So... Big Bang will embark on a World Tour beginning on April 25 and 26 in Seoul to promote their comeback album. Tickets for the Seoul concert dates will go on sale on April 6 and 7. Hell, even the local concert promoter has already confirmed that Manila will be one of the stops of this World Tour. The concert has been set for either July 30 or 31.
Meanwhile, no one knows when the album is actually going to be released. According to that fabulous teaser poster, it could be any time between April and September. Trust Big Bang to get sold out concerts without even dropping the album first.
I don't think I've been this excited about an Exo single since "Growl".
Exo released their second full-length album Exodus yesterday and the music video for lead single "Call Me Baby" came out today. And, man, do they slay the song. The vocals are awesome, the choreography is intense, and the music videos are on point. I'm gonna need SM to release a dance practice video. And soon.
I'm happy that there seems to be a more even distribution of lines and airtime in "Call Me Baby". We hear more from Lay and Xiumin in this new track - with vocals that are so on point that it's killing me. We also see a marked improvement in their dancing (coughCHENcough). Everyone, I feel, was given time to shine in the music video but I couldn't help but be distracted by Xiumin's energy, Lay's high notes, Chanyeol's hair, and Jongin's hips that have no chill. That's my bias list, I think. Heh.
My only real complaint is that it had nothing to do with the teasers (aside from the cities used in the teasers spelling out "Call Me Baby"). But here's to hoping they put out a video for "Exodus" where all our teaser-related questions are answered.
Can't wait for them to start promoting on music shows!
YG Entertainment has been teasing us with yet another "Who Is Next?" poster. The supposed date of comeback/debut is on April 1. That's in 2 days and we still have no idea as to who's actually next.
Like everyone else, I'm praying for a Big Bang comeback. It's long overdue. If there's anyone who needs to come out with an album, it's these 5. As a group. It's been 3 years since their last group album. Seriously. I know the members have been super busy despite not having a group album in years (what with all the solo releases and dramas and movies) but still. I need my boys together on a full-length album.
Truth be told, I am looking forward to Winner's comeback and Ikon's debut, but can they please wait until their sunbaes have had their proper comeback?
Also, I'm hoping that even though YG has a penchant for delaying releases, this is not their idea of a stupid April Fool's joke. I mean, it's not our fault for thinking this since, 1) YG is a troll, and 2) the target date is April first.
(Now watch as none of the above groups make a debut/comeback. Oh my lord, if it's someone else on their agency's roster, I'm gonna have to very effectively leave scathing comments on their website.)
Idol band FT Island made their long-awaited comeback with a grittier and more intense full-length album, I Will, which I still have yet to download. The music video for the title track "Pray" was released on March 23 and it is everything I didn't know I wanted to see from the group.
I was pleasantly surprised by the change in their sound and I think I read somewhere that Lee Hongki had mentioned that this is the album where FNC finally allowed them to do what they want… Well then, good for them. And I can't believe this is what FNC has been blocking. I mean, listen to them! This track is glorious and I can't wait to listen to the entire album.
"Pray" sounds a lot like something One Ok Rock would produce, actually. Knowing that Hongki and the rest of the guys are close friends with the Japanese band, well, I guess the Takahiro Morita influence is apparent. And I am loving it.
I Will, FT Island's fifth studio album, was released today.
I don't normally talk about celebrity gossip on here but this is too huge to be ignored. Top Hallyu stars Lee Min-ho and and Suzy Bae of idol group miss A were recently spotted by Dispatch on several dates in London and Seoul. I swear to god, Dispatch will unearth all these secrets no matter where these celebrities go to secretly date.
Just hours after the photos and the rumor went viral, both StarHaus and JYP (entertainment agencies managing Lee and Bae, respectively) confirmed that the two stars have indeed been dating for the past month. And I am beyond pleased that they did not attempt to deny or redirect the rumors. Those only make things worse for everyone involved (coughChoizaSullicough).
I'm sure there will be negative feedback from fans of both celebrities but, so far, I'm glad I haven't encountered anything out of the normal "omg my oppaaaa". And let's be real. How can you complain? Both stars are huge names and they make one helluva good-looking couple. There is that 7-year age gap but Lee Min-ho isn't that old and Suzy turns 21 this year. Shouldn't really be a problem (again coughChoizaSullicough).
Anyway, I wish them the best of luck and may they continue to be gorgeous together. #BaeLee because #Suho or #Minzy just doesn't work for me.
I've been gone so long that I've totally skipped writing about several dramas that I've been watching. I saw Healer, late to the game, and marathoned the entire thing in a matter of days. I loved it so much and fell so hard for Ji Chang-wook. Crazy.
I also started on several other dramas but have failed to finish them because even more dramas have started and are now taking up most of my time. I'm halfway through Birth of a Beauty but have, for now, put it on the back burner. The same goes for Liar Game (just 4 more episodes, I know), but I'm determined to eventually get back to it. Soon.
Meanwhile, dramas like High School Love On and Surplus Princess have been completely forgotten. And I have yet to get started on Misaeng. Soon, I swear!
What I'm currently preoccupied with are as follows:
1. Hogu's Love - I'm not sure what to make of this drama just yet. I'm sort of addicted to it but I'm not sure why. I love UEE in it and hers is a character I can empathize with. I equally love Choi Woo-shik but for totally different reasons. Also, while I love Im Seulong as an actor, I absolutely loathe his character. Plus, I'm not sure what to make of how they ended the 6th episode. I guess I just have to wait and see.
2. Persevere Goo Hae-ra- I'm not yet completely caught up with the drama because I made the mistake of marathoning the first 5 episodes over a weekend and totally forgot that this is a once-a-week show. So, in order to not be completely left hanging again, I'm trying to pace myself with it. So far, though, so good. The music is awesome. The characters are relatable. The plotlines are believable, taking into consideration the fact that there's only so much verisimilitude a musical drama can muster, of course.
3. Hyde, Jekyll, Me - Not sure if the story is enough to keep me around... But I'm determined to stick with it. I love Hyun Bin and Han Ji-min individually, and while their chemistry has yet to explode, I do think they're cute enough together. Also, Sung Joon is doing so well in his role. He has me so conflicted right now. HA. Here's to hoping this week's episodes bring more light to the conflicts we're facing.
4. We Got Married - How sad am I that Jonghyun and Yura are leaving the show? Very. But I can't say that this has come as a shock. I was waiting for it to happen, even while hoping it didn't. They've only been on the show for a couple of months but their chemistry has been fluctuating - mostly because Jonghyun has the hardest time opening up. Also, that Jonghyun-Nana dating scandal. Le sigh.
There are new dramas about to air soon, of which Superdaddy Yeol, Divorce Lawyer in Love, and Angry Mom look promising. I've also heard good thing about Heard It Through the Grapevine but I'm waiting for more feedback before I actually decide to tune in. So many dramas, so little time.
Upcoming KBS vampire-drama Blood starring Goo Hye-sun and new It Boy Ahn Jae-hyun just released a number of posters ahead of its premiere. The drama is set to air in a week's time, on February 16, following the end of current hit series Healer.
The cute poster above features the leads sipping out of a blood bag, given that Ahn Jae-hyun's character is a vampire under the guise of a doctor. This poster is staggeringly not what I expected given the drama's previously released teaser (as below). All that pink and the cutesy pose is what I would have been expecting from a vampire rom-com, not a vampire medical suspense drama. Needless to say, I found the poster a bit, um, jarring?
However, along with the first poster, the production released two more posters that features not just the two main leads but our main baddie as well, Ji Jin-hee. Now, these following posters are more along the lines of what I was expecting. Dark, gritty, bloody. I guess we can surmise that beyond the drama's blood and suspense holds a charming love story? One can hope.
After seeing Goo Hye-sun in Angel Eyes, I trust her growth as an actress and I believe she can pull this role off. No one can possibly be worried about Ji Jin-hee either. Ahn Jae-hyun, on the other hand, is a different story. While I love the man myself, mostly I just think he's so gorgeous that he seems otherworldly. He was effective enough in his tiny role in You From Another Star, the drama that launched his acting career and propelled him to It Boy status. He wasn't so bad in his minor role in You're All Surrounded as well. But if he's strong enough to pull off a lead role, when this is only his third drama ever, still remains to be seen. I hope he is.
Whether I will be tuning in to this drama is yet to be seen. I currently still have a lot on my plate and I've just started on more. I'm certainly grasping at time here; trying to squeeze in as much watching, reading, working, and sleeping into my days as I can.
Pending people's feedback and the general concensus of kdrama addicts the world over, maybe I might be convinced to marathon the show when it's run is about to end, if it's good enough. Much like what I'm doing with Healer right now, I suppose.
Yes, yes. I forgot to write up my list of favorite songs for the second half of 2014. As I've said in my last post, I got super lazy last month and into the new year. So here I am, trying to squeeze this post before the first month ends completely.
As was with the first half of 2014, the second half of the year was just as kpop-filled and my playlist just kept getting bigger and bigger. And so, without further babbling, here are my 15 favorite songs from the second half of 2014.
Well, I wasn't really gone gone. I was here, just really lazy to give this blog any thought. Firstly, the holidays were insane. As it always is. But then reality hit me like a ton of bricks and I had a rough time trying to catch up with all the emails in my inbox. Secondly, while I have been watching dramas, I haven't really been up to date with most of them.
I think the only drama I've finished since the holidays started was Pinocchio (which I loved, maybe not as much as I Hear Your Voice, but it was still awesome). I have 4 more episodes to go before I can put Liar Game totally behind me. I'm only at episode 13 of Birth of a Beauty. And I'm, like, 5 minutes into the first episode of Healer. I still have Misaeng and Valid Love lined up! I don't know when I will ever be able to watch those because new dramas are already starting to come out of the woodwork. Hyde, Jekyll, Me starts today. Well, it started last night but subs come out today. While I'm not the biggest fan of Hyun Bin in the same arrogant chaebol role, I really do like him as an actor and I love Han Ji-min, so it would be terrible to miss out on this one.
Lately though, I haven't been of the mindset to watch dramas. Mostly, I watch variety shows. And even then, not religiously. I've watched some Running Man here and there. The Kim Woo-bin + Lee Hyun-woo episode was awesome. I'm currently in the middle of the latest one with Seo Kang-joon, Hong Jong-hyun (soooo cute, this guy), Nam Joo-hyuk and 2 other flower boys. I've seen a couple of episodes of Superman Returns because I slept over at my friend's place over the weekend and that is almost all she'll watch. Oh, and I'm now all caught up on We Got Married.
There are times though when I can't even sit still (or lie still, as the case may often be) long enough to even get started on a variety show episode. Sometimes I just jump from one kpop video to the next on youtube until I fall asleep. (Speaking of kpop, it's January. Where's that iKON debut?!) I should really force myself out of this slump...
On the upside, I've finished 2 books since Sunday - granted, both books are of the chic lit variety (one of them being a cliched young adult romance) - but still, reading is reading and I actually miss it. Maybe the thing that would push me to write more is to read more. So, yeah, that should be a new New Year's Resolution.
I've already committed to cutting down on carbs, most especially rice (Asians the world over gasp in horror), and unhealthy food, and so far I've been very diligent about it. I should add watch more dramas and read more books onto that list. Also, I should probably try to meet new people this year. Go out, hang out, live. Which, you might think, doesn't really go with the "watch more, read more" part of the resolutions, but I think it can be done. 2015, fighting!
The 2014 Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA) took place last week in Hong Kong (again!) and many of our favorite idols and Hallyu stars flocked to the AsiaWorld-Arena to attend k-pop's most-awaited event of the year.
I watched the entire thing with bated breath from red carpet to end credits, and I was a hundred times thankful that they aired it live on local tv - on time and with no extended commercials (unless Mnet was airing commercials too).
While I was happy with most of those who were declared winners that night (i.e. Winner, "Some", "Eyes Nose Lips", Epik High, etc.) there were some disappoints as well (I swear 2NE1 deserved album of the year and the only reason they weren't even nominated was, well, we all know why). Nonetheless, I had a blast watching the show - all 6 and a half hours of it - and I can't wait for it to be available online for a re-watch.
