Kpop Behind | All the Stories Behind Kpop Stars

Most of k-pop singers hold comeback events when they release their new albums. But their comeback events are not exactly the same. Some of them hold showcase events, while others hold press conferences. And some singers hold press preview events of their new albums too. Why do you think k-pop singers' comeback events are slightly different from one another then? Well, there's a story behind it. SM: Press Preview SM artists usually hold press preview events when they come back. (They also hold showcase events for their fans, but for reporters, they hold press preview events) There is a notable difference between press preview events and the other comeback events. At press preview events, k-pop singers play each track of their new albums and talk about the songs, which means they spend most of time talking about their music, not about their private lives. Actually, k-pop singers who are regarded as great musicians usually hold press preview events when they release t...

On November 23, a press conference for MBC's new drama "Two Cops" was held in Seoul. A notable thing about the drama is that Girl's Day's Hyeri will play a reporter in the drama just like her close friend Suzy did in her recent drama "While you were sleeping". So, check out what Hyeri talked about at the press conference. **Hyeri was asked about her boyfriend Ryu Junyeol, but she didn't say anything about him. When I was offered the role, Suzy was preparing for her new drama and she told me "I play a reporter too". She said she was enjoying preparing for the role. I asked her for advice several times. You know, she did really great in her drama. And as a friend, I told her she looked really cool in the drama. Of course, I'm worried that people will compare her with me, but I'll try my best. I'm stimulated by her. <Kpop Audition Bible: How to become a k-pop idol> Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073V4F...

On November 6, Super Junior held a press conference for its comeback. 6 Super Junior members, Lee Teuk, Kim Heechul, Shindong, Donghae, Yesung and Eunhyuk attended the press conference, but Choi Siwon, one of the key members of the team wasn't there. You know, on September 30, the CEO of Hanilkwan, an upscale Korean restaurant, got bitten by a neighbor’s dog that wasn’t on a leash. The woman passed away from sepsis six days later, and the dog was revealed to be Choi Siwon’s and his family’s. And after the accident, Choi Siwon decided not to participate in Super Junior's promotional activities for its new album because the handsome idol star didn't want to cause damage to the other members. So, before the press conference, extra attention was focused on what the Super Junior members would talk about Choi Siwon. The situation was certainly an embarrassment for the members because they have put a lot of effort into their new album and really wanted to promote the album ...

On November 1, a press conference for JTBC's new program "Idol School Trip" was held in Seoul. In the program, iKON members, who have never had a school trip take a trip to Jeju Island. The 7 members attended the press conference, of course, and they gave their thoughts on their appearance in the program. B.I said "Through the new experience, I could learn more about myself. It gave me unforgettable memories", while Koo Junhoe added, "I laughed a lot there, and impressions from the trip still linger in my mind". Then, are you curious to know why the producer of the program cast iKON members? Check out what the producer talked about it at the press conference. When I had an interview with iKON members before starting filming the program, they said they don't have any special memories of their school days because they became trainees when they were very young and they even don't have any celebrity friends. I was sorry to hear that th...

Q. You made a comeback with your first full album "Twicetagram". How do you feel? Tzuyu: I feel excited whenever we release our new album. And since it is our first full album, I'm very curious about how our fans like it. Dahyun: We've been loved by so many fans, and we put a lot of things into the album in return for their love. Jihyo: I'm filled with emotion because we released the album to celebrate our two year anniversary. Jeongyeon: It was really interesting to give hints about the album on SNS. I hope we'll get closer to our fans through the album. Q. What did you care about the most while preparing for the album? Jihyo: We wanted to preserve our own musical characteristics. Our cheerful and bright songs were loved by many fans, and our fans loved our easy and catchy dance moves too. Our new title track "Likey" is a song which has such musical characteristics. We'll maintain our concept at least for the time being. Nayeon: All...

On October 30, a press conference for TVXQ Yunho's new drama "Meloholic" was held in Seoul. It's the idol star's first ever drama appearance since he was discharged from the army last April, and as the leading actor of the drama, he attended the press conference and gave his thoughts on his appearance in the drama. The drama is about a psychic who is not very good at dating. So, check out what Yunho said at the press conference. When I went to the open set of the drama for the first time, I felt a little bit awkward because it has been a long time since I filmed a drama. However, I became intimate with the other actors in a short time, and they really helped me fit in. When I read the script of the drama for the first time, I thought it could be a challenge for me, but I wanted to make an appearance in the drama because I liked the innocent character. The character is really attractive, and actually, I'm a kind of nerd just like the character. Lik...

