Hello everyone, and welcome back to Week in Review. Here’s what you need to know going into the new week:

Headlines

  • A Pink received more death threats, including a bomb threat at this week’s recording of Music Bank. The studio was temporarily evacuated, but the show went ahead. Police say the threat was made from outside South Korea.
  • Meanwhile, SNL Korea raised ire for its portrayal of Korean cartoon character Michol (from Dooly), considered to be a racist caricature of Black people, using A Pink’s Bomi.
  • T.O.P appeared in court over his drug charges this week, admitting to all charges. He faces two years’ probation.
  • A week after her announcement, FNC Entertainment has officially confirmed Choa‘s departure from the group.

Debuts & Comebacks

  • MFBTY came out with compilation album FeelGhood.
  • Shannon Williams‘ MV for “Love Don’t Hurt” has been banned from broadcast for its adult themes and depictions of tattooing, but you can watch it via our weekly playlist, above.
  • BoA returned with “Camo,” which our reviewer considered to be a phenomenal release.
  • Crush is back with Outside.
  • Lee Hyori recruited Killagramz for “Seoul.”
  • Stellar released the ambitious MV for “Archangels of the Sephiroth.”
  • Hyolyn and Kisum teamed up with producer Groovyroom for iced tea CF “Fruity.”
  • A Pink returned with “Five.”
  • Heize is back with a new EP, and a summer rain-powered bump in the charts.
  • Nam Tae-hyun‘s South Club dropped debut EP 90.
  • G.Soul poured some “Tequila with new labelmate Hoody.
  • Bernard Park has decided to perform under the name his birth name NakJoon, and released “Blame,” featuring Changmo.
  • Up10tion returned with “Runner” and Star;dom.
  • Peniel put out his single, “That Girl,” for BtoB‘s solo single project.
  • Loona‘s Jinsoul put out “Singing in the Rain.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFxnK9XBk_E

Teasers & Announcements

  • On the 5th, girl group Favorite (previously known as Astory Girls) will debut with “Party Time.”
  • On the 6th, B1A4‘s Sandeul and Yoo Seung-woo will release collab single “Oppa.”
  • On the 9th, Red Velvet will be having a fruit-themed summer comeback.
  • On the 11th, rapper One will have his solo debut under YGE, working with Cha Cha Malone.
  • On the 19th, K.A.R.D will officially debut with EP Hola Hola. The co-ed group will also be embarking on a five-stop Europe tour in September.
  • Other July releases to look forward to:
    • G-Friend are joining the summer rush with a late July comeback.
  • The next Station release is a collaboration between Exo‘s Xiumin and NCT [insert preferred subunit name]‘s Mark
  • We’re getting a JJ Project comeback!

Other News

  • Lena Park will be getting married in Hawaii on July 15. Congrats to the happy couple!
  • Jun Ji-hyun is pregnant with her second child — cue the “awwww”s.
  • New couple alert!
    • Bora of disbanded group Sistar and Feeldog of Big Star have confirmed their six month relationship. Seems they hit it off while filming Hit The Stage.
    • After an initial denial, Girl’s Day‘s Sojin and singer Eddy Kim also announced that they are dating.
  • Big Bang‘s “Fantastic Baby” became the first K-pop group MV to pass the 300 million view mark on YouTube. Check out our review of both Alive MVs here.
  • BTS were named as one of the 25 most influential people online by Time.
  • Yoo Ah-in has been exempted from military service due to a bone tumour.
  • Boys24 member Yoo Young-doo issued an apology after being caught selling fan gifts online.
  • A short portion of Kim Soo-hyun‘s latest film, Real, showing co-star Sulli’s nude scene leaked online this week, just before the movie’s release. While nudity in Korean films isn’t out of the normal, Sulli’s ex-idol status and the poor reviews for Real, along with the film’s marketing strategies centred on said nudity, meant the footage spread like wildfire among fans and the Korean public.

(Ilgan Sports[1][2][3][4], MyDaily, News1[1][2], SMTown, Time, Twitter[1][2][3], V Live, Xsports News, Yonhap[1][2][3], YouTube[1][2]. Images via: SM Ent., Plan A Ent.)