A summary of the news, current and upcoming comebacks, charts and music show wins, and more!
NOTE: Except in special cases, the news recapped in these posts will refer to K-pop only. K-dramas, variety shows, and other forms of entertainment will only be mentioned if there is an idol or idol group involved.
News to Note
- Apink’s Chorong is the latest idol to be accused of school bullying, and there have been several updates to the situation. Please note that there may other developments, but I have only included the articles done by Soompi (my most trusted news source).
- Last week, Chorong and her agency Play M Entertainment announced that they were taking legal action against a former childhood friend of hers whom she had a falling out with; according to them, this person was threatening to spread false rumors unless Chorong ended her career as an idol. You can read a translation of Play M’s statement here. (I posted this in last week’s news recap, but I’m doing so here again to help provide context.)
- Early this week, the former childhood friend came forward and publicly accused Chorong of bullying her during their high school days. You can read more about the situation and Play M’s response here.
- Chorong made a post on Instagram addressing the rumors, admitting that she did drink alcohol when she was underage (something that came up in the accusations) but denying the bullying allegations. You can read a translation of her post here.
- The accuser revealed a transcript of a recent phone call she had with Chorong discussing the past incident. Play M made a statement saying that the transcript had been altered by the accuser to favor her point of view, and they also have recordings of the call that they are willing to release. You can read a translation of the transcript released by the accuser and Play M’s statement here.
- SM Entertainment has created new label SM Studios as they reorganize their various subsidiaries. You can read more details here.
- Baekhyun’s Bambi has set a new record of highest albums sold by a Korean soloist in the 1st week, breaking the one he set last year with Delight.
- Both NCT Dream and CIX tested negative for COVID-19 after some of the members came into contact with confirmed cases (on separate occasions).
- Pledis Entertainment has released its final statement concluding its investigation into the bullying rumors related to SEVENTEEN member Mingyu. Since everything has been resolved, he will end his hiatus and return to his activities. You can read a translation of their statement here.
- RBW Entertainment has acquired WM Entertainment. RBW Entertainment is currently most famous for girl group MAMAMOO, and also has other artists like ONEUS and the newly debuted PURPLE KISS. WM Entertainment is currently most famous for girl group Oh My Girl, and also has other artists like B1A4, and ONF. WM Entertainment has become a subsidiary of RBW Entertainment through this agreement, but will still function separately. (I assume it’s much like how agencies like Pledis Entertainment and Source Music are part of HYBE but also run independently.)
This Week’s Debuts and Comebacks
(Please note that I won’t necessarily link every release that came out this week – just the ones that I’m aware of or popped up on my radar. The same is true of the “Coming Up Next Week” category.)
Wendy (Red Velvet), “Like Water (4/5)
ASTRO, “ONE” (4/5)
Kim Jaehwan, “I Wouldn’t Look for You” (4/7)
Yukika, “Insomnia” (4/7)
BAE173, “Loved You” (4/8)
Lee Jinhyuk (UP10TION), “5K” (4/5)
D-Crunch, “My Name” (4/6)
Lunarsolar, “DADADA” (4/7)
OnlyOneOf, “Libido” (4/8)
STAYC, “ASAP” (4/8)
Special Releases
Rosé (BLACKPINK), “Gone” – B-side track, 4/5
SuperM, “We Do” – special single with Prudential, 4/9
Chanyeol (EXO), “Tomorrow” – SM Station, 4/6
Moon Sujin feat. Taeil (NCT), “The Moon” – collab, 4/12
Coming Up Next Week
| Monday (4/12) | Tuesday (4/13) | Wednesday (4/14) | Thursday (4/15) | Friday (4/16) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SHINee | Kyuhyun (Super Junior)* | Yoon Jisung | A.C.E | |
| Wheein (MAMAMOO) | ||||
| THE8* (SEVENTEEN) | ||||
| Kang Daniel |
*Not sure if these are officially promoted comebacks or just special singles, but I included them anyway.
This Week’s Music Show Wins
| The Show (SBS MTV) | Cosmic Girls, “Unnatural” (1st win) |
| Show Champion (MBC) | IU, “Lilac (3rd win) |
| M! Countdown (MNET) | Rosé, “On the Ground (6th win) |
| Music Bank (KBS) | Baekhyun (EXO), “Bambi” (1st win) |
| Music Core (MBC) | No broadcast/winner |
| Inkigayo (SBS) | IU, “Lilac” (4th win) |
Album Sales, Streaming, and Charting
Gaon Chart
NOTE 1: Gaon‘s weekly charts reflect the previous week.
NOTE 2: Because not many K-pop songs make it onto the digital charts, I’ll normally only list the Top 5 for album sales and the social chart. Then I’ll make notes of any K-pop songs that placed high on the digital charts. This week I included the full Top 5 for every chart because most of the songs are K-pop or “K-pop adjacent.” To see a full breakdown of the chart, you can go here.
