JYJ’s Junsu builds a school in Cambodia

Through the generous help of JYJ‘s Junsu, a small village in Cambodia was able to construct a school for its students.

On December 28th, ‘Adra Korea‘ announced the establishment of a ‘Kim Junsu School’ that took five months to build. The school includes six classrooms, a bathroom, and a clean water supply system.
The remote outback town is a part of the Pusat province and has a population of 1,500. It takes approximately three hours by car to travel to the capital. In a country that carries a suffering economy and health system, the town is considered one of the most impoverished within the country.

Junsu’s mother, Yoon Young Mi, visited the area through the aid of a volunteer organization and asked locals what they needed the most. Without hesitation, they had said that they needed a school for their children. After hearing about their needs, Junsu set out to construct a school to aid in the education of impoverished children and to help them find a future and a goal. Touched, the locals shared and donated everything they had to make it a possibility.

The opening ceremony was attended by 500 students and their parents, along with the town officials. The new elementary students put on an adorable show to express their gratitude. Junsu’s mother returned the favor by expressing, “I hope to name this school the ‘Xiah Junsu Evergreen School’ so that the students can preserve dreams as fresh and green as the trees and grow their own futures. I hope that everyone will grow up to become an important leader of our future.”


Junsu wasn’t able to attend due to his musical, ‘Elizabeth‘, but made sure to leave a message stating, “I’d love to visit everyone the next time I get an opportunity and sing and dance with you all.”


The town also set up a gate with the message ‘Kim Junsu Support Town’ to express their gratitude for all he’s done.

Source + Photos: Sports Chosun via Naver

Jang Geun Suk donates another $30,000 USD to charity

Jang Geun Suk recently made headlines for donating $1.2 million USD to his university, Hanyang University. Earlier this month, he’s been revealed to have donated yet another $30,000 USD.

The $30,000 was split three times, with $10,000 USD being given to a different organization, such as one for an orphanage in Kangnam and the other for a briquette delivering organization sponsored by NGO.

The orphanage in Kangnam was actually in dire need of the support, as not only is it the only orphanage in 

Kangnam, but is also poorly faciliated. Up until October, they had used a gas boiler to heat the building before organizations chipped in to reconstruct the place. Unfortunately, funds weren’t enough to complete the project.

Upon hearing their case, Jang Geun Suk covered the remaining fees and helped the orphanage complete the construction, allowing the kids to spend a healthy, warm winter.

On December 28th, his agency expressed, “After hearing about the orphanage, Jang Geun Suk-ssi worried a lot about the safety of the children. He wanted to help in any of the little ways he could and delivered the donation to them. He’s glad that they’re all warm and safe and is actually thankful to them.”

Source + Photos: OSEN via Naver

credit: allkpop

EXO to debut four members at ‘2011 SBS Gayo Daejun’

Four members from SM Entertainment‘s rookie groups EXO-K and EXO-M will be making their first appearance at the ‘2011 SBS Gayo Daejun‘.

SM Entertainment is planning to have a surprise performance by four members of EXO – KAI, LU HAN, TAO, and yet-to-be-introduced CHEN – on December 29th during the ’2011 SBS Gayo Daejun’. In particular, CHEN, who will be revealed for the first time through this stage, will showcase his superior vocal talents that surpasses the level of a 19-year-old. Because he will be the lead vocals for the group, many are anticipating this live introduction.

Most recently, a group photo of the four members (above) through their official website as well as Korean, Chinese and international social networking platforms has been spiking international interest in this group.

Although four members of EXO-K and EXO-M have been confirmed, the exact number of members still remains unknown, drawing even more curiosity from the general public.

Source: Newsen via Nate

credit: allkpop

Pledis Boys to make their official debut on SBS Gayo Daejun

7-member boy group Pledis Boys will finally be making their stage debut.

The Pledis Boys will be performing at the 2011 SBS Gayo Daejun which will take place at KINTEX in Ilsan December 29th.

The members have displayed a more adorable image through the ‘Happy Pledis‘ project with their labelmates After School, however for their debut stage, the boys will be putting on a powerful and intense performance. The Pledis Boys will also be doing the shuffle dance with their seniors.

The competition between the idol stars for 2012 has already caught fire, but the members remarked, “We are pouring out everything we have into recording our album and preparing for our promotions. We will be approaching our fans with music that’s express our unique Pledis Boys personality, and we hope that you guys will continue to love and support us.”

Source & Image : MyDaily via Nate

credit: allkpop

Super Junior’s cumulative album sales for 2011 reaches 350,000 units – crowned “Album King”

Asia’s hottest idol group Super Junior set a new record, becoming the top artist to sell the most albums over the past 3 years.

