Happy Holidays

YG updates fans on Big Bang’s March comeback progress

YG Entertainment previously announced that Big Bang was gearing up for a Korean comeback in March of 2012.

On December 23rd, representatives followed up by revealing that the album will contain several new songs written during the boys’ period of reflection. A representative expressed, “Big Bang has composed many songs during their period of reflection this year. They’ll be choosing a few of them to include in their March release next year.”

Seungri to make a cameo in MBC drama, Light and Shadow

Big Bang‘s Seungri has revealed that he will be making a special cameo appearance in MBC‘s 50th anniversary drama, ‘Light and Shadow‘.

BIGBANG's "Arabian Nights" LOTTE Duty Free CM Behind the Scenes to air in January 2012

BIGBANG, 2PM, and other big KPop Stars' Lotte Duty Free Commercial Messages (CM) behind the scenes footage will air in January 2012.
The 15-minute episode will air a special program for all six CM's: Hyun "Alice in Wonderland", the BIGBANG "Arabian Nights", Song Seung Heon's "Beauty and the Beast", the 2PM's "Treasure Island", and Kim Hyun Joong's "Little Prince." The CM theme song for each part of each cast is" [So I'm] Loving YOU." The article also notes that the CM's have an extraordinarily clear and valuable footages of the singers.

G-Dragon and T.O.P's 1st Look Covers Nominated for "Cover of the Year"

 To Vote for G-Dragon cover and TOP cover on 1st Look Magazine!:

Big Bang featured on online fashion site "Refinery29"

Many fashionistas may know of ‘Refinery29.com‘, a popular one-stop website for fashion, style, and shopping.

The site posted an article today called ‘Kpop Cheat Sheet: The Bands To Know Before They Blow Up’, and introduced Big Bang, 2NE1, SNSD, and SHINee to their readers. The passage read:

Big Bang 2011 Ranking on Japan's Oricon Charts

Big Bang's second Japanese album has ranked among the top selling Japanese albums of 2011.  Oricon charts released it's ranking of the 100 top CD albums for 2011, and Big Bang's "BIGBANG2" was ranked in 63rd place. The rankings only count the physical sale of album, not the internet/online purchasing of MP3s. Still, Big bang managed to sell a amazing 98,854 units!

Big Bang to Release New Album in March 2012?

Big Bang has announced that they’ll be releasing a new album in March! 

On December 16th, representatives of YG Entertainment confirmed, “Big Bang has decided to hold their ‘Big Show‘ concert in March of 2012. Ahead of the concert, they’ll be releasing a new album. They had halted their activities this year because of unpredicted accidents, but they’ll be returning to their official activities for the first time in nearly a year through their ‘Big Show’ next year.”

Big Bang Nominated at the 21st Annual "Seoul Music Awards"

At this year's 21st Annual Seoul Music awards, Big Bang is nominated in 2 categories, "Popularity" and "Bonsang". 

There are other categories in the ceremony, though out of the main 3, those are the 2 Big Bang is nominated for. For the Bonsang award, winners are chosen based on album and digital sales, online voting popularity and a final judging from the award ceremony judges.

Arirang TV asks foreign fans to pick the best of K-Pop in 2011

Arirang TV, an English-language Korean television network, is asking its foreign viewers to vote for their favorite musicians, actors, and songs in such categories as best rookie, best couple from a drama, and the artist they most want to visit their country. Fans can easily sign up for the website and vote, as Arirang is available in both English and Korean. 

The voting period lasts until December 31st, and it appears Arirang will select winners from the voting pool, who will then receive prizes. 

Check the categories below to see if your favorite group or actor is nominated: 

Big Bang mentioned in English Newspaper "The Guardian"

From the "Guardian" article "Bored by Cowell pop? Try K-pop"

The biggest surprise at last month's MTV European Music awards didn't come from the outfits chosen Lady Gaga, or that weird naked man roaming around the stage. In fact, the most unexpected moment arrived towards the end of the ceremony, when the winner of best worldwide act award was announced. The winners of the fan-driven award were Korean group Bigbang, who won 58m votes to beat Britney Spears. This was the one act that night most viewers wouldn't have known.

