K-Star · Premium
Every KTRENZ story — exclusives and originals down to the daily newsdesk.
Show Champion airs August 19 with WayV, KiiiKiii, No Brain, and school band Splayit's debut on a lineup mixing K-pop and rock.
8/19/2026
Mimi dropped the Bosh version MV teaser for her first solo single on Aug. 18 via Oh My Girl's YouTube. The full single arrives Aug. 20 at 6 PM.
8/18/2026
KiiiKiii's mini album 3 'WhyKiiiKiii' landed all 6 tracks across Apple Music, Melon, and Spotify Korea. First-week sales hit ~82,000 copies—double the prior album.
8/18/2026
'Swim' lands nods for Song of the Year and Best K-pop. 'Golden'—the Grammy and Oscar-winning film track—also competes for Song of the Year.
8/18/2026
ENHYPEN teased *Bloody Paradise* on Aug. 17 via HIVE Labels YouTube. The full MV drops Aug. 22; the album arrives Aug. 21.
8/18/2026
Kim Sung-ryung takes the role of Amanda in The Glass Menagerie, running Oct 17–Nov 22 at Seoul Arts Center's CJ Towol Theater.
8/18/2026
On Mnet's Street World Fighter: Director's War, Renan claimed she built 80% of aespa's 'Whiplash' choreography and deserved its 2024 Choreo Award. She lost the battle round 9-0 to Shimizu.
8/18/2026
SBS Plus's history variety show aired its 'Classified Documents' episode on Aug. 18, spotlighting King Jeongjo's 297 secret letters to political rival Sim Hwan-ji, discovered in 2009.
8/18/2026
BIGBANG release digital single 'BiiiG' on Aug 19, their first official group track as a three-member lineup and first new music in 4 years and 4 months.
8/18/2026
DK posted a final photo with Seungkwan and said goodbye to fans before enlisting in the Army on September 8.
8/18/2026
Hollys, South Korea's first espresso specialty shop, just signed its first-ever brand model: rookie group RESCENE.
8/18/2026
Episode 5 of tvN's '최애의 사원' hit 4.0% nationally and No. 1 in cable. Nam Da-reum accepts a confession from Lee Chan—then accidentally kisses Kang Ha-gi.
8/18/2026
Song Min-jun won TenAsia's June 10–16 reader poll on which male trot singer could drag them outside in a heat wave. Kim Jung-yeon and Park Se-wook placed 2nd and 3rd.
8/18/2026
RIIZE's B-side from their third Japanese single 'Sunburst' (out September 26) will be the official cheering song for December's 79th National High School Basketball Championship in Tokyo.
8/18/2026
Seven acts confirmed for the August 27 ceremony in Goyang, with Jeon Hyun-moo and Jang Do-yeon returning as MCs for a fourth straight year.
8/18/2026
A former YG producer and competition show vocalist remake a 2009 Tei and Kan Mi-yeon duet with a wedding-concept music video, out August 18.
8/18/2026
Titan Contents is dropping a K-pop adventure drama called '3+4!' in September, with AtHeart's second single arriving Aug. 19.
8/18/2026
Weki Meki's Kim Do-yeon is under positive review for the female lead in 'We Are Zombies', a Naver webtoon adaptation starring Do Kyung-soo.
8/18/2026
The Korean remake of the 2015 American film drops its second poster Aug. 18, with Choi Min-sik as a 37-year-career intern and Han So-hee as a fashion startup CEO.
8/18/2026
E.G Entertainment dropped a ballad duet on August 18 from two vocalists who'd already hosted a YouTube talk show together.
8/18/2026
ZEROBASEONE teased 'Existence (イグジステンス)' at midnight on Aug. 18, one day before their second Japanese EP '回帰LOVE' arrives.
8/18/2026
Chungha's dropping 'México' on September 1. The digital single arrives about 7 months after February's 'Save me', and fans are voting on the cover via V-STAGE until August 21.
8/18/2026
Hanbin performed both tracks from his first digital single live at Everland on Aug. 17, ahead of the Aug. 24 release.
8/18/2026
Six-member multinational boy group TRYTHAT release house-driven dance pop track 'Frequency' as their first music ahead of a full debut.
