K-pop J-Pop News: 2013

Rabu, 30 Januari 2013

Back to Basics – January Edition III

Hello and welcome to another edition of Back to Basics, where we take a look back at the accomplishments that Girls’ Generation has achieved and also at some minor details that I feel are important and fun to know as a SONE. This edition will cover the month of January 2012. If you have missed the previous editions for this month or would like to do a little bit of rereading, click here for the years 2008 to 2010 and here for the year 2011. There is never too much to read when it comes to our favorite girls!
K-Pop has become an international force around the world, and it’s no surprise that Girls’ Generation has a lot to do with the success of the ever-expanding Hallyu wave. Even though the girls could have stayed content with their status as South Korea’s national girl group and their rising popularity in Asia, they took a chance with an attempt at breaking into the American market. To critics, it was a ridiculous notion to fit in where Girls’ Generation didn’t belong. To some fans, it was a risk they should have never taken. But for Girls’ Generation, it was a step in a direction to be the best that they can be. It is no mere coincidence that they have arrived at a destination where no other girl group could have ever imagined to have reached. This is what sets them apart from the rest; they dared to be different. In the impervious world of K-Pop, where predictable standards are dictated by unchanging societal trends, artists have a tendency to take comfort in the familiar, simply because it is easy. Think about it; if Girls’ Generation had followed the crowd, the crowd would have never regarded them as examples to follow.
2012: There were always hard times, but I was able to overcome those hard times because of my members. I’m thankful to my members. -Tiffany

With the recent release of “The Boys”, Girls’ Generation began to inch their way into the United States. Who would have ever thought that American radios and television programs would feature Girls’ Generation and their music? I, for one, never did.
Girls’ Generation was able to release a U.S. special album, which contains remixes from their digital extended play (EP) and the songs from the original Korean album, “The Boys”. “The Boys” physical album placed second on Billboard’s “World Albums” chart and took the 22nd spot on the “Heatseekers Albums” chart. The highlight of their promotion in the United States, albeit a short promotion, was when Girls’ Generation arrived in New York City for a fansign event and to tape performances of “The Boys” on two popular American shows, “The Late Show with David Letterman” and “LIVE! with Kelly”. “The Late Show with David Letterman” aired on January 31st. Even though it may not have been the widespread success that they had hoped for, they were still moments that Girls’ Generation can be proud of.
Pieces and Fragments of January
2012
• The remix of “The Boys”, which featured hip hop legend Snoop Dogg, was played on the Boston radio station JAMN 94.5. The radio station is one of the biggest stations in the city.
• “The Boys” remix version was aired on a German radio on January 4th at 10 PM CET. It was played on one of the most popular radio stations in Hesse.
• The first episode of “Wild Romance” aired on January 4th. Jessica made her first appearance on the sixth episode, which aired on January 25th.

• A live event for the popular Korean drama, “Athena: Goddess of War”, took place on January 7th and 9th at the Saitama Super Arena in Japan. Along with a performance of “If”, Taeyeon performed the drama OST “I Love You”, which Taeyeon sang live for the first time.
• “Access Hollywood”, an American television show, mentioned Girls’ Generation performing at Madison Square Garden during “SMTOWN Live ’10 World Tour” in New York, as well as the release of the “The Boys” in the U.S. market.
• MTVK selected Girls’ Generation’s “The Boys” as one of the most memorable music videos of 2011.
• Yuri won the “Hottest Female Artist” award at the third “Philippine K-pop Awards”.
• ”The Boys” English version was played through the stereo systems of Melbourne’s largest David Jones store, David Jones Bourke St.
• The animated movie “Koala Kid: Birth of a Great Hero”, in which Sunny dubbed for the character Miranda, was released on January 12th.
• The official music video for “Koala Kid: Birth of a Great Hero” featured Girls’ Generation’s “Himnae”.

• Girls’ Generation performed at Hong Kong as part of their “Girls’ Generation – The 2nd Asia Tour” on January 15th.
• In a review comparing the games “Battlefield 3? and “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3?, Ryan Clements, an IGN editor, mentioned Girls’ Generation as something he loves and is devoted to.
• Yoona was appointed an honorary ambassador for Joong-gu, Seoul on January 9th.
• Girls’ Generation’s first Japanese album, “Girls’ Generation”, which was released on June 1st of 2011, surpassed the one million copy shipments mark on January 11th, only half a year later.
• Girls’ Generation’s first Japanese album, “Girls’ Generation”, was certified Triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan, or the RIAJ.
• According to Gaon charts, “The Boys” album was the best selling single album of 2011 with 385,348 sold. “The Boys” album sold more than their previous albums “Oh” and “Hoot” combined, which came in second and third in total sales in 2010.

