The 2026 K-World Dream Awards has unveiled its performer lineup!
This year’s lineup includes ATEEZ, P1Harmony, RIIZE, AHOF, AND2BLE, SeeYa, QWER, ILLIT, and RESCENE.
Jun Hyun Moo and Jang Do Yeon will return as hosts for the fourth consecutive year.
This year’s event is especially meaningful as it marks the awards ceremony’s 10th anniversary. Originally launched in 2017 as the Soribada Best K-Music Awards, the ceremony has since evolved under its current name and, over the past decade, has helped promote K-content and K-pop worldwide while contributing to the global spread of the Korean Wave.
The 2026 K World Dream Awards will be held on August 27 at KINTEX in Goyang, South Korea.
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Music,2026 K-World Dream Awards,AHOF,AND2BLE,ATEEZ,ILLIT,Jang Do Yeon,Jun Hyun Moo,kpop,P1Harmony,QWER,RESCENE,RIIZE,SeeYa2026 K-World Dream Awards,AHOF,AND2BLE,ATEEZ,ILLIT,Jang Do Yeon,Jun Hyun Moo,kpop,P1Harmony,QWER,RESCENE,RIIZE,SeeYa#KWorld #Dream #Awards #Announces #Performer #Lineup1784554871
CORTIS, aespa, TWS, BABYMONSTER, LE SSERAFIM, ILLIT, And More Earn Circle Million And Platinum Certifications
Circle Chart has announced its latest batch of official certifications!
In 2018, the Korea Music Content Industry Association implemented a new certification system for album sales, song downloads, and online streaming. Starting with music released on or after January 1, 2018, Circle Chart now certifies albums platinum once they reach 250,000 sales, while albums that have sold a million copies or more receive a “million” certification.
This month, CORTIS earned two separate certifications for their latest EP “GREENGREEN.” The group received an official double million certification for selling over 2 million copies of the regular version of the album, while the Weverse version was certified double platinum for over 500,000 copies sold.
Meanwhile, aespa’s latest album “LEMONADE” and TWS’s 2025 mini album “play hard” were both certified triple platinum for selling over 750,000 copies each.
BABYMONSTER also received two certifications for their latest mini album “CHOOM.” The regular version of the EP was certified double platinum for over 500,000 copies sold, while the Nemo version was certified platinum for over 250,000 copies sold.
LE SSERAFIM’s “PUREFLOW” pt.1, ILLIT’s “I’LL LIKE YOU,” and AND2BLE’s “Sequence 01: Curiosity” were all certified double platinum for selling over 500,000 copies each.
Finally, ITZY’s “Motto,” ZEROBASEONE’s “Ascend-,” NMIXX’s “Heavy Serenade,” NCT’s Taeyong’s “WYLD,” XLOV’s “I,God,” CRAVITY’s “ReDeFINE,” and the Weverse version of NewJeans’ “Supernatural” were all certified platinum for selling over 250,000 copies each.
July Rookie Idol Group Brand Reputation Rankings Announced
The Korean Business Research Institute has revealed this month’s brand reputation rankings for rookie idol groups!
The rankings were determined through an analysis of the consumer participation, media coverage, interaction, and community awareness indexes of various rookie idol groups, using big data collected from June 1 to July 1.
RESCENE topped this month’s list with a brand reputation index of 5,078,631, marking a 167.76 percent increase in their score since June.
High-ranking phrases in RESCENE’s keyword analysis included “Woni,” “alter ego,” and “promotional ambassador,” while their highest-ranking related terms included “reveal,” “reverse climb,” and “surpass.” The group’s positivity-negativity analysis also revealed a score of 93.10 percent positive reactions.
CORTIS came in at a close second with a brand reputation index of 4,973,702, marking a 19.75 percent rise in their score since last month.
ILLIT took third place with a brand reputation index of 2,491,433, marking a 4.22 percent increase in their score since June.
KiiiKiii held onto their spot at fourth place with a brand reputation index of 1,482,967, marking a 63.59 percent rise in their score since last month.
Finally, TWS rounded out the top five with a brand reputation index of 1,171,023, marking a 31.49 percent increase in their score since June.
