Martial Law In South Korea Worrys The K-Pop Fans

South Korea's president may have set a world record for the fastest revocation of martial law by calling off the martial law just a few hours after initially announcing it in a fit of rage in the middle of the night. Those few hours, however short, left the international and local K-pop fans about the safety of idols serving their mandatory military service, as well as the future of the K-pop industry in general.

The situation also highlighted the significant role music plays in society. On the very day martial law was announced, G-Dragon's ”Coup D'Etat,” a track criticizing authority, began trending on South Korea’s music streaming services. Meanwhile, local K-pop stans have taken to the streets of Seoul, protesting with their lightsticks and playing aespa’s “Whiplash”,  BSS’s “Fighting”, and more, while demanding the president's impeachment.

[More information about the event]

NewJeans Gets Sued By ADOR

After NewJeans' recent press conference announcing their decision to leave ADOR and HYBE due to contract breaches and a failure to rectify the issues, ADOR responded by filing a lawsuit on December 3 with the Seoul Central District Court to confirm the validity of the exclusive contracts.

NewJeans countered, asserting that their trust in ADOR and HYBE had collapsed due to repeated contract violations and failures to protect the artists.

[ADOR’s Full Statement & NewJeans’ Response.]

This Week’s Notable Achievements

• According to Spotify Wrapped 2024, BTS, Jungkook, Stray Kids, Jimin, NewJeans, BLACKPINK, V, JENNIE, LE SSERAFIM, and SEVENTEEN are the top 10 most-listened-to K-Pop acts on the streaming platform.

• BTS RM's recent album, ”Right Place, Wrong People,” earned a spot on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Albums of 2024.

Upcoming Tours, Events, & Performances

• SM Entertainment has announced the lineup for SMTOWN Live in L.A, including WayV, Suho, Chanyeol, and NCT Dream.

• TVXQ, BTOB, MAMAMOO+, and Kep1er are scheduled to perform at the SUPERSOUND Festival 2024 in Macau.

• Hwasa of MAMAMOO has announced the dates and stops for her ”HWASA LIVE TOUR: Twits” in North America.

• SEVENTEEN are confirmed to perform ”LOVE, FAME, MONEY” (feat. DJ Khaled) at the Billboard Music Awards on December 12.

• K-Pop group KARD has announced dates for their 2025 North America ”NEW ERA” Tour via X.

• GOT7's Yugyeom is scheduled to perform at the HUA HIN BEACH COUNTDOWN 2025 on December 31 in Thailand.

ICYMI:

• Kim Wansun, KARA's Seungyeon, Secret's Jun Hyoseong, SISTAR's Soyou, and MAMAMOO's Hwasa will be part of SBS' special documentary ”Bodymentary: Confessions About 'Weight'”.

• GOT7's Jinyoung and Park Bo Young and IU & Byeon Woo Seok are set to star in ”Unknown Seoul” and ”Wife of a 21st Century Prince” respectively.

• JYP Entertainment has been ranked #3 on TIME's World's Best Companies for Sustainable Growth 2025 list.

Our Favorite Music From This Week

While Rosé's ”Rosie” reminds some of Taylor Swift and others of Avril Lavigne, one thing everyone can unanimously agree on is that with her debut album, Rosé has solidified her status as THE pop girl of K-Pop.

Lastly, V and Bing Crosby's ”White Christmas” feels like the ultimate jazzy Christmas song, with its rich bass vocals and melodic jingles. However, seeing V's recently deceased dog, Yeontan, in the music video was a somber surprise that left fans teary-eyed. May he rest in peace.

Twice feat. Megan Thee Stallion's ”Strategy,” while not as deep in meaning as other tracks on this list, is a girlypop anthem guaranteed to make you move your hips from the left to the right. That said, this song might have been better suited for a summer release.

Next Week’s Comeback Schedule

Sunday, December 8, 2024

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Monday, December 9, 2024

• FIFTYFIFTY: Digital Single ”Winter Glow”

• 8TURN: Digital Single ”Like A Friend”

• Rolling Quartz: Digital Single “RE.BOLD”

• HaSeul: 2nd Digital Single “Fragile Eyes”

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

• from20 X HELLO GLOOM: 2nd Single “Blue”

Wednesday, December 11, 2024

• YOUNITE: 1st Single Album ”Y”

• LE SSEEAFIM: 3rd Japan Single ”Crazy”

• ORβIT: 5th Single ”Xmas-time”

• UDTT: “RETRY”

Thursday, December 12, 2024

• L5ST: 2nd Digital Single ”Free Fall”

Friday, December 13, 2024

• Stray Kids: Mashup Video “合 (HOP)”

• Min Jiwoon: “Someone”

Saturday, December 14, 2024

N/A

— Javeria Yousuf

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