K-WAVE : koreaportal

Latest News

Jun 20, 2026 AM EDT - Hannah

Seventeen Has a New Unit. Vernon and The8 Debut June 29. Pharrell Wrote One of the Tracks.

Seventeen's new unit V8 — Vernon and The8 — debuts June 29 with an eight-track mini-album featuring production from Pharrell Williams, Mechatok, and DPR, followed by concert dates in Goyang and Hong Kong in July.

Jun 20, 2026 AM EDT - Hannah

RM Is Now the National Museum of Korea's First Global Ambassador. He Has 200 Artworks Ready for San Francisco.

BTS's RM has been named the first global ambassador in the National Museum of Korea's history, following years of donations to Korean cultural heritage preservation, with a 200-work personal collection exhibition opening at SFMOMA in October 2026.

Jun 20, 2026 AM EDT - Hannah

K-Pop Is Splitting in Two. Girl Groups Got the Club. Boy Groups Got the Stage.

K-pop in 2026 is splitting along gender lines, with girl groups converging on house and techno optimized for algorithmic virality while boy groups like TXT and BoyNextDoor return to melodic dance-pop built for live performance — a divide that reflects two different theories of how music travels in a streaming-and-touring economy.

Jun 18, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

BTS Adds Jakarta and Bulacan Shows. Presale Opens Tomorrow.

BTS has added a third show in Jakarta (December 29, 2026) and Bulacan (March 16, 2027) for the Arirang World Tour following sellouts, with ARMY Membership presale opening June 19 via tiket.com and Ticketmaster Philippines respectively.

Jun 18, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

"Swim" Is Eight Weeks on the Hot 100. "Merry Go Round" Drops Tomorrow.

BTS's "Swim" has charted eight consecutive weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 43, with the "Merry Go Round" music video dropping June 19 as the Arirang World Tour prepares its first European stops in Madrid on June 26–27.

Jun 18, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

Secret Secret Flavor — Twelve Years Later, Two Members and a New One

Secret's first comeback in 12 years, Secret Flavor, delivers a strong title track in "ICE CREAM" and a capable new member in Yebin, but the partial lineup — Hyosung and Zinger without Jieun and Sunhwa — and thin b-sides make this a nostalgia vehicle more than a full artistic statement.

Jun 17, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

i-dle's "Crow" Hit 5.8 Million YouTube Views. It Didn't Chart on Melon.

i-dle's pre-release single "Crow" drew 5.8 million YouTube views on release day while failing to chart on Melon and debuting at No. 224 on Genie, continuing a pattern of domestic chart underperformance since the group's 2025 rebrand from (G)I-DLE.

Jun 17, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

NCT Dream Announces First Fan Meeting Since Mark’s Exit, Presale Begins June 24

NCT Dream announces a two-day 10th anniversary fan meeting "THE SWEET DREAM HOTEL" at Inspire Arena in Incheon on August 22–23, their first event since Mark's April departure. Korean fan club presale opens June 23 via NOL Ticket.

Jun 17, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

Sandara Park Started Her Own Label. The Album Drops in Three Days.

Sandara Park has launched her own label ARADNAS and will release solo single album rePRISM on June 20, followed by an Asia fan concert tour opening in Seoul on July 4 — her first fully independent project after 17 years under major label management.

Jun 16, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

Seoul Is Betting $2.2 Million That K-Pop's Next Wave Won't Come From the Big Four

South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has launched a new program providing up to $218,000 annually to ten small K-pop agencies, targeting the structural gap between Big Four conglomerates and independent labels as global K-pop exports grew 32.4 percent in 2025.

Jun 16, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

Seventeen's Joshua Will Address UNESCO in Paris Next Week. He'll Be Representing More Than the Group.

Seventeen's Joshua will deliver a speech at UNESCO headquarters in Paris on June 25 as the group's Youth Goodwill Ambassador, representing the scale-up phase of the Going Together Global Youth Grant Scheme funded by the group's $1 million donation in 2024.

Jun 16, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

ATEEZ to Headline BST Hyde Park 2026 Ahead of New Album Release

ATEEZ headlines BST Hyde Park on June 28 as their only UK date of 2026, two days after releasing GOLDEN HOUR: Part.5. Tickets remain available via AXS and Ticketmaster UK from £49.95.

