Welcome back to another installment of For Your Viewing Pleasure, where we take time out of the week to curate a set of photos from the K-pop landscape. As the cold melts into warmer weather in the Northern Hemisphere, so, too, does color bleed back into (most of) the pictorials we see. Still, a touch of sentiment remains through blurry camera movement, piercing gazes, and the contrast of bright colors and solemn faces. RM‘s new concept photos, for example, are not the shiny, perfect photos we generally expect from K-pop album releases. Instead, his images for Right Place, Wrong Person we ..read more

Throughout Hyuna’s 17 years in the K-pop industry, she has kept her signature sound and image. Hyuna is best known for her bratty vocals, sultry image, and lively choreography. When you think of Hyuna, songs like “Bubble Pop,” “Red,” and most recently “Nabillera” come to mind. When you look at the corresponding MVs, bright colors, fun outfits, and symbolic images tie everything together. All the songs are the kind you play loud at a dance party. However, after many years with the same concept, Hyuna strips down her aesthetics and vocals with her latest single to show her softer side. In her s ..read more

Welcome to another edition of SB Week in Review. Here’s all the news you might have missed over the past week: Headlines On Hybe and Ador‘s ongoing proceedings: Following Hybe’s statement, Ador has retaliated with a statement of their own. In it, they claim that Hybe’s claim of Ador wanting a management takeover is baseless, that Hybe lacks transparency in determining financial incentives, and provide clarifications about the timelines of debut dates of involved groups amongst other pointers. Following claims of mass album hoarding/purchasing, plagiarism of concepts, and involvement with cul ..read more

While the landscape of Korean entertainment can be vast and wondrous, it’s often the little things that make us fall in love, inspire awe, evoke secondhand embarrassment, or sometimes… break our hearts. Big Ocean, Day6, Jinjin, N.Flying, and Onewe Usher in the Changing Seasons — Victoria I feel like every year when the weather starts to turn warm and the flowers start blooming again, I rediscover some of my favorite bands: N.Flying, Day6, and Onewe to name a few. The N.Flying drought is killing me while the core instrumental members Jaehyun, Chahun, and ..read more

Welcome back to another instalment of For Your Viewing Pleasure, where we take time out of the week to curate a set of photos from the K-pop landscape. Yes, spring is all about sunshine, bright colors, and beautiful flowers–but that is no barrier to putting a little edge to fashion. Oh My Girl‘s YooA sports a daring black dress against a stunning yellow background. Similarly, Kim Yoon-ah is in a gorgeous black gown under bright daylight. Contrast is the way to go when trying to spice up something simple as a black outfit in such a vibrant season. Jeon So-nee does this perfectly with her monoto ..read more

Has it really been two years already? In that time, Onewe’s eldest members Kanghyun and Yonghoon completed their mandatory military service. The band’s youngest, CyA, also changed his stage name to his given name — Giuk. Under his new name, Giuk kicked off his solo career with two mini albums (Psycho Xybernetics: Turn Over and Rise Waves) that let him show off his eclectic musical style and introspective lyricism. Dongmyeong made his acting debut and landed a leading role in the musical, We Will Rock You, as Galileo Figaro. Plus, the two youngest members and drummer Harin released a singles a ..read more

It’d be wrong to say that Zico hasn’t been busy for the past couple of years: He completed military service in the spring of 2022 and since been hard at work as CEO of KOZ Entertainment, launching the successful new group BoyNextDoor. Still, it has been nearly two years since his last solo release, EP Grown Ass Kid. His HYBE bosses (KOZ became a subsidiary of HYBE in 2020, one of HYBE’s first company acquisitions) were quick to remind him of this in a rather hilarious clip from an early 2024 appearance on variety show The Manager. The pressure was on, to produce solo music, and of course, for ..read more

While G(i)-dle has often been associated with Soyeon’s firebrand songwriting, it’s not much of a secret that Minnie and Yuqi’s softer, more introspective songwriting has given the group’s discography much of its emotional depth. Thus, Yuqi’s first full EP, Yuq1, would be a chance for her songwriting, as well as her vocals, to fully shine. Alas, in her efforts to prove herself, Yuqi has fallen into the trap that many find themselves in when striking out on their own– it’s not only strengths that can get exposed, but weaknesses. And unfortunately, Yuq1 is putting Yuqi’s weaknesses on full displ ..read more

Welcome to another edition of SB Week in Review. Here’s all the news you might have missed over the past week: Headlines Hybe audited Min Hee-jin and Ador executives for scheming to separate Ador from Hybe and called for Min to step down. Min responded on April 22 that Hybe engaged in “media play” to dismiss her internal complaint that Belift Lab girl group Illit was copying NewJeans. Hybe’s interim audit results on April 25 found “concrete evidence” that Min and other executives planned to usurp control, attack Hybe, and contact external investors. Hybe planned to file a criminal compl ..read more

Thanks to rookie group BoyNextDoor, the phrase “Earth, Wind & Fire” is about to take on a whole new meaning. Known for their down-to-earth character and swaggering energy, BoyNextDoor are back with their third title track “Earth, Wind & Fire.” The song promises to take audiences on quite an unexpected journey—at times musically, but consistently visually—via its colorful, kitschy, and surrealist MV.  Not a reference or homage to the American band of the same name, “Earth, Wind & Fire” instead opts to liken love to natural, vital, and oftentimes unpredictable elements: “Y ..read more