[ASKKPOP] Weekly Recap: fandom wars, sexy comebacks, and varieties fight on... or not
So I was watching 'Family Feud'the other day, and I realized that the families on there must bereallypositive or something to be giving each other high fives all the time no matter what. "Give me a boy's name that starts with the letter H." "Jose." Cue the gracious applauses and the, "GOOD ANSWER, GOOD ANSWER's." I just don't understand.Steve Harvey's "WTF" face speaks to my soul.
When it comes to the world of K-Pop, Steve Harvey's "WTF" face comes in very handy to express how I feel about some of the news lately. Welcome back to 'Weekly Recap,' where we highlight the biggest news of the week, featuring some commentary from me, a fellow K-Pop fan. Leggo!
The week started off with the lovely reminder that sometimes, some fans go a little cray over nothing. In this week's edition of Insta-drama,Hara deleted the above picture of herself posing with long-time friend Jessica and Kang Min Kyung from her Instagramafter receiving backlash from fans who felt she might hurt theGirls' Generationmembers' feelings. Pretty ridiculous, since I'm sure the Girls' Generation members can take care of themselves; who's to say if thisInstagramupdate even bothered them, anyway?
Yet another example of Instagram drama. Last time, we had fans going crazy overTiffany following EXO's Baekhyunon the SNS platform. At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if all the idols ditched Instagram altogether.
This piece of drama is a bit absurd for a different reason. According the rumors,'Show! Music Core' decided to ban SHINee World(SHINee fans) from their designated seats because anEXO-L(EXO fan) took pictures during the show, which is strictly prohibited on music programs.
"Why are Shawols getting penalized over an EXO-L's actions?" you may ask. Well, apparently the EXO-L got in using a SHINee fanclub card, and that's all that 'Music Core' really cares about. "Why can't 'Music Core' just ban that one EXO-L instead of a whole fandom?" you may question further. Because 'Music Core' is doing that asshole-ish thing some teachers do when they punish a whole class for one student's mistake--to teach everyone a lesson and ensure it nevereverhappens again. It's mean, it's unfair, but do teachers care? Nope, and I'm not sure if 'Music Core' will either.
miss A is doing great digitally as theytopped the Instiz chartfor the first week of April. But unfortunately, as some of you probably have already predicted, miss A's comeback is being nudged out of the headlines to make way for the new "it" couple: Suzy andLee Min Ho.
The Korean media is still talking about it, from articles elaborating on theirone month-old love storyto evencompanies using the couple to grab attention in their ads. Even when miss A'sMinandFeiappeared on'Kim Chang Ryul's Old School'radio show, the most popular articles acrossNatewere that of Min and Fei answeringquestions regarding Suzy.Man, that has got to be annoying for these girls. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like the spotlight will waver from Suzy anytime soon. Which is a shame, since I think I fell in love with every single one of them in just this one performance shown above.
EXOcontinues to impress with their popularity. Not only did their MV gain10 million views on YouTubein one week but they have also topped theGaonmonthly chart for March 2015, are officially thehighest-charting domestic boy group on Korea's Billboard 200, and they have already won on music shows 'Inkigayo,' 'M! Countdown,' and 'Music Bank.'
Wow, that's a lot of accomplishments in one week! In addition to the comeback, EXO recently celebrated their third anniversary. While fans trended#3YearswithEXO, Xiumin commented duringa 'Kiss the Radio' appearance, "Three years can be considered long or short. In EXO's case, there were a lot of things that happened."I can't help but get the feeling he said this on a sad note asDJ andsunbaeRyeowookresponded with, "Where there is a lot of interest, there are also a lot of rumors."Sounds like despite all the success, the EXO members have felt very burdened for the last three years under all the attention. Understandable. But hey, at least they're making bank? And just listen to all those fan chants!
Girls' Generationare back as sexy construction workers! Love the concept. Love the look. As for the song... I'm sure the hyper beat can grow on me over time, but I don't know if I can stand listening to "I'm going to find my heart"on repeat for too long. That corniness belongs in aDisney Channelsing-a-long, not a rave tune.
Rookie girl group has already gotten my attention with their debut single,"The Light."Not only did they release a story MV--a rarity for any idol group--but also it's one that is certain to speak to people considering the approaching anniversary of the tragic event that had the whole country in mourning.
Meanwhile, there are still other comebacks to wait for, such as that ofEXID. Considering that summer release"Up & Down"is still ma jam months and months later, I'm pretty excited to see what EXID's "Up & Down" part two will be like. The teaser is definitely intriguing. Seeing all these random censors and the girls lounging in different settings makes me curious as to what this is all about. And of course that tune. Is without fail. Always. Good.
Check out theiralbum previewhere!
Wow. That tune sounds SICK. How can anyone notbeexcited listening to this?Block B's upcoming subunitBASTARZis already making quite the impression with the heavy brass, the women in fancy lingerie, and what looks like someone butchering meat. Awesome.
Nooot sure how I feel about the title for this one."Who's Your Mama"? I mean, the line, "Who's your daddy?" is already cringe-inducing enough. Still, it's cool to see J.Y. Park pair up with 'Unpretty Rapstar'sJessi. Jessimade it even better when she parodied herself. Instead of, "We are not a team, this is a competition," she announced, "We are a team, this is a collaboration." Nice.
Probably tired of letting go couple after couple, scandal-ridden'We Got Married' is keeping quiet regarding the fate of new on-screen coupleHenryand Yewon. Considering that Yewon is currently under fire for speaking informally toLee Tae Imand then supposedly lying to the public about it, many are wondering what 'We Got Married' will do with the idol.
So far,reps are saying that it's likely Yewon will continue to be on the show. This might not come as much of a surprise since Yewon isn't in a dating scandal, which would make her fake marriage with Henry less believable (and make theirrecent kisskind of weird). Still, I wonder if it's a good idea for Yewon to act cool on 'We Got Married' when the public has a pretty negative opinion of her? In an ideal world, everyone would let the whole thing go and realize the fight itself was not that big of a deal. Buuut, this is the real world, and people hold bizarre grudges for things they have no relation to.
This will come as sad news to some.SBShas announced that'Roommate' will officially endits run on TV following the conclusion of their second season. Cue the cries ofJackjifans mourning the loss of their fan-service goldmine.
This announcement is pretty abrupt considering that the second season will be ending on the 14th. Like dayum, couldn't fans be given at least a month warning to prepare themselves?! Well, regardless of the short time we have with the program, 'Roommate' does what 'Roommate' does best and provide us cute interactions among the cast members even in its last episodes. Most recently,Jacksonwasjelly yet again when Youngji graced fanboy BamBam with her attention.
Speaking of 'Roommate,' remember that former 'Roommate' cast memberSong Ga Yeonwho had to undergo psychiatric treatment due to the stress she received from hate comments and death threats? Well, she's back to kicking ass, this time in legal terms asa particular netizen was fined 2 million won (approx. $1,826 USD) for implying he would kill her with a chainsaw. Crazy what people do with their words, huh? This fine was well deserved.
As the Korean entertainment business is opening up to more and more celebrities admitting that they're dating, it doesn't come as much of a surprise anymore when new couples go public.
In this week's dating news, however, things have been kind of weird. First off, retired figure skaterKim Yunaand ice hockey playerKim Won Joongarereported to have gotten back together.This comes as a surprise to many who were convinced that Kim Won Joong was some no-good cheater, visiting massage spas for "indecent" reasons and partying with girls at karaoke bars. But who knows, we could have this whole thing wrong.
Meanwhile, it seems that actorsYoon Hyun MinandJeon So Mincompletely have each other wrong.While Yoon Hyun Min confirmed that they were in a relationship, Jeon So Min's side replied that they weren't.Awkward.
In the idol world,Hongkihas recently found himself ina dating rumor with Japanese singer and model Ai Shinozaki. Where did this come from?!WHERE ARE THE PICS?! We're left to guess as media outlets only state theFNCdenies the rumor. How anticlimactic.
TheLadies' Codetragedy continues as the manager faces the charge of speeding the night of the car accident when membersEunBandRiSe's passed away. After receiving a one year and two month jail sentence, the manager appealed for a lighter sentence while prosecution appealed for an even harsher one. According to reports, the manager has nowsettled matters with the grieving families. An announcement regarding his new penalty will be made next week.
I'm definitely curious about the manager's fate. Many fans of the K-Pop world seem to agree that although the manager should not have been speeding that night, he probably felt pressured to do so due to the crazy K-Pop system (something I elaborated on in a past op-ed). Will the manager get to escape his lengthy jail sentence or will he receive an even longer one of two years and six months according to prosecution's wishes? Guess we'll find out soon.
That's it for this week's recap! What did you guys think of this week's events? Let me know in the comments below!
When it comes to the world of K-Pop, Steve Harvey's "WTF" face comes in very handy to express how I feel about some of the news lately. Welcome back to 'Weekly Recap,' where we highlight the biggest news of the week, featuring some commentary from me, a fellow K-Pop fan. Leggo!
Hara and Jessica are friends?! All hell breaks loose
The week started off with the lovely reminder that sometimes, some fans go a little cray over nothing. In this week's edition of Insta-drama,Hara deleted the above picture of herself posing with long-time friend Jessica and Kang Min Kyung from her Instagramafter receiving backlash from fans who felt she might hurt theGirls' Generationmembers' feelings. Pretty ridiculous, since I'm sure the Girls' Generation members can take care of themselves; who's to say if thisInstagramupdate even bothered them, anyway?
Yet another example of Instagram drama. Last time, we had fans going crazy overTiffany following EXO's Baekhyunon the SNS platform. At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if all the idols ditched Instagram altogether.
'Show! Music Core' bans SHINee World because they can
This piece of drama is a bit absurd for a different reason. According the rumors,'Show! Music Core' decided to ban SHINee World(SHINee fans) from their designated seats because anEXO-L(EXO fan) took pictures during the show, which is strictly prohibited on music programs.
"Why are Shawols getting penalized over an EXO-L's actions?" you may ask. Well, apparently the EXO-L got in using a SHINee fanclub card, and that's all that 'Music Core' really cares about. "Why can't 'Music Core' just ban that one EXO-L instead of a whole fandom?" you may question further. Because 'Music Core' is doing that asshole-ish thing some teachers do when they punish a whole class for one student's mistake--to teach everyone a lesson and ensure it nevereverhappens again. It's mean, it's unfair, but do teachers care? Nope, and I'm not sure if 'Music Core' will either.
miss A vs. EXO
It's still a battle betweenmiss AandEXOthis week as they both top the charts and face off on music programs! Let's see how they're doing in their second week of comebacks.miss A: top Instiz chart + all eyes on Suzy and Lee Min Ho
miss A is doing great digitally as theytopped the Instiz chartfor the first week of April. But unfortunately, as some of you probably have already predicted, miss A's comeback is being nudged out of the headlines to make way for the new "it" couple: Suzy andLee Min Ho.
The Korean media is still talking about it, from articles elaborating on theirone month-old love storyto evencompanies using the couple to grab attention in their ads. Even when miss A'sMinandFeiappeared on'Kim Chang Ryul's Old School'radio show, the most popular articles acrossNatewere that of Min and Fei answeringquestions regarding Suzy.Man, that has got to be annoying for these girls. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like the spotlight will waver from Suzy anytime soon. Which is a shame, since I think I fell in love with every single one of them in just this one performance shown above.
EXO: music show wins + third year anniversary
EXOcontinues to impress with their popularity. Not only did their MV gain10 million views on YouTubein one week but they have also topped theGaonmonthly chart for March 2015, are officially thehighest-charting domestic boy group on Korea's Billboard 200, and they have already won on music shows 'Inkigayo,' 'M! Countdown,' and 'Music Bank.'
Wow, that's a lot of accomplishments in one week! In addition to the comeback, EXO recently celebrated their third anniversary. While fans trended#3YearswithEXO, Xiumin commented duringa 'Kiss the Radio' appearance, "Three years can be considered long or short. In EXO's case, there were a lot of things that happened."I can't help but get the feeling he said this on a sad note asDJ andsunbaeRyeowookresponded with, "Where there is a lot of interest, there are also a lot of rumors."Sounds like despite all the success, the EXO members have felt very burdened for the last three years under all the attention. Understandable. But hey, at least they're making bank? And just listen to all those fan chants!
Up next: more MV releases and teasers galore
While miss A and EXO duke it out, we have many more sexy comebacks to look forward to! Check it out.Girls' Generation
Girls' Generationare back as sexy construction workers! Love the concept. Love the look. As for the song... I'm sure the hyper beat can grow on me over time, but I don't know if I can stand listening to "I'm going to find my heart"on repeat for too long. That corniness belongs in aDisney Channelsing-a-long, not a rave tune.
The Ark
Rookie girl group has already gotten my attention with their debut single,"The Light."Not only did they release a story MV--a rarity for any idol group--but also it's one that is certain to speak to people considering the approaching anniversary of the tragic event that had the whole country in mourning.
EXID
Meanwhile, there are still other comebacks to wait for, such as that ofEXID. Considering that summer release"Up & Down"is still ma jam months and months later, I'm pretty excited to see what EXID's "Up & Down" part two will be like. The teaser is definitely intriguing. Seeing all these random censors and the girls lounging in different settings makes me curious as to what this is all about. And of course that tune. Is without fail. Always. Good.