8/18/2026
Hyukoh returns with 'GODSPEED!' on August 18, their first new music in six years. The MV casting has ignited backlash.
8/18/2026
Singer-actor Kim Dong-jun makes his debut as the show's first non-pet-owner special MC on Channel A's dog rehabilitation series, airing August 19 in episode 31.
8/18/2026
Netflix confirmed the Extraction 3 cast on August 17, with Ma Dong-seok among five new additions joining returning stars Chris Hemsworth, Idris Elba, and Golshifteh Farahani.
8/18/2026
WeJiSu released 'ROMEO' on August 18, the third entry in her digital single series, with rising actor Shin Woo-bin starring opposite her in the music video.
8/18/2026
PD Choi Jung-nam said he's taking the editing controversy 'seriously' as *Street World Fighter: Director's War* premiered August 18 at 10 PM on Mnet.
8/18/2026
Tiger JK and Yoon Mi-rae's first duet in eight years arrives August 20—a seasonal track that breaks from their usual R&B and hip-hop sound.
8/18/2026
Kim Do-i, 19, beats 1,000 candidates for lead role in *Vampir*. Director Jang Jae-hyun's full cast locked; filming starts August, 2028 release planned.
8/18/2026
Modusea hit multiple KCON LA 2026 stages Aug. 14–16, covered One Direction, and got a Billboard shout-out for their crowd singalong.
8/18/2026
SF9 drop their second regular album 'TENACITY' on the 26th, marking a decade since their FNC Entertainment debut.
8/18/2026
Im Young-woong teases 'IM HERO 10', a special digital album arriving September 8 at 6 PM to mark his 10th debut anniversary, plus three stadium shows.
8/17/2026
N.MIX has already wrapped the title track MV for their October album. A world tour finale lands in November, followed by a Japan debut best album in December.
8/17/2026
'Dracula' holds at No. 8 on the Hot 100 for the Aug. 22 chart week, with 12 cumulative top-10 weeks and 32 straight weeks at No. 1 on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs.
8/17/2026
Kim Hye-soo plays a 1M-follower influencer CEO in Coupang Play's *It's Not About the Affair*. Five episodes in, the 8-part series has hit #1 on the platform.
8/17/2026
The comedian appeared on KBS 2TV's 'Maljasho' on Aug. 17 and reacted to sharing chart space with Jennie and G-Dragon.
8/17/2026
Pansori singer Kim Jun-su returns to *Salome* at Mapo Arts Center Aug 21–23, then tours nationally. He's also self-producing a crossover mini-album for his September 27 birthday.
8/17/2026
Episode 3 of SBS dating reality show 'My Remaining Romance' aired Aug 17. Kang Min-young's bucket list date: wear school uniform, eat instant tteokbokki with Kim Seon-ho.
8/17/2026
Mnet and tvN's new choreographer competition show premieres Aug 18 at 10 PM, with pre-release content already surpassing 100 million views.
8/17/2026
Netflix's 'Donggung' didn't build a palace—it borrowed pieces from seven locations across South Korea, from Gyeongbokgung to a university pond in Asan.
8/17/2026
Park In-soo, who brought soul music to Korea with 1970's '봄비', died of pneumonia on Aug. 18, 2025, aged 78. Today marks one year.
8/17/2026
Aug. 17 brought table tennis and wish-granting to *My Remaining Romance*—plus a school uniform date that had Choi Ye-na calling foul.
8/17/2026
JENNIE closed the MOUNTAIN stage at Summer Sonic 2026's 25th anniversary edition across Tokyo and Osaka, wrapping her seventh headline festival slot of 2026.
8/17/2026
SEVENTEEN's youngest member released a trot-EDM solo album this month under the alternate persona '피철인', with a first solo concert coming this week.
8/17/2026
Jessica Bang, an 18-year-old Korean-Australian golfer, collapsed on August 13 in Bangkok while competing in a KLPGA qualifying tournament.
8/17/2026
YENA closes her Asia tour with a two-night encore concert August 22–23, after performing 'Catch Catch' in a marine-look stage at 2026 SBS 가요대전 Summer.
8/17/2026