Jun 16, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

STAYC 2:LOVE — The Single Album That Knows Exactly What It Is

STAYC's sixth single album 2:LOVE delivers a sharp title track built on a tennis-score pun and mid-tempo synth-pop production, with three b-sides that serve the promotional cycle without matching its precision.

Jun 15, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

BTS, Busan Asiad Main Stadium (June 12–13) — The City Remembered

BTS's two-night Arirang World Tour stand in Busan delivered a show with genuine emotional specificity — hometown unit stages, a world premiere of "Come Over," and all-live vocals — though HYBE's Day 1 operations failure remains the unresolved story of the weekend.

Jun 15, 2026 PM EDT - Hannah

RIIZE II — Six Tracks, One Clear Argument

RIIZE's second mini-album II is a six-track EP that expands the group's "Emotional Pop" sound into alternative rock, bass house, and funk — with results that are mostly convincing and occasionally too busy. A 7/10 release that signals a group in deliberate transition.

Korea's Bet on the Next K-Pop Breakout Isn't at HYBE. It's a $198,000 Grant to a Group Most Americans Have Never Heard Of.

LE SSERAFIM PUREFLOW World Tour in Incheon — Five Members, Visibly Relieved to Be Five Again

BIGBANG's 20th Anniversary Tour Has a Name Now: "XX : COSMOS." Manila Just Got Added.

Don't Miss

CONCERTS - Dec 31, 1969 PM EST - Hannah

Latest News

Seventeen Has a New Unit. Vernon and The8 Debut June 29. Pharrell Wrote One of the Tracks.

RM Is Now the National Museum of Korea's First Global Ambassador. He Has 200 Artworks Ready for San Francisco.

K-Pop Is Splitting in Two. Girl Groups Got the Club. Boy Groups Got the Stage.

BTS Adds Jakarta and Bulacan Shows. Presale Opens Tomorrow.

"Swim" Is Eight Weeks on the Hot 100. "Merry Go Round" Drops Tomorrow.

Secret Secret Flavor — Twelve Years Later, Two Members and a New One

i-dle's "Crow" Hit 5.8 Million YouTube Views. It Didn't Chart on Melon.

NCT Dream Announces First Fan Meeting Since Mark’s Exit, Presale Begins June 24

Sandara Park Started Her Own Label. The Album Drops in Three Days.

Seoul Is Betting $2.2 Million That K-Pop's Next Wave Won't Come From the Big Four

Seventeen's Joshua Will Address UNESCO in Paris Next Week. He'll Be Representing More Than the Group.

ATEEZ to Headline BST Hyde Park 2026 Ahead of New Album Release

STAYC 2:LOVE — The Single Album That Knows Exactly What It Is

BTS, Busan Asiad Main Stadium (June 12–13) — The City Remembered

RIIZE II — Six Tracks, One Clear Argument

Editor's Pick

LE SSERAFIM PUREFLOW World Tour in Incheon — Five Members, Visibly Relieved to Be Five Again

BTS Closes Out Europe at Stade de France This Week. Two Nights, Then It's Back to the U.S.

BTS Arirang World Tour London — Seven Years Later, Was It Worth the Wait?

Evan Is Bringing His Solo Debut to the Grammy Museum

Most Read

BTS Closes Out Europe at Stade de France This Week. Two Nights, Then It's Back to the U.S.

BTS ARIRANG World Tour in Munich — A Victory Lap That Still Leaves Room to Improve

KATSEYE Is Getting Its Own Movie. It Opens Before the New EP Does.

Korea's Bet on the Next K-Pop Breakout Isn't at HYBE. It's a $198,000 Grant to a Group Most Americans Have Never Heard Of.

LE SSERAFIM PUREFLOW World Tour in Incheon — Five Members, Visibly Relieved to Be Five Again

BIGBANG's 20th Anniversary Tour Has a Name Now: "XX : COSMOS." Manila Just Got Added.

Don't Miss

BTS Plays Germany for the First Time in This Era. Both Munich Shows Are Tonight and Tomorrow.

KATSEYE Is Getting Its Own Movie. It Opens Before the New EP Does.

BTS Closes Out Europe at Stade de France This Week. Two Nights, Then It's Back to the U.S.

BTS ARIRANG World Tour in Munich — A Victory Lap That Still Leaves Room to Improve