Check out the top 30 for this month below!
RESCENE
CORTIS
ILLIT
KiiiKiii
TWS
MEOVV
Hearts2Hearts
BABYMONSTER
XLOV
izna
AND2BLE
ALPHA DRIVE ONE
LNGSHOT
eite
KATSEYE
HEART OF WOMAN
KickFlip
ARTMS
IDID
UNIS
USPEER
SAY MY NAME
AHOF
idntt
Baby DONT Cry
SPIA
NAVILLERA
NEXZ
UNCHILD
NOWZ (formerly known as NOWADAYS)
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Celeb,AHOF,ALPHA DRIVE ONE,AND2BLE,ARTMS,Baby DONT Cry,BABYMONSTER,CORTIS,eite,HEART OF WOMAN,Hearts2Hearts,IDID,idntt,ILLIT,izna,KATSEYE,KickFlip,KiiiKiii,kpop,LNGSHOT,MEOVV,Navillera,NEXZ,NOWZ,RESCENE,SAY MY NAME,SPIA,TWS,UNCHILD,UNIS,USPEER,XLOVAHOF,ALPHA DRIVE ONE,AND2BLE,ARTMS,Baby DONT Cry,BABYMONSTER,CORTIS,eite,HEART OF WOMAN,Hearts2Hearts,IDID,idntt,ILLIT,izna,KATSEYE,KickFlip,KiiiKiii,kpop,LNGSHOT,MEOVV,Navillera,NEXZ,NOWZ,RESCENE,SAY MY NAME,SPIA,TWS,UNCHILD,UNIS,USPEER,XLOV#July #Rookie #Idol #Group #Brand #Reputation #Rankings #Announced1782862768
2026 “Inkigayo Live In Tokyo” Announces Lineup
SBS has revealed its lineup of performing artists for this year’s “Inkigayo Live in Tokyo”!
On June , SBS announced its plans for the upcoming event, which will take place over two days on September 22 and 23 at the Belluna Dome in Japan.
The lineup for the 2026 “Inkigayo Live in Tokyo” will include TXT, IVE, RIIZE, CORTIS, Hearts2Hearts, KiiiKiii, &TEAM, NiziU, KickFlip, AND2BLE, ALPHA DRIVE ONE, IDID, INI, Ado, Ikuta Lilas, BE:FIRST, and HANA.
For more information, check out the official website here!
Music,Ado,ALPHA DRIVE ONE,AND2BLE,andTEAM,BE:FIRST,CORTIS,Hearts2Hearts,IDID,INI,Inkigayo,Inkigayo Live in Tokyo,IVE,KickFlip,KiiiKiii,kpop,Lilas,NiziU,RIIZE,TXTado,alpha drive one,and2ble,andteam,be:first,cortis,hearts2hearts,idid,ini,inkigayo,inkigayo live in tokyo,ive,kickflip,kiiikiii,kpop,lilas,niziu,riize,txt#Inkigayo #Live #Tokyo #Announces #Lineup1782545248
Watch: Performances From “Music Core” 2026 Ulsan Music Festival
The June 20 episode of MBC’s “Music Core” was a special summer festival in Ulsan!
The artists who performed at this year’s Ulsan Music Festival included BOYNEXTDOOR, RIIZE, MEOVV, KiiiKiii, STAYC, fromis_9, ALPHA DRIVE ONE, AND2BLE, KickFlip, izna, Billlie, tripleS, N.Flying, xikers, CLOSE YOUR EYES, Baby DONT Cry, EPEX, IDID, LUCY, Park Ji Hyeon, dodree, and Mighty Mouth.
Check out all the performances aired during the special episode below!
BOYNEXTDOOR – “VIRAL”
RIIZE – “Bag Bad Back” and “Do your dance”
MEOVV – “DDI RO RI”
KiiiKiii – “404 (New Era)”
STAYC – “2 LOVE”
fromis_9 – “LIKE YOU BETTER”
ALPHA DRIVE ONE – “OMG!”
