Choi Siwon’s grandmother passes away

Super Junior‘s Choi Siwon is in a state of grief.
On January 8th, the star tweeted that his grandmother had passed away and so he’ll be flying out to Japan to attend to family matters. “Hello beautiful world. I lost my grandmother on my mom’s side. That’s why I’m in Korea now and leaving early in the morning for Osaka,” he wrote. ”Please pray for me and my family. Thank you.”
Siwon later tweeted a thank you message to his fans, who’ve been pouring their love and support onto Twitter. He attached a screencap of the ‘Trending Topics’ list, which had ‘#prayforsiwon‘ on the top.
Our thoughts go out to him and his family. May his grandmother rest in peace.

Popular Youtuber, The Fine Bros, releases “Kids React!” video on K-pop

Earlier today, popular Youtube Series “Kids React!” posted a video on K-Pop, in particular they review “Bonamana” by Super Junior, GEE by Girls’ Generation, and 2NE1‘s “I am the Best“. As expected, K-pop fans have flocked to the video in droves.
The Kids React! series is the brainchild of filmakers Benny & Rafi Fine. The duo produce, direct, and MC the videos. Their channel has over 1.3 million subscribers.
The children themselves range from age 7 to 13. They are from a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds, but all seem to be raised/living-in America. Every week, the kids are presented with a topic and their reactions and commentary are recorded.
In the episode on K-pop, one young girl confuses Girls’ Generation with the Wonder Girls, while one of the boys equates the genre to “Asian Rebecca Black“. Most of the children seemed impressed with the production quality and creativity of the music videos, things many kpop fans enjoy as well.
Though the kids’ reactions can be a but harsh, it’s interesting to see a different perspective on K-pop music and videos.
What were your first reactions to K-pop? Were they anything like the children in these clips?

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Rainbow Pixie releases second MV teaser for “Hoi Hoi”

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As k-pop’s newest sub-unit trio Rainbow Pixie gears up for their debut, DSP Entertainment has released a new music video teaser for “Hoi Hoi“!
Building off of the sugary sweet concept displayed in the first MV teaser, Jisook, Seungah and Hyunyoung will have you charmed as they dance down a glitzy pink and white hallway filled with clothes and heels.
Check it out below!

CNBLUE releases PV for Japanese “Where You Are”

Via tokyohive:
After wrapping up a winter tour in Tokyo last December, CNBLUE is starting the new year with a new Japanese single titled “Where You Are“! Having released a thirty-second teaser two weeks ago, Warner Music Japan revealed the full PV to the public today.
Written and composed by member Yonghwa, “Where You Are” is receiving already receiving widespread praise both in Japan and Korea. Jonghyun also delivers a guitar solo that reaffirms CNBLUE’s status as a talented rock band.
The single is scheduled to be released on February 1st. Until then, check out the full PV below:

CNBLUE members arrive in Hong Kong

CNBLUE‘s overseas fame shone brilliantly when they drew hundreds of fans at an airport in Hong Kong.
On January 7th, CNBLUE landed in Hong Kong for their ’CNBLUE 2012 Asia Tour Concert Bluestorm in Hong Kong‘.
Over 200 fans gathered around the airport to get a glimpse of CNBLUE, who were said to be smiling at their large reception. The band’s leader, Jung Yonghwa, is seen in casual airport outfit wearing a maroon colored sweater paired with sunglasses. The other members also opted for comfortable outfits with sunglasses to protect their eyes from the paparazzi’s camera flashes.
Thanks to Yonghwa’s dramas like ‘Heartstrings‘ and appearances in entertainment programs like ‘Running Man – Hong Kong Edition‘, CNBLUE’s popularity skyrocketed in Hong Kong.

Electroboyz’ “Ma Boy 2″ ranks on Inkigayo ‘Take 7′ for four weeks in a row

Brave Brothers‘ Electroboyz are continuing their popularity with “Ma Boy 2“, even into the New Year!
On the January 8th episode of SBS‘s ‘Inkigayo‘, fans noticed that “Ma Boy 2″ had ranked in the ‘Take 7′ for the fourth consecutive week in a row. Other than a few performances, the Electroboyz haven’t really promoted the song anywhere else, so both the group and their company were surprised to see how well it consistently fared on the chart.
One industry official said, “This is the first time I saw a digital song maintain its position at the top in the fast changing digital music market. It’s easily explainable because the song is simply very good.”
Electroboyz expressed, “After spending 10 years without getting noticed, we always wondered when we’d be able to stand on that stage whenever watching ‘Inkigayo’ together. Getting into the ‘Take 7′ definitely exceeded our expectations, and we’re glad that we were able to maintain our spot there for four weeks. It’s something worth just as much as a ‘Mutizen’ trophy to us. We’ll repay the love with better songs in the future.”

15th anniversary YG Family Concert is an enormous success

Celebrating their 15th anniversary, YG Entertainment continues to see enormous success with their ‘YG Family Concerts’, the latest concert in Osaka, Japan, drawing 80,000 fans to a one-of-a-kind concert featuring some of the biggest names in K-Pop.
With artists such as Big Bang, 2NE1, Se7en, Gummy, Tablo, PSY, and Jinusean, YG artists celebrated for two straight days at the Osaka Kyocera Dome on the 7th and 8th of January.
2NE1 kicked off the energetic night with their debut track, “FIRE“, and Big Bang took to the stage soon after, drawing immense cheer from the crowd.
Se7en continued the festivities, and sang the Japanese versions of his songs “Better Together” and “Somebody Else“, the title track for his Japanese mini-album, which is scheduled for release on the 18th.
As recent inductees to the YG Family, Tablo and PSY also provided solid performances, and PSY‘s trademark wit was in full effect as he dressed up as “Lady Psy Psy” and “Psyonce“, parodying the popular American artists.
Next came Gummy, on the heels of her first Japanese album, and Jinusean followed soon after with “Phone Number” and “A-YO“.
As for special stages, Big Bang‘s Taeyang, Daesung, and Seungri collaborated with Se7en to perform 2NE1‘s “Lonely” and “It Hurts“, and Gummy, Taeyang, and Park Bom made a special appearance on Tablo’s stage.
Altogether, 41 songs were performed at the YG Family Concert, and the energy never let up during the entire three-and-a-half hour long concert.
YG Entertainment is scheduled to take their family concert to the Saitama Super Arena on January 21st and 22nd.