On October 27, a press conference for JTBC's new survival program "Mix 9" was held in Seoul. Since the program is planned and produced by YG Entertainment, all the people in the k-pop agency are putting much spirit into the program. Yang Hyun Suk, who visits various k-pop agencies throughout the country and finds and trains talented trainees in the program is the main judge of the program, while Zion.T, CL, Taeyang and Seungri will appear in the program too. And Teddy, a famous music producer of YG composed the program's theme song. So, check out what Yang Hyun Suk talked about the program at the press conference. Q. There so many audition or survival programs these days. What's special about "Mix 9"? YG: What's special about "Mix 9" is that the program is planned and produced by YG. Not only Seungri and Zion.T, who attended today's press conference, but also CL and Taeyang will appear in the program. And G-Dragon couldn't t...

On October 27, a press conference for JTBC's new survival program "Mix 9" was held in Seoul. The program is planned and produced by YG Entertainment, and as the judge of the program, Yang Hyun Suk attended the press conference. And BIGBANG's Seungri also attended the event to give support to the CEO of his agency. As you may know, in "Mix 9", Yang Hyun Suk visits various k-pop agencies throughout the country and finds and trains talented trainees. Are you curious about what they talked about at the press conference? Well, check out what Seungri talked about the program and Yang Hyun Suk. I've visited many k-pop agencies throughout the country, and it reminded me of when I was a trainee. Before I debuted, Yang Hyun Suk treated me with rigor. He threw many slippers at me, and I think I could open a shoe store if I'd collected all the slippers, haha. However, many CEOs of k-pop agencies I've visited were totally different from Yang Hyun ...

On October 11, a press conference for JTBC's new drama "The Package" was held in Seoul. As the leading actor of the drama, CNBLUE's Jung Yonghwa also attended the press conference. In the drama, the k-pop star plays a tourist who sets out on a trip to France, while his partner Lee Yeonhee plays a tour guide. As the drama is a pre-produced drama, they've already finished filming the drama in France, and the drama will begin to air on October 13. Are you looking forward to the drama? So, check out what Jung Yonghwa talked about his new drama and partner at the press conference. I decided to make an appearance in the drama because I felt as if I really were in France when I read the script for the first time. I loved the script because the writer didn't try to exaggerate details at all. I was confident I could successfully get into the humerous character. And of course, the fact that I could film the drama in France was also an attraction for the dram...

On September 22, a press conference for SBS' new drama "While you're sleeping" was held in Seoul. You know, Suzy and Lee Jongsuk starred in the pre-produced drama, and it is expected that the two top stars will show great chemistry through the drama. So, check out what Suzy and Lee Jongsuk talked about their drama at the press conference. Suzy Basically, I decided to appear in the drama because famous television writer Park Hyeryeon wrote the script of the drama. You know, she wrote the script of "Dream High" too, and it's my second time to work with her. When I worked with her for the first time, I was lacking in many things and I couldn't talk to her much. So I wanted to work with her again. On the set, Lee Jongsuk took good care of me, and he led me. I've learned a lot from him. And I had to cut my hair in a bob-type style before filming the drama, but I just did it without hesitation because it was necessary. I was happy to try so...

EXO's Kai is going to make an appearance in KBS' upcoming new drama "Andante". It's not his first time to make an appearance in a drama, but it's notable that it's the first time for him to play the title role in a drama of a major Korean broadcasting company. As "Andante" is a pre-produced drama, Kai has already finished filming the drama. On September 19, a press conference for "Andante" was held in Seoul. Of course, Kai attended the event as the leading actor of the drama, and he gave his thoughts on his drama and acting career. Check out what the idol star said. I feel great now. I've filmed the great drama with great staff members and actors. It's my first time to appear in a drama of a major Korean broadcasting company, and I'm sure it'll be a nice memory for me. I played Sikyung, who is very innocent and mischievous. Actually, I always try to be sexy and powerful on stage, but I'm different from m...

Q. Is there some reason why you chose "Love yourself" as the main message of your new album? Rap Monster: If you don't love yourself, you can never love others. These days, many people don't know how to love themselves because they don't have enough time to look at themselves. You know, they're always on their smart phones. We're not confident that we really love ourselves, but we want to get the answer through our "Love yourself" series. Jungkook: We flew up with "Wings", and we want to spread love with "Love yourself". Q. Your new album "LOVE YOURSELF 承 Her" is the first part of your "Love yourself" series. But "承" means the second part. Suga: Yeah, but I heard that "承" means a state of being immersed in love. That's why we named the album "LOVE YOURSELF 承 Her", and the album includes many songs which are about a moment of immersion. Q. Tell me about the titl...