GD&TOP expected to make a strong comeback despite G-Dragon’s marijuana scandal

Big Bang sub-unit, GD&TOP, are preparing for their new promotions in Japan. 

The duo recently released their official trailer for the Japanese “OH YEAH“ MV via their official Youtube & Facebook pages, which featured some footage of the MV in the making. 

The original version of “Oh Yeah” from GD&TOP’s first album was released last December, and a Japanese version of the song was recorded as the boys began preparing for their debut in Japan. The trailer also features writing that reads, ‘YG Family Concert Celebrating Single Release’. 

Big Bang and Super Junior triumph over Britney Spears in 2011

Boy groups Big Bang and Super Junior garnered a lot of international interest in 2011, having beat out international pop icon Britney Spears to achieve their titles as world stars.

First, Big Bang attended the 2011 MTV EMA‘s which were held in Belfast, Northern Ireland back in November.

The boys were nominated under the “World Wide Act Asia Pacific Nominees” category for the EMAs and won, advancing to the “Worldwide Act Nominees” category alongside famous international artists such as Abdelfattah Grini(Africa/India/Middle East), Lena (Europe), Restart (Latin America), and Britney Spears (North America).

Who were the top digital sellers in K-POP for 2011?

With 2011 counting down to a close, the industry is slowing down to look back at its achievements over the past year. Following a list of the most successful producers, Star News has followed up with a ranking of the most popular digital tracks over the past months. 

The list was compiled by Olleh Music and ranks the top 50 songs this year which performed the best in the digital form. The number was determined by combining the number of downloads + the number of streams the song received on its website. 

(Parts ommited)

2.4 Million Netizens Worldwide Vote for "2011 SBS MTV Best of the Best"

Fans all over the world are busily casting their votes for the "2011 SBS MTV Best of Best" poll, which will determine the most-loved artists of the year. As of December 7, 2.4 million netizens are reported to have participated in the various categories the polls offer. 

Voting began on November 28 and the competition still remains fierce amongst fans. In the "Artist of the Year" category, SM Entertainment labelmates DBSK and Super Junior are going head to head, while in the "Best Female" category, SNSD and 2NE1 are neck to neck. In the "Best Male" category are U-Kiss and GD&TOP. 

MTV Iggy: The 10 Most Significant K-Pop Idols of the 2000s

 GET TO KNOW THE GROUNDBREAKING ACTS OF THE KOREAN WAVE

Koreans used to joke about being the "shrimp among whales" -- stuck between the cultural behemoths of China and Japan. 

Over the past decade, however, a massive Korean (Hallyu) wave of pop music exports appears to have subsumed the whales.

Newly crowned MTV Iggy 2011 Best New Band 2NE1 represent this global music phenomenon, despite the fact that it's still relatively unknown in the West. An umbrella term for just about any musical style, hallmarks of K-pop include precision dancing, high production values, a motley array of acronyms for group names, and squeaky-clean all-boy/all-girl groups that feel like throwbacks to the late-'90s Disney NSync/Backstreet Boy factory. Only, somehow...better. 

The K-pop wave is about to become a global tsunami, so let's take a quick chronological look back at the decade that brought us to this point. Specifically through the acts that charted the course. The acts that didn't just sell millions of records, they set milestones, paving the way every year for a bigger wave the next.

PLEASE NOTE: Bands are ordered chronologically from the oldest to the newest. Not ranked from least to most significant.

Vote Big Bang on SBS MTV's "The Best of the Best"

NO REGISTRATION or LOG IN required to vote. You can go straight into voting.

YG Family Concert is a Night to Remember

Music has the great power to overcome obstacles as well as time, and 2NE1, Big Bang, Se7en, Gummy, Jinusean, Psy and Tablo, the newest addition to the YG Entertainment family, came together to become one through music.

The YG artists gathered on the Gymnastics Stadium stage at Seoul’s Olympic Park on December 4 for the 15th Anniversary YG Family Concert, where they performed for a crowd of 13,000 screaming fans.

2NE1 opened the show with hit song Fire before captivating the audience with performances of Can’t Nobody and Go Away. Member Sandara Park couldn’t contain her joy when she said, “I can’t tell if it’s a dream or reality that 2NE1 is taking part in YG Family’s 15th anniversary.”