AND2BLE – “Curious”
KickFlip – “Eye-Poppin’”
izna – “METRONOME”
Billlie – “WORK”
tripleS – “Baby Flower”
N.Flying – “In Between Seasons”
xikers – “OKay”
CLOSE YOUR EYES – “POSE”
Baby DONT Cry – “Bittersweet”
EPEX – “ECHO”
IDID – “FLY!”
LUCY – “All Ages”
Park Ji Hyeon – “Mu”
dodree – “LILAC”
Mighty Mouth – “Tok Tok” (featuring Soya)
Music,Music Show,Video,ALPHA DRIVE ONE,AND2BLE,Baby DONT Cry,Billlie,BOYNEXTDOOR,CLOSE YOUR EYES,dodree,EPEX,fromis_9,IDID,izna,KickFlip,KiiiKiii,kpop,Lucy,MEOVV,Mighty Mouth,Music Core,N.Flying,Park Ji Hyeon,RIIZE,STAYC,tripleS,xikersalpha drive one,and2ble,baby dont cry,billlie,boynextdoor,close your eyes,dodree,epex,fromis_9,idid,izna,kickflip,kiiikiii,kpop,lucy,meovv,mighty mouth,music core,n.flying,park ji hyeon,riize,stayc,triples,xikers#Watch #Performances #Music #Core #Ulsan #Music #Festival1782015940
Zhang Hao Talks About His Time On “Boys Planet,” A New Beginning With AND2BLE, And More
Zhang Hao has recently sat down with Singles magazine for a pictorial and interview!
In the interview, Zhang Hao candidly shared stories about how music has shaped him from childhood to the present. While majoring in classical violin, he became fascinated by K-pop after seeing a performance by GOT7, which led to his decision to move to South Korea and take on a new challenge.
Reflecting on the time he spent fiercely competing as a contestant on “Boys Planet,” he shared, “When I look back now, I sometimes wonder, ‘How did I do that?’ That’s why I often go back and watch my old performances. There’s a video that’s my personal favorite. It’s from the first mission performance on ‘Boys Planet,’ and it was my very first time performing K-pop music on stage. When I watch it, I can feel the passion and determination I had back then. The energy in that performance was truly something special.”
Zhang Hao, who has grown considerably through numerous performances since his “Boys Planet” days, was asked whether he felt nervous about his new beginning as the leader of AND2BLE. He replied, “I wanted to show everyone how much I’ve grown. As the team went through changes, we talked a lot about how we needed to become completely united. We traveled together and stayed up all night talking, and our teamwork grew stronger as a result. We’ve become like a family.”
Zhang Hao also shared his goals, saying, “I want to create performances and music that all five members can be satisfied with. Going forward, I also want to make music that can bring comfort to anyone who listens to it.”
He also conveyed a heartfelt message to fans, saying, “I hope our fans will always look forward to the Zhang Hao of tomorrow. I’ll continue working hard to show an even better side of myself and live up to your expectations.”
Zhang Hao’s full pictorial and interview can be found in the July issue of Singles magazine.
TREASURE, I.O.I, CORTIS, ZEROBASEONE, AKMU, BTS, And ILLIT Top Circle Monthly And Weekly Charts
Circle Chart has revealed its latest monthly and weekly chart rankings!
Monthly Album Chart
CORTIS topped the physical album chart for May with their recent EP “GREENGREEN,” which claimed two of the top three spots on the monthly chart. The regular version of the EP debuted at No. 1, while the Weverse version charted separately at No. 3.
aespa’s new album “LEMONADE” debuted at No. 2 for May, while LE SSERAFIM’s “PUREFLOW” pt.1 entered the chart at No. 4 and ZEROBASEONE’s “Ascend-“ followed at No. 5.
Weekly Album Chart
TREASURE achieved a double crown on the weekly charts, topping both the physical album chart and the digital download chart with their new mini album “NEW WAV” and its title track “IF I.”
tripleS’s “LOVE&POP” pt.1 debuted at No. 2 on this week’s physical album chart, trailed by AND2BLE’s “Sequence 01: Curiosity” at No. 3.
MEOVV’s “BITE NOW” entered the chart at No. 4, with SHINee’s “Atmos” rounding out the top five for the week.
Monthly Download Chart
ZEROBASEONE topped the digital download chart for May with their latest title track “TOP 5,” which debuted at No. 1.
