Ex-Super Junior member Hangeng withdraws a claim against SM Entertainment

Former Super Junior member, Hangeng, recently withdrew his claim against agency SM Entertainment.

On September 25th, the Seoul Court made an announcement that they received a request on the 21st from Hangeng’s attorney to cancel a claim they made against SM.

This is the latest event in the long legal battle between Hangeng and SM. Hangeng had initiated the lawsuit against the agency a while back, claiming that they placed abnormal working conditions upon him, which inspired fans to call it a ‘slave contract’.

Hangeng had explained, “Due to the unreasonable penalties that would arise if I broke the rules of the contract, I was forced to maintain the schedules given to me.”  He continued, “SM Entertainment had complete advantage over the contract, which asked for 13 years of service.”

After investigating the matter, the court released a judgment in favor of Hangeng in 2010, stating, “All three contracts – from the January 2003 contract, the altered contract from February 2007, and the affiliated contract from December 2007 – do not exist. Thus, Hangeng was waived from continuing the stated services on his contract.

At this time, SM had stated that they refused to accept this judgment, and would immediately appeal. It seems that Hangeng may have filed some sort of countersuit against SM’s appeal, but withdrew it for reasons unknown. Details have yet to be fully revealed, so stay tuned for further updates.

Source + Photos: seoulntn via Naver, Hankyung News

2NE1 reveals full Japanese MV for “Lonely”

On September 21st, 2NE1 released their debut Japanese album, ‘Nolza‘, which contained some exclusive music videos. “Lonely” was one of the clips included, and it’s finally hit the web!

For the Japanese version of “Lonely”, the girls filmed a brand new MV, and once again, they delivered some stunning visuals. To emphasize the theme of “loneliness”, 2NE1 is seen singing amidst falling snow, on an empty staircase, or standing amidst a sea of black umbrellas.

It’s definitely one of their prettiest MVs to date, so check it out below!

Hyuna tweets an adorable picture of the 4Minute girls!

Popular singer Hyuna has posted up another attention grabbing picture.

This time it’s with all of her 4Minute members.  Jihyun, Gayoon, and Sohyun are in the back of the photo hilariously pushing down the heads of Hyuna and Jiyoon.  The three of them wanting to get in the picture as well.

Take a look at their adorable expressions, it seems as if they are all making the ‘eeee’ sound with their mouths.  Or maybe they were trying to calm their nerves a bit, with a bit of fun, before they head on stage. Either way, it’s a cute picture of the group showing their close friendship.

The picture was posted on Hyuna’s Twitter page.  She commented on the picture saying, “We are doing well, like this.”

Netizens who viewed this photo commented, ”4Minute members seem to be doing well”, “all of them came out so pretty”,  and “this must be 4Minute’s charm!”

Source + Image: Hyuna’s Twitter

T-ara’s Soyeon shares a story about Park Gyuri’s warm heart

T-ara‘s Soyeon recently shared a heartwarming story about KARA‘s Park Gyuri.

On the upcoming episode of “Declaration of Freedom Saturday – Secret“, Soyeon revealed that Park Gyuri was different from other stars because of her approachability.

When talking about celebrities who are very cold or strict, Soyeon said, “Gyuri is not that type.”

She continued, “We have a senior-junior relationship because she attended the same high school as me. I was her sunbae at our high school, but since she debuted before I did, she’s a sunbae in the entertainment industry. She came up to me first and said, ‘Hi, sunbae. I’m Gyuri.’ I was really touched by that.”

The full story will be revealed on September 24th, when the show airs its full episode.

2NE1 and CEO Yang Hyun Suk talk about their success in Japan

 Recently, YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun Suk and girl group 2NE1 sat down for an interview and shared their thoughts about their recent success in Japan.

2NE1 released their debut album, “Nolza“, on September 21st, and it’s managed to grab 1st place on Japan’s Oricon charts for two consecutive days. Yang Hyun Suk gave a modest opinion of the matter, as he said, “2NE1 has just gotten their feet inside the door; they are receiving a lot of advice from K-Pop seniors who have already promoted in the industry.”

He continued, “Right now, we are just simply doing our best. It’s too early to think about success.”

Additionally, the CEO gave credit to SNSD and KARA for further expanding the Hallyu wave inside the country. “There’s no question that SNSD and KARA were among the first to successfully break into the industry, and thus many K-Pop idols including 2NE1 have made smooth transitions. Right now, we need to acknowledge that we are rookies in the industry and not get ahead of ourselves.”

2NE1, who witnessed firsthand the massive turnouts in their debut tour, commented, “We were really surprised that 12,000 fans came and filled the entire stadium. However, we won’t dare to think that we are popular in the business yet. We’ve promised each other that we will do our very best in our future concerts and be committed to whatever we do.”

According to reports, it’s expected that the girls will be raking in approximately 10 million USD from their Japanese tour alone. Up ’til now, the girls have sold 70,000 concert tickets, each ticket being sold at 7,500 yen while product sales in the stadiums have summed up to be 3 million USD.

Source + Photos: Osen

T-ara’s Qri reveals a fantasy-like selca

T-ara‘s Qri has revealed a new selca that makes her look like she’s just emerged from a romance comic.

On September 23rd, she tweeted, “My left, right up and down. It’s following me everywhere, what am I to do?”

Qri is seen leaning on the sofa while looking deep into the camera. Her big bright eyes and tall nose immediately captures one’s attention, and the sepia tone of the photo lends a fantasy-like charm.

Netizens commented, “She is a goddess”,” She is really pretty, she looks like the main character of a comic”, and “So stunning.”

2NE1′s Sandara thanks fans for #1 on Oricon

2NE1’s Sandara Park sent fans a special message thanking them for their #1 on the Oricon daily chart.

On September 22nd, Sandara wrote, “Clap Clap Clap! Today 2NE1 ranked #1 with our Japan debut on the Oricon Chart!”.

She continued, “On the Japanese iTunes Chart, we are #1! Thank you. I’m so happy that our music is able to reach many people! Until the day many more people can enjoy our music and enjoy our stages with us… 2NE1, let’s play!!”.

Sandara also posted a bright picture of 2NE1, who all smile brilliantly for the camera. Each member expressed their happiness over this new achievement with either a bright smile, a thumbs up, or a raised finger to represent ‘#1′.

Fans commented, “In Japan, 2NE1 is the best! Congrats on the #1 spot!”, “Congratulations!! Hope you guys become more successful!”, and “You all finally received the love and attention you deserve! We are so happy!”

2NE1 released their debut Japanese album on the 21st.

Source & Image: Naver

Super Junior’s Leeteuk expresses his excitement for first “A-Cha” comeback stage

On September 23rd, Super Junior‘s Leeteuk met up with reporters right before the group’s first performance of “A-Cha” at KBS‘s ‘Music Bank‘.

Leeteuk stated, “There’s a lot of anticipation running amongst us because this song is of a genre that Super Junior hasn’t tried yet. Instead of autotune, there are refreshing adlibs placed throughout the song that show a bit more of Super Junior’s vocal talent.”

He continued, “We spent a lot of time preparing this stage as a form of payback for the unexpected love we received for ‘Mr. Simple‘.  We were confident in ‘Mr. Simple’ because we all worked hard on the song and choreography, but it was also disappointing in that the members had drama filmings and army enlistments to tend to in the midst of it.  It still received so much love, which we’re grateful for.”

Concluding, Leeteuk said, “We’re just really thankful because it feels like we’re not being loved for our individual members, but for our brand as an entire group.”