The baton was then passed off to group Big Bang, who took to the stage for the first time together as five members in eight months. This marked the first time all of the members were greeting fans as one group since Daesung’s car accident and since G-Dragon was charged for marijuana use.

G-Dragon and Daesung Apologize to Fans at YG Family Concert

At the YG Family Concert, G-Dragon and Daesung spoke for the first time about the unfortunate incidents that happened over the past year. All five Big Bang members performed together for the first time since their “Love Song” promotions earlier this year.

After singing “Tonight,” T.O.P first opened up by saying, “It’s overwhelming to have all five Big Bang members back together on the same stage,” bringing tears to thousands of fans in attendance. “I’m happy to be on stage to celebrate YG Entertainment’s 15th year anniversary. This past year was a busy and eventful year for YGE, yet you all stood by us and supported us and we’d like to thank you for that.”

Yahoo Japan's Top Searched Celebrities

Yahoo Japan recently released data for the top searched terms in 2011 for male entertainers, female entertainers, and sport athletes. From the list of 20, a whopping 18 spots were filled by Koreans.

Why is BigBang so big?

Hallyu superstar group Big Bang has definitely lived up to its name. Since Big Bang debuted in 2006, this groundbreaking five-member idol group has collectively sold over one million albums and EPs in Korea and Japan. Known for their uniquely spicy hip-hop meets pop-rock blend, the members of Big Bang - G-Dragon, Taeyang, T.O.P., Daesung, and Seungri - have collected almost a dozen number 1 radio singles and carved for themselves a respected niche in Korean entertainment. The group recently solidified their Hallyu star status by taking home the 2011 MTV Europe Music Award for Best Worldwide Act.

Big Bang and Music

While other idol groups are accused of being "manufactured" and "artificial", singing and performing songs taught to them by their managers, this cannot be said of Big Bang. The individual and collective talents of Big Bang members are just so obvious that it is impossible to fit them into the usual "idol group mold".

Which Celebrity Made the Most Money from Copyright Fees?

Big Bang’s G Dragon, Beast’s Yong Jun Hyung, and songwriter Jo Young Soo are making lots of money from copyright fees?

Previously, Yong Jun Hyung revealed that he makes so much that it’s hard for him to handle. G Dragon is also popularly known to write and compose songs. There are even rumors that G Dragon drives around in a Bentley Continental GT while Yong Jun Hyung drives an M5. 

Celebrities Take Part in the Cartier LOVE Jewelry Charity Campaign

Ten of the entertainment industry’s most beautiful people lent their star power to a worthy cause spearheaded by Cartier. For the entire month of December beginning on the 2^nd, part of the proceeds from the sales of Cartier LOVE jewelry modelled by the celebrities will be donated to the International Vaccination Organization.

Song Seung Heon, Jeon Ji Hyun, Lee Young Ae, Kim Ha Neul, Cha Seung Won, Go Soo, Yoon Eun Hye, Lee Min Ho, Lee Min Jung and Big Bang’s TOP are featured in the campaign. Photographs of the celebrities were earlier released but the exhibit will open to the public at the Cartier Boutique in Cheongdam-dong in Seoul on December 2. The exhibit will likewise run for the duration of the special campaign.

YGE to hold "Kiss With YG Family" 15th Anniversary Exhibit

- Exhibition Place: Gangnam-gu, Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam Station, Sin Bundang Line B2, G-Arche
- Exhibition Period: 2011.11.26 (SAT) ~ 2012.01.05 (THU)/ 07:30am~12:00am
- Arranged by G-Arche
- Hosted by YG Entertainment
- Sponsored by G-Arche, A shop

YG's Listing Goes Public, and Yang Hyun Suk’s Total Share Value Soars

On November 23, YG Entertainment listed its shares on South Korea’s junior stock market, KOSDAQ, and saw its per-share value more than double on its first day of trading. As a result, Yang Hyun Suk, the founder and chairman of YGE, now holds nearly $140 million USD in stock value.

