YoonA for ‘Innisfree’

SNSD’s YoonA continues her run as Innisfree’s spokesmodel with the release of a new CF for the cosmetics brand.

In the new CF, the idol revealed the secrets behind how one could keep their skin dewy and moist. She spilled the beans on green tea’s ability to keep the moisture in one’s skin. She says in the CF, “If you plant the green tea seeds from Jeju Island in your skin in the morning, they keep your skin hydrated all day.”

No wonder YoonA’s skin is so radiant!

What are the hottest songs of the 2000s?

Melon, a beloved source for Korean music, just released its list of top songs of the last decade from 2000 – 2010. Still, it’s valuable information and I bet there are people fighting on the forums right at this moment over how their favorite artist is over or underrated on this chart. Anyway, the chart showed some recognizable trends and varieties, which we will examine after the cut.

Top 10 from the list:

SNSD – Gee
Brown Eyes – Little by Little
Yoon Do Hyun – I must’ve love you
Big Bang – Last Goodbye
MC The Max – Time to Love
Brown Eyes – Already 1 Year
BoA – No. 1
Big Bang – Haru Haru
Position – I Love You
Wonder Girls – So Hot

Before we actually begin analyzing the list, here is how Melon calculated their chart: 40% was tallied from streams on their website and the other 60% from downloads on their website for the songs released after 2005. For songs from 2000 to 2004, it was 70% record sales and 30% air time respectively.

At the top of this chart we see the wildly famous ‘Gee’ from SNSD, with Brown Eyes and Yoon Do Hyun each tossing in hits of their own. Then the list shows a mix of R&B/ballad singers along with idols, 5 out of the top 10 being idols and the other half being ballads. The genre of Hiphop peaks at 31 with Jo PD, followed by Epik High at 43. One thing to note is that trot actually didn’t make an appearance, despite Jang Yoon Jung and her massive hit Umuna. Another thing to note is that anything that would be considered hard rock or heavier are nowhere to be found; all rock bands that showed up on the chart did so with songs that lean towards their softer side.

Hence, the Korean music industry according to Melon’s chart can be summed up as idols and ballad singers sharing the big pile while the rest nibble on crumbs.

While the list is very easy to understand and is from a source many love and trust, it does have loopholes and should be taken somewhat with a grain of salt. First, the chart that they refer to for rankings of songs released before 2005 uses a different calculation method and is not compatible with Melon’s chart. I would advise not to use this chart when making a comparison between a song released before 2005 and a song released after 2005. Second, the chart was compiled by ranking songs in order of how much streaming and downloads were made from Melon’s webpage. So sales made from other sources, such as people who bought the physical CD instead of downloading it from Melon, or people who bought their music from other websites, are not accounted for here. It also does not count for technological development and legal changes that happened along the way. For example, people used P2P programs such as Soribada to illegally download music until 2006, when the government finally shutdown Soribada. We have experienced much chance between 2006 to 2010 too, as digital music market showed growth while CD sales kept diving, meaning that newer songs have the advantage here. Those that studied economics might be familiar with the term inflation – and this chart isn’t adjusted for it. In short, the older the song is, the higher the chance that it is underrated or placed inappropriately on Melon’s chart.

Stay tuned to allkpop as we wait for Melon’s chart for hottest songs of the next decade in the 2010s. Hopefully, I’ll still be around then.

Girls' Generation 'Gee' Tops Melon 2000 chart crowned K-pop song of the decade

In the 2000's, the Korean music industry has replaced the ballad genre that was so dominating since the 1980's with idol groups who focus on dance music. Girl groups like Wonder Girls, Kara, 2ne1 and boy groups like Big Bang and 2PM have all become the strongest influences in the mainstream music industry. In the end, the song of the decade of the 2000's was 'Gee' by Girls' Generation.

The accomplishment of being named song of the decade is made even more impressive by the fact that 'Gee' was released at the end of the decade in 2009. With a record-setting nine consecutive wins on Music Bank, 'Gee' left an impressive impact that solidified Girls' Generation's status as the dominating force in the Korean music industry.

Making a stand in the midst of the trend of idol groups and girl groups are "Pure Talent" singers. Korea's representative R&B icons, Brown Eyes, managed to place as a dark-horse second in the chart with the song 'Little by Little'. Ballad, rock and other genres have also been significant in the Korean music industry. The past decade has drawn a distinct line between music "to be seen" and music "to be heard".

However, the decade's most attractive genre were idol groups and girl groups who were born at the heart of dance music. Their influence has grown to the point where their activities are considered to be at the center of South Korea's pop culture. Girls' Generation, Wonder Girls, Kara, Big Bang, Super Junior, 2PM, 2AM, SHINee and other idol groups' busy activities close out this decade with a dominating presence.

After ending the decade as one of Korea's top musical groups, Girls' Generation will now attempt to leave the same powerful impression on Japan. With the recent release of 'MR. TAXI' and the prospect of a full Japanese concert tour, the girls appear to be off to a good start in working towards that goal.

Girls' Generation Japan Tour Attracts 300,000 people

There are already early signs of the success of Girls' Generation's Japan concert tour.

The group's first arena concert tour in Japan is gaining much attention for attracting close to 300,000 applicants for tickets. After such heated response, SM Entertainment decided to include 3 more additional concerts, so a schedule for 10 performances in 6 cities was confirmed.