NCT’s Taeyong’s solo song “WYLD” entered the monthly chart at No. 2, with ILLIT’s “It’s Me” rising to No. 3.
I.O.I’s long-awaited reunion track “Suddenly” debuted at No. 4, and NMIXX’s “Heavy Serenade” came in at No. 5.
Weekly Download Chart
TREASURE’s “IF I” debuted at No. 1 on this week’s digital download chart, while I.O,I’s Suddenly” and aespa’s “LEMONADE” rose to No. 2 and No. 3 respectively.
SHINee’s new title track “Atmos” entered the chart at No. 4, followed by tripleS’s “Baby Flower” at No. 5.
Monthly Digital Chart + Streaming Chart
AKMU achieved a double crown on the monthly charts, topping both the overall digital chart and streaming chart for May with their hit song “Paradise of Rumors.”
The top five songs on the overall digital chart and streaming chart were exactly the same this month: AKMU’s “Paradise of Rumors” came in at No. 1 on both charts, with CORTIS’s “REDRED” at No. 2, ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 3, AKMU’s “Joy, Sorrow, A Beautiful Heart” at No. 4, and Hearts2Hearts’ “RUDE!” at No. 5.
Weekly Digital Chart
I.O.I topped this week’s overall digital chart with their long-awaited comeback track “Suddenly,” which jumped to No. 1.
CORTIS’s “REDRED” stayed strong at No. 2, trailed by ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 3.
aespa’s “LEMONADE” jumped a whopping 82 ranks to take No. 4 for the week, and AKMU’s “Paradise of Rumors” rounded out the top five.
Weekly Streaming Chart
CORTIS’s “REDRED” continued its reign at No. 1 on the weekly streaming chart, while I.O.I’S “Suddenly” climbed to No. 2.
ILLIT’s “It’s Me” ranked No. 3 for the week, with AKMU’s “Paradise of Rumors” holding relatively steady at No. 4 and aespa’s “LEMONADE” rocketing to No. 5.
Monthly Global K-Pop Chart
BTS maintained their double crown on the monthly charts, topping both the global K-pop chart and the social chart for the second month in a row.
BTS’s long-running hit “SWIM” maintained its position at No. 1, while HUNTR/X’s “Golden” (from the “KPop Demon Hunters” soundtrack) similarly held onto its spot at No. 2.
CORTIS’s “REDRED” leaped 26 ranks to take No. 3 for May, followed by ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 4.
Finally, BLACKPINK’s Rosé and Bruno Mars’ hit collab “APT.” jumped back into the top five on the monthly chart.
Weekly Global K-Pop Chart
BTS “SWIM” and HUNTR/X’s “Golden” also swept the No. 1 and No. 2 spots on the weekly global K-pop chart.
aespa’s “LEMONADE” soared to No. 3 on the weekly chart, with CORTIS’s “REDRED” at No. 4 and ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 5.
Monthly Social Chart
BTS remained No. 1 on the monthly social chart for May, trailed by ILLIT at No. 2, BLACKPINK at No. 3, IVE at No. 4, and aespa at No. 5.
Weekly Social Chart
ILLIT held onto their spot at No. 1 on the weekly social chart, with BTS coming in at No. 2, Yena at No. 3, aespa at No. 4, and LE SSERAFIM at No. 5.
Congratulations to all of the artists!
Watch ZEROBASEONE in “Idol Festa Attack” on Viki below:
Watch Now
And check out BTS’s docu-series “BREAK THE SILENCE” below:
Watch: ILLIT Takes 3rd Win For “It’s Me” On “Inkigayo”; Performances By SHINee, BABYMONSTER, And More
ILLIT has won a third music show trophy for “It’s Me”!
On the June 14 episode of SBS’s “Inkigayo,” the candidates for first place were I.O.I’s “Suddenly,” aespa’s “LEMONADE,” and ILLIT’s “It’s Me.” ILLIT ultimately took the win with a total of 5,168 points.
