Hiexpat Korea

The Kpop World was trembled with a series of events that cause a lot of tension inside and outside of Korea. As a KPop fan myself, I believe 2014 has been a shaky year of our dear hallyu Stars. Here’s a quick recap as to the events that became recent headliners.

Idol Love Life

Nichkhun of 2pm and Tiffany of Girls Generation’s relationship status. Dating more so being committed in a relationship has been a ban and/or a no-no for Kpop Idols depending on the entertainment company they belong to. The case of Nichkhun and Tiffany is considered one of a kind as both belongs to a different entertainment company. Nichkhun has been known as the face of 2PM, a boyband from JYP Entertainment while Tiffany has been one of the main vocalist of the leading girl group, Girls Generation from SM Entertainment. On April 3, 2014, Nichkhun and Tiffany were confirmed to be in a relationship since December of 2013.

Sulli of f(x) has always been the cute and girly type of Kpop Idol but suffered tremendous backlash from fans and has to take temporary hiatus on her commitments with the 5-member group, f(x) from SM Entertainment.This is because of the confirmation on August 18, 2014 that she is and Dynamic Duo’s Choiza are in a relationship.

Kim Taeyeon and Baekhyun are two of the leading names in the Kpop World. Taeyeon is the leader the all-female group Girls Generation while Baekhyun is the lead vocalist of SM Entertainment’s rookie all-male group, EXO. In June 2014, Tae-yeon and fellow SM Artist Baekhyun were confirmed to be in a relationship since February of the same year. Fans were not happy with this news and led to Taeyeon’s public apology.

Lee Sungmin of Super Junior is set to marry his girlfriend whom he met in a stage play, Kim Sa-eun. He confirmed their dating status on September 24, 2014 and is to be married on December 13, 2014. Sungmin has been very active with Super Junior’s comeback album and it is very agreeable that love is in the air for you can vividly see his passion and happiness every time he performs all-out.

Idol Controversies

Aside from confirmed relationships and wedding date, controversies surround the Idols with the lawsuits, sudden member removal and rumor disbandment. These became viral and everyone (including me) awaits for further details and confirmation.

Jessica Outs from Girls Generation.

The name Jessica has been known for her undeniable charisma on stage. She has been a trainee of SM Entertainment and debuted as part of Girls Generation, the girl group behind famous Kpop songs such as I Got A Boy, Gee and Run Devil Run. Come October 2014, SM Entertainment released a statement that they will be continuing without Jessica with an 8-member Girls Generation. Following this is an update by Jessica saying that she was fired without explanation. As of today, Jessica and other members of SNSD has been moving on with the situation same as SM Entertainment.

Kris is known as the rapper with the deep voice and leader of EXO-M. On May 15, 2014, Kris filed a lawsuit against SM Entertainment to nullify his contract due to the suspected disagreements between him and SM Entertainment regarding his activities. The things is, Kris was also represented by the law firm that represented Han Geng, former Chinese member of Super Junior and now a solo artist in China, with his lawsuit in the same company.

YG Entertainment has been known through its 4-member female group 2ne1 releasing hits after hits from Fire, I Don’t Care, I Am The Best to newly released Crush Album’s Come Back Home and If I Were You. News about the girls group’s disbandment arose from CL’s attempt in the US Music Industry together with Minzy’s dropping 2ne1 from her social media accounts. Fans also commented about the raft in the relationship between 2NE1 leader, CL and Dara on their recently concluded concert based purely on their actions on stage.

Idol Mourning Headlines

From love and controversies we are now on the saddest part of this Kpop Earthquake. The Idol World has been mourning since the death of two members from Ladies’ Code under Polaris Entertainment.

Ladies’ Code just debuted last March 6, 2013 and made sad headlines on a car accident that led to the sudden death of members EunB (dead on the spot) and Kwon Ri-se (having never woken up from her coma).

Members Ashley and Zuny sustained minor injuries while bandmate Sojung had major injuries.

Fans pray for speedy recovery on the other members and healing of the heart for family, friends and colleagues in the industry.

Following the sad news, is another story of death when 16 concertgoers were confirmed dead while watching 1st Pangyo Techno Valley Festival held in Seongnam, Korea on October 17, 2014. The said festival was attended by 4Minute, T-Ara, JungGiGo, and Cherry Filter.

It is reported that the said fans wanted a better view on the stage area where the guests are performing but sadly the concrete barrier failed to held on the weight and crushed. More investigation about the incident is being held.

After all of these trembles, one can only wish success for the relationships that has been formed, clarity in behalf of the issues and peace for the mourning families. We all hope that 2015 will bring a better news for our Kpop Idols.

Entertainment

Tags: 2ne1, backpacker, Baekhyun, CL, exo, hallyu, Idol