The ‘2011 Singer Awards‘ reflects the artists that sold the most albums according to sales data from Hanteo, and Super Junior sold 355,900 albums between January 1st, 2011 and December 27th, 2011.

Super Junior’s cumulative album sales (of all 32 singles and albums they’ve released to date) for 2011 amounted to 350,000 units. This was the highest number of sales since the ‘Singer Awards’ were established back in 2009. Seo Taiji boasted 248,800 units in 2009, while Girls’ Generation set a new record last year by moving 309,400 units.

Super Junior’s full length album ‘Mr.Simple‘ was a big factor that contributed to their impressive sales numbers. ‘Mr Simple’ Type A alone sold 199,300 copies while Type B sold 53,500 copies and their repackaged album sold 73,900 copies. All together, their fifth album alone sold 326,800 units. Behind Super Junior was TVXQ who sold 230,000 units and Girls’ Generation who sold 226,700 units.

The two names that stood out on the list, however, were INFINITE and IU. The boys of INFINITE came in at 7th place selling 124,100 units while singer IU was the only soloist to break the top 10, selling 92,900 units at #9.

Hanteo charts calculates the data by collecting 85% of their information from nationwide music sales and 15% from accumulations in their own information database along with national sale estimates.

Source & Image: SportsKorea via Nate

credit: allkpop

JYJ’s Jaejoong puckers up to kiss…

The cast members of the popular drama ‘Protect the Boss‘ have gathered together once again, but this time for a year-end party.

Recently, ‘Protect the Boss‘ Director Song Jung Hyun posted proof shots of the cast members at the year-end party on the website gallery. The pictures contained images of JYJ‘s Jaejoong along with actresses Choi Kang Hee, Ha Jae Sook and actor Ji Sung as they came together to share a drink and celebrate the year’s end in good company.

The public was particularly drawn to the picture where Jaejoong is seen puckering up his lips attempting to kiss Choi Kang Hee, as well as other pictures where he is drawing humorous expressions, causing laughter among those who stumbled across the pictures.

Netizens stated, “Jaejoong must have been upset that he lost Choi Kang Hee to Ji Sung in the drama”, “It’s good to see that they stayed close even after the drama ended”, and “Kim Jaejoong… your lips… don’t do it”

Source: Etoday via ParanMedia

credit: allkpop

Infinite's Woohyun, Sunggyu and solo artist Seo Inguk cast in "Gwanghwamun Sonata" musical

It's been revealed that Infinite's main vocalists Sunggyu and Woohyun, as well as Superstar K winner Seo Inguk were cast in the 2012 musical "Gwanghwamun Sonata".

Sunggyu and Woohyun will be taking on the same role, Jiyong, as the son of the female lead. The role was performed by BEAST's Yoseob in the previous version of the musical. Together with musical actor Lee Yool, Seo Inguk is casted for the role of Hyunwoo, a male who can’t stop his love for a woman.

"Gwanghwamun Sonata" features a cast of well-known Korean singers and musical actors such as Yoon Dohyun, Jo Sungmo, Lee Yool, Lisa, Jung Wonyoung, Park Junghwan, Choi Jaewoong, Kim Taehan, Kim Youngjoo, Go Wonyoung, and many others.

"Gwanghwamun Sonata" premiered at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts just last year, and passes as a jukebox musical taking notice of older songs such as "Old Love" and "When Love Passes By". The musical is set to open at the Seoul LG Arts Center on February 7th and will have performances until March 11th.

Source: EndlessLimits and TVReport

cr: koreaboo.com

Lee Seunggi, Girls' Generation's Yoona, and Song Jihyo to MC the 2011 SBS Korean Music Festival

The end of the year is quickly approaching and that means that end of the year festivals are this week. SBS is the first to go, as they will be airing their 2011 Korean Music Festival on December 29th at 8:50 PM KST. KBS will hold their music festival on December 30th, while the 2011 MBC Korean Music Festival will air on December 31st an KINTEX in Ilsan.

The line-up for this year's SBS Music Festival, also known as the Gayo Daejun, includes TVXQ, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, 2NE1, BEAST, Wonder Girls, KARA, CNBLUE, T-ara, IU, Lee Seunggi, Kim Hyunjoong, 4minute, f(x), Brown Eyed Girls, Davichi, Teen Top, G.NA, U-Kiss, Infinite, Dal Shabet, and A Pink.

In addition to the normal performances from the artists, SBS has revealed that there will be a special Hallyu Wave concept stage as well as many joint stages.