• Girls’ Generation won the “Digital Daesang” award for “The Boys” at the “26th Golden Disk Awards” on January 12th. They became the first girl group to receive a total of three “Daesang” awards (“Digital Daesang” in 2009 and “Golden Disk Daesang” in 2010), the highest number of “Daesang” awards any idol group has ever received.
• On January 14th, Girls’ Generation broke the record for the fastest concert to sell out in Thailand, selling 11,000 concert tickets in 20 minutes, setting the record for a concert to be sold out the fastest in Thailand. Bangkok hosted the “Fanta Playtime Presents Girls’ Generation Tour” on February 12th in Impact Arena.
• Yoona and Seohyun participated in the SM Fashionistas’ photoshoot with fashion magazine “W” for the French fashion brand “CARVEN”. It was an open studio shoot, and it was filmed and broadcasted live on January 21st through SMTOWN and W Korea’s YouTube channels.

• On January 16th, LG Electronics chose Girls’ Generation as its new model for the Cinema 3D TV product line.
• Girls’ Generation was given their own artist page on MTV’s official website under the section, “Artists A-Z”.
• A copy of Yoona’s handprint sold for seven million won.
• Girls’ Generation was mentioned in popular news sites, Huffington Post and The Atlantic. The articles covered the excitement from the Republic of Korea Armed Forces over Girls’ Generation’s visit for their Christmas special on MBC.
• Yuri and Yoona’s names appeared on a college administration test in Japan, which tested for proficiency of the Korean language.
• Girls’ Generation’s first Japanese album, “Girls’ Generation”, became the first album by a Korean artist to place in the Top 10 for 17 weeks on Oricon’s “Weekly Album” chart. The girls also held the record among foreign artists for the most album sales in a week for a debut album with 232,000 copies sold.

• Jessica’s OST song for “Wild Romance”, ”Perhaps”, was released on January 19th.
• The members performed “The Boys” on SBS’s “2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics Concert” on January 22nd.
• The cast of “Invincible Youth 2?, which Sunny and Hyoyeon were a part of, were appointed honorary ambassadors for the city of Ansan-si on January 18th.
• According to YesAsia’s “YumCha!”, products from Girls’ Generation were the best sellers for K-Pop on YesAsia in the year 2011. “The Boys” was the best-selling K-Pop album, while the “Paradise in Phuket” and “1st Asia Tour” DVDs were the first and second best-selling K-Pop DVDs of the year. They were also listed as the best-selling female K-Pop artist. Finally, Girls’ Generation also had the best-selling J-Pop releases of 2011, with the best-selling album, “Girls’ Generation”, and the best-selling single, “MR. TAXI / Run Devil Run”.
• Multi-media entertainment website, Just Jared, featured “The Boys” remix version as their “Music Monday” choice on January 23rd.
• On January 25th, Girls’ Generation performed at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo for the first ever collaborative fashion event between Korea and Japan, called “KISS” (“Korean International Style Show”). Jessica was not present due to her filming schedule for “Wild Romance”.
• Sunny made a surprise appearance in Brown Eyed Girls’ member Miryo’s first solo album video teaser on January 26th.
• In an episode of “Invincible Youth 2”, it was revealed that one of Girls’ Generation’s nicknames for Sunny is “60Sunny”, because she acts like someone who was born in the 60s.
• On January 28th, Sunny was cast for the role of Brenda in the musical, “Catch Me If You Can”.
• January 28th was Yuri’s last day as an MC for MBC’s “Show! Music Core”. Taeyeon and Seohyun replaced Yuri, joining Tiffany as MCs for the show.
• Tiffany completed her final performance for the musical, “Fame”, on January 29th.
• Seohyun appeared in a CF for THEFACESHOP with Kim Hyunjoong, who is well known for his previous role in “Boys Over Flowers”.
Shows of the Month:
[SoShi Subs][2012.01.09] Fuji TV Mezamashi TV Athena Dramatic Concert – Taeyeon Cut
[SoShi Subs][2012.01.12] Fuji TV Mezamashi TV 23rd International Jewellery Tokyo Awards – SNSD Cut
Awards Achieved:
• “International Jewels and Accessories Show” – “Best Jewellery Dresser” on January 12th
• “26th Golden Disk Award” – “Digital Bonsang” and “Digital Daesang” for “The Boys” on January 12th
• “21st High1 Seoul Music Awards” – “Bonsang Award” and “Popularity Award” on January 19th
• “Japan Gold Disc Award 2012? – “Best Album of Asia” on January 27th

Don’t forget to celebrate Soshified’s fifth year anniversary on February 1st! See everyone next month.
Written by: taengsoshi@soshified
Edited by: MoonSoshi9@soshified
Photos by: TangPa, yoonyul.com, Sports Daily, LG Electronics, Soshified Gallery
Have a news item that you think Soshified should know about? Leave us a tip or e-mail us at [email protected]
Follow us on Twitter – http://twitter.com/soshified – for the latest on Girls’ Generation.