On September 11, a press conference for JTBC's new web drama "Magic School" was held in Seoul. The drama is about people who learn magic for different reasons, while various JYP artists including 2PM's Nichkhun, GOT7's Jinyoung, actor Yoon Park and Shin Eunsoo star in the drama. The JYP artists attended the press conference, of course. So check out what Nichkhun and Jinyoung talked about their web drama and acting. Nichkhun In the drama, I play Jun, who was adopted to the United States and became a doctor. He learns magic because he wants to give hope to a girl who had incurable disease. I've appeared in some Chinese and Japanese dramas, but it's my first time to appear in a Korean drama. That's why I've been hard at work on the drama, and I practiced speaking Korean really hard. Some people just don't know, but you know, I'm a foreigner who can speak Korean a little bit. At first, Jun was a Korean, but the director of the dra...

On August 30, a press conference for MBC's new drama "Man who sets the table" was held in Seoul. As the leading actress of the drama, Girls' Generation's Sooyoung attended the event too, and the female idol star talked about her new drama. By the way, you know, two other Girls' Generation members are currently appearing in MBC's dramas. Yoona is appearing in "The king in love", and Seohyun is acting in "Bad thief good thief", while it is uncommon that more than two members of a k-pop idol group appear in dramas of same broadcasting company at the same time. So, check out what Sooyoung talked about it. Actually, we try not to appear in any dramas when we work on our new album. That's why we appear in our dramas around the same time. I wanted to appear in a good drama, and we just happened to appear in dramas of same broadcasting company. I know it's uncommon. Yoona and Seohyun are doing really great, and their dramas ...

From August 18-20, Red Vevlet held its exclusive concert "Red Room" at the Olympic Hall at Olympic Park in Seoul. It was the girl group's first ever exclusive concert since its debut in 2014, and the 5 members seemed to be filled with emotions. Check out what the members talked about their first ever concert. Q. You finally held your first ever exclusive concert. How do you feel? Yeri: We've long been dreaming of holding our exclusive concert, and we felt so strange on the first day of the concert. That's why we all cried a lot on the day. And I heard that our agency had to add one more show because so many fans wanted to come to our concert. I'm very thankful for it. Seulgi: We used to meet our fans through music chart shows, and it's our first time to meet so many fans all at once through our concert. I was moved to tears on the first day of our concert. Irene: Frankly speaking, it didn't feel real on the first day of our concert. Watching...

On August 8, a press conference for movie "Memoir of a Murderer" was held in Seoul. The film is about a retired murderer who got Alzheimer's, while Seol Kyungkoo, Kim Namgil, Oh Dalsoo and AOA's Seolhyun starred in the film. Well, I'm sure many fans of Seolhyun are looking forward to the movie. It will be the female idol star's second movie appearance, and she will play a murderer's daughter who dedicates herself to her father. At the press conference, Seolhyun looked excited and nervous. She said "I painted blood on my face, and I had to run in my bare feet at the mountain too. It was my first experience of doing such things. Everyday was a challenge to me. I know the public has a preconceived view of me, but I want to break all the preconceptions". I can't talk about how she did in the movie because the movie is not released yet, but it seems like she did good because the director of the movie praised highly on her acting perfor...

Q. Tell me about your new song "Love Whisper". Yuju: "Love Whisper" is a summer song which has a fresh melody. The song is written by Leegi Yongbae, who have been working with us since our debut. People say our concept is powerful pure, but this time, I want to name it "power-up pure concept" because we will show more powerful performance on the stage. SinB: Yeah, the choreographer, who has created BTS' choreography choreographed for us this time. The choreography is more difficult than ever. Sowon: The choreography has many movements which remind people of a musical. Q. How does it feel to make a comeback? Sowon: It's our first album in 4 months, and we've been really hard at work on the album because we wanted to put on a better show for our fans. I did out best to meet people's expectations, and I'm confident it is a well-made album. Q. It's notable that "Love Whisper" is quite different from your previo...

On July 19, KARD, a new k-pop group produced by DSP media held its debut showcase in Seoul. You know, KARD is a mixed-sex group which is comprised of 4 members, J.Seph, B.M, Somin and Jiwoo, and the group received great attention from global fans even before its official debut. KARD has already released its song such as "Oh NANA", "Don't Recall" and "Rumor", while the group also held its concerts in various countries including the United States, Canada, Mexico and Brazil. So, check out what the KARD members talked about their official debut. Q. Congratulate on your debut. You received great attention from global fans even before your official debut, by the way. How do you feel? A. We're very thankful for our fans' great interest and love. We'll do our best in return for their love, and we'll try to show our own musical characteristics instead of trying to get good results on music charts. Q. What do you think is the reason ...