YGE shares were valued at 78,200 won ($78 USD) per share in the morning Tuesday, which is more than double its IPO price of 34,000 won ($34 USD). Yang Hyun Suk, with 47.7 percent ownership of YGE stocks, is estimated to own around $140 million USD in stocks, making him the second highest-valued person in the Korean entertainment industry, after SM Entertainmen’s Lee Soo Man who has an estimated stock of $220 million USD.

Big Bang reveals CF for ‘Soul by Ludacris Headphones’

 A new CF for ‘Soul by Ludacris Headphones’ has just been revealed, which features G-Dragon, T.O.P., Taeyang, and Seungri commenting on the supreme quality of the headphones.

Haru Haru Japanese Version Preview

credits: bbang8989@soundcloud

Top 10 Music Videos at the YouTube K-Pop Awards

Google Korea awarded on November 22nd the K-Pop artists whose music videos got the most number of views on YouTube. Only the top 3 groups/artists attended the event. Here's the top 10 list where 2 of BIGBANG's videos are included:

BIGBANG still popular in Japan despite the bad press

Despite all of the bad press Big Bang has been receiving lately, their fame in Japan seems to know no end.

In the latest issue of a Japanese magazine, a survey was conducted asking 1,000 Japanese fans on who their favorite Hallyu artists were and the boys of Big Bang triumphantly came out on top.

MTV Southeast Asia "Big Bang Specials" Schedule

Just like MTV Korea, MTV Southeast Asia will be playing "BIGBANG Specials", in celebration of the group's win at the MTV Europe Music Awards. MTV will be playing old clips of BIGBANG from their live performances to interviews and their music videos. Here's the schedule:

Last.fm: Big Bang Rule The World

South Korean hip-hop/pop quintet Big Bang certainly won big at the MTV EMA awards on Sunday – scooping the award for Best Worldwide Act.

They beat off competition such as Britney Spears (representing the US) as well as artists Lena (from Germany), Restart (from Brazil) and Abdelfattah Grini (from Morocco).

Last.fm Trends looks at Big Bang’s scrobbles to see just how much they have exploded.

The formation of Big Bang was documented on television in 2006, with the band going on to release five studio albums and five EPs – with some of them targeted specifically at the Japanese market.

SBS MTV's Special Big Bang Broadcast Schedule

In celebration of BIGBANG's win at the MTV Europe Music Awards, SBS MTV (MTV Korea) will be playing old shows of BIGBANG and reveal their exclusive footage of the MTV EMAs in Belfast. Here's the sked:

New Release Date for Love & Hope Tour DVD and Best of Big Bang

YG Japan has updated their site with the new release date of BIGBANG's Love & Hope Tour DVD and The BEST of BIGBANG set. Both will be released on December 14th. 

YG follows path of SM, JYP with IPO, but prospects mixed at best

Are Korean entertainment agencies bankable assets?
YG follows path of SM, JYP with IPO, but prospects mixed at best

Korean record labels and talent agencies are desperate to exploit the global hype generated by their pop stars but the jury is out on whether they are destined for a lucrative future or disappointment.

The companies have so far benefited from the uniqueness of the domestic music market and it remains to be seen whether their unproven business model will prove enough to secure their long-term success as publicly-traded firms.

YG Entertainment Talks Future Plans, New Groups to Debut Next Year

YG Entertainment made it official on November 8 that they have a new boy band and girl group waiting for debut next year. At a press conference held to address the label’s public listing on the KOSDAQ (Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) stock market, the CEO of YGE, Yang Min Suk, said the company currently has two idol bands in training that are expected to be the next Big Bang and 2NE1.

The CEO said YGE has 32 trainees right now. The new girl group will only be comprised of members under 20 years old and is scheduled to debut in the first half of next year. Their new boy group, however, will be revealed in the second half of 2012.

YGE, “The Best” Entertainment Shares is Making Its Way

On the 8th of November, Woori Investment & Securities stated and ranked YG Entertainment as, “One of the highest growing companies that produces the greatest contents with their verified capabilities for producing.”

As YG Entertainment has artists such as Se7en, Big Bang, G-Dragon, 2NE1, etc., they have been able to continuously grow throughout, and with the recent addition of Tablo and Psy, they have also been able to expand their line-up tremendously.

