Dec 26, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
aespa's Winter received a silent reception from fans at the 2025 SBS Gayo Daejeon red carpet on December 25 when she greeted them with "Merry Christmas," contrasting sharply with the loud cheers her groupmates received. The awkward incident has been linked to ongoing dating rumors with BTS member Jungkook that began in early December after fans noticed matching tattoos on both idols.
Dec 23, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
Netflix's Korean sci-fi disaster film "The Great Flood" reached #1 globally in 71 countries despite sharply divided reviews, sparking an unprecedented public debate among Korean entertainment industry figures about modern film criticism culture. Writer Heo Ji-woong and translator Hwang Seok-hee publicly criticized what they called excessively harsh attacks on the Kim Da-mi and Park Hae-soo starrer, arguing that streaming-era audiences have lost appreciation for creative risk-taking.
Dec 23, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
G-Dragon's 2025 comeback album Übermensch shattered streaming records with 825,000 fans attending his world tour, but the K-pop icon faced heavy criticism for late concert starts and inconsistent live vocals despite sweeping major year-end awards including seven wins at the Melon Music Awards.
Dec 23, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
MAMAMOO's Hwasa became 2025's only female solo artist to achieve a Perfect All-Kill with "Good Goodbye," which also made history as the first No. 1 on Billboard's newly launched Korea Hot 100 chart following a viral performance at the Blue Dragon Film Awards. The self-written ballad dominated Korean charts with six Circle Chart crowns and climbed to No. 32 on Billboard Global 200, marking her biggest international success.
Dec 21, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
BTS leader RM publicly criticized HYBE during a December 21, 2025 Weverse livestream, saying "I wish our company had some affection for us" and calling for better treatment despite Jin's defense of the agency. The remarks followed previous frustrations about delayed comeback announcements, though BTS remains on track for their March 2026 return after all members completed military service in 2025.
Dec 21, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
SEVENTEEN concluded their RIGHT HERE Japan dome tour in December 2025 with 435,000 fans across 10 sold-out shows in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka, before announcing stadium-only 2026 Asia tour dates in Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, and the Philippines. The K-pop group's chart success continued with their HAPPY BURSTDAY album ranking No. 7 on Oricon's 2025 Annual Rankings alongside multiple award wins at MAMA and Melon Music Awards.
Dec 21, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
Korean rock band N.Flying concluded their record-breaking 10th anniversary year with three sold-out encore concerts at Seoul's Ticketlink Live Arena in December 2025, featuring live debuts of "Still You" and "LOG," orchestra collaborations, and emotional reflections after achieving career-high album sales of 101,997 copies with "Everlasting." The December 19-21 shows capped a milestone year that saw the five-member group reunite after military service, secure their first music show win in six years, and complete an extensive world tour.
Dec 21, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
K-pop group fromis_9 announced encore concerts for their first world tour on January 31 and February 1, 2026, at Korea University's Tiger Dome in Seoul following sold-out shows across 11 cities. The encore performances cap a breakthrough 2025 that saw the five-member group achieve chart success with "LIKE YOU BETTER" and "White Memories" under new agency ASND.
Dec 20, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
K-pop star Jeon Somi wrapped filming on "Perfect Girl," a Hollywood psychological thriller about deadly competition among K-pop trainees. Zanybros confirmed production finished December 19 in Thailand. The film features "KPop Demon Hunters" stars Arden Cho and May Hong, plus K-pop idols from MOMOLAND, Billlie, and Cherry Bullet.
Dec 20, 2025 AM EST - Hannah
LE SSERAFIM's B-side track "Come Over" ranked No. 22 on Billboard's "25 Best K-Pop Songs of 2025" and No. 90 on Consequence's "200 Best Songs of 2025," while their j-hope collaboration "SPAGHETTI" continues charting on Spotify for eight consecutive weeks. The group will perform at Times Square for Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve on December 31 before wrapping their sold-out world tour with Seoul encore concerts in January 2026.
Dec 20, 2025 AM EST - Hannah
BLACKPINK's Jennie became the first soloist to win Record of the Year at the 2025 Melon Music Awards, while G-Dragon swept three daesangs for Artist of the Year, Album of the Year ("Übermensch"), and Song of the Year ("HOME SWEET HOME"). The ceremony honored top-performing artists based on Melon streaming data from October 2024 to November 2025.
Dec 19, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
Mnet M2's "MOVE TO PERFORMANCE" video series wins four international awards in 2025, including Gold at NY Digital Awards and top honors at MUSE Creative Awards and NYX Awards, featuring LE SSERAFIM, Hearts2Hearts, and CORTIS performances.
Dec 19, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
Korean indie singer-songwriter 10CM (Kwon Jung-yeol) announces his 2026 'To 10CM: Chapter 1' Asia tour launching January 30 in Seoul with seven shows at Blue Square SOL Travel Hall, before continuing to seven more cities including Bangkok, Singapore, Tokyo, and Hong Kong through May 3, 2026.
Dec 18, 2025 PM EST - Hannah
BTS Jin's debut mini-album 'HAPPY' has achieved double million seller status on both Hanteo Chart and Circle Chart, with cumulative Circle sales exceeding 3 million copies since its November 15, 2024 release. The album topped year-end charts as 2024's best-selling solo release, earned platinum certification in Japan, and debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200.
Dec 18, 2025 AM EST - Hannah
Kakao Games' mobile puzzle game SMiniz, featuring SM Entertainment K-pop artists NCT, aespa, and RIIZE, achieved 88% player satisfaction during its December 8-12 closed beta test with most testers rating it 10 out of 10. The match-3 puzzle game combining digital photocard collection and customizable fan spaces is set for global release in Q1 2026.
Jan 28, 2026 PM EST - Hannah
Jan 27, 2026 PM EST - Hannah
Jan 25, 2026 PM EST - Hannah
Korea - Dec 31, 1969 PM EST - Hannah
K-WAVE - Dec 31, 1969 PM EST - Hannah
K-WAVE - Dec 31, 1969 PM EST - Hannah
K-WAVE - Dec 31, 1969 PM EST - Hannah