Congratulations to ILLIT! Watch a clip of the winner announcement below:
Performers on today’s show included SHINee, BOYNEXTDOOR, BABYMONSTER, TREASURE, MEOVV, izna, EPEX, AND2BLE, Samuel, IDID, Mighty Mouth, HEART OF WOMAN, CrazAngel, Cristina x Yoo Jae Pil (YJP), and EJel.
Check out their performances below!
SHINee – “Atmos”
BOYNEXTDOOR – “VIRAL”
BABYMONSTER – “SUGAR HONEY ICE TEA”
TREASURE – “IF I”
MEOVV – “Hit ‘Em” and “DDI RO RI”
izna – “R.I.P.” and “METRONOME”
EPEX – “ECHO”
AND2BLE – “Aura”
Samuel – “ZIGI-ZIGI-ZIGI”
IDID – “FLY!”
Mighty Mouth – “Tok Tok” (featuring Soya)
HEART OF WOMAN – “Lost in Proof”
CrazAngel – “Picasso”
Cristina x Yoo Jae Pil (YJP) – “So That’s How It Is”
EJel – “Summer Equation”
Music,Music Show,Video,AND2BLE,BOYNEXTDOOR,CrazAngel,Cristina,EJel,EPEX,HEART OF WOMAN,IDID,ILLIT,Inkigayo,izna,kpop,Mighty Mouth,Samuel,SHINee,Treasure,Yoo Jae Piland2ble,boynextdoor,crazangel,cristina,ejel,epex,heart of woman,idid,illit,inkigayo,izna,kpop,mighty mouth,samuel,shinee,treasure,yoo jae pil#Watch #ILLIT #Takes #3rd #Win #Inkigayo #Performances #SHINee #BABYMONSTER1781422895
Watch: I.O.I Takes 1st-Ever “Music Core” Win With “Suddenly”; Performances By BABYMONSTER, BOYNEXTDOOR, And More
I.O.I has won their first music show trophy for their 10th-anniversary hit “Suddenly”!
On the June 13 episode of MBC’s “Music Core,” the candidates for first place were I.O.I’s “Suddenly,” ILLIT’s “It’s Me,” and aespa’s “LEMONADE.” I.O.I ultimately took the win with a total of 7,815 points, marking their very first time winning first place on “Music Core” since their debut 10 years ago.
Congratulations to I.O.I! Watch a clip of the winner announcement below:
Performers on today’s show included BOYNEXTDOOR, BABYMONSTER, TREASURE, izna, MEOVV, tripleS, FIFTY FIFTY, AND2BLE, EPEX, Mighty Mouth, Samuel, IDID, HEART OF WOMAN, Queenz Eye, CrazAngel, XODIAC, and EJel.
Watch: tripleS Takes 2nd Win For “Baby Flower” On “Music Bank”; Performances By BOYNEXTDOOR, AHOF, And More
tripleS has won their second music show trophy for “Baby Flower”!
On the June 12 episode of “Music Bank,” the candidates for first place were TREASURE’s “IF I” and tripleS’s “Baby Flower.” tripleS ultimately took the prize with a total of 7,990 points, marking their very first win on a public broadcast music show.
Congratulations to tripleS! Watch the winner announcement below!
Performers on today’s show included tripleS, BOYNEXTDOOR, AHOF, MEOVV, izna, FIFTY FIFTY, AND2BLE, HEART OF WOMAN, IDID, Samuel, EPEX, Queenz Eye, XODIAC, CrazAngel, EJel, and Mighty Mouth.
Watch the performances below:
tripleS – “Baby Flower” and “Sad Girls Schemin’”
BOYNEXTDOOR – “VIRAL”
AHOF – “Sugar High”
MEOVV – “DDI RO RI”
izna – “METRONOME” and “R.I.P.”
FIFTY FIFTY – “Like a Bubble”
AND2BLE – “Aura”
HEART OF WOMAN – “Lost in Proof”
IDID – “FLY!”
Samuel – “ZIGI-ZIGI-ZIGI”
EPEX – “ECHO”
Queenz Eye – “Y2K”
XODIAC – “Phantom Fire”
CrazAngel – “Picasso”
EJel – “Summer Equation”
Mighty Mouth – “TOK TOK” (feat. DinDin and Soya)
Watch full episodes of “Music Bank” with English subtitles below:
