January with the theme of ‘Which Pro-God Singer star is a role model for a good life?’ with 205,760 points. Jang Min-ho has continued to show warm actions through support for victims of heavy rain last year and donation auctions of his favorite items. Jang Min-ho, who is famous for his upright character, plans to take the lead in spreading a culture of sharing through donating his talents as a public relations ambassador for the Korean Red Cross. Jang Min-ho recently won the Grand Prize at the ‘KBS Entertainment Awards, establishing himself as a star in the entertainment industry as well as a singer. Jeon Hyo-jin, Donga.com reporter, jhj@donga.com

Ji Changmin, Spotlight 1st place (Trotpick)

Singer Ji Chang-min took first place. According to the Trot Star voting web service ‘Trotpick’ on the 31st, Ji Chang-min took first place with 71,600 points in the 4th week of January‘s spotlight voting. ‘Spotlight Star’, the ‘Trotpick’ voting service, is a vote that allows you to shine the spotlight directly on your favorite singer. You can participate using Daily Pick and Star Pick, and an online article will be published for the singer who takes first place every week. In addition, the four singers who take first place in each round over the 4 weeks will be provided with Seodaemun Electronic Billboard support. ‘Trotpick’ said, “The 18th round of voting will be held from January 27 to February 2. The 18th round of voting candidates are Kang Ji, Kim Hee Jin, Park Hyun Ho, Song Min Jun, and Han Bom, and you can participate in the vote using Daily Pick and Star Pick,” he said. The free Daily Pick and Star Pick accumulation methods are as follows: ▲You can accumulate Star Pick for free b

Jin Hae-seong, Supernova 1st place (Tropic)

Singer Jin Hae-seong took first place. According to the Trot Star voting web service ‘Trotpick’ on the 31st, Jin Hae-seong won first place in the Supernova category of the weekly vote for the 4th week of January with 424,800 points. Jin Hae-seong released the album ‘愛(ROMANCE)’ last year and successfully completed his first solo concert. Reporter Jeon Hyo-jin, Donga.com jhj@donga.com

Jeon Yu-jin, Weekly Female 1st Place (Trotpick)

Singer Jeon Yu-jin took first place. According to the Trot Star voting web service ‘Trotpick’ on the 31st, Jeon Yu-jin took first place in the female singer category of the weekly vote for the 4th week of January with 441,290 points. Jeon Yu-jin also showed her gratitude to her fans with a fan meeting last year and released a mini-album ‘Only You’ to commemorate her victory in ‘Current King of Singers’. Jeon Hyo-jin, Donga.com reporter jhj@donga.com