Starting May 31st and ending on July 17th, the concert arena tour venues will include Tokyo, Osaka, Saitama, Nagoya, Fukuoka and Hiroshima. The Girls' Generation craze in Japan is expected to continue, with a total of 100,000 people estimated to attend the tour.

Girls' Generation held their first solo concert in Seoul and Shanghai last year, showing off their live performances as well as showcasing the attractive members and their colorful stages. Their influence that is fast spreading throughout Asia and beyond confirms the positive reactions from fans. There is much anticipation for the group's first arena tour in Japan, and there are high expectations from fans now more than ever.

On April 27th, Girls' Generation released their Japanese single, 'MR. TAXI', which peaked 1st at Japan's biggest mobile ringtone download chart, Rekochoku.

Girls' Generation New Japanese Album Sets SM Entertainment Stocks Soaring

SM Entertainment, the company that houses girl group Girls’ Generation, is waiting in anticipation for the sales reports of the soon-to-be released Japanese single album, ‘MR. TAXI’.

On April 25th, SM Entertainment’s stock prices on the KOSDAQ market finished the day at 19,600 won, which is 4.26% (800W) higher than the previous day. During trading, the share price at one point hit a high of 6.91%. The company’s shares significantly increased to 1.12 million shares from 280,000 shares.

The company’s strong showing in stock prices is interpreted to be a reflection of the high expectations of girl group Girls’ Generation’s Japanese single album ‘MR. TAXI’ due to be released on April 27th. According to the company, Girls’ Generation will release the single containing songs ‘MR. TAXI’ and ‘Run Devil Run’ and begin full-fledged activities in Japan thereafter.

Though the stocks stumbled last month in light of the recent earthquakes in Japan, stock market experts foresee them heading towards a positive direction as soon as SM artists start Japan promotions.

Samsung stock researcher Gong Taehyun states that “With the recent Japanese earthquakes, people’s mindsets towards investing in SM were less optimistic. But as Girls’ Generation’s activities resume, there are less worries now. Girls’ Generation has the biggest sales in terms of Japan-related activites as reflected from the first 4 quarters. If the SMTown concert in Japan is confirmed, results will further improve.”

Stay tuned for more updates on the girls and their Japanese activities!

SNSD release full music video for “Mr. Taxi”!

Following the ‘Dance Version’ PV that was released earlier this week, Shoujo Jidai (SNSD) has just revealed the full regular PV for “MR. TAXI“.

Unlike the previous video, this one features close-up shots of the members in addition to their energetic dancing.

Check it out below!

SM Entertainment to develop an entertainment complex

SM Entertainment, in a consortium along with two real estate development companies, Fides and M Studio City, have been selected as developers of a new visual-cultural-recreational complex (yeah man, seriously, that’s what they named that thing), titled “Jo Kam Do“, literally meaning, “Bird’s Eye View”.

Now here comes the wall of text about basic info of the place: City of Munkyung in Northern Kyungsang province, where the complex will be built, selected the three companies for development of its ambitious project. The complex will cost Munkyung 43 billion Won ($40 million U.S.) and the total area of 888,168㎡ will be divided up into three sectors; Sae Jae, Ga Eun, Ha Nae, with construction of Sae Jae beginning this year. The first sector, planned to be complete within the first half of 2012, will include indoor and outdoor filming studios, recreational facilities such as spa and water park, visual section with stages for performances and facilities for autograph sessions, and so on.

Now is the more relevant part for those of you that are wondering where SM comes into all of this.

Since this park is being built in the countryside far away from Seoul, Korea’s capital that is famously holding close to half of the national population in its area, it needs to differentiate itself from other theme parks and recreational complexes in order for people from Seoul to travel down there and keep the area alive by feeding it cash. That, is where our friends in the idol business come in; as they provide the complex with the contents of their company. Different zones named after their celebrities, including, but not limited to, SNSD, TVXQ, Super Junior, SHINee, f(x), and BoA, will be offering fan meetings and autograph sessions.

There is also a plan to have the stars stay at the hotel in the complex and then name the room that they stayed in after them, so that their fans would want to stay in the same room their idol did.

Might sound a bit weird or creepy, but hey, there are people out there that are willing to spend extra just so they can sleep in the same bed that Changmin or Yuri did. In short, SM’s involvement is to spice the complex up with some flavour of its idols.

SM is not the only entertainment industry representative in the game though; movie director Kang Jae Kyu is to take part in this project as a shareholder and shoot his movies in the studios in this complex. Mr. Kang was the director of Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War, the 4th highest-grossing film in Korean history, so I guess we can say he is pretty famous… making him a strong ally.

The city of Munkyung doesn’t really have many tourist attractions, and the complex is planned around the concept that it will create itself; that is, unlike the traditional method of putting hotels/restaurants/bars where a tourist attraction already exists (like a beach or a hot spring), they’re building the tourist attraction themselves along with all those other things – like a Disney Land.

In this case, the major attraction isn’t Mickey and Snow White; it is what SM has to offer. It is really up to them to get people down there and spend money. Will Jo Kam Do become a major attraction and a centre of hallyu wave, or will we end up studying about it in business class as a case of complete failure? Whatever the result may be, I look forward to writing about this baby in future.

Can’t wait for them to finish building it. Can you?

Stay tuned to allkpop for a few years as they build that thing from scratch.