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Sunny Completes Final ‘Catch Me If You Can’ Performance

On January 30th, Sunny completed her second run as “Brenda” for the musical “Catch Me If You Can” with two outstanding performances, one at 4:00 PM KST and another later at 8:00 PM KST. After holding her first stage on December 15th, Sunny finished her final show after over a month and a half of performances.
Girls’ Generation members and fans alike have shown their support throughout Sunny’s return to the musical scene, with last night being no different as SONEs came out to cheer for “Brenda” one last time. A small event was prepared with pink lightsticks and a banner that read, “As expected, Kyurenda is the best!!”. The banner is a play on Girls’ Generation’s own popular phrase, “As expected, SONEs are the best!!”, which they have been saying to fans during the weekly music shows. May 12th of last year marked the end of Sunny’s successful debut as “Brenda” and this time around, she again showed her dedication and talent that fans have come to recognize and adore.
With “Catch Me If You Can” coming to a close, as well as Girls’ Generation’s “I Got A Boy” promotions ending soon, the girls are preparing for their highly anticipated second Japanese tour, with the first concert being held February 9th in Kobe. Nonetheless, SONEs everywhere want to congratulate Sunny once again for reprising the role of “Brenda” in amazing performances of “Catch Me If You Can”.
Sources: TangParadise, [email protected]
Written by: kt9823@soshified
Edited by: bhost909@soshified, MoonSoshi9@soshified
Have a news item that you think Soshified should know about? Leave us a tip or e-mail us at [email protected]
Follow us on Twitter - http://twitter.com/soshified - for the latest on Girls’ Generation.

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Sandaime J Soul Brothers’ Iwata Takanori sick with flu

On January 29th, it was reported that Sandaime J Soul Brothers performer Iwata Takanori caught the flu.
Iwata was confirmed to have the flu after getting an examination at the hospital. He’s currently recuperating at home, and his return will depend on his recovery.
As such, Iwata was absent from the group’s appearance on Fuji TV’s variety program, ‘Waratte Iitomo!‘, on the 29th.
Source & Image: Oricon

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Takei Emi produces her first wedding dress collection

On January 29th, actress Takei Emi held a presentation event for her wedding dress collection, ‘f-emi collection emi takei‘.
For this collection, Takei designed a total of 14 dresses. At the event, she modeled a pure white dress with pearls glittering across the chest and a sky blue dress with a big ribbon on the back. “I designed them hoping that people who wear them will glow,
” she commented.
Regarding her own marriage, Takei said, “I have a strong yearning for it, so I want to,
” and revealed that her ideal partner would be, “someone who is kind, and not too perfect, missing something.”
She continued with a smile, “I want to hold a wedding ceremony secretly at a small place and take a picture together with my family.
”
Source & Photos: Sanspo

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Versailles’ KAMIJO to make solo debut this summer

It’s been revealed that KAMIJO, the vocalist from visual kei band Versailles will be making his solo debut this summer.

KAMIJO is currently in the middle of producing songs for his debut. His band members as well as members from his previous band LAREINE will also be participating in the recording.
KAMIJO announced his upcoming plans in front of 100 fans at a reception party on January 30th. This marked his first public appearance after Versailles put a stop to their activities last year. He enchanted the fans by singing 3 songs such as Versailles’ “SFORZANDO” and LAREINE’s “Fuyu Tokyo“.
Versailles released their 3rd album, “Anthologie“, on January 30th. They will also release a live DVD called ‘CHATEAU DE VERSAILLES -FINAL-‘, which will include the band’s final concert at NHK Hall.
Stay tuned for more details on KAMIJO’s solo debut!
Source & Image: Oricon

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Japan Box Office Report & Trailer Park – December 26th/27th

