Welcome to another edition of SB Week in Review. Here’s all the news you might have missed this week:

Headlines

  • Actor Lee Seo-won was charged with the sexual harassment and threatening of a female celebrity. Reportedly, he attempted to kiss and overstep personal boundaries, and continued to make physical advancements upon rejection. He is also said to have gotten angry and threatening with the aid of weapon. His company, Blossom Entertainment, has issued an apology on his behalf. He has lost his position as an emcee on Music Bank. His acting gig, About Time, has had him replaced by Dongjun from ZE:A.
  • Famous Korean YouTuber, Yang Ye-won, uploaded videos on Facebook and YouTube regarding an incident in which she was sexually harassed and illegally filmed in the nude. There has since been a petition requesting an statement from a government official, which has gained 100,000 participants as of May 18. Suzy has signed the petition as well.
  • The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has been in discussions with major Korean music streaming platforms to combat sajaegi. Changes to the workings of realtime music charts are expected to be seen; it could even be abolished.
  • Several artists from Fantiago Entertainment have requested dispute mediation over their exclusive contracts with the company. Due to the firing of their executive representative, Fantiago Entertainment is now considered to be running illegally as there is no one on the board that has more than 4 years of experience, which is required from the law. Following this, artists have requested mediation as their contracts could be considered invalid should Fantiago be recognised as an illegal business.

Debuts & Comebacks

  • Check out our playlist above for the compilation of all the comebacks this week!
  • BTS claims they’re sick of “Fake Love” in their title track for Love Yourself: Tear. Expect our review soon!
  • N.Flying asks “How R U Today” in comeback video for their fourth mini-album.
  • UNI.T, from The Unit, says “No More” to crossing lines in their debut.
  • Cross Gene wants to “Fly” for Zero, their latest album.
  • Eyedi takes the “Luv Highway” for her comeback.
  • Vinxen show off their rap skills in “Dark Adaptation“
  • Paul Kim says he gets “Additional” feelings in his new, groovy track.
  • Kanto asks you not to get “Salty” in his second mini-album, Repetition.

Teasers & Announcements

  • SHINee will be returning with their sixth album, The Story of Light, which will be released in 3 parts on May 28, June 11 and June 25. Every part will consist of 5 tracks, inclusive of one title track in each.
  • Boyfriend teased a special release on May 25, ahead of their seventh anniversary.
  • Pristin‘s first unit group will make their debut on May 27.
  • ONF will make a summer-themed comeback on June 7.
  • Wonder Girls‘ Yubin will be making her solo debut in June, most likely during the second week.
  • Momoland will return with their fourth mini-album in late June.
  • CL has been spotted in Mile 22‘s trailer for her Hollywood acting debut.

Other News

  • BTS will be returning to The Ellen DeGeneres Show on May 25.
  • Psy‘s 8-year-long contract with YG Entertainment has ended and he will not be renewing it.
  • It’s been revealed that T-ara‘s Jiyeon signed an exclusive contract with a Chinese company, Longzhen. The company will support all her activities, and she’ll be having her first fan meeting in the later half of 2018.
  • T-ara’s Hyomin has also signed a contract with Sublime Entertainment. Her solo debut is set to be in the earlier half of 2018.
  • Fiestar has disbanded as the contracts of all the members expired in April and were not renewed, except for Cao Lu.
  • FNC Add Culture has been renamed to SM Life Design Group, after SM Entertainment became the largest shareholder of the subsidiary, ahead of FNC Entertainment. 

(YouTube [1] [2] [3]. Naver: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13], MK Sports, SBS, Osen, Twitter. Images Via: Blossom Entertainment, SM Entertainment, Pledis Entertainment, The Ellen DeGeneres Show.)