Melon Music Awards 2011 reveals list of Top 10 artists

The ‘2011 Melon Music Awards‘ launched its first round of online votes back in October, asking netizens to narrow down Melon’s list of 30 nominees to 10. Votes flooded in from October 27th to November 6th, and on the 7th, Melon revealed which 10 artists made the cut.

The music site announced that 2011′s Top 10 artists were Super Junior, IU, f(x), 2NE1, Leessang, Park Jung Hyun, B2ST, Big Bang, SECRET, and SISTAR. Results were determined by a combination of album sales scores (80%) and online votes (20%).

Big Bang wins “Best Worldwide Act” on MTV EMA

The 2011 MTV Europe Music Awards aired today live from Belfast’s Odyssey Arena.  Aside from mega-superstars Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, LMFAO,  and Coldplay,  five member band, Big Bang, attended as they were nominated in the Worldwide Act category.

T.O.P to attend 2011 Chung Ryong Movie Film Awards

The leading roles from the 2010 Chung Ryong Movie Awards will be gathering together in the same place once again. The reason being is because they will all be attending the Hand-Printing Event that will be opening the 32nd Chung Ryong Movie Film Awards ceremony.

Big Bang ranks #1 & #4 on MTV K's Top 10 Countdown

“K-pop Concerts Poll” starts at 4:47 in the video-6:55 is where Big Bang is ranked #1!!

VJ Grace explores the streets of Hongdae, Seoul for a special on-location episode of Studio 5! Shot in the heart of Korea’s music scene — where spotlight artist indie duo 10cm had their humble beginnings — this week’s episode features fans living in Korea as they tell us which K-pop idols they want to see in concert the most.

Who’s the most anticipated member(s) for the 2011 YG Family Concert?

YG Entertainment revealed on October 27th that Big Bang has been picked as the artists people want to see the most at the ’15th Anniversary YG Family Concert’ to take place this coming

Seungri to MC Seoul Tokyo Music Festival 2011

Seungri and FT Island were added in the list of artists that will be performing in this year’s Seoul Tokyo Music Festival. The event’s official site has just been updated and they have announced that Seungri will be one of the festival’s MCs, along with FT ISland’s Hongki and KARA’s Gyuri and Hara.

Jung Il Woo and G-Dragon to become in-laws?

At a press conference for new tvN Kdrama ‘Pretty Boys’ Ramen Shop‘, actor Jung Il Woo began to talk about his beloved Shar Pei, Ah Woo with his fans who were present at the event.

MTV EMA Worldwide Act Nominees Announced

MTV today announced the five nominees that will compete in the all-new Worldwide Act category at the 2011 MTV EMA.

For the past five weeks, MTV has given fans across the globe a chance to vote for their favorite hometown artists, all to help that local act secure the nomination and represent their respective region at this year’s EMAs.

New York Daily News: 5 Must-Hear K-Pop Groups

New York Daily News ran an article about Hallyu and the SM Town concert in NYC today, and they ended the article with a "5 Must-Hear K-Pop Groups" list, in which Big Bang is included. Here's the list:

Ready to dip your toe into the Korean Wave? Here are the top five South Korean acts that will help immerse you in the world of K-Pop:

How to maximize your vote for BIGBANG on MTVEMA

VIPs, there is a way for you to maximize your vote for our boys.


On the MTVEMA site:

1. OPEN 3 WINDOWS (not TAB) on google chrome.
2. MINIMIZE
3. open http://asia.mtvema.com/vote
4. click category "worldwide act asia pasific nominees"
5. vote BIGBANG
6. don't refresh. it's slow. just click another category then click "worlwide..." again

Only 3 members of Big Bang to perform at 2011 K-pop Super Concert

Taeyang, Seungri and T.O.P of Big Bang will be performing individually at the ‘2011 K-pop Super Concert‘ to take place at a beach resort in Busan’s Kwanganri on October 28th.

Which idol would make a good CEO of an entertainment company?

On the popular music portal Monkey 3, a survey for “The idol who would perform well as a CEO of an entertainment company” was conducted from October 13th through the 19th. The nominees included 2AM’s Jo Kwon, Big Bang’s Seungri, INFINITE’s Woohyun, Kim Hyun Joong, 2PM’s Taecyeon, and B2ST’s Kikwang.