Despite the lineup of artists being noticeably shorter this year, there was still a lot of fun to be had. So here are 10 of my favorite moments - both big and small - from the 2014 MAMA.
(in no particular order)
1. Last Fantasy - Aptly named a fantasy, this stage performance consisted of Ailee disguising herself as Girl's Day Minah's male dance partner. Totally cute!
2. SMTM3 Special Opening Stage - Not even gonna lie, I was beyond excited when I found out Bobby was not just going to be performing "Come Here" but "연결고리 (YGGR)" as well. Bobby hit the MAMA stage and slayed. (And Mino being all excited and proud was just icing on the cake.)
3. Battle of the Century - Indeed, it was. This Block B vs. BTS special stage was the perfect example of a battle done right. The stage highlighted the immense talent of both groups perfectly (and I'm not even a Block B fan). From their dancing (and Jimin's abs - which excited not just Girl's Day Yura and Sojin, but Winner's Seung-yoon as well), their rapping, stage presence, and overall performance skills - everything was on point.
4. IU-Mino Duet - Another star of the night was Winner's Mino, who shared the stage not just with fellow YG artists but also with this year's Best Female Artist IU. It was something I didn't know I needed in my life until it was happening before my very own eyes.
5. Media Wonderland - Seo Tai-ji made a comeback this year and I was looking forward to seeing his performance on the MAMA stage. I'm not a huge fan of "Sogkyeodong" or "Christmalo-win" but I did love his old stuff. And by old stuff, I mean his hip-hop stuff back when they were Seo Tai-ji and Boys. So imagine my shock when U-Kwon (Block B) and Jungkook (BTS) got out of their seats for a planned dance break to cue the start of Seo Tai-ji's performance of "Come Back Home". I was half expecting YG to appear on stage for his signature moves but alas, Vasco (SMTM3) and Zico (Block B) joined him instead.
6. Lee Guk-joo x Jo Se-ho - There's nothing I love more than when non-idols get the spotlight they deserve. And let's be honest, 2014 was the year of Lee Guk-joo. She's just refreshingly awesome. Also, was this the kiss Mnet has been leading us on with all this time?! LOL.
7. Mino x Song Seung-heon - Mino is hilarious. And nothing proves that more than the many shots of him from the artists' sitting area where he always had the best reactions. None of them better than when he feigned (or not?) disappointment when hottie Song Seung-heon chose to give IU his rose. Better luck next time, Mino.
8. Winner x iKON - If having Bobby and B.I sit beside the guys of Winner during award shows is a glimpse into the awesomeness of the YG Family's future, then count me in. These guys are hilarious individually, but even more so together. Simply put Bobby, B.I, and Mino together and wait for the magic to happen.
9. Kai's Dance Solo - Kai, as usual, was breathtaking. While it might take me awhile to get used to seeing EXO as a 10-member group, at least I will always find solace in Kai's dance solos. (For now?)
10. YG Family being a family - I'm just so happy to see YG Family gaining new members because it's suddenly all so refreshing. We might not have 2NE1 at the moment, and Lee Hi And AKMU were nowhere to be seen at the awards show, but having Winner and Double B around seemed to lighten up everyone's moods. Even GD seemed to be more into things this year. The GD x Taeyang stage was one the best we've seen from them in awhile. They seemed more into it and actually put a lot of effort in both their vocals and choreography. Maybe having fresh meat around is making these older sunbaes work harder than usual. Whatever it is, I'm liking it.
Epik High's performance was livened up as well by the presence of Mino, Bobby, and B.I (plus Yoo In-na!). And just seeing them all there in the audience was nice. Every time one of them won, you can see how proud and genuinely happy they were for each other. Ultimately, the night ended with a glimpse of our YG family posturing for a selfie (groufie?) with Taeyang trying to be seen from the back by jumping as high as he possibly can.
I've found I've always enjoyed MAMA stages the best, so now that it's over, I guess all I have to look forward to are the year-end music festivals from the 3 big networks. And then it's a whole year to go until the next MAMA. Hopefully, they find a new location for next year's show. I mean, Asia is a big place. Macau is done. Singapore is done. Hong Kong is done, done, and done. Somewhere new, please?