On December 27th, a representative from SBS revealed that the MCs for this year's show would be Song Jihyo, Lee Seunggi, and Girls' Generation's Yoona. This will not be Yoona's first awards show to host this year, as she was also a host for the 2011 KBS Entertainment Awards last week.

Additionally, Lee Seunggi has revealed on numerous broadcasts of SBS's "Strong Heart" that Yoona is his ideal type. Because of this, fans are anticipating a fun night.

The show will feature a dance battle between boy groups, a sexy stage from some of the industry's hottest artists, and more. Stay tuned to Koreaboo for coverage of the 2011 SBS Music Festival!

Source: My Daily

cr: koreaboo.com

4minute releases Android Apps

On December 22nd, 4minute released a few different mobile apps. These applications can be found on the Android market and are all 4minute themed. It is just in time for the holiday season. All of the applications are free. There is no iPhone application equivalent made yet, but netizens speculate iPhone / iPad versions will be released shortly.

One of the applications is a 4minute Alarm Clock. This application consists of alarm widgets for each member, hit songs, and personal voice messages. These sounds can be repeated for alarms, morning calls, repetition, or reminders for every hour. The current review for this application is 4.9/5 stars.

The 4minute Hidden Catch application is the second one that came out. It comes with HD pictorials and their new hit songs. The game is basically a find the difference game. The rating for this application is a perfect score, 5/5 stars.

The third game they released was the 4minute Slide Puzzle Game. This game comes with 30 HD pictorials and there are Daum Fan Cafe, Facebook, and Twitter interlocks. This makes communicating with other 4minute fans easy. This game is a puzzle type game / jigsaw where you move the puzzle pieces to make the picture. This application also received 5 stars.

Source: 4-minute International Forum

cr:koreaboo.com

Teen Top reveals cover art for upcoming mini album

TOP Media, the company behind Teen Top, has revealed the first teaser for the group's upcoming comeback. By revealing the group's comeback mini album cover art picture, fans are anticipating the group's comeback even more.

Ahead of their new album release, the group is set to participate in various year-end programs, and will present performances in their own style. Teen Top's company hopes that many fans will participate along with them.

Teen Top is set to release their comeback album on January 5th. A video for Teen Top's music video will be released on December 29th.

What do you think of their comeback concept picture?

Source: teentop

cr: koreaboo.com

BEAST to release three singles before making their comeback in Korea + Cube Entertainment's new boy group

On December 26th, it was announced that BEAST would be beginning their world tour in February of 2012. Cube Entertainment also released the first teaser for the concerts in Seoul on February 4th and 5th at the Olympic Stadium. The teaser featured Yoseob and revealed information such as where the tickets will be sold and when.

Cube Entertainment held a press conference on December 26th at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul and revealed BEAST's future plans. In addition to the announcement of the "BEAUTIFUL SHOW" world tour, it was also announced that BEAST would be releasing new tracks as well.

CEO Hong Seungsung stated at the press conference, "BEAST will release three singles between February and April. The first release, in February will be a ballad track, March's song will be hip-hop track, and April's track will be a medium tempo dance track. Around late April or early May, BEAST will be making their Korean comeback."

Additionally, Cube Entertainment revealed more information on their upcoming boy group. The group is scheduled to have seven members total. They will make their debut somewhere between late January and the middle of February. CEO Hong Seungsung stated, "Five of the members are on jTBC's 'Cheongdamdong Live' with Jo Kwanwoo. The other two members are practicing and recording tracks."

What do you think about BEAST's upcoming releases and "BEAUTIFUL SHOW' World Tour? Are you excited for Cube Entertainment's new boy group to debut?

Source: The Star

cr: koreaboo.com

BEAST releases Yoseob's "BEAUTIFUL SHOW" teaser for Seoul concerts

Earlier today, Cube Entertainment revealed that BEAST would be having a World Tour in 2012. The World Tour will start in February and continue for 35 weeks, stopping in 21 cities in 14 different countries. Cube Entertainment also revealed at the press conference earlier today that BEAST would be participating in the production stage of the concert as well and there will be state of the art technology including 3-D and special effects used at the concert.

Cube Entertainment also uploaded the first teaser for BEAST's "BEAUTIFUL SHOW" concerts. The teaser is for the Seoul concerts which will be held on February 4th (Saturday) and February 5th (Sunday) at the Olympic Stadium at 6PM. Tickets for the Seoul shows will be available starting on January 2nd on Interpark's website.

The teaser features Yoseob listening to music while BEAST's "You" is playing. Yoseob narrates the teaser and then videos from previous concerts and performances begin to play. Check out Yoseob's teaser for BEAST's "BEAUTIFUL SHOW" concerts in Seoul, below!


"BEAUTIFUL SHOW" concerts in Seoul - teaser (Yoseob Version)

Source: beastofficial

cr: koreaboo.com

Leeteuk’s sister is excited that her brother will be enlisting in the military?

Leeteuk‘s sister shared her thoughts on her brother enlisting in the Korean military.

On a recent episode of SBS Plus ‘Choi Yang Lak & Jung Chan Woo’s Cash Taxi‘, Park In Young, the sister of Leeteuk and her colleague Seo Ji Young got on board the cash cab.

Park In Young is currently working as a reporter for SBS ‘Midnight TV Entertainment‘ and both her and Seo Ji Young rode the cash cab in order to gift their ‘Midnight TV’ staff members with snacks.

While having a conversation, Park In Young excitedly remarked, “Leeteuk is going to be enlisting in the military soon. I think I’m going to have to upgrade my position and presence at home while he is gone.”

When the MCs asked why she was so eager to get rid of him, her colleague Seo Ji Young remarked, “There are different levels in the Leeteuk household. The treatment that the ever-popular Leeteuk receives and the treatment Park In Young receives is completely different,” causing the staff members to explode in laughter.

In related news, Seo Ji Young also shared a story of how she once placed her hands on the chest of world-star Rain.

Source & Image: Newsen via Nate

credit: allkpop

Park Yoochun to become the next ‘Lee Seung Gi’ of endorsements

Actor and member of idol group JYJ, Park Yoochun, is being coined the ‘second Lee Seung Gi‘.

Park Yoochun recently filmed a TV commercial for a new ramen product produced by a famous company. The highlight of the commercial is when Yoochun captivates his lady fans with his killer smile and whispers, ‘kiss myun‘, playing on the name of the product. Netizens who saw the CF remarked, “How can I not buy that ramen“, “He’s so sweet. Going to buy ramen right now“, and more.

Yoochun has also endorsed popular game consoles as well as pharmaceuticals brands with his fellow JYJ members. The fact that he has been endorsing a wide variety of products proves that the advertisement industry has taken notice of him.

The reasons why he was able to be successful as a sole advertising model separate from his JYJ members is due to his healthy and sweet image. A representative from an advertisement agency informed OSEN on the 20th, “Yoochun does not have a unique face that necessarily stands out, but his face looks natural and healthy. He is an effective model because he is highly popular as a member of JYJ and he appeals to the young consumers in their teens and 20′s.”

Another advertisement source remarked, “He broadened his fan base after he started acting, appealing to not only teens but viewers in their 30′s and 40′s. There are a lot of cases where large corporations select him as their first choice when it comes to a CF model. It seems like he has been continuously receiving a lot of proposals.”

Yoochun seems to be second to only singer Lee Seung Gi who is the current ‘king of CF’s with his wholesome, likeable image. Just like Seung Gi is endorsing a wide range of products from clothing to food, the advertisement industry reportedly sees the same potential in Yoochun to be well-received by consumers of all ages.

Source & Image: OSEN

credit: allkpop

Choi Siwon enjoys a year-end dinner with his trainer

Super Junior member Choi Siwon recently shared the above photo via his Twitter page and wrote, “A rather simple year-end dinner without alcohol. This is my trainer hyung whose face I am unveiling for the first time since ’09. I won’t reveal his name, but let’s just call him Guru Lee.”

In the photo, Choi Siwon is eating with his trainer at a restaurant and on the table sits a high stack of sushi plates. Choi Siwon earned the praise of netizens as his casual clothing could not hide his smashing good looks.

Netizens who saw the photo remarked, “I want to have a year-end dinner with Choi Siwon too“, “Food must’ve been good. They look happy“, and “How many plates is that? It’s a nice year-end dinner“.

Source & Image: MyDaily

credit: allkpop

U-KISS releases a special MV for their fans, “Lifetime For Kiss Me”

To cure the heartache left by their busy “Tick Tack” promotions in Japan, U-KISS has released a new single titled “Lifetime For Kiss Me“!

The song is a remake of UN‘s 2011 track, “Lifetime“, and the boys did their labelmate senior proud by incorporating a smooth melody reminiscent of the original track. However, U-KISS gave it a brighter touch to fill their fans with love and joy over the holiday season.

The boys will be returning near the end of the month to attend the year-end awards. Aside from their debut promotions in Japan, members Dongho and Hoon are busy with their drama, ‘Holy Land‘, while the others are pursuing individual activities of their own.

Check out “Lifetime For Kiss Me” below!

Source + Photos: Sports Chosun via Naver

credit: allkpop