POP BASE: 2NE1 & NWJNS Spotted with Kanye West, BSS's Hinted Collaboration with PSY, & more

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BooSeokSoon Performed in Front of South Korea's President One Day & at PSY's Concert the Next

As many know, SEVENTEEN's subunit BSS' song "Fighting," the K-Pop hit of 2023, was selected as the official cheering song for South Korea's Olympic team. However, both the song and BooSeokSoon continue to serve as South Korea's cheerleaders.

On August 23, the "2024 Paris Olympics Cheering Event" was held at an undisclosed hotel in Seoul, South Korea. The event was organized to encourage South Korean athletes, and as a token of appreciation, President Yoon Sukyeol and his wife attended. In a delightful surprise, BooSeokSoon performed "Fighting" in front of the athletes and the President.

The following day, on August 24, 2024, BooSeokSoon were spotted at the “Gangnam Style” creator and K-Pop legend PSY's Summer Swag 2024 concert. Initially, it seemed the subunit was there just to enjoy the show like other attendees, but soon they jumped on stage and performed "Fighting" while the surprised crowd sang along to every word. After the performance, PSY even hinted at a collaboration, saying, "Hoshi, how about a PSY x BSS collab?" to which Hoshi replied, "Call us anytime."

Considering BSS's current peak in popularity, hopefully, PLEDIS Entertainment will take notice and arrange a formal meeting to discuss the collaboration soon.

2NE1 and NEWJEANS Spotted at Ye's "Vultures 2" Listening Party in Seoul, South Korea

Recently, Kanye West visited South Korea for the listening party of his new album, "Vultures 2," held at Goyang Stadium in Seoul. This event was particularly significant as it marked the artist’s return to South Korea after 14 years, with his last performance in the country being at the Summer Week&T music festival in 2010.

While Kanye’s performance was, as expected, incredible, what really captured the attention of K-Pop fans were the attendees. Before the listening party even began, a few photos went viral featuring 2NE1's CL and Minzy, as well as NEWJEANS' Minji, Hanni, and Danielle, interacting with each other and with Ye himself.

The More You Know:

• nævis, aespa's virtual member, is entering the real world! This character is deeply embedded in aespa's lore and has even previously appeared in their music. nævis is set to make her debut as an artist in September with her single "Done." While there are already virtual idols in the K-Pop industry, like PLAVE and MAVE, these groups have real people behind the animated avatars who produce and sing the music. However, for nævis, we'll have to wait until September to find out if she will also be voiced by a real human artist or if her songs will be entirely AI-generated.

• It seems that BLACKPINK's member and LLOUD's CEO, LISA, has made history once again! On August 21, 2024, MTV announced the lineup for their 2024 Video Music Awards (VMAs), which includes LISA. This makes her the first-ever K-Pop soloist to perform at the VMAs in its 39-year history. Speculation is growing that the pop star will perform her recent global hit "ROCKSTAR" at the ceremony, scheduled to be held on September 12, 2024.

K-World Dream Awards 2024 Winners

K-World Dream Awards, formally known as "K Global Heart Dream Awards," was held on August 22 was held in the Jamsil Indoor Stadium in Seoul. With a star studded line-up, NCT 127, aespa, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, ZEROBASEONE, ITZY, ILLIT, to name a few, made the ceremony memorable. If you miss to watch the event, here is the list of K-World Dream Awards 2024:

Bonsang (Main Prize)

aespa, BIBI, ITZY, KISS OF LIFE, Lee Mujin, NCT 127, PLAVE, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, and ZEROBASEONE

Best Band Award

QWER.

Best Music Award

(G)I-DLE, IVE, LE SSERAFIM, SEVENTEEN, and Zico feat Jennie

Next Leader Award

BADVILLAIN

Music Icon Award

UNIS, HiFi Un!corn, and HelloLive

Global Star

P1Harmony

Best OST Award

Crush

Listener Choice Awards

Lee Mujin and JD1

Best New Trend Award

tripleS and PLAVE

The Global U-Pick Choice Trophy

ZEROBASEONE's Zhang Hao

Girl Solo Popularity Award

Jeon Yujin

Boy Solo Popularity Award

Kim Jaejoong

Best Producer Award

Shinsadong Tiger

Super Rookie Award

TWS and NCT WISH

Best All-Round Musician Award

Baekho and Lee Chaeyeon

Best Performance Award

Billlie, Ha Sungwoon, and NCT 127

Best Music Video Award

aespa and YOUNG POSSE

Best Artist Award

aespa and NCT 127

Our Favorite Songs From Last Week

K-pop's dance machine, TAEMIN, is back with a bang. Since this is the artist's first comeback with his new label, fans were eager to see how the album would turn out, and TAEMIN did not disappoint. The title track, "Sexy In The Air," is exactly what you'd expect — a sensual banger.

Although the music video doesn't seem to have the same budget that SM Entertainment used to provide, TAEMIN's stunning visuals and skillful choreography make the MV look worth a million dollars.

MAMAMOO's Moon Byul's repackaged album, “Starlit of Twinkle”, features tracks that capture both the bright vibe of summer and the solemnness of autumn, making its release timing — at the end of summer and the beginning of fall — perfect.

The track "Dear," in particular, stood out the most for us with his beautiful lyrics, “It's okay to wander a little, how about it? You can lean on me. / I'll give you all of myself, so just keep smiling like that. / I hope that you can be truly happier.” The song addresses comforting someone going through a tough time, and Moon Byul's sweet voice captures that emotion perfectly.

This Week's Comeback Schedule

Sunday, August 25, 2024

• eJe: Track "Finale"

Monday, August 26, 2024

• ZEROBASEONE: 4th Mini Album "CINEMA PARADISE"

• JAEHYUN (NCT): 1st Album "J"

• OH MY GIRL: 10th Mini Album "Dreamy Resonance"

• ADYA: Track "RIZZ"

Tuesday, August 27, 2024

• NOWADAYS: 2nd Single "NOWHERE"

• RESCENE: 1st Mini Album "SCENEDROME"

Wednesday, 28 August, 2024

• CHANYEOL (EXO): 1st Mini Album "Black Out"

• Hi-Fi Un!corn: 1st Album "FANTASIA"

• IVE: Japan 2nd EP "ALIVE"

• YUNSEOKCHEOL TRIO: Track “You and I had seen the same thing”

• V.O.S: Track “Say goodbye for no reason”

Thursday, 29 August, 2024

• BANG YEDAM: 2nd Mini Album "Good Vibes

Friday, 30 August, 2024

• LE SSERAFIM: 4th Mini Album "Crazy"

• WEi: Digital Single Album "LOVE2YOU"

• Song Min Kyung: Track "Turn It Off and On"

• FIFTY FIFTY: Pre-released Single "Starry Night"

— Javeria Yousuf

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