Gaon Weekly Chart
| #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Album Sales | Baekhyun, Bambi | WayV, Kick Back | Cosmic Girls, Unnatural | Rosé, R | NCT 127, Neo Zone: The Final Round |
| Overall Digital | IU, “Lilac” | Brave Girls, “Rollin'” | IU, “Celebrity” | IU, “Coin” | Im Young Woong, “My Starry Love” |
| Streaming | IU, “Lilac” | Brave Girls, “Rollin'” | IU, “Celebrity” | IU, “Coin” | Rosé, “On the Ground” |
| Downloads | Im Young Woong, “My Starry Love” | Baekhyun, “Bambi” | IU, “Lilac” | IU, “Coin” | Pentagon, “Do or Not” |
| Social | BTS | BLACKPINK | Im Young Woong | Lee Chan Won | IU |
Gaon Monthly Chart (for March)
| #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Album Sales | Baekhyun, Bambi | Super Junior, The Renaissance | Rosé, R | ATEEZ, Zero: Fever Part 2 | IU, Lilac |
| Overall Digital | Brave Girls, “Rollin'” | IU, “Celebrity” | Im Young Woong, “My Starry Love” | Yoseob (HIGHLIGHT) and Eunji (Apink), “Love Day (2021)” | Rosé, “On the Ground” |
| Streaming | Brave Girls, “Rollin'” | IU, “Celebrity” | BTS, “Dynamite” | Yeoseob and Eunji, “Love Day (2021)” | KyoungSeo, “Shiny Star (2020)” |
| Downloads | Im Young Woong, “My Starry Love” | SHINee, “Don’t Call Me” | Kang Daniel, “Paranoia” | Brave Girls, “Rollin'” | ONF, “Beautiful Beautiful” |
| Social | BTS | BLACKPINK | Im Young Woong | Lee Chan Won | TWICE |
Gaon Certifications
| Group/Artist | Album/Song | Certification |
|---|---|---|
| TWICE | Eyes Wide Open | Double platinum (album) |
| TXT | minisode1: Blue Hour | Double platinum (album) |
| SHINee | Don’t Call Me | Platinum (album) |
| Chungha | “Gotta Go” | Platinum (downloads) |
| Taeyeon (Girls’ Generation) | “Four Seasons” | Platinum (downloads) |
| BTS | “Boy With Luv” | Platinum (downloads) |
| BLACKPINK | “How You Like That” | Platinum (streams) |
| Sandeul (B1A4) | “Slightly Tipsy” | Platinum (streams) |
| Oh My Girl | “Dolphin” | Platinum (streams) |
| IU | “Give You My Heart” | Platinum (streams) |
The International Side of K-pop
- BTS’s song “Dynamite” ranked #30 on Billboard‘s “Hot 100” in its 32nd week on the chart.
- It has now officially broken the record for longest K-pop song to chart on the “Hot 100,” passing PSY’s “Gangnam Style.”
- “Dynamite” has now also had 18 non-consecutive #1 weeks on the Digital Song Sales charts, which breaks the record set by “Despacito” (by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber).
- TXT will perform “We Lost the Summer” on The Ellen Degeneres Show on April 16th.
- BTS, NCT 127, and BLACKPINK have been nominated for several iHeart Radio Music Awards:
- All three are nominated for “Best Fan Army” along with several Western artists.
- Both BTS and BLACKPINK are nominated for “Best Music Video.”
- BTS is also nominated for “Best Duo/Group of the Year” and “Favorite Music Video Choreography.” (Their choreographer Son Sung Deuk is officially nominated for the latter.)
- The following music videos reached new viewer milestones on YouTube:
- EVERGLOW’s “DUN DUN” is their first music video to hit 200 million views.
- “Eyes Nose Lips” by Taeyang (Big Bang) is his first music video to reach 200 million views.
- BTS had two music videos reach 900 million views: “Fake Love” and “Mic Drop (Remix).” Meanwhile, “Spring Day” hit 400 million views.
Drama and Variety Show News (Related to K-Pop)
- EXO’s Sehun has joined the cast of SBS upcoming’s drama Now, We Are Breaking Up starring Song Hyekyo, Jang Kiyong, and Yura of Girl’s Day. The drama is about romance and relationships at a fashion label, and Sehun will play a new designer who is also the company CEO’s son. While Sehun has acting experience, this is his first major network drama.
- NU’EST’s JR will make his (Korean) acting debut in the upcoming romance drama I’ll Become Your Night. He will play a member of a fictional idol band.
Ahhh two of my biases… maybe I’ll have to actually start watching dramas now.
Notable Variety Shows Featuring K-pop Idols
| Weekly Idol | Knowing Brothers | Amazing Saturday | |
|---|---|---|---|
| This Week | Pentagon | Non-idol guests | Oh My Girl (Hyojung and Jiho) |
| Next Week | Cosmic Girls | ASTRO (Cha Eunwoo and Moonbin) + non-idol guests | Non-idol guests |
SOURCES NOTE: I get my news from a mix of sources, and all of them report the same information and sometimes cite each other as well. So rather than linking the exact article for each and every news item (unless the article provides a lot more detail), I will cite my general news sources below. Each of them will most likely have an article and/or tweet providing more details on the item in question.
MY REGULAR NEWS SOURCES: Soompi, Omona They Didn’t (Livejournal), The Seoul Story (Twitter @theseoulstory), and Girl Group Zone! (Twitter @girlgroupzone)
FEATURED IMAGE SOURCE: Fantagio Entertainment (ASTRO)
VIDEO SOURCES: YouTube*, All-S Company (D-Crunch), Fantagio Entertainment (ASTRO), HighUp Entertainment (STAYC), JPLANET Entertainment (Lunarsolar), Million Market (Moon Sujin feat. Taeil), SM Entertainment (Wendy/Chanyeol/SuperM), TOP Media (Lee Jinhyuk), Swing Entertainment (Kim Jaehwan), Ubuntu Entertainment (Yukika), YG Entertainment (Rosé), 8D Creative (OnlyOneOf)
*”My Name” music video distributed by 1theK. “DADADA” music video distributed by Bugs!
OTHER SOURCES: YouTube, Wikipedia, Billboard, Gaon Chart, KBS, MBC, MNET, SBS
Katherine Does K-POP 