Check out theiralbum previewhere!
BASTARZ
Wow. That tune sounds SICK. How can anyone notbeexcited listening to this?Block B's upcoming subunitBASTARZis already making quite the impression with the heavy brass, the women in fancy lingerie, and what looks like someone butchering meat. Awesome.
J.Y. Park feat. Jessi
Nooot sure how I feel about the title for this one."Who's Your Mama"? I mean, the line, "Who's your daddy?" is already cringe-inducing enough. Still, it's cool to see J.Y. Park pair up with 'Unpretty Rapstar'sJessi. Jessimade it even better when she parodied herself. Instead of, "We are not a team, this is a competition," she announced, "We are a team, this is a collaboration." Nice.
Lee Tae Im vs. Yewon: 'We Got Married' holds on
Probably tired of letting go couple after couple, scandal-ridden'We Got Married' is keeping quiet regarding the fate of new on-screen coupleHenryand Yewon. Considering that Yewon is currently under fire for speaking informally toLee Tae Imand then supposedly lying to the public about it, many are wondering what 'We Got Married' will do with the idol.
So far,reps are saying that it's likely Yewon will continue to be on the show. This might not come as much of a surprise since Yewon isn't in a dating scandal, which would make her fake marriage with Henry less believable (and make theirrecent kisskind of weird). Still, I wonder if it's a good idea for Yewon to act cool on 'We Got Married' when the public has a pretty negative opinion of her? In an ideal world, everyone would let the whole thing go and realize the fight itself was not that big of a deal. Buuut, this is the real world, and people hold bizarre grudges for things they have no relation to.
Roommate to end after season 2
This will come as sad news to some.SBShas announced that'Roommate' will officially endits run on TV following the conclusion of their second season. Cue the cries ofJackjifans mourning the loss of their fan-service goldmine.
This announcement is pretty abrupt considering that the second season will be ending on the 14th. Like dayum, couldn't fans be given at least a month warning to prepare themselves?! Well, regardless of the short time we have with the program, 'Roommate' does what 'Roommate' does best and provide us cute interactions among the cast members even in its last episodes. Most recently,Jacksonwasjelly yet again when Youngji graced fanboy BamBam with her attention.
Speaking of 'Roommate,' remember that former 'Roommate' cast memberSong Ga Yeonwho had to undergo psychiatric treatment due to the stress she received from hate comments and death threats? Well, she's back to kicking ass, this time in legal terms asa particular netizen was fined 2 million won (approx. $1,826 USD) for implying he would kill her with a chainsaw. Crazy what people do with their words, huh? This fine was well deserved.
Dating news lately is weird news
As the Korean entertainment business is opening up to more and more celebrities admitting that they're dating, it doesn't come as much of a surprise anymore when new couples go public.
In this week's dating news, however, things have been kind of weird. First off, retired figure skaterKim Yunaand ice hockey playerKim Won Joongarereported to have gotten back together.This comes as a surprise to many who were convinced that Kim Won Joong was some no-good cheater, visiting massage spas for "indecent" reasons and partying with girls at karaoke bars. But who knows, we could have this whole thing wrong.
Meanwhile, it seems that actorsYoon Hyun MinandJeon So Mincompletely have each other wrong.While Yoon Hyun Min confirmed that they were in a relationship, Jeon So Min's side replied that they weren't.Awkward.
In the idol world,Hongkihas recently found himself ina dating rumor with Japanese singer and model Ai Shinozaki. Where did this come from?!WHERE ARE THE PICS?! We're left to guess as media outlets only state theFNCdenies the rumor. How anticlimactic.
Ladies' Code manager reaches an agreement with the bereaved families
TheLadies' Codetragedy continues as the manager faces the charge of speeding the night of the car accident when membersEunBandRiSe's passed away. After receiving a one year and two month jail sentence, the manager appealed for a lighter sentence while prosecution appealed for an even harsher one. According to reports, the manager has nowsettled matters with the grieving families. An announcement regarding his new penalty will be made next week.
I'm definitely curious about the manager's fate. Many fans of the K-Pop world seem to agree that although the manager should not have been speeding that night, he probably felt pressured to do so due to the crazy K-Pop system (something I elaborated on in a past op-ed). Will the manager get to escape his lengthy jail sentence or will he receive an even longer one of two years and six months according to prosecution's wishes? Guess we'll find out soon.
That's it for this week's recap! What did you guys think of this week's events? Let me know in the comments below!