(02) 'Ted' / (01) 'Strawberry Night' / (03) 'Life of Pi'
In a tough battle for the top spot on the box office chart, the new Japanese mystery thriller ‘Strawberry Night‘ – starring Takeuchi Yuko – emerged victorious over American comedy ‘Ted‘, which did extremely well even on its second weekend.
In third place opened the visually stunning ‘Life of Pi‘, while the rest of the chart was filled with movies that already opened one week ago or even earlier. ‘Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo.‘ managed to climb back up from 14th place into the top ten again.
The new movie with Abe Hiroshi, ‘Tsuya no Yoru Aru Ai ni Kakawatta, Onna-tachi no Monogatari‘, only opened in the twelfth position.
—
Japan Box Office Chart – January 19th/20th

01 (00)

Strawberry Night (Weeks: 01)

02 (01)

Ted (Weeks: 02)

03 (00)

Life of Pi (Weeks: 01)

04 (02)

Tokyo Kazoku (Weeks: 02)

05 (03)

Les Miserables (Weeks: 06)

06 (05)

ONE PIECE FILM Z (Weeks: 07)

07 (04)

Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters vs. Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger: The Movie (Weeks: 02)

08 (06)

Hunter x Hunter: Phantom Rouge (Weeks: 03)

09 (07)

Looper (Weeks: 03)

10 (14)

Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo. (Weeks: 11)
(Note: The ranking is not based on the revenue, but the number of sold tickets!)
Short Facts:
- ‘Strawberry Night’ opened with 241,095 viewers (311 screens) and a revenue of 317,935,400 Yen (3,506,827 USD)
—- Viewer breakdown: 32% men, 68% women
—- 27.4% in their twenties; 18.2% in their forties; 15.8% in their late teens
—- 15.3% in their thirties; 14.2% in their fifties
—- 70.0% loved the TV drama and/or love the cast
#
- ‘Ted’ 2nd weekend results – viewers: 222,895 / revenue: 330,542,000 Yen (3,645,878 USD)
- ‘Ted’ cumulative results – viewers: 760,484 / revenue: 1,063,018,100 Yen (11,725,089 USD)
#
- ‘Life of Pi’ opened with 219,536 viewers (713 screens) and a revenue of 329,795,700 Yen (3,637,646 USD)
- ‘Life of Pi’ cumulative results (3 days) – viewers: 279,886 / revenue: 415,561,800 Yen (4,583,646 USD)
—- Viewer breakdown: 50% men, 50% women; mostly appealed to a younger audience
#
- ‘Tokyo Kazoku’ cumulative results – viewers: 647,021 / revenue: 684,878,100 Yen (7,554,205 USD)
- ‘ONE PIECE FILM Z’ cumulative results – viewers: 5,368,560 / revenue: 6,493,154,400 Yen (71,619,493 USD)
#
- ‘Evangelion’ was added to 94 more cinemas this week due its great popularity
- ‘Evangelion’ cumulative results – viewers: 3,731,375 / revenue: 5,143,875,650 Yen (56,736,948 USD)
—
Trailers of all Japanese movies that opened this weekend:

?????????
Genre: Suspense, Mystery, Drama (Rated PG-12)
Director: Sato Yuichi

Cast:
Takeuchi Yuko
Nishijima Hidetoshi
Osawa Takao
Koide Keisuke
Ukaji Takashi
Maruyama Ryuhei
and more…
—

????? ???????????????
Genre: Love, Drama (Rated R-15)
Director: Yukisada Isao
Cast:
Abe Hiroshi
Koizumi Kyoko
Nonami Maho
Fubuki Jun
Maki Yoko
Kutsuna Shiori
and more…
—

??
Genre: Drama (Rated R-15)
Director: Otomi Izumi
Cast:
Misaki Ayame
Aoyagi Sho
Mizuhashi Kenji
Tajima Yusei
NorA
Suzuki Ryohei
and more…
—

??????????
Genre: Drama
Director: Riju Go
Cast:
Hashimoto Ai
Kiyozuka Shinya
Mickey Curtis
Yoshizawa Hisashi
Yanagi Yurei
Aitsuki Akiko
and more…
—

???????
Genre: Crime, Suspense (Rated PG-12)
Director: Kadoi Hajime
Cast:
Sato Eriko
Kitamura Kazuki
Wakamura Mayumi
Mimoto Masanori
Sugimoto Tetta
Sakata Masanobu
and more…
—

??????????
Genre: Youth, Drama (Rated PG-12)
Director: Nakamura Yoshihiro
Cast:
Hamada Gaku
Kurashina Kana
Nagayama Kento
Haru
Naomi Ortega
Tanaka Kei
and more…
—

????~??????????????~
Genre: Drama
Director: Aikawa Yoshihiro
Cast:
Nagatsuka Kyozo
Suga Kenta
Nounen Rena
Fukuda Saki
Suzuki Hiroki
Higa Rino
and more…
—

???????
Genre: Mother-Child Drama
Director: Nakamura Daisuke
Cast:
Suzuki Sawa
Ishigaki Yuma
Owada Shinya
Imai Masayuki
Sawada Ayako
Takahashi Kento
and more…
—

????????
Genre: Omnibus, Horror
Director: Nakano Takao
Cast:
Yashiro Minase
Natsume Suzu
Masuda Yuki
Tsuda Eisuke
Narita Risa
Kato Meguro
and more…

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Shukan Bunshun reports AKB48’s Minegishi Minami spent the night at Shirahama Alan’s place

On the latest issue of “Shukan Bunshun” (BUNGEISHUNJU Ltd.) that was published on January 31st (JST), it was reported that AKB48’s Minegishi Minami spent the night at Shirahama Alan’s place on the 17th of this month.
Shirahama is a popular member of GENERATIONS that made a major debut last year as EXILE’s “little brother” group. He has appeared on some dramas like “GTO” and “Rokudenashi BLUES” last year, and he also starred in late-night drama “Sugarless.”
Minegishi and Shirahama co-starred together in a reading drama “Moshimo Kimi ga.” back in 2011.

Speaking of Minegishi, she is known for her “unpopular character” as she states on the media how she is unpopular with guys even though she is one of the more popular members in AKB48. Thus, the fans of both Minegishi and Shirahama are agitated by the report.
Both Minegishi and Shirahama’s agencies did not make a comment regarding this issue, but they explained that “We heard they’ve been friends ever since they co-starred together
.”
Though AKB48 is known for their “no romantic relationship allowed” rule, AKS’s answer was that “We have not yet fully assessed the current situation.
”
Source & Image: Shukan Bunshun WEB + Matome NAVER + RBB TODAY
Thanks to Ain & stela for the tip!

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Oricon Weekly Charts for 1/21 ~ 1/27

Oricon has released its weekly charts for January 21st to the 27th.
Take a look at the results below!
===
<Weekly Single Ranking>

1. “Help me!!” – Morning Musume : 1/23 (93,286)
2. “Promise You” – SUPER JUNIOR – K.R.Y. : 1/23 (69,067)
3. “Miss you / Hohoemi no Saku Basho” – AAA : 1/23 (39,831)
4. “Music” – Sakanaction : 1/23 (35,065)
5. “THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA MASTER 013 Totoki Airi (Apple Pie Princess)” – Totoki Airi : 1/23 (19,870)
(Check out the full ranking here.)
-
<Album Weekly Ranking>

1. “JUSTICE” – GLAY : 1/23 (57,224)
2. “GUILTY” – GLAY : 1/23 (56,627)
3. “Take Me Home” – One Direction : 11/14 (35,209)
4. “18? – Yoshii Kazuya : 1/23 (30,043)
5. “800BEST -simple is the BEST!!-” – MONGOL800 : 1/23 (24,082)
(Check out the full ranking here.)
-
<Music DVD Weekly Ranking>

1. “ARASHI ARAFES” – Arashi : 12/26
2. “Momoclo no Kodomo Matsuri 2012 ~Yoiko no Minna Atsumare!~” – Momoiro Clover Z : 1/23
3. “Debut 35 Shunen Kinen Matsuyama Chiharu Summer Live in Tokachi” – Matsuyama Chiharu : 1/25
4. “Up All Night: The Live Tour” – One Direction : 8/8
5. “Momoclo Natsu no Bakasawagi SUMMER DIVE 2012 Seibu Dome Taikai” LIVE DVD – Momoiro Clover Z : 12/24
(Check out the full ranking here.)
===
Source: Oricon

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Actor Kwak Do Won wants Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon to make her acting debut

During the screening for upcoming film ‘Wrath of Ethics‘ at the Lotte Cinema on the 30th, actor Kwak Do Won received attention by revealing his wish for Girls’ Generation‘s Taeyeon to make her acting debut .

Kwak Do Won stated, “I am anticipating and hoping that I will be cast in more [melodrama] movies in the future. If there are people willing to cast me… I hope that Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon starts acting. Please try acting,”
calling out Taeyeon to make her acting debut in the near future.
The actor also opened up about his first kiss scene and shared, “I filmed the kiss scene all day long, and my female co-star was very beautiful. I was so nervous that I fasted and gargled [mouthwash] all day. But the actress ate four meals. Actresses are more confident I think. She originally said it was her first kiss scene, but later on she was the one to encourage me.”
‘Wrath of Ethics